The Islanders are fine playing games like this.
They’re fine watching the opposing goaltender stand on his head, just like Carey Price did. And they’re fine not getting frustrated with a lack of offensive production over weeks-long stretches. And they’re fine grinding out defensive shifts and getting big saves from their own netminder when needed.
“There was no panic,” coach Barry Trotz said after his team dug out another one, this being a 2-1 victory over the Canadiens on Thursday night at the Coliseum.
These are now getting very close to playoff-type games, while the Islanders (41-22-7) themselves are now nearing that elusive clinching of a playoff berth. With the Capitals also winning in Philadelphia, the Isles remained two points back for first in the Metropolitan Division (while still holding one game in hand).
Hardly a week ago, it seemed all too possible that the Islanders could drop down toward the realm of the Canadiens (37-27-7), who are still pushing for a wild-card spot. But after a gutsy 2-0 win over another Eastern Conference foe in the Blue Jackets on Monday, and then this one that came with Anders Lee’s game-winner with 2:57 left in regulation, the Isles are back on stable ground.
They’re playing games like it is the postseason, and they’re winning them.
“Sometimes your grind for 58 minutes, then you catch your break,” Mathew Barzal said, sounding like a cagey veteran rather than the 21-year-old reigning Calder Trophy winner who not only made the terrific two-on-one pass to Lee to set up the game-winner, but started the rush with a great defensive play to steal the puck from Max Domi at the blue line.
“That’s what we did tonight — everybody was contributing,” he said. “It’s a good win.”
Barzal is the lone elite-level talent the Islanders have, and he went through a bit of lull in lockstep with the rest of his team. The group came in 5-5-1 over its previous 11 games, with many forwards going through deep goal droughts. He had just one goal and six assists in the previous 16 games, and has 17 goals and 56 points through 70 games — well below his 85-point pace of his terrific rookie year.
“There is no guy in this room that isn’t going to sacrifice individual stuff for the sake of the team,” Barzal said. “We’re [likely] in the playoffs. Personally, I’ve never been in the playoffs. A lot of guys here haven’t really had a taste. So that’s what we’re focused on, not necessarily numbers or goal scoring.
“Whether we win 1-0 or 5-4, it doesn’t matter to us.”
It was never going to be 5-4 the way Price was playing, stopping all 15 shots he faced in the first period and finishing with 36 saves overall. Before Lee’s goal, Price was only beaten by Adam Pelech quickly shooting a loose puck from in front at 1:20 of the second period to give the Isles a 1-0 lead.
“We run into a Hall of Fame goaltender who played like a Hall of Famer,” Trotz said.
The Canadiens tied it at 18:10 of the second when Jordie Benn got the second of two long shots to get through traffic, beating Thomas Greiss — terrific again making 33 saves in his third straight start while Robin Lehner gets fully healthy.
Tied at one going into the third is when things could have gotten dicey, but the Islanders didn’t waver. They knew they couldn’t try to open it up, because that’s not how they win.
“We’re not a really high-scoring team, but I do know we have 40-something wins, so we’ve outscored teams 41 times,” Trotz said. “So, yes [we can outscore teams]. But we’re not going play the way they want to play. We want them to play the way we need to play.”
It’s tight, playoff-like hockey — and soon, it’ll be the real thing.
“I liked our overall poise, I liked our work ethic,” Trotz said. “We got back a little bit more of our Islander identity. We never flinched, and that’s a good sign.”