Islanders' Mathew Barzal has had to deal with constant changes to his line
Mathew Barzal of the Islanders tries to play the puck against Dmitry Orlov of the Capitals during the third period at UBS Arena on Monday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Saturday marked the 12th game since right wing Oliver Wahlstrom was lost indefinitely off the Islanders’ top line with a lower-body injury.
In that span, Mathew Barzal, the team’s top playmaker — whom the organization committed to with an eight-year, $73.2 million extension that will start next season — has started games on nine different line combinations. Eight different players have started on the center’s wings, and Barzal himself started one game on wing instead of his usual spot in the middle.
“It’s been like that for a while now,” Barzal told Newsday before Saturday night’s game against the Metropolitan Division-leading Hurricanes at UBS Arena. “Kind of just try to adapt quickly, that’s really it.”
But is it up to Barzal to adapt his game or for those joining his line — however briefly — to adapt theirs?
“I’m not really sure,” said Barzal, a unique, skilled skater who performs best with the puck on his stick and his linemates finding holes in the defense. “It’s just hard to find chemistry with anybody when every other game, it’s a new line. It is what it is. We’ve had some injury troubles. Guys have gone down.”
Barzal started Saturday’s game centering Anders Lee and Casey Cizikas, usually the fourth-line center. Barzal was in between Lee and Cal Clutterbuck, usually Cizikas’ linemate, for Thursday night’s 3-2 overtime loss in Buffalo. Clutterbuck exited in the second period with an upper-body injury and is out indefinitely.
The game before that, coach Lane Lambert assigned 20-year-old prospect William Dufour to Barzal’s right wing for his NHL debut in a 4-1 loss to the NHL-best Bruins at UBS Arena. Dufour was benched in the second period after turnovers on the first two Bruins goals and immediately was returned to the Islanders’ AHL affiliate in Bridgeport.
Hudson Fasching, now day-to-day with a lower-body injury, started two games on Barzal’s right wing. So did Simon Holmstrom. Zach Parise has taken turns with Barzal along with Josh Bailey.
“I think he can prosper with a rotating set of wings,” Lambert said. “But, in his defense, some continuity wouldn’t be a bad thing as well. Based on where we’re at right now, we have different people who have to step into different positions. We’ve got some guys that are going to play right wing that don’t normally do that. That’s just what has to happen.”
The Islanders entered Saturday 3-5-3 without Wahlstrom, who had gone five games without a point and eight games without a goal when he was injured. Right wing Kyle Palmieri (upper body) has played only one game since Nov. 21.
Somewhat remarkably, Barzal did prosper initially despite the constant flux on his line. He put together a career-high five-game goal streak from Dec. 27-Jan. 5, scoring six goals in that span.
But Barzal missed the Islanders’ 4-1 road loss to the Flames on Jan. 6 with a lower-body injury and entered Saturday without a point in the six games since he returned to the lineup.
“Like all of our top-six guys, we need some production out of them,” Lambert said. “I’d like to see him put the puck to the net more.”
“I was just getting chances,” Barzal said of his goal streak. “I feel like I’m swarmed lately, the last six games, so it’s been tough to find chances to shoot.”
He insisted, however, that he still was getting some scoring opportunities.
Barzal also didn’t deny that this has been a tough stretch, given the team’s struggles to win consistently.
“It hasn’t been great,” he said. “It’s just a matter of controlling the emotions and not letting it get too frustrating.”
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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