Islanders must improve ability to hold leads
Jesperi Kotkaniemi of the Hurricanes ties the score against the Islanders during the third period with a shot over the pads of Ilya Sorokin at UBS Arena on Saturday. Credit: Getty Images/Bruce Bennett
NHL statistics really can be very pliable.
For instance, the Islanders.
The standings show that the Islanders, at 5-2-3 — which is above .500 despite the team having five wins and five losses — are tied for 10th in the 32-team league with 13 points. Also shown is the Islanders’ point percentage of .650 is tied for eighth.
But the eye test says the Islanders were outplayed for long stretches of their last two games, often playing too deep in their zone and giving up way too many shots. They failed to hold multi-goal leads in their last two losses, allowing the Hurricanes to score four straight in Saturday night’s 4-3 overtime defeat at UBS Arena and the visiting Red Wings to also work out a 4-3 OT win after trailing by two early in the third period this past Monday.
And logic suggests this: Good teams can hold leads. Teams that eventually miss the playoffs cannot.
“We have the puck plenty of times in order to make a play with it, and when we turn it over, we just spend time in our zone,” coach Lane Lambert said. “Some poise, some composure, some communication. Getting out of our own zone is key. And that’s really what changed.”
The Hurricanes finished with 100 shot opportunities — 47 on net, 29 blocked and 24 missed — to the Islanders’ 38.
The analytics also were woefully lopsided. Per NaturalStatTrick.com, the Hurricanes’ Corsi For percentage was 72.66 in all situations while the Islanders languished at 27.34. In the third period, as the Hurricanes held a 19-5 shot advantage in scoring twice to force overtime, the Islanders had a Corsi For percentage of just 19.57.
Those are literally pond hockey numbers as the big kids play keepaway from the younger players.
Know what they’re not? Playoff-worthy statistics.
But this isn’t just a one-game sample. Two nights earlier, the Islanders won a 3-0 road game over the Capitals that, on paper, looks very satisfying. But the first two periods were among the worst the Islanders have played this season. Only a leaky Darcy Kuemper, who allowed three goals on the first five shots he faced, tipped the scales for the Islanders during the first 40 minutes.
That game did prove the importance of playing a strong third period and maintaining the lead.
The Capitals held a 32-21 shot advantage in the game. But it was 22-9 over the first two periods, and the shot attempts through the first 40 minutes were 62-19 on the way to 83-43.
Earlier this season, the Islanders built two-goal leads over the Sabres and Senators at home, only to see those teams rally to tie the score before the Islanders won.
It’s fair to assume the 35.7 shots on net per game the Islanders are allowing — second only to the 37.5 allowed by the Sharks, who have yet to win a game — are wearing them down in the third period.
So is the Islanders’ compromised defensive corps. Scott Mayfield missed seven games and top-pair defenseman Adam Pelech was out against the Hurricanes because of a lower-body injury.
“Guys are working and competing,” Noah Dobson said. “Just mentality a little bit. We didn’t get our end clean enough for what we needed to do.”
What the Islanders need to do is hold their leads. It’s something good teams do.
Notes & quotes: The NHL fined Mathew Barzal the maximum $5,000 for his second-period high-sticking penalty against Hurricanes defenseman Tony DeAngelo. It’s the fourth time Barzal has been fined in his seven NHL seasons.
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.
