When it rains, it pours, and on Dec. 11, the Bridgeport Islanders’ defense performed like the weather outside Total Mortgage Arena. The Islanders allowed four goals in the second period to the Providence Bruins, resulting in a 4-2 defeat.
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It’s not the first time the Islanders imploded against the Bruins – they allowed eight goals on Nov. 9 in a collapse at home. It’s not even the first time this month – they allowed six goals on Dec. 7 to the Bruins and six goals in the Dec. 4 loss to the Hartford Wolf Pack. The defense has been an issue all season, and those issues might be unfixable.
Islanders Can’t Clean Up Pucks
The Islanders’ defense has struggled to collect loose pucks and move them away from the high-danger areas all season. Great defenses play the crease and the dirty areas well and eliminate second chances. The NHL’s Florida Panthers are a prime example. Last season, they didn’t allow teams to find second chances and bury them. Led by defensemen Gustav Forsling, Brandon Montour, and Aaron Ekblad, they shut down opponents, especially in the dirty areas, leading their team to the 2024 Stanley Cup title.
The Islanders, on the other hand, can’t defend the high-danger areas and clean up loose pucks. They don’t play those areas well and have allowed a surplus of goals as a result. Their opponents are not only getting to the net but also finding easy opportunities to score, and that’s why they average 3.79 goals against per game, the second-worst mark in the American Hockey League (AHL) behind the Henderson Silver Knights, who allow 4.04 goals per game.
Scoring Chances Come Easily to Opponents
Without solid puck-movers, sloppy play is common and opponents find easy scoring chances off turnovers in the defensive zone. Other times, the chances come off the rush where the team picks apart a defense that isn’t gap-sound and provides both the open pass and the shot on net. Then there are times when the opposition has the puck in their zone and has wide-open looks on the goal.
All these issues have made the Islanders’ defense one of the worst in the AHL. They don’t play the passing lanes, giving teams like the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins a prime chance to run up the score, something they did on Nov. 22 in a 5-0 romp. Likewise, they don’t play the shooting lanes to allow a team like the Wolf Pack to score six goals as they did in the previous matchup.
At this point, the Islanders have allowed every team in the Atlantic Division to run up the score on them. Why? Because their defense doesn’t know how to limit scoring chances. Instead, they allow teams to score in bunches, making a 1-0 lead end in a 3-1 loss or a 2-2 battle end in a 6-2 blowout.
Islanders Having Hard Time Finding Chemistry
In their defense (see what I did there), the Islanders lost a lot of talent during the offseason. Their blue line was anchored by Dennis Cholowski, Robin Salo, Sebastian Aho, and Grant Hutton. This season, they were expected to be carried in part by Isaiah George, one of the top prospects in the system. While Salo and Aho are no longer in the Islanders system, Cholowski, George, and Hutton have all filled in on the NHL roster which has battled injuries throughout the season.
There’s a lot of roster turnover in the AHL, even within the season, and the Islanders have been left with a depleted unit that lacks talent. On top of that, with players moving in and out of the lineup, it’s hard to establish reliable pairings. Calle Odelius is learning on the fly, but he’s played multiple roles this season and, at times, has been a healthy scratch.
The Islanders brought back Seth Helgeson in the hope that he would provide stability. He hasn’t. At 35 years old, Helgeson is slower and can’t be leaned on like he once was. Add it all up, and the Islanders have a defense that is a mess – one that makes no lead safe and victories hard to come by.
Why the Islanders’ Defensive Woes Sting
Unlike last season, when the Islanders were a mess at both ends of the ice, this season, they have a forward unit that can score. Brian Pinho has 13 goals, and Alex Jefferies has five goals and 11 assists. They have also seen their forwards forecheck to help force turnovers in the offensive zone.
The problem is that the team can’t defend. They might score three or four goals in a game, but they’ll also allow five or six. It explains the Dec. 6 overtime 5-4 loss to the Springfield Thunderbirds and the Nov. 12 collapse to the Hershey Bears when they allowed a goal in the final seconds to lose 5-4. The team’s defensive woes are putting a solid offensive season to waste.
The Islanders could be in the playoff conversation. Instead, they are far and beyond the worst team in the Atlantic Division and currently riding a six-game losing streak that can be pinned on a defense that has played poorly all season but has completely unraveled as of late.
