Roster/Rumors/Speculation/Trade Talk - 2023-24: Hotel California

[Kevin27NYI]

I think we were outplayed by Pittsburgh. Boston we managed to wear down as that series went on.

Pittsburgh also couldn’t close out games, they let us back in every game even if we still lost. I think game three was close but they were up 4-2 or something. And I think we lost 5-4. All memory here, don’t know if accurate

 

[MJF]

Pittsburgh also couldn’t close out games, they let us back in every game even if we still lost. I think game three was close but they were up 4-2 or something. And I think we lost 5-4. All memory here, don’t know if accurate

Mostly because Tristan Jarry was a sieve in that series.

 

[PK Cronin]

I think we were outplayed by Pittsburgh. Boston we managed to wear down as that series went on.

If they were, it was marginal. There are some series where a goalie gets hot and steals the show, that didn't happen in that one. Pittsburgh had all sorts of trouble with Pelech, and the goaltending was good.

 

[MJF]

If they were, it was marginal. There are some series where a goalie gets hot and steals the show, that didn't happen in that one. Pittsburgh had all sorts of trouble with Pelech, and the goaltending was good.

If not outplayed, would you settle for outchanced?

 

[PK Cronin]

If not outplayed, would you settle for outchanced?

Sure. I just don't think it was that large of a gap and that it's also a product of how the teams were constructed.

The Penguins had Jarry because of their tight cap and they had run through two other goalies already. Was he has good as the Islanders goalies? Nope. Was he good? Nope. His poor performance definitely hurt the Penguins, but they knew what he was going into that series and they didn't address their goaltending. He's part of their team. The Islanders had good goaltending, but I don't recall them stealing games and everyone wondering how on earth the lowly Islanders were winning games. The Islanders leaned on their strongest assets, defense and goaltending, and the Penguins lost because of their weakest asset, goaltending. Isn't that the same series Crosby was held to 3 points or something, two of which came late in the series on the same game?

Going off memory so maybe I'm mixing it up with the other time Pelech dominated Crosby's line.

 

[Zeeker]

Sure. I just don't think it was that large of a gap and that it's also a product of how the teams were constructed.

The Penguins had Jarry because of their tight cap and they had run through two other goalies already. Was he has good as the Islanders goalies? Nope. Was he good? Nope. His poor performance definitely hurt the Penguins, but they knew what he was going into that series and they didn't address their goaltending. He's part of their team. The Islanders had good goaltending, but I don't recall them stealing games and everyone wondering how on earth the lowly Islanders were winning games. The Islanders leaned on their strongest assets, defense and goaltending, and the Penguins lost because of their weakest asset, goaltending. Isn't that the same series Crosby was held to 3 points or something, two of which came late in the series on the same game?

Going off memory so maybe I'm mixing it up with the other time Pelech dominated Crosby's line.

No offense but I think you are misremembering somewhat. Game 5 we got absolutely bludgeoned and outchanced by a huge gap - and managed to win by some miracle.

 

[Lights911]

Our top 4 has not changed in 3 years. Toews/Dobson is a wash defensively and Leddy was a 3rd pairing defenseman under Trotz. If you think this team’s defensive issues are because of the 3rd pairing I don’t know what to tell you.

The top 4 has changed quite a bit, just about every year there has been a change. The team’s defensive issues are because the defenseman aren’t very good in the defensive zone, it’s not a hard concept to understand but I wouldn’t expect someone who considered Toews/Dobson a wash defensively to realize that.

 

[The Real JT]

Mostly because Tristan Jarry was a sieve in that series.

I remember it well.

Just like Louis Domingue last year against the Rags.

 

[PK Cronin]

No offense but I think you are misremembering somewhat. Game 5 we got absolutely bludgeoned and outchanced by a huge gap - and managed to win by some miracle.

I don't take any offense. I just watched the highlights from the series and noticed the shot differential.



It's just shots, so it's not the same as "chances" but here's the breakdown from that series.

Game 1: 41 shots for, 42 shots against (4-3 OTW)
Game 2: 38 shots for, 45 shots against (2-1 L)
Game 3: 30 shots for, 27 shots against (5-4 L)
Game 4: 26 shots for, 30 shots against (4-1 W)
Game 5: 28 shots for, 50 shots against (3-2 2OTW)
Game 6: 24 shots for, 37 shots against (5-3 W)

So for the first four games the shots were pretty close. The only game it was really lopsided was game 5. If we're referring to singular games as being "out-chanced" or being "bad" because of fancy stats then I care even less about them. We all knew going into that series that the Islanders would lean on their defense and goaltending to win, that's how the team was built. Now the argument is that because they leaned on that strength that they were bad. Crosby, the best player in the series, had a whopping two points in 6 games (1G, 1A) which doesn't align with the "Islanders were bad/lucky" narrative trying to be portrayed here by the fancy stats. The Islanders chose to emphasize certain areas of the game over others, and they had success.

Just to re-iterate my point, I'm not at all suggesting that the Islanders dominated the competition or that they were some offensive juggernaut. They were a defensively sound team that leaned into that intentionally. The fancy stats are inaccurate at predicting winners and losers, and they should be taken with a grain of salt.

 

[MJF]

Sure. I just don't think it was that large of a gap and that it's also a product of how the teams were constructed.

The Penguins had Jarry because of their tight cap and they had run through two other goalies already. Was he has good as the Islanders goalies? Nope. Was he good? Nope. His poor performance definitely hurt the Penguins, but they knew what he was going into that series and they didn't address their goaltending. He's part of their team. The Islanders had good goaltending, but I don't recall them stealing games and everyone wondering how on earth the lowly Islanders were winning games. The Islanders leaned on their strongest assets, defense and goaltending, and the Penguins lost because of their weakest asset, goaltending. Isn't that the same series Crosby was held to 3 points or something, two of which came late in the series on the same game?

Going off memory so maybe I'm mixing it up with the other time Pelech dominated Crosby's line.

The way I remembered it in the middle games of the series the Pens had lots of O zone time on us, skated us pretty good, and when we would get out of the zone Jarry had a welcome sign over his net.

 

[YearlyLottery]

Are we really debating on if the Isles were outplayed in a series? I understand the thought process for one game but when we are talking about a 7 game series the better team wins every time. If you cannot show over the course of 7 games you can turn chances into results then you do not deserve to win.

 

[SI]

Are we really debating on if the Isles were outplayed in a series? I understand the thought process for one game but when we are talking about a 7 game series the better team wins every time. If you cannot show over the course of 7 games you can turn chances into results then you do not deserve to win.

And mind you they won in 6.

 

[PK Cronin]

Are we really debating on if the Isles were outplayed in a series? I understand the thought process for one game but when we are talking about a 7 game series the better team wins every time. If you cannot show over the course of 7 games you can turn chances into results then you do not deserve to win.

I'm debating the utility of fancy stats that are being applied in a way that suggests the Islanders have been bad, even when they were good.

 

[MJF]

Are we really debating on if the Isles were outplayed in a series? I understand the thought process for one game but when we are talking about a 7 game series the better team wins every time. If you cannot show over the course of 7 games you can turn chances into results then you do not deserve to win.

Not debating. Discussing PK’s faulty memory.

 

[Kevin27NYI]

Also was that the series we swapped Sorokin for Varly? Or the other way around? Helped we went with our backup and they didnt

 

[MJF]

Also was that the series we swapped Sorokin for Varly? Or the other way around? Helped we went with our backup and they didnt

Varly was replaced by Sorokin.

 

[Big L]

I'm debating the utility of fancy stats that are being applied in a way that suggests the Islanders have been bad, even when they were good.

There’s lies, damned lies, and fancy stats.

 

[LeapOnOver]

I gotcha. Looking back at it right now, given the Isles needs, more open offensive system and both players output so far, it would have been better for the Isles to keep Eberle and unload Bailey.

At the time it was, at least to me, more of a toss up. It really felt like there was a case to be made both for and against Eberle vs. Bailey.

Eberle is the better offensive player but is streaky and had a brutal playoff series against Philly. If he could have just netted one of the say 10-15 golden chances he received, the Isles don't have to go seven games against the Flyers and who knows what would have happened if they were better rested.

Meanwhile Bailey has the tenure, is seemingly loved by his teammates and should be the better all-around player. But he isn't the natural goal scorer that Eberle is and appears to be in steep decline now.

I guess our best hope should be that the Isles find a way to upgrade significantly from both in one of Meier, Horvat, Tank, Kane, etc., while also working Holmstrom into the lineup on the cheap.

That would probably help some at even strength but really benefit the power play. Especially if Holmstrom can do a lot of the things Bailey has done in the past when he is going well. I think Holmstrom plays a stronger game along the boards and still has some room to get better, especially as he matures and fills out.

Yeah, I like what I see so far from Holmstrom. Not sure if he'll see much time when the roster is fully healthy, but I'm hoping the time he does get we'll go a long way in his development. We need to hit on him for sure!

 

[Skidrow11]

Why are we not hearing anything about pelech? Usually conclusions are 1 or 2 games or they end up being 40 to 200 games. Or thats what it seems like with the hockey I've watched anyway. Are they going to trade for someone or just use AHO?

 

[DerekKingSnipes]

Yeah, I like what I see so far from Holmstrom. Not sure if he'll see much time when the roster is fully healthy, but I'm hoping the time he does get we'll go a long way in his development. We need to hit on him for sure!

As someone who watched the baby isles I felt like he is one of those guys who will be better NHL player than minor leaguer as he is smart and makes smart plays that will get finished more in NHL. I think he needs more time but he’s filled in for Palmieri well.

 

[BelovedIsles]

Heard Lou's BS State of the Team interview.

-Softball questions. Ask him why his team is so f***ing mediocre.
-Andrew Gross is petrified of Lou.
-No one asked about augmenting the roster directly, reporters then danced around the subject, Lou gave his generic 'we're always looking to improve the team...<blah blah blah... insert the same thing I said the last time>'
-Pelech isn't skating.
-Lou keeps calling Andrew Gross Mark.
-Lou is very pleased with the results so far (a WC2 team, really!?!?).
-Lou is willing to sacrifice D for O.
-Thinks Dobson needs to be more assertive in the D zone. I agree, finally some details.
-Reporters generally seem scared of Lou, hence the softball questions and perseveration on day-to-day injuries and fluff content.

 

[Throttle]

It doesn’t matter what year of the building they’re in. If they don’t give the fans a reason to believe they can legitimately contend for the cup they will stop buying tickets. There’s no blind loyalty from Isles fans and giving them a new building in Nassau County meant nothing to the fans after just 1 year.

Part of their strategy appears to expand the Isles fan base, so keeping the team relevant and ‘competitive’ while keeping butts in seats is to their benefit. The Isles core fanbase is a known commodity at this point. It’s a broader view ownership is going for.

With that, I ‘think’ they’ll go as long as they can until it becomes detrimental to attendance. A management change will be that signal of a change in direction to get the hardcore fan ‘buy in’ so to speak.

 

[Chardo]

Team just earned points on the road against the top team in the east, the top team in the west, and the defending champs. Sky is not falling.

 

[mm11]

Team just earned points on the road against the top team in the east, the top team in the west, and the defending champs. Sky is not falling.

Now gets to play a rival on the road that has won 7 in a row.

 

[Top Corner]

Heard Lou's BS State of the Team interview.

-Softball questions. Ask him why his team is so f***ing mediocre.
-Andrew Gross is petrified of Lou.
-No one asked about augmenting the roster directly, reporters then danced around the subject, Lou gave his generic 'we're always looking to improve the team...<blah blah blah... insert the same thing I said the last time>'
-Pelech isn't skating.
-Lou keeps calling Andrew Gross Mark.
-Lou is very pleased with the results so far (a WC2 team, really!?!?).
-Lou is willing to sacrifice D for O.
-Thinks Dobson needs to be more assertive in the D zone. I agree, finally some details.
-Reporters generally seem scared of Lou, hence the softball questions and perseveration on day-to-day injuries and fluff content.

You can tell Lou that with my zero NHL experience , his inability to recognize flaws and inability to make a roster for roster trade before the Christmas trade freeze has essentially cost them a trip to the playoffs. I’m staking my meaningless reputation that regardless of what gets done from here on it it won’t be enough.