Islanders' elimination from playoff contention could come very soon
Goaltender Ilya Sorokin #30 makes a pad save as Noah Dobson #8 of the New York Islanders and Rem Pitlick #32 of the Montreal Canadiens battle for position during the second period at Centre Bell on April 15, 2022 in Montreal, Canada. Credit: Getty Images
TORONTO — Missing the playoffs has long seemed an inevitable conclusion to this roller-coaster Islanders season, one derailed by COVID-19 outbreaks and a less-than-conducive schedule as much as inconsistent play.
And while the Islanders have stabilized their game with a 14-6-1 run since March 10, playoff elimination still could come as soon as Sunday night when they conclude a three-game road trip against the playoff-bound Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena.
The Capitals’ 8-4 win Saturday night in Montreal reduced the number of combined points to one that can either be lost by the Islanders or gained by the Capitals to seal their elimination.
“We’re a proud group,” said Zach Parise, who opened the scoring in Friday night’s 3-0 win over the Canadiens with his fourth goal in three games and 15th of the season. “We’re a proud team and we’re going to play all the way until the end regardless of what’s happening. We’re going to show up, we’re going to compete. That’s just in our DNA. We can’t control what happens with Washington, whether they’re winning or losing. We can take care of ourselves and make sure we’re prepared to play and win games.
“We’re not going to take our foot off the gas regardless of how this thing shakes out.”
The Islanders (35-30-9) have eight games left before the regular season ends April 29. They undoubtedly will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2018 and for the first time under president and general manager Lou Lamoriello and coach Barry Trotz.
That three-season run of reaching the playoffs — which produced six series wins and back-to-back trips to the NHL semifinals in 2020-21 — is tied as the second longest in franchise history. The Islanders qualified 14 straight years from 1975-88, winning four Stanley Cups and an NHL-record 19 straight playoff series. They advanced to the semifinals eight times in that span.
The Islanders would have plenty of motivation against the Maple Leafs even if they weren’t facing playoff elimination.
The Islanders have two players from Toronto in Casey Cizikas and Adam Pelech and four other players from Ontario in Josh Bailey (Bowmanville), Matt Martin (Sudbury), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (Ottawa) and the injured Cal Clutterbuck (Welland). There are 11 Canadian players on the team.
“Especially for the Canadian kids, those are the two markets that, for myself, I grew up watching Hockey Night in Canada on the weekends, whether it’s in Montreal or Toronto,” said defenseman Noah Dobson, who is from Summerside, Prince Edward Island. “Those are the games you dream of playing because that’s what you grow up watching.”
Notes & quotes: Trotz would not reveal whether Ilya Sorokin, who made a career-high 44 saves against the Canadiens and tied the team record with his seventh shutout, or Semyon Varlamov will start against the Maple Leafs. After Sorokin stopped 43 shots in Thursday’s 6-3 win in Pittsburgh, Varlamov was slated to start in Montreal before being sidelined with a stomach illness . . . The Islanders did not practice on Saturday.
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.
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