The Islanders' path to success lies in streamlining their game. The Cizikas line embodies this simplified approach and delivers consistent results.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- New York Islanders head coach Patrick Roy called his team to center ice on Monday morning, a normal occurrence that signifies the official end of a morning skate or practice.
He had a message for his team, who battle the Washington Capitals on Monday, the first of three straight meetings against Metropolitan Division foes before the Olympic break.
It was a simple message for his team, literally, a simple one.
Not quoting verbatim from the on-ice scrum, but he told his team that they are at their best when they are keeping things simple.
Things were very much not simple their last time out, a 4-3 loss to the Nashville Predators on Saturday. They need to be better in all facets. Roy elected to change up his lines, simplifying certain roles for some, like moving Mathew Barzal to Bo Horvat's wing.
Now, every line has its own set of skills, but if we are talking about a line that keeps things very simple, it's the Casey Cizikas line. While the trio of Kyle MacLean, Cizikas, and Marc Gatcomb hasn't been together every game over the last few months, whne they have played, they've, no question, been the Islanders' most consistent line.
They do their jobs in the defensive zone. They get up the ice in transition, usually getting pucks deep, before putting on the pressure.
They play a straight North-South game, and their ability to get in on the forecheck allows them not to be stuck defending so much, especially when they are being matched up against some of the best teams in the league.
They say the best defense is a good offense, and this line has been able to ride with that old cliché.
Ondrej Palat brings that to the Horvat line. Emil Heineman brings that to the Jonathan Drouin line. Anders Lee brings that to the Pageau line. They all have the power to do what the Cizikas line does, while adding, hopefully, more offense.
The Islanders have collectively been a very good team in transition this season, but when they struggle, it's because that facet of their game is flawed from step one: breakouts.
After the last game, Adam Pelech talked about how out of sync they were on their breakouts, and well, if you can't breakout, you can't transition. It's as simple as that.
"I think we could have done a better job using the middle," Pelech said. "I felt like a lot of times we get past one guy, and we just couldn't make the next play. And [Nashville] came hard, but at the same time, I think we got to communicate more, and we just have to execute."
The Islanders are a good team when they are doing the little things right, the little things that carried this team to back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals in 2021 and 2021 when Barry Trotz was the bench boss.
They need to be a little more consistent in their details and keep things simpler. It might do wonders for the top nine to take a page out of the Cizikas' line playbook.