Could this be the season where the New York Islanders have a true top line?
NEW YORK, NY -- Last season, New York Islanders forwards Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat had a revolving door of linemates.
Head coach Patrick Roy, who replaced Lane Lambert on Jan. 20, tried to find the answer for the top-line left-wing spot, settling on fourth-line center Casey Cizikas down the stretch and in the playoffs.
The reason was speed.
But everyone knew that Cizikas wasn't the long-term solution with those two.
"It was kind of a revolving door, a little bit, at times," Horvat said during his exit interview this past Friday. "We really liked playing with Cizikas. He's obviously a little bit more comfortable playing center, I'm sure, but he was great. He works really hard and got a lot of pucks back for us.
"But, I think adding somebody else would be great, just in general, to our roster. He doesn't have to play with Barzal and me. We're always trying to find ways to get better."
And that, Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello did when he signed 29-year-old forward Anthony Duclair to a four-year deal at a very reasonable $3.5 million annual cap hit.
Outside of his speed, Barzal mentioned to us the other day that Duclair knows how to use his frame effectively with and without the puck and has a strong hockey IQ to make plays.
As we all know, talk is cheap.
We needed to see how Duclair would fit with those two in an actual game.
The answer: like a glove.
Despite a disastrous 6-4 preseason loss to the New York Rangers, the top trio dominated.
The Rangers essentially threw their NHL lineup at the Islanders, and the Islanders' top line carved them like a Jack-O-Lantern.
The stats — Barzal had two goals, Horvat had a goal, and Duclair had two assists — don’t matter in the grand scheme of things, given that it was preseason.
It was the way they played together that holds value.
All three players were in sync.
Barzal possessed the puck as he normally does, with Horvat hounding pucks and getting open for shots.
Duclair went to work down low, winning his board battles, protecting the puck, and finding his teammates for grade-A chances, not to mention helping their transition game.
He looked like prime Anders Lee, with more speed, which was part of the job description for the top-line hole.
There was never a moment in the offensive zone where the three weren't moving their feet, which allowed them to cycle and show off their creativity.
Even when they did turn the puck over or miss the net, the pressure they put on the Rangers made it rather difficult for them to clear the zone, which led to extended offensive zone time and even more scoring chances.
“If we're going to be successful as a line, we got to be hard on pucks and we have to forecheck hard,” Barzal said. “I thought Duke did a good job of fore-checking. He’s a bigger guy than I thought he was. He was good with winning battles and getting in the corners, and he's not afraid to hang on to it down there. So, I think that's going to be the key for our line.”
Offense is important, but as former head coach and current Nashville Predators general manager said, it means nothing if you are trading chances.
The top line didn't trade a thing, as their defensive game was also exceptional.
In 11:13 minutes as a line, they allowed four shots on goal, with eight of their own.
While watching the three go to work, it was difficult not to think about the Islanders' top lines over the years and wonder if this could be the season where Barzal has two players who can keep up with him.
No, not everything is about Barzal. But after being a point-per-game player last season with 80 points — he set a career-high with 23 goals, adding 57 assists — this could be the season where he does even better.
From day one, Barzal and Horvat's game proved to be perfect for each other
No. 13 is a playmaker, so you knew the assists would come alongside No. 14.
But because Horvat is a goal scorer, he opened up lanes and opportunities for Barzal to let his shot go.
The more Barzal shot, the more confident he became, destroying his career high in shots on goal with 240.
He had 179 shots in 2017-18.
So, to sum things up, those were his numbers on an incomplete first line.
Now, Duclair may not be as good of a goal scorer as Horvat, but the 29-year-old certainly knows how to bury, scoring 20-plus goals in three of the last four seasons.
FILM ROOM
Because of Duclair's wicked speed, opponents will be drawn to him, which will allow Barzal even more scoring opportunities than last season.
And because the line has three strong skaters, fast break chances and odd-man rushes should be more consistent.
Getting on 2-on-1s, as we saw on Barzal's first of two goals on Tuesday night, is important. But one thing the Islanders' top-line rushes were lacking in the past was having three guys jetting up the ice.
Here is Barzal's first goal:
This goal clearly showed chemistry between Duclair and Barzal, but Barzal's second goal was more impressive because of the offensive zone attack.
Duclair, who transitions the puck up the ice, decided to hold onto the puck as he crossed the blue line, making a quick move to beat a defender before feeding Barzal, who had cut more to the middle of the zone.
While Horvat never touched the puck on the rush, he was ready and waiting for a pass back with Barzal and Duclair on an in-tight odd-man opportunity:
Barzal made the right decision to shoot the puck, but he did have the option of passing the biscuit to Duclair or dropping it to Horvat.
It's a positive that Barzal had the confidence to shoot, but it's also a positive that all three players were a threat to score.
After playing well in their first game together, let’s see if they can be even better whenever they suit up next.
The Islanders have back-to-back preseason games to close out the week.
One group will head to Philadelphia on Thursday, and the other will head to UBS on Friday when New Jersey comes to town.