Your New York Islanders will face the Washington
Capitals in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the eastern conference. The Islanders finished 3rd in the Metropolitan
Division with a 47-28-7 record. The
Capitals finished the season 2nd with a 45-26-11 record &
claimed home-ice advantage with an Islanders’ loss against Columbus on Saturday.
Their series will begin on Wednesday. Games 1 (4/15) & 2 (4/17) will be played
at the Verizon Center, 7pm starts before coming home to Nassau Coliseum on Sunday,
4/19 at noon for game 3, and game 4 on Tuesday, 4/21, with a 7:30pm starting
time.
If necessary, game 5 will be in Maryland on
Thursday, 4/23. Game 6 would be back
home at the NVMC on Saturday, 4/25 and game 7 on Monday, 4/27 back with
Washington. Times TBD.
The Isles and Capitals have met several times in playoff competition. In 1993, the Islanders defeated the Capitals in six games and have won 5 of 6 playoff series between the two teams. The Isles had 2 O.T. wins against the Caps this season while Washington won the other two meetings.
This year’s playoff is a huge one for New
York. It will see the NVMC hold its
final rounds of competition as the home of the Islanders. The fans will want another big post season performance
by their squad. Two years ago, the Isles
had a strong series against the Penguins that went six games, but they want to
build on that appearance and start changing their playoff culture by winning
this series against the Capitals. That
will come down to relying on an improved goal tending situation, a better
defensive game that can jump in on the rush and a balanced scoring attack that
can roll with all four lines. Special
teams must perform efficiently on both sides to help the team reach the next
level in the post season.
Eric Hornick had a few stats that might explain
a lot about the way this team finished the season:
The Isles were 41-20-2 in their first 63
games, but finished the regular season 6-8-5 in the last 19.
The Isles have allowed 8 goals in the last 10
seconds of a period this season, none to the empty net.
The Isles were 6-0 in shootouts prior to
Christmas, but lost six of their last seven shootouts, including the last five.
The Isles are 25-14-2 on Coliseum ice, while
they finished 22-14-5 on the road, including 6-2-4 in their last 12. So
this team is capable of winning anywhere if they can find consistency in their
game and play to their strengths. The
ability to dictate play is limited without home ice by way of match ups, but
the depth of roster should benefit the Islanders as it has all season.
What that might mean in a series against Washington
is in short, their deficits must be addressed and their advantages must be
pressed. Here are a few factors I have
isolated as keys to the series:
Offense:
While the Islanders can win without John Tavares, it is always better to
have one of the best in the NHL on the ice when possible. JT’s 86 points in 82 games had him in the
running for the Art Ross trophy until the final hours of the race. Beyond the stat sheet, Tavares is a Captain
who leads by example and makes the guys around him better. Players like Ryan Strome, Brock Nelson and
Anders Lee have followed JT’s example and have really taken strides this season. They, along with all the usual suspects, will
need to score goals and put pressure on the Capitals’ defense.
Defense & Goaltending: Jaroslav Halak had a great season for the
Islanders. His ability to carry the team
in the playoffs will factor in on how deep the team can go and he has had
success in the play offs before. In
2009, Halak helped the Canadiens defeat the Capitals and defending cup champion
Penguins, before losing in the conference finals to Philadelphia. And as a former Washington keeper, he is sure
to need no extra motivation to help his new team beat the Capitals. Michal Neuvirth is a good safety net for the
Isles in goal. He has playoff experience
(4-5 record with Washington) and will likely want to make an impression if
called upon to increase his chances of being re-signed in the summer. Johnny Boychuk & Nick Leddy will have to
raise their game even more with the devastating loss of Travis Hamonic on
defense for an unknown period of time at this point. Griffin Reinhart has been
recalled on an emergency basis for defensive depth. Containing Alex Ovechkin, the 2015 & 5
time Maurice “Rocket” Richard trophy winner will be a huge task for the
Islanders defensive corps, especially on the PK.
On the other side, Braden Holtby was 41-20-10
in the regular season with a 2.22gaa, a .922 Sv% and 9 shut outs, ranking 1st
in minutes played by a goaltender. Holtby
is a good goaltender, but has a very average 10-11 career record in the NHL
playoffs. The Islanders will need to put
shots on net and interfere with his ability to track the puck.
Success on special teams will have to factor
in for New York. The Capitals have the
best PP in the NHL. The Islanders will
need to stay out of the box. When the
need to kill off the Caps man advantage is called upon, it will mean the
improved Isles PK will need to rise to the occasion.
The Islanders will need to score goals, enforce
their game, use their speed and put up a strong, aggressive fore-check against
Alex Ovechkin, Niklas Backstrom & a red hot Capitals’ team. Their special teams will have to be dialed in
on both sides of the ice & Jaroslav Halak will need to play to the level
that helped him set the regular season record for wins (38) by an Islanders’
goaltender.
Going into the playoffs as the underdog may
indeed be the best thing for the Islanders.
Islanders in 7.
NHL Notes:
The Draft lottery is set
for Saturday.
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