Thank you to all that have read Isles Fix this season and especially those that have invested in us and upgraded to paid subscribers. We appreciate the support and look forward to bringing you our first playoff content during a hopefully deep playoff run.
Good Morning, Islanders Country.
Playoffs, baby, playoffs.
Last night was as close as a playoff game could feel at UBS Arena without there ever having been one. Now we wait to learn the Islanders opponent before we get to experience the real thing and the nerve-racking fun begins.
It took all 82 games, but the New York Islanders are back in the postseason for the fourth time in five years. In a season where it felt a lot more went wrong than right, it was somewhat remarkable that the Isles were in the position to punch their trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs last night at UBS Arena, wasn’t it?
But there they were, 48 hours removed from thinking their season was lost, and despite some nervous moments, playing a strong game in front of an electric home crowd to earn a spot in the tournament after a season that felt like three or four different years rolled into one.
They lost their most dynamic offensive player Mathew Barzal and responded by finding new but familiar ways to win. If you wrote them off at that point, you weren’t alone. They hadn’t shown any signs through the first 59 games that they were capable of recapturing parts of their identity that made them successful.
But they did just that, finishing the year 14-7-2 without Barzal, which turned out to be just enough to clinch a playoff spot on the final night of the season.
"It's the first step, but it's a very difficult step. It's a step the required 82 games. It doesn't always require the full 82, but for us it did.” - Lane Lambert
The Islanders had to grind through and fight their way through this season. Nothing came easy; nothing felt easy. Dramatic wins were met with humbling losses. There were ups, downs, and a whole lot in between. There were glimpses of the team that deserved a chance at making another run and also not so subtle signs that it was time to sell off what you could and retool, if not rebuild.
In the end, patience, belief, and character won out, and they accomplished one thing they sought to do at the start of the year, with a chance to do more.
Coming up, Josh Bailey returns to the lineup, and Brendan Burke finds the right words to set the stage. Plus, Brock Nelson stars with another muti-goal game; why the 50 greatest Islanders of all time is really a list of 52 and the day the dynasty almost died.
Let’s dive in.
🏒 IN SHORT: The Islanders needed just one point but earned two in a 4-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens at an electric UBS Arena on Wednesday night. Brock Nelson scored twice for the Isles, who return to the playoffs for the fourth time in five seasons. Hudson Fasching also added a goal, and Anders Lee scored a power-play goal late in the third period to make it a two-goal game. Ilya Sorokin wasn't tested much but was good when he needed to be, making 17 saves. Nick Suzuki scored a one-handed short-handed goal to make it a one-goal game heading into the third period. Sam Montembeault made 31 saves for Montreal in the loss. With the win, the Pittsburgh Penguins were eliminated from playoff contention for the first time in 16 seasons.
KEY MOMENT(s):
🔸 After Rem Pitlick tied the game at 1-1, Hudson Fasching gave the Isles a 2-1 lead just 1:19 later when he jammed a rebound by Montembeault’s extended left pad after Zach Parise’s tip hit the crossbar and landed in the crease.
🔹 Brock Nelson's second goal of the game extended the lead to 3-1 at 10:20 of the second period when he tipped Noah Dobson's point shot past Montembeault.
🔻 The Isles were dominating the second period, led 3-1, and were on the power-play when Nick Suzuki's scored a one-handed unassisted shorthanded goal with 3:22 left in the second period when he beat Samuel Bolduc to the puck and somehow lifted the puck over the shoulder over a surprised Ilya Sorokin.
🔸 The Islanders put the game away on the power play when Anders Lee tipped in a Sebastian Aho shot to make it 4-2 with 4:00 left to play. The goal stopped a 0-for-18 skid with the extra man.
“We're working hard on it," Lee said of the power play. "It's been frustrating for us, we're not sitting on our laurels on that of things by any means. To get one and kind of end whatever power play skid we were on, but even if we didn't get one, it wouldn't matter. It's playoff hockey now it all resets.”
3 REACTIONS
❶ GRATEFUL: "You name the emotion we felt it on Monday night. We were pissed off we were disappointed in ourselves," captain Anders Lee said. "We reset Tuesday morning, and then got a break last night, but we still got to come tonight, still had to show up and play a tough hockey game and win it. We were just grateful to have that opportunity."
❷ PLAYOFF ACTION: "Everyone was ready right from puck drop and fans were engaged," Brock Nelson said. "They were loud the whole time, especially there at the end when the horn went off, so we're excited. We definitely wanted to get some playoff action in this building."
❸ PRETTY NUTS: “The energy in there tonight was insane and it's going to be impressive for playoffs,” said Hudson Fasching. “It was pretty crazy out there tonight and the energy was awesome. To be at home and to have the playoff clinching game for the last game of the season, it's pretty nuts.”
GameScore Impact Card
⏭ NEXT UP: The Islanders’ regular season is over, but all eyes will be on the Carolina Hurricanes visiting the Florida Panthers later tonight as the outcome will decide the Isles’ first-round opponent. A Florida loss of any kind will send the Islanders to Carolina for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
📊 STANDINGS: It’ll take the full 82-game NHL season to determine the playoff match-ups in the Eastern Conference. Only one match-up, the Toronto Maple Leafs vs the Tampa Bay Lightning, is set; all others will be decided after tonight.
📰 NEWS: Forward Mathew Barzal and defenseman Alexander Romanov were on the ice ahead of the morning skate, but neither were participants in line drills and were held out of last night’s game against the Canadiens. Veteran Josh Bailey drew back in the lineup for the first time in 11 days for Simon Holmstrom and played on a line with Bo Horvat and Anders Lee. Bailey wore the “A.”
"I thought Josh played well," head coach Lane Lambert said after the game.. "He made some key plays in the third period over in our zone against the boards and made some smart decisions, decisions that maybe people don't necessarily notice in terms of staying out on the ice so we could execute a change and things like that. So I thought it was good."
◾️ MUST-SEE TV: After the morning skate, Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News got a reaction from the players in the dressing room, including Lane Lambert, about how they felt as Chciago’s unlikely win over the Pittsburgh Penguins unfolded. “Blackhawks did us a massive favor last night, said Zach Parise. “We got the opportunity again to win and get in, and after that Washington game, that's really all you could ask for right now.”
The players and coaches were like us last night - spectators and had similar physical reactions - at least those that watched. “Last little bit of the game, your heart rate gets going,” said Anders Lee. "I watched a movie downstairs, said Lane Lambert. “My wife watched the game upstairs and sent me updates."
🎙 CAN’T MISS MATCHUP: Wednesday nights are usually Brendan Burke’s night to call a national game for TNT. However, with the stakes as high as they were last night, he couldn’t miss calling the last regular season game at UBS Arena.
As always, Brendan found the words and set the scene ahead of puck drop.
The stage is set for the biggest game this arena this has ever seen.
No more talk of destiny or who controls it, no more math or scoreboard watching, just hockey, and this is the only game that matters.
◾️ 50 IN 50: In a series he’s doing with the New York Post, columnist Larry Brooks is ranking the top 50 Islanders of all time in the team’s 50-year history.
There are more than 50 players in the countdown because coming in at 47 is the Islanders’ long-standing fourth line, “The Identity Line,” made up of Matt Martin, Casey Cizikas, and Cal Clutterbuck. Best stated by Brooks, the trio is best known for beating you “while beating you up.”
📚 SOUND SMART: Per NHL PR, Brock Nelson (2-0—2) became the 12th player in team history with at least 30 career multi-goal games. His eight multi-goal games this season are the most since Anders Lee (9 in 2017-18).
🗓 ISLES REWIND: 41 years ago, on April 13, 1982, the Islanders dynasty almost came to an unceremonious end. Trailing the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1 in the decisive fifth game of the Patrick Division semifinals, Mike McEwen scored at 14:33, and John Tonelli followed with the tying goal at 17:39 to send the game into sudden-death overtime. In the OT, it was the clutch Tonelli scoring at 6:19 to send the Isles to the next round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
🎧 Eyes on Isles Podcast: We Made It! On the latest edition of the Eyes on Isles podcast, Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and Andy Francess (@AndyFrancess) react to the Islanders' 4-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens that punched their ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Andy laments over missed opportunities that should've already clinched the first 7th seed, while Joe talks about how the season needs to be viewed as a success given where they were two months ago.
🔗 Islanders bounce back, take care of business this time to get back to playoffs by Neil Best, Newsday “History will not record it as the first Islanders playoff game at UBS Arena. But the players and fans who were a part of it knew the deal, and it sure felt like one. Facing what essentially was an elimination game, the Islanders did what they had to do on Wednesday night, beating the Canadiens, 4-2, to clinch a wild-card spot.”
And we leave you with this ….it’s good to have the Isles on the back page!
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter for regular updates until the next newsletter.
And please check out our newsletters about the Knicks and Mets, too.