With a 2-2-2 record after six games to start the 2024-25 season, the New York Islanders don’t look great, but they have the pieces in place to be a playoff team.
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The team’s Oct. 22 loss to the Detroit Red Wings was a true indicator of where the Islanders stand. They don’t have a great offense that can take over games, but their defense is playing well enough to lead them to victory. That formula should allow the team to make a playoff push this season.
Islanders Defense a Strength
Despite the loss, the Red Wings game was a high point for the unit this season and a sign of what’s to come from a defense that played poorly last season. They allowed only one goal and 10 shots on the net to keep the Islanders in the game. The team’s defense has been known for allowing shots on net and having their goaltending bail them out. That wasn’t the case last game.
Sure, the defense played poorly early in the season, allowing five goals to the Utah Hockey Club on opening night before losing in overtime. However, they’ve held up for the most part. The Islanders are averaging 2.50 goals per game, which is a top-five mark in the league.
It’s only been six games, and a lot can change, but the defense looks different, partly because the players are collectively playing better to give the Islanders three reliable pairings. Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov have combined for 1.7 defensive point shares and are the new young tandem to build around. Scott Mayfield has bounced back from a forgettable 2023-24 season (and that seven-year contract suddenly doesn’t look like a disaster). This is a group that will shut down a lot of offenses this season.
Sorokin Will Keep Games Low-Scoring
For some reason, the Islanders have a habit of forgetting how to score when Ilya Sorokin is the starter. They were shut out in the Oct. 17 game against the St. Louis Blues and against the Red Wings. It’s a shame since Sorokin looks like he’s returned to the 2022-23 form that saw him take over games and finish the season as a Vezina Trophy finalist.
Sorokin’s stats through his first three starts will fall off, considering he has a .947 save percentage (SV%) and a 1.34 goals-against average (GAA) on 75 shots with 3.6 goals saved above average. However, he’ll still put together great starts, and the Islanders will win low-scoring games because of it. The Islanders can win just about any goaltending battle when Sorokin is in net.
Better yet, Semyon Varlamov is still playing well as the backup at 36 years old. The team’s defense and goaltending can still get them to the playoffs, especially if head coach Patrick Roy focuses on the pace and how the team plays for the rest of the season. They can slow games down and win with possession like the Florida Panthers did in their recent championship run.
Duclair’s Injury Amplifies the Cause
Anthony Duclair won’t be back until late in the season after suffering an injury against the Montreal Canadiens on Oct. 19, and that’s if everything goes right. Duclair was the team’s biggest offseason signing and was expected to take them to the next level. This is a tough blow, considering the state of the offense before he joined the team. It was a top-heavy group carried by four skaters and now remains that way.
Sure, Duclair didn’t add depth to the offense, but he was a boost to the top line. With Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal complementing his playmaking and scoring ability, the Islanders were capable of running up the score. Now, the offense could fall apart as Roy searches for a new top-line winger.
This is the main reason the Islanders must pivot. They won’t take over games with their offense – it’s an average to below-league-average unit without Duclair. Instead, the defense is still good enough to win if the Islanders lean into it. It’s in contrast to the rest of the league, which is winning with high-scoring games, but it’s something they must do.
Winning With Defense Is the Islanders’ Bread & Butter
It’s hard not to look back at the Barry Trotz era when the Islanders won games and were one of the best teams in the league. It wasn’t with a high-flying offense but with size, forechecking, defense, and goaltending. Trotz fixed the defense, but the roster wanted to play that style of hockey.
Even the one full season with Lane Lambert as head coach saw the Islanders make the playoffs on the backs of great defense. Yes, Lambert had the team playing a faster pace and an aggressive, more offensive-minded brand of hockey, but in the back half of the 2022-23 season, the team made the playoffs with great defense and better goaltending.
Last season, the Islanders turned things around when Roy was hired and brought structure back to the team. They can take over games by resisting the rest of the league. When everyone else is focused on speed and skill, the Islanders are focused on hard-hitting defense. This season, it will be the reason they are competitive.
