Islanders News: A massive comeback win
Barzy surely said hello to his old buddy. | Photo by Steven Ryan/NHLI via Getty Images
The confidence continues to grow under Roy, with new lines and new systems. The New York Islanders came back from down 2-0 to take a 4-2 regulation win from the St. Louis Blues. Despite falling behind, the Islanders mostly controlled the game and got the result they deserved.
They now trail the Philadelphia Flyers for third in the Metro and the Tampa Bay Lightning for the second wild card by four points each and with two games in hand on each. You can do the math and see that the Islanders tie these teams if they win their two games in hand, but they probably will need to finish a point better than any of the teams in the hunt because they do not have many regulation wins, the first tiebreaker. But obviously, it’s encouraging, especially since they aren’t fluking their way into these wins—they’re earning them. Patrick Roy has his new lines rolling. And they are back in the race.
The Islanders now take a four-game winning streak out to California and Buffalo. First up, the San Jose Sharks tomorrow night for a 10:30 p.m. ET start. Roy’s Islanders have a midnight rule: forget about that night’s game, good or bad, at midnight and prepare for the next one. But we can enjoy today.
GOOD MORNING, #ISLESNATION!!! pic.twitter.com/uLymDdbJnR— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) March 6, 2024
Islanders News
About last night:
It felt like “one of those nights”—until they stormed back. Revenge for 12 days before. [LHH]
The team showed great resilience in coming back over the Blues. [3 Takeaways]
“The X factor is a combination of increased confidence and more aggressive play.” And one feeds the other. [Newsday]
The playoff chase continues in earnest. [NY Post]
Kyle Palmieri remained hot. J-G Pageau finally got on the board again. Bo Horvat made up for a couple of bad turnovers that gave the Blues a 2-0 lead with the game-winner on a great individual effort. And Mathew Barzal got the empty-netter, the Isles’ second of the season and second in three games. [NHL]
Besides the standard lines, Roy has also changed up how the Islanders close out games, and it’s a noticeable difference, in that it has actually helped them close out games. [THN]
I believe the revamped PK is a Benoit Desrosiers creation. Well, “[t]he Isles did not allow a power play goal for the third straight game; it is the first time that they have done that since December 27-31.” [NYI Skinny]
Onward:
Lou Lamoriello met with the media yesterday and confirmed that he’s not “subtracting” from his roster, but may add. [NHL] He likes the direction of his team. [Islanders]
He also handed out some injury news: Hudson Fasching came off LTIR, and Scott Mayfield went on LTIR for a minimum of four weeks, maybe six, at which point surgery will be discussed. [Isles DTD | Newsday]
But Mayfield’s placement on LTIR opens up some salary cap space ahead of Friday’s trade deadline. [NY Post]
Overager Justin Gill is second in the QMJHL in scoring. [Islanders Prospect Report]
Jennifer Botterill returns to Long Island for an episode of Talkin’ Isles.
Anders Lee is one of the investors in a new Irish soccer team. [Newsday]
Remembering Mike Bossy’s jersey retirement. [NY Post]
Elsewhere
Last night’s NHL scores include the Panthers, on the second half of a back-to-back, handing the Devils a regulation loss in Travis Green’s debut as interim head coach. Also, the Penguins beat the Blue Jackets.
The next big name of the trade deadline season moved yesterday evening when the Washington Capitals sent Anthony Mantha (50% retained) to the Vegas Golden Knights for a couple of picks. [NHL]
Then this morning, the Capitals announced a five-year extension for Rasmus Sandin. [Sportsnet]
There was also a pretty spicy rumor floating around the insider bubble yesterday. It makes sense that the Vancouver Canucks traded for Elias Lindholm as Elias Pettersson insurance, but between Pettersson’s extension and Lindholm not fitting in fantastically, they’ve discussed flipping him to the Boston Bruins and putting the assets they acquire toward a Jake Guentzel trade. That would certainly make a relatively light deadline a lot more interesting. [Sportsnet]
The Isles saw Pavel Buchnevich last night. He’s owed $5.8 million on the cap through the end of next season and is reportedly on the block, but he’s been close to a point-per-game since he got traded to St. Louis. His game is worth the high deadline price for two playoff runs. [DFO]
Three potential destinations for pending UFA defenseman Noah Hanifin, locations where he might want to sign an extension. You will be shocked to learn who they are. [Sportsnet]
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