New York Islanders head coach Patrick Roy has some decisions to make before Game Three against the Carolina Hurricanes.
NEW YORK, NY -- New York Islanders head coach Patrick Roy has some decisions to make before Game Three against the Carolina Hurricanes.
His team is trailing the series two games to nothing, and after being held to one shot over the final 40-plus minutes of action, blowing a 3-0 lead in Game Two, something has to give, or this series will be over by Saturday night.
Looking at the roster, Roy could make changes to his line, but given the issues through the first two games, making a few depth changes likely will not address the need.
Fourth-line grinder Matt Martin, who is being ridiculed along with linemate and fellow vet Cal Clutterbuck, hasn't been the problem.
Sure, we could see the speedy Sebastian Aho replace the slower Robert Bortuzzo, who has eight blocks in the series' first two games.
That could, in theory, allow for the Islanders to have some type of transition game given Aho's wheels, but if New York is relying on Aho to be the "big change," they're in serious trouble.
That isn't a knock on Aho, but this team needs its leaders to lead the charge, not the fringe starters, and Mike Reilly, who made a key transition before Kyle Palmieri's goal, does what Aho does.
The Islanders could go back to their Game One lineup, placing Hudson Fasching back on the wing of Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri while taking Simon Holmstrom out of the lineup, but Holmstrom has been fine.
There's a clear hole at the second winger position, which Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello did not address at the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline.
He cited that making a lateral move didn't make sense, and given the market, who knows what the cost would have been.
No one has grabbed that spot in the lineup, and now it's a revolving door in the most important games of the season.
There are many asking for rookie Ruslan Iskhakov, who has one NHL game under his belt -- a meaningless one against the Pittsburgh Penguins to close out the season -- to be thrown into the fire in the most pressured situation.
That doesn't seem ideal, and, as we saw with Samuel Bolduc last season in the playoffs, it does a disservice to the player.
"Well, if Iskahkov isn't an option, why is he up here?"
It's a fair question, but he did deserve the chance to be on the roster, and despite not playing, there's value in him being with the group, no matter their struggles.
Listen, Iskhakov's shiftiness and deceptiveness could throw off Carolina and help in the transition, which is why he is an option, no matter how slim of an option he is.
Ahead of Game Three, the Islanders added five more players to their playoff roster, but it would be a shock if any, outside of Julien Gauthier, draw in on Thursday night.
Maybe Gauthier slots in on the second line, or Pierre Engvall goes back up to Brock Nelson's wing, and the speedy Gauthier lands on Jean-Gabriel Pageau's right.
For those asking for Oliver Wahlstrom to get a look because of his goal-scoring potential, the 23-year-old hasn't played a meaningful game since Feb. 24 and hasn't scored a goal since Nov. 24.
He seems to be a non-option for Roy, as his game leaves much to be desired.
Now, let's talk about goaltending.
Semyon Varlamov was a key reason the Islanders made the playoffs, has started both games, and stopped 57 of 63 shots.
Both losses aren't his fault, but the Islanders need something to spark a group that has to find a way to bounce back from what seems to be an un-bounce-backable loss.
Although Ilya Sorokin has not been himself the entire season and wasn't consistent enough down the stretch, leading to more Varlamov starts, Sorokin has the ability to steal games.
That was evident during his 2022-23 season, which ended with him being a Vezina finalist.
Going to Sorokin makes sense, but it's hard to tell what Roy is thinking.
Based on his meeting with the media on Tuesday, don't be surprised if he goes back with Varlamov.
"I haven't made the decision yet on what we're gonna do, but Varly was phenomenal down the stretch for us. If we made the playoffs, he has a big part to play in it," Roy said. "What I like about Varly is he's kept a lot of pucks around. This is a team that loves to shoot a lot. They shoot from everywhere. I mean, they even took a shot from outside of the building.
"At the end of the day, they're very active offensively and they love to put pucks on the net. They love to drive the net. So, Varly kept a lot of pucks around him. And that's what I love about Varly, not giving too many rebounds and holding those pucks, and I think that helps our defense.”
One thing that has killed Sorokin this season has been his rebounds.
Yes, Sorokin didn't get help defensively and led the NHL in shots faced before Roy came aboard. But a lot of that had to do with Sorokin bailing himself out due to his rebound control.
Although not perfect with his rebound control this series, Varlamov has done a phenomenal job at that, and you can see the defense settle down a bit when he's between the pipes.
It's a major risk to go to Sorokin but also a major risk not to go to him because of his potential.
We should have our answers soon enough when the Islanders hit the practice sheet on Wednesday in preparation for Thursday's Game Three at UBS Arena.