The surprising Islanders continue to lead the Metropolitan Division in their final season at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and have reignited the passion of their long-suffering fan base. But New York has based their success on a highly entertaining run and gun style of play that may not be conducive for playoff success. Defense and goaltending have been a worry all season, even at the peak of the Isles success. Now, with a string of four losses in their last six games, the defensive worries have become a stark reality check.
Halak Subpar
The standard save percentage for a quality NHL goaltender is .920. Islanders goaltender Jaroslav Halak is at .910. Part of the problem for Halak is a defensive corps that is not deep or of high quality which means for better and more high quality shots against. But Halak also began February with a terrible .877 save percentage which speaks far beyond defensive problems and to the netminder’s own poor play as of late.
Boychuk Carries Defense
Johnny Boychuk has been the top defenseman on a corps that lacks depth. Boychuk has had to carry the thin blue line of the Islanders with an impressive plus-15 rating along with four goals and 21 assists. Steady Nick Leddy has added an impressive plus-13 to go with seven goals and 15 assists. After that, however, the Islanders have little to brag about. A Stanley Cup is not possible with just two quality defensemen and a goaltender that is below .920.
Tavares Tails Off
Meanwhile, center and top scorer John Tavares has also slumped. Tavares has just one goal and three points in his last four games which is far below his production numbers of 24 goals and 27 assists for the season. Opposing teams have focused more on shutting down the Islanders star and nobody else has been able to pick up the slack. The injury of right winger Kyle Okposo further adds to the strain on Tavares. Okposo is out until late March with an eye injury.
Caps and Rangers Loom Large
The Islanders have been able to take advantage of the slumping Pittsburgh Penguins to take over the lead in the Metropolitan Division. The problem is that the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers are surging and looking like threats to contend for the top spot in the Metro. The Caps were just three points behind the Isles while the Rangers were just four points back.
It has been a great season of resurgence for this franchise, but the Islanders may not have enough to finish on top of the Metro.
