Playing well is nice, but the Islanders need points

Barry Trotz is no different from any other NHL coach in that, first and foremost, he judges how his team is playing. It’s unfair to say the results become secondary — it is a results-driven league — but coaches find losses after their team has played well far less disappointing than poor performances that still result in wins.

Which is why Trotz was encouraged after Sunday night’s 4-3 loss to the red-hot Wild, whereas New York-area counterpart Gerard Gallant was borderline furious hours earlier after his Rangers beat the expansion Seattle Kraken, 3-2.

Unfortunately for the Islanders (15-16-6), as compared to the seemingly playoff-bound Rangers, time is getting scarce for good showings that yield no points.

So the Islanders’ next two games, against the Senators on Tuesday night at UBS Arena and the Kraken the following night to conclude a seven-game homestand heading into the All-Star break, are simply must-haves for a team that keeps sputtering in its attempts to fight back into the playoff race.

"We lost wiggle room at the start of the year. I don’t think that’s changed," Trotz said after Sunday’s loss.

The Islanders, who did not practice on Monday as they are ending a stretch of 11 games in 21 days,

opened the season with a 13-game road trip and were 5-10-5 on Dec. 5 as injuries and COVID-19 outbreaks depleted the roster. They didn’t get back to NHL .500 until Jan. 18 and have not gained much traction in the standings.

They have lost two straight and three of four and are 17 points out of a playoff spot, though they have played five fewer games than the Bruins, who hold the final wild-card position.

This despite significantly outplaying the Wild for the final 50 minutes after falling behind 2-0, something the Islanders have done in three straight games. They took a season-high 43 shots and outchanced the Wild 63-40.

"We have 40, almost 45 games left," Trotz said. "I can’t tell you what the other teams are going to do, but we’ve got to gain some ground. We’ve just got to worry about the next game. I thought we did a pretty good job of that [Sunday]. It didn’t go the way we wanted to start. But I thought we played a heck of a hockey game.

"I’m sure, on the other side, they’re happy with the win. But they know that they’re leaving here feeling like they stole it."

The Senators are seventh in the Atlantic Division and the Kraken are a distant last in the Pacific Division. Because the Islanders have struggled so much against teams in a playoff spot — 2-14-2 and outscored 61-30 — they must beat the playoff also-rans.

"Our defensive game has gotten to a level where I think it gives us a chance to win every night," Trotz said before Sunday’s loss. "I think our execution has been much better than it was earlier."

But with no wiggle room left, that’s simply not enough.

By Andrew Gross

andrew.gross@newsday.comAGrossNewsday

Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.