The Islanders coming out of the All-Star Break went into Toronto and beat the Maple Leafs by a score of 3-2. And that was no easy feat, as Roy’s Islanders scored the go ahead goal with less than 10 minutes left in regulation to seal the win. Something we haven’t seen from the Islanders this year is coming back after giving up a game tying goal. Especially in regulation.
The Islanders got a big boost to their blue line on Monday, with Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock both coming back into the lineup. Giving a much needed cut back in minutes to the top pair of Alexander Romanov and Noah Dobson. Under Roy the Islanders have also changed their defensive structure as a whole, the Islanders play in general has been more consistent and more physical under Roy. His rotation of lines have also been different compared to Lambert’s. For example, Mathew Barzal has been playing 20 minutes per night under Patrick Roy, this wasn’t the case under Lambert, who utilized his bottom 6 at a much higher rate.
During the game against Toronto, Maple Leafs forward Simon Benoit delivered a hit on Mathew Barzal that Bo Horvat took exception to. Horvat stood up for his linemate, dropping the gloves and going at it with Benoit. Patrick Roy was quoted after the game as saying “In life you could be an eagle or duck. He [Horvat] was an eagle.” He went on to say that the Islanders need to be eagles, especially going into a matchup against Nikita Kucherov’s Tampa Lightning on Thursday.
With the trade deadline about a month away, the Islanders almost without a shadow of a doubt (barring something very significant) will be buying at the trade deadline. We’ve already seen some big trades already, with Elias Lindholm going to Vancouver, and Sean Monahan going to Winnipeg. There aren’t many top flight options this year as there were last year. The Islanders have only been linked to a few players, mainly Anaheim’s Frank Vatrano, and Adam Henrique. I believe the Islanders will also pursue Ottawa’s Vladimir Tarasenko, and Philadelphia’s Travis Konecny. Though that’s pure speculation on my part, If I had to guess right now, I’d say the Islanders acquire Frank Vatrano in exchange for a package of something like Oliver Wahlstrom, Sam Bolduc, Ruslan Iskhakov, and a 2nd round pick. Vatrano would slot right into the Islanders top 6, as you could explore some different line combinations that could give better results for the Islanders.
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