The Islanders & Their January Penalty Kill Transformation

The Islanders penalty kill in January was the best in the NHL.

The New York Islanders entered the 2025 portion of the season in dire need of improving special teams if they wanted a chance to make the postseason. 

While the power play was a league-worst 11.3%, the team was losing games, especially early in the season, because of the consistent failures of its penalty kill.

At 63.9%, the Islanders were on pace to have one of the worst shorthanded units in NHL history. 

That was until the great turnaround of January.

In what played a key role in their 9-3-0 month, which ended with a six-game winning streak, the Islanders killed off 21 of the 23 power plays they faced for a league-leading 91.3%. 

The club's shorthanded structure was much better, and the players referred to their newfound success as "connected." 

When Tommy Albelin arrived, the Islanders penalty killers were playing in a wedge formation. The high forward attacked the point, and there were second-quicks everywhere.

The problem was overaggressiveness, which often left opponents wide-open on the weak side in highly dangerous areas. 

However, the penalty kill, still playing a wedge, has done an exceptional job lately of taking away the slot and keeping the shots to the perimeter. 

And when they had the chance to clear the puck, they did. 

The best face-off team in the league also won 51.1% of their shorthanded draws. 

While that helps the goaltenders immensely, they, too, have stepped up their game. 

Through the 2024 portion of the season, Sorokin's SV% was .800, while the Islanders were shorthanded, one of the lowest in the NHL.

But in January, he got that up to .900, allowing just two goals on 20 power-play shots. 

Marcus Hogberg, who got hurt after only a handful of appearances, stopped all nine power-play shots he faced. 

Talking to a handful of players, they all said that confidence is one of the biggest things for a special-team unit to click, and right now, the penalty kill is playing with confidence, baiting their opponent to dare try to come across the middle.

The question is, can the penalty kill success fuel the power play in February?

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