The Skinny: Philadelphia 3, Isles 1

"The Skinny"      

By Eric Hornick

Game 24

Philadelphia 3, Isles 1

Kevin Hayes broke a 1-1 tie midway through the first period and Carter Hart made 23 saves as the Philadelphia Flyers earned a split of the home-and-home series with a 3-1 victory over the Islanders before a crowd of 18,143 at Wells Fargo Center.

Noah Dobson had given the Isles the early lead on a 5-on-3 but that was the Isles' only goal of the game.  Travis Sanheim scored a shorthanded goal 1:25 later to even the score.  Hayes' empty-netter completed the scoring to spoil a 30 save effort from Ilya Sorokin and stop a 10-game Flyer winless streak (0-7-3).

The loss ends the Isles' four game winning streak as they end November with 10-5-0 record.  The Isles host Nashville on Friday to begin a three-game home stand, and a stretch of five games in the Metropolitan area.

The Scoring:

1st Period

Noah Dobson (7) Mathew Barzal (24), Brock Nelson (12) 03:12 NYI 1,PHI 0 PPG

Travis Sanheim (2) Noah Cates (5), Lukas Sedlak (4) 04:37 NYI 1,PHI 1 SHG

Kevin Hayes (7) Lukas Sedlak (5) 09:45 NYI 1,PHI 2

2nd Period

No Goals

3rd Period

Kevin Hayes (8)EN Ivan Provorov (10) 19:26 NYI 1,PHI 3

The Skinny 

Noah Dobson is now third among NHL defensemen with seven goals (Erik Karlsson-11 and Rasmus Dahlin -8)… The Isles went 1-4 on the power play; the power play is now 8-25 in the last eight games and has scored in fourth straight (5-13).…The Isles fell to 10-2-0 when scoring …The Isles are 6-2-0 in divisional games this season…The Isles were outshot for the 16th time this season; their ten wins when being outshot are the most in the NHL…Mathew Barzal has 11 points in his last nine games (2-9-11)… Barzal still leads the team in assists (23) and points (25); he is one assist behind Nikita Kucherov for the NHL lead…Matt Martin's first period fight was the 100th of his NHL career; the 100 fights lead all active NHL players….Kevin Hayes has points in 9 of the last 10 games; it is his 9th career two-goal game, matching a career high… The Flyers have allowed 12 power play goals in their last 29 times short….Since opening the season 2-4-0, the Isles are 13-5-0 in the last 18 games… Brock Nelson played in his 700th NHL game, recording his 194th assist.  Nelson now sits 21st in club history in helpers, breaking a tie with Pierre Turgeon…The Flyers led after one period for only the second time this season…Travis Sanheim's shorthanded goal was the second allowed by the Isles this season….The Isles did not reach 15 wins last season until January 25th (15-14-6)... The Isles have outscored their opponents 35-20 in the third period… The Isles lead the NHL with 35 third period goals; they have scored 43 goals in the 1st period, 2nd period, and overtime combined…Luke Sedlak had two points in both games of the home-and-home; he only had one multipoint game this season prior to this pair of games.

The Injury

Cal Clutterbuck played only 4:18 before leaving the game late in the first period.  He did not return.

10-Win Month

The Isles went 10-5-0 in November.  It is only the fourth time in club history that they have won at least 10 games in November:

• 12-1-2 in November 1980

• 11-3-0 in November 2014

• 10-2-1 in November 1983

• 10-5-0 in November 2022

 

Last Year vs. This Year

• 2021-22  15-9-0 for 30 points in 24 games

• 2020-21  7-12-5 for 19 points in 24 games

Offense from Defense

• Today:  1-0-1

• Season: 19-37-56

• Last Season (Final) 32-128-160

The Islander defense have scored an NHL-leading nineteen goals; they didn't score their 19th goal last season until March 3rd.   

The New Hit King

Cal Clutterbuck was credited with one hit, extending his own NHL record, before leaving with an injury: 

Most Career Hits (recognized by NHL beginning with 2005-06 season)

1. Cal Clutterbuck 3,647

2. Dustin Brown 3,632

3. Matt Martin 3,486

Home is Where The Sorokin Is

Ilya Sorokin went 13-5-4 at UBS Arena last season and is 5-3-0 this season, despite allowing just 12 goals in the eight games (1.63 GAA, .954 save percentage). The Isles have scored only two goals in his three home losses this year and only ten goals in his eight career regulation losses at UBS.

Sorokin has the best home save percentage in the NHL this season. Among goalies who have played at least eighteen home games over the last two seasons, Sorokin has the highest save percentage (.937) and the lowest goals against average (2.01). 

Zach Attack 

Zach Parise has 415 career goals, good for 9th among actives and 92nd all-time. Tony Amonte is 91st with 416 goals.

Most Goals and Points by an Islander Defenseman before 23rd Birthday

• Denis Potvin (72-168-240) 

• Bryan Berard (26-83-109)

• Noah Dobson (24-63-87)

• Tomas Jonsson (22-60-82)

• Paul Boutilier (20-69-89) 

Dobson is now 3rd in goals and 4th in points. The Isles will play 41 games this season before Dobson turns 23 on January 7, 2023.

Home and Road

The Isles are 15-9-0 overall; they are 8-3-0 at home and 7-6-0 on the road.

Philadelphia is 8-10-5 overall; they are 5-5-1 at home and 3-5-4 on the road.

East and West

The Isles are 8-6-0 against the East (6-2-0 vs. Metropolitan and 2-4-0 vs. Atlantic) and 7-3-0 against the West (3-3-0 vs. Central and 4-0-0 vs. Pacific).

Home is Where the Fans Are

The Isles have played 52 games at UBS Arena and recorded 36 sellouts. The sellout crowds of 17,255 are the largest indoor crowds to ever see the Islanders play at home. 

Sweet Lou

Lou Lamoriello has the second-highest win total for any general manager in NHL history:

1. David Poile 1,501

2. Lou Lamoriello 1,378

3. Glen Sather 1,319

First Things First

The Isles are 10-2-0 when scoring first and are 5-7-0 when allowing the opening goal.  

The Shots

Isles         9-8-7=24

Philadelphia 12-9-12=33

The Isles are 5-3-0 when they outshoot their opponents, 0-0-0 when the shots are even and 10-6-0 when they are outshot. 

In the Nets

Ilya Sorokin made 30 saves; he is 10-6-0 on the season and 7-2-1 vs Philadelphia.

Carter Hart made 23 saves; he is 7-5-4 on the season and 4-3-3 vs. the Isles.

Special Teams

The Isles were 1-4 on the power play (6:37, scoring 25 seconds into 5-on-3); Philadelphia was 0-2 on the power play (4:00).

The Isles are 8-5-0 when they score at least one power play goal and 7-4-0 when they do not. The Isles are 8-3-0 when they allow at least one power play goal and 7-6-0 when they do not.

Three is a Magic Number

The Isles are 15-2-0 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 0-7-0 when they do not.

One-Goal Games

The Isles are 6-2-0 in games decided by a single goal including 3-2 in regulation. They are 3-0 in games decided in overtime and are 0-0 in shootouts. The Isles are 3-3 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.

Back-to-Backs 

The next set of back-to-backs will be in New Jersey on December 9th and against Carolina on December 10th.  The Isles are 3-1-0 in the front end and 3-1-0 in the back end. 

Ice-time Leaders

Isles: Mathew Barzal (23:49);  Philadelphia: Ivan Provorov (24:50)

Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards with 23:49 of ice-time. 

Isles record by ice-time leaders: Alexander Romanov (2-1-0), Noah Dobson (2-5-0), Adam Pelech (3-1-0), Ryan Pulock (3-1-0), Scott Mayfield (2-0-0), Brock Nelson (1-0-0), Mathew Barzal (2-1-0)

Face-offs

Isles 28, Philadelphia 27 (51%)

Casey Cizikas won 12 of 18 for the Isles; Morgan Frost won 7 of 11 for Philadelphia. 

Hit Count

Isles 30 (Anders Lee and Jean-Gabriel Pageau -4)

Philadelphia 38 (Nicholas Deslauriers -6)

Fights 

Matt Martin fought Zack MacEwan and Ross Johnston fought Nicholas Deslauriers in separate fights in the first eight seconds of the game.  Season total: 8 (Lee-2, Wahlstrom-2, Johnston-2, Martin-2)

 

Blocked Shots

Isles 15 (Ryan Pulock -5)

Philadelphia 19 (Three with 3)

For the Analytics Crowd 

Corsi: All situations: Isles 53, Philadelphia 58  

Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 37, Philadelphia 44

5-on-5 leaders:

Isles: Mathew Barzal +14

Philadelphia: Joel Farabee +8

High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)

All situations: Isles 7, Philadelphia 11

5-on-5: Isles 5, Philadelphia 8

Scratches

(Kyle Palmieri-upper body), Robin Salo, (Josh Bailey – upper body)

Games Lost: 12

The Ironman

Zach Parise played in his 106th consecutive Islander game; he has played in every game since joining the team in October 2021.

Challenges

Isles: 1 successful, 0 failures – STL goalie interference 11/3

Opponents: 0 successful, 0 failures

League reviews:  1 (Isles goal – Salo vs ANA 10/16 – stood)

Multi-Goal 3rd Period Comeback Wins

The Isles have come from two goals behind after two periods to win three times this season and have not allowed the opposition to do so.

For: Trailed 3-1, Won 5-3 vs. COL 10/29

Trailed 3-1, Won 4-3 (OT) vs CGY 11/7

Trailed 3-1, Won 4-3 at NYR 11/8

Last Minute Heroes:

The Isles have scored two goal and allowed no goals in the final three minutes of the third period that were either the winning goal or forced overtime. 

For(2): Brock Nelson vs COL 10/29 (18:39;EN/GW)

Josh Bailey @ TOR 11/21 (17:02; Isles won in OT)

Overtime Winners

For (3): Noah Dobson vs CGY 11/7 (4:02)

Zach Parise vs CBJ 11/12 (0:39) 

Anthony Beauvillier @ TOR 11/21 (1:56)

All-time Islander Leader Boards:

Games Played (skaters)

1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 1,013…

8. Patrick Flatley 712 *** 9. Matt Martin 708 *** 10. Brock Nelson 700 *** 11. Brent Sutter 694 *** 12. Casey Cizikas 686… 

15. Billy Harris 623 *** 16. Stefan Persson 622 *** 17. Anders Lee 619 *** 18. Cal Clutterbuck 609

Goals    

1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 …

9. Bobby Nystrom 235 *** 10. Anders Lee 220 *** 11. Brock Nelson 216 *** 12. Derek King 211 *** 13. John Tonelli 206  *** 14 Billy Harris 184 *** 15. Josh Bailey 180

Assists

1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 *** 4. Josh Bailey 382…

15. Billy Harris 259*** 16. Tomas Jonsson 249 *** 17. Mathew Barzal 244 *** 18. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo 230 *** 20. Nick Leddy 198 *** 21. Brock Nelson 194…

25. Alexei Yashin and Duane Sutter 171 *** 27. Jean Potvin 167 *** 28. Jeff Norton 166 *** 29. Anders Lee 165

Points

1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…

6.  Brent Sutter 610 *** 7. Pat LaFontaine 566 *** 8. Josh Bailey 562  …

14. Billy Harris 443 *** 15. Brock Nelson 410 ***  16. Anders Lee 385…

19. Fran Nielsen 349 *** 20. Pierre Turgeon 340 *** 21. Mathew Barzal 337

+/-

1. Bryan Trottier +467 *** 2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380…

16. Tomas Jonsson +76 *** 17. Garry Howatt +75 *** 18. Adam Pelech +73 *** 19. Pat Price +70 *** 20. JP Parise +67 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 22. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 23. Greg Gilbert +54   

Defense Goals

1. Denis Potvin 310 *** 2. Tomas Jonsson 84 *** Kenny Jonsson 57…

6. Nick Leddy 45 *** 7. Roman Hamrlik 43 **** 8. Mark Streit 40 *** 9.  Ryan Pulock 39

Defense Assists

1. Denis Potvin 742 *** 2. Stefan Persson 317 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 249…

8. Mark Streit 139 *** 9. Roman Hamrlik 120 *** 10. Ryan Pulock 118…

18. Dave Langevin and Thomas Hickey 95 *** 20. Adam Pelech 91

Defense Points

1. Denis Potvin 1,052 *** 2. Stefan Persson 369 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 333…

8. Mark Streit 179 *** 9. Ryan Pulock 157…

17. Vladimir Malakhov 125 *** 18. Thomas Hickey 117 *** 19. Adam Pelech and Adrian Aucoin 125

Wins

1. Billy Smith 304 *** 2. Glenn Resch 157 *** 3. Rick DiPietro 130…

10. Evgeni Nabokov 57 *** 11. Semyon Varlamov 53 *** 12. Mark Fitzpatrick 51 *** 13. Chris Osgood and Ilya Sorokin 49

Shutouts

1. Glenn Resch 25 *** 2. Billy Smith 22 *** 3. Rick DiPietro 16 …

4. Tommy Salo 14 *** 5. Ilya Sorokin and Jaroslav Halak 12 *** 7. Semyon Varlamov 11

On the Farm

Cole Bardreau scored twice, and three teammates had a pair of assists as Bridgeport improved to 11-3-4-0 with a 6-4 win over Springfield on Sunday. Cory Schneider made 30 saves for his 8th win of the season.

Samuel Bolduc leads the team in assists (15) and points (18); Andy Andreoff leads the team in goals (10).  Cory Schneider is 8-1-1 on the season for Bridgeport; only two AHL goalies have more wins.

The Islanders host Providence on Wednesday.

Season Series Stats

The season series is tied, 1 game to 1 (and 2 points to 2). The teams will next meet on February 6th in Philadelphia; it will be the first game after the All-Star break.

Despite the loss, the Isles are 13-3-2 in their last 18 games against the Flyers, including 6-2-2 in their last ten visits to Wells Fargo Center.

UP NEXT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2nd —NASHVILEE AT ISLANDERS 7:30pm

[ESPN+/Hulu), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, ESPN Radio]

The Isles look to get back in the win column as they conclude their season series with the Nashville Predators. 

The Isles are 0-6-2 in their last eight games with Nashville and are 0-4-1 in their last five home games with the Preds.  The last Islander win was in Nashville on October 28, 2017, by a 6-2 score; the Isles haven't beaten the Preds at home since their third-ever game at Barclays Center (October 15, 2015, by a 4-3 score).

This is the second of two consecutive games available only ESPN+/Hulu; Mike Monaco and AJ Mleczko will have the call.  These are the last nationally televised games for the Islanders in 2022.

Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since 1982. Information contained in "The Skinny" has been gathered from various sources. Follow Eric @ehornick on Twitter & on his blog www.nyiskinny.com

Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since January 21, 1982. Visit my blog: NYISkinny.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick