Islanders playing better, but consistency must come for playoff chance

The Islanders finally are playing with almost their full complement of players and, in coach Barry Trotz’s estimation, have improved both their execution and defensive play.

But they still haven’t played consistently enough to claw their way back into playoff contention.

"Plain and simple, it’s more than consistency," Trotz said. "Know what we’re going to be as a team, night in and night out. If we do that, we’ll have success."

The Islanders faced the Wild on Sunday night at UBS Arena after Saturday’s matinee against the expansion Seattle Kraken was snowed out.

That game will be made up on Wednesday night to conclude a seven-game homestand and send the Islanders into the All-Star break. They then will close out February with eight of 10 on the road, including trips to Western Canada and California.

To get back into the playoff race, the Islanders must start beating the NHL’s tougher competition, such as the Wild. Entering Sunday, the Islanders were 2-13-2 against the 16 teams holding playoff spots and had been outscored 57-27 in those games.

"I wouldn’t have thought that in-depth about it," Josh Bailey said. "We just want to focus on playing our game and going out and find the way to get the result we’re looking for."

The Islanders entered Sunday’s game 17 points behind the Bruins for the Eastern Conference’s final wild-card spot but had played five games fewer than Boston, which faced Dallas on Sunday night.

Trotz kept his lines and defense pairings intact for a second straight game as only defenseman Ryan Pulock (foot) remains out. But lineup consistency has been difficult this season because of injuries, COVID-19 outbreaks and just not getting the desired results.

"When you go through the kind of COVID that we had, things are going to get shaken up," Bailey said. "If you lose some games, things tend to get shaken up. So it’s been a combination. We’d all like to play with similar guys and you can grow some chemistry the more you play together."

Trotz said he believes he’s getting close to what he wants to see after continuing to search for the right line combinations.

"Yeah, I think so," he said. "Everybody’s play allows you to make a decision or to stay in the lineup. If you’re playing at a consistent level and playing and contributing, then there’s not a lot of reason to take you out other than injury or production. The games are going to pile up. I’m going to have to manage some guys a little bit more than others."

The Islanders will play their final 43 games in 80 days. Trotz said defensemen Zdeno Chara, 44, and Andy Greene, 39, may need to be given games off.

And Kyle Palmieri needs to prove he deserves a spot among the Islanders’ top-six forwards.

Palmieri returned in Thursday night’s 3-2 loss to the Kings after a 10-game absence because of a lower-body injury. He went without a point for his 12th straight game and entered Sunday with one goal and six assists in 26 games.

"It felt great to get back into the lineup," Palmieri said. "The team was playing a lot of good hockey [7-2-1 in his absence]. It’s something that we, as a team, need to string together some wins. Just to come back and do whatever it takes to help this team win is what I’m here to do.

"As a team, we didn’t get off to the start we wanted to. With the injury, stuff happens. It’s not too much fun looking at the stat lines so you just come in and be a good teammate."

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.