Patrick Roy is a glass-half-full kind of guy, and on Thursday night, the cup of water was filled to the brim as the Islanders' confidence is sky-high.
VANCOUVER -- The New York Islanders had found ways to win this season but had yet to have a dominating 60-minute performance.
That was until Thursday night, when they played their most complete game of the season, beating the Vancouver Canucks 5-2 on the road:
In what was a complete team effort, the Islanders held the Canucks to just six shots through two periods before an expected push in the third, which Long Island weathered while also adding some insurance.
The Islanders entered the road trip feeling a bit frustrated after blowing a two-goal lead in the third period against the New Jersey Devils last Saturday before falling 4-3 in overtime.
They failed to play well against the Edmonton Oilers to kick off the five-game trip, but a gritty Anders Lee willed them to earn a point.
Now, after their win against Vancouver, the Islanders not only extended their point streak to five games but now occupy the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference:
This Islanders group has always been confident, and that statement win has them feeling the best they've felt all season.
"Well, it's funny because the way we're talking is that it was an opportunity to have five straight games with picking up points. And six out of our last seven, we pick up points," Islanders head coach Patrick Roy said. "Maybe I like to be half full than half empty...my glass...my glass of water. Is it a glass of water?
"But anyway, my point is, is this. We are very confident right now. We came here, and we knew we had to play a good game because it's a good team, and that's exactly what our guys did."
"Se've been talking about [our confidence] in the room. Like we feel pretty good with our game," Islanders captain Anders Lee said. "How do we get better? How do we find ways to still improve, regardless of the results? How can we build our game in little areas? And I thought, after a couple of nights ago, we built upon that, and it showed up tonight.
"So enjoy it for a few hours here. Let's get to Seattle and demand more from ourselves."
With the number of points, the Islanders have left on the table early in 2024-25, lacking the confidence needed to close out games, Thursday's win is one of those where you could visually see the tide changing for this team.
It's a cliché, but could this win get them over that mental hurdle they so very badly need to soar over?
“To finally get rewarded for playing the right way, it definitely feels nice," Islanders forward and former Canucks captain Bo Horvat said. "We knew all along if we were playing the same way and playing that way, we were going to get rewarded eventually. And it definitely felt nice to get rewarded tonight."
We shall see if the Islanders can build on their most impressive win of the season when they battle the Seattle Kraken on Saturday afternoon (3 PM ET).