Confirmed with Link: The 2019-2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs Discussion: Islanders vs Lightning Round 3

[JKP]

There is going to come a point where we are happy they got that experience in a game 7. Also, anyone notice how this year once the Isles fell down 2-0 in a series they did not just fall apart? Improvement folks. This team is learning how to win.

I don't disagree at all. I was just saying it's hard to cry about the NHL's 2 day turnaround for G1 w/ TB - they knew everything was compressed so we can't complain about the quick turnaround when there were 2 chances to end it early and get some rest (or at least match the rest TB had).

 

[Islanders4Cups]

Congratulations to this NY Islander team. Very proud of this team. As someone that was skeptical about the restart and playoff bubble, it was an amazing ride and a great job by the NHL.

If the NHL sticks to rumored plans of restarting in December(?) it should be a short and interesting offseason. What will a restart look like (another bubble?)

Lou has a lot of decisions to make and things to look forward to.

1) the arrival of Ilya Sorokin, will he adjust to be NHL ready and be everything we are hoping right away?
2) Barzal contract
3) whether Lou thinks Oliver Wahlstrom makes Jordan Eberle expendable for a trade and what teams are willing to give for him?
3) will Andy Greene retire?
4) what do we have left with Johnny Boychuk?
5) will Kieffer Bellows crack the Islanders lineup?
6) Will Lou make a run at a top UFA to improve the offense and powerplay?
7) Is Noah Dobson ready to be an everyday defenseman on this team?
8) Will Matt Martin return?
9) Can Ladds contract be moved?
10) the health of Casey Cizekas and Adam Pelech come training camp.
11) will Brassard and kuhnhackl be back?

Did I miss any?

 

[IslesNorway]

Congratulations to this NY Islander team. Very proud of this team. As someone that was skeptical about the restart and playoff bubble, it was an amazing ride and a great job by the NHL.

If the NHL sticks to rumored plans of restarting in December(?) it should be a short and interesting offseason. What will a restart look like (another bubble?)

Lou has a lot of decisions to make and things to look forward to.

1) the arrival of Ilya Sorokin, will he adjust to be NHL ready and be everything we are hoping right away?
2) Barzal contract
3) whether Lou thinks Oliver Wahlstrom makes Jordan Eberle expendable for a trade and what teams are willing to give for him?
3) will Andy Greene retire?
4) what do we have left with Johnny Boychuk?
5) will Kieffer Bellows crack the Islanders lineup?
6) Will Lou make a run at a top UFA to improve the offense and powerplay?
7) Is Noah Dobson ready to be an everyday defenseman on this team?
8) Will Matt Martin return?
9) Can Ladds contract be moved?
10) the health of Casey Cizekas and Adam Pelech come training camp.
11) will Brassard and kuhnhackl be back?

Did I miss any?

Got most of it covered and some of your points have already been discussed at length in other threads, but here's my take on a couple of them:

3) Eberle is close to untradeable. He has an NTC and is signed for number of years at a pretty big overpayment. In time he will be a third line, $6m man and that may happen faster than we like. No way he gets traded now.

4) Johnny Boychuck is also untradeable until his final year. Even if his cap hit is higher than his salary he has a modified NTC making him very hard to move, but in a year he will only be owed $1.25 million for a cap hit of $6m so then we might find some takers.

6) No. There's no room for a UFA this off season

8) can't really afford that after the playoffs he's had. He will probably get a nice 3 year deal from some team. Islanders can't afford to keep him around.

11) Hope not. No need for them. Gotta try youth in their spots.

9) That is the big question isn't it? There is no way they can move that contract without taking a similarly bad contract back. I think Lou will try to move him but it's gonna be hard finding takers

 

[Duanesutter12]

Congratulations to this NY Islander team. Very proud of this team. As someone that was skeptical about the restart and playoff bubble, it was an amazing ride and a great job by the NHL.

If the NHL sticks to rumored plans of restarting in December(?) it should be a short and interesting offseason. What will a restart look like (another bubble?)

Lou has a lot of decisions to make and things to look forward to.

1) the arrival of Ilya Sorokin, will he adjust to be NHL ready and be everything we are hoping right away?
2) Barzal contract
3) whether Lou thinks Oliver Wahlstrom makes Jordan Eberle expendable for a trade and what teams are willing to give for him?
3) will Andy Greene retire?
4) what do we have left with Johnny Boychuk?
5) will Kieffer Bellows crack the Islanders lineup?
6) Will Lou make a run at a top UFA to improve the offense and powerplay?
7) Is Noah Dobson ready to be an everyday defenseman on this team?
8) Will Matt Martin return?
9) Can Ladds contract be moved?
10) the health of Casey Cizekas and Adam Pelech come training camp.
11) will Brassard and kuhnhackl be back?

Did I miss any?

No you didn't miss any but your questions are fun so I'll take a crack.....

1) the arrival of Ilya Sorokin, will he adjust to be NHL ready and be everything we are hoping right away? Yes
2) Barzal contract Bridge contract at $8.5M annual
3) whether Lou thinks Oliver Wahlstrom makes Jordan Eberle expendable for a trade and what teams are willing to give for him? Wally makes the team, Ebs not traded
3) will Andy Greene retire? No but he will not be resigned. Room will be made for Dobson.
4) what do we have left with Johnny Boychuk? More serviceable than most think. He wasn't a healthy scratch until his injury in the playoffs. I don't think he was 100%. Possibly traded but will be tough to offload.
5) will Kieffer Bellows crack the Islanders lineup? Yes, third line scoring punch.
6) Will Lou make a run at a top UFA to improve the offense and powerplay? No but that may be addressed via trade.
7) Is Noah Dobson ready to be an everyday defenseman on this team? Yes
8) Will Matt Martin return? Yes one year $2M
9) Can Ladds contract be moved? I'll say yes because based on my previous answers cap room needs to open up. He's traded or LTIR.
10) the health of Casey Cizekas and Adam Pelech come training camp. 100%
11) will Brassard and kuhnhackl be back? No for either but if one of them comes back it will be Kuhnackl at same contract.

 

[Big L]

Any word on how/when Pelech broke his wrist in game 5?

 

[BelovedIsles]

Now that I've had 24 hours to digest. Still a sunken feeling. Once I saw Point in, Pelech out, I just knew they couldn't win (maybe they force game 7 if it were the other way around). They've defied expectations, however, I never once truly believed they could win 3 straight. I've enjoyed the ride, from the outset of informal camp on LI to falling within 2 games of the Cup. Very proud and the best Islander experience since I was 10.

This is most certainly is a huge step in the right direction, after getting swept in the 2nd round. I hope Lou can get creative, b/c if you bring back the same roster, you likely get a similar result. It's been beaten to death, but playing superior teams highlights the lack of scoring talent and PP ineffectiveness. Hiller really didn't improve the PP much; they still have issues entering the zone, setting up, and working the puck around like a good PP. Their decision making is poor, and they do not shoot. There are a lot of good options for trade and free agency, I do imagine Lou has been working behind the scenes.

Varly showed me something, and I feel much better about the signing. He'll be a good model for Ilya.

The D wasn't nearly as stingy as it needed to be to win. Too many turnovers, breakdowns (e.g. letting Hedman waltz in untouched for the 1st goal).

There may be room for internal improvement. Beau could become a 30 goal scorer, Barzal 80 pt center, but he needs help. Put a smart shooter on his wing and he'll amass 60 assists. Barz still has to shoot more and needs to add velocity to his shot. I think Toews has another level to his game, same for Pulock. Mayfield is what he is, a solid 3rd pairing D man. Dobson may find himself in the AHL next year, or playing 2nd pairing mins in the NHL, we'll see. He's still a few years away from being that all-around number 1.

 

[RMimagery]

Martin will be gone (and what a great soldier he's been for us in his two tours here) and be replaced by Johnston.

 

[PK Cronin]

Just some final playoff stats.

Bailey was our leading point scorer with 20 (2G 18A).
Nelson and Beauvillier were our leading goal scorers with 9. Pageau was behind them with 8.
Pulock and Toews led our defense with 10 points. Each with 7 even strength points.
Leddy led our defense in goals with 3.
Ryan Pulock led the team in TOI, averaging 22:42 per game. Our least used regular was Greene at 17:40 per game.
Barzal led the forwards in TOI with 20:16 per game. Ross Johnston had the lowest TOI with 9:11.
Pageau was our best at faceoffs winning 55.6% of his draws. Nelson and Brassard were also over 50%.
Martin led the team in PIMs with 28. Pageau was next with 21. Leddy and Bailey didn't take a single penalty. Mayfield and Greene had the most PIMs among our defense, 12 minutes each.
Nelson and Beauvllier both led the team with 3 game winning goals each.

 

[BMOK33]

Martin will be gone (and what a great soldier he's been for us in his two tours here) and be replaced by Johnston.

I think you'll be surprised. He will stay and probably take less money than someone else offers him. He will not have a role this big anywhere else. He already saw what happens in Toronto when you are not needed. Don't forget his wife too. Its basically Toronto/LA/NY. I don't see the Rangers or Devils being interested.

 

[PK Cronin]

I think you'll be surprised. He will stay and probably take less money than someone else offers him. He will not have a role this big anywhere else. He already saw what happens in Toronto when you are not needed. Don't forget his wife too. Its basically Toronto/LA/NY. I don't see the Rangers or Devils being interested.

Martin will also have to sit tight while Lamoriello moves salary. He has to be the last piece retained.

 

[notDatsyuk]

Leafs fans are ecstatic that we lost, and I find that hilarious. That was their Stanley Cup this year, but I’m not mad because how great was the hospitality in the Toronto bubble, eh?

Excellent hosts. They let us win three more games there (four if you include the play-in) than they have won there in the last 16 years!

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Imagine when the Isles win the cup. Isles fans.

 

[KevFu]

Any word on how/when Pelech broke his wrist in game 5?

I have been wondering about that myself. Based on "pretty early" and what I could tell from re-watching the ESPN+ replay and looking for it...

I think it might have occurred with 16:20 to go in the first period. There was an icing, defensive zone faceoff with Pelech/Pulock on the ice. Pelech goes behind the net with someone, it looked like Pelech hit him, but his right arm was pinched behind the guy into the boards; the Islanders came away with the puck, Pelech changes and another D-man comes out but Pulock remains on the ice (as Tampa sends it right back into the zone).

It's really hard to tell if that change was an "OW! I better get off" change or just a "We're using 7 D" change because of how infrequently we've used 7 D; and Tampa's quick re-entry could have just meant Pelech got off and Pulock didn't. But that's the closest thing I could find to "an incident" where Pelech hurt his wrist.

Martin will also have to sit tight while Lamoriello moves salary. He has to be the last piece retained.

Is this the "Official Off-Season discussion" thread? I'm just asking because I have thoughts.