Chemistry, experience give Islanders an edge in tough series

The fact that 16 players were part of all four Islanders' Stanley Cups in the early 1980s was an achievement then and is inconceivable in the modern, free-agency era.

But by 21st century standards, the current Islanders have an impressive list of longtime players, continuity that in theory bodes well in a long, contentious playoff series like their current first-rounder against the Penguins.

That is the sort of pressure the Islanders faced entering Game 5 on Monday night in Pittsburgh — a best-of-three series with two games on the road.

The good news for them and their fans is that the moment figures not to be too big for them.

This is the Islanders’ sixth time in the playoffs in nine years, and their third in a row. And there have been an array of familiar faces on the journey.

Consider the 2013-14 roster, so long ago that the team still was a season away from its first farewell to Nassau Coliseum.

Eight players on that year’s roster are on the current roster, and six are expected to play in Game 5: Josh Bailey, Casey Cizikas, Cal Clutterbuck, Matt Martin, Scott Mayfield and Brock Nelson.

Anders Lee is out for the season with a knee injury and Thomas Hickey is on the taxi squad.

What about 2017-18, the season before coach Barry Trotz arrived? There are 17 players on the current roster who were on that one, including 11 expected to play Monday night.

That is an unusual lack of turnover for this era, more so given the arrivals since of a new coach and a new general manager in Lou Lamoriello.

"It’s nice," said Nelson, a 2010 first-round draft pick by the team. "We’ve formed a bond over the years, guys that have been here and want to win. Guys are going out there and playing hard, playing for each other.

"The chemistry is obviously there from being familiar with each other for so long. We’re just trying to enjoy each moment and go out there and play for one another."

There have been some comings and goings along the way. Martin was not one of the 11 players from 2017-18 who were set to play Monday night. He was in the second year of a two-year detour to Toronto at the time.

Now he is back, a fan favorite and key member of the team’s "Identity Line."

"The situation here on Long Island is that the families and the guys can become very close because of where everybody lives, family-wise," Trotz said after practice on Sunday. "But there is a group of individuals, the core group, that were draft [picks] or were here for a number of years, and there hasn’t been a lot of turnover.

"The core group has been together, and they’ve evolved, and I think they hang out together. There are no cliques in our locker room or anywhere on our team, so I think that blends to the guys relying on each other and trusting each other."

That matters more at playoff time than in the regular season, particularly in a back-and-forth series such as the current one.

The lack of turnover also speaks to another truth about the current roster: It’s not young, with 16 players born in 1991 or earlier, 11 of whom were expected to dress Monday night.

So as much as they seem to enjoy one another’s company on and off the ice, the actuarial tables of professional sports will be stacked against them over the next several years.

Their bond is tight, but so is their timetable.

By Neil Best

neil.best@newsday.com@sportswatch

Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.