The New York Islanders have a penalty-kill problem. The Hockey News sat down with an NHL scout to get their thoughts on what's been going wrong with their shorthanded unit this season.

EAST MEADOW, NY -- The penalty kill used to be a strength for the New York Islanders. 

During Barry Trotz's tenure on Long Island (2018-2022), New York's penalty kill finished a season under 80 percent just once, averaging a kill percentage of 82 percent, which ranks fifth-best over that span. 

The Islanders penalty kill in Lane Lambert's first year at the helm, under Doug Houda, was mighty strong, as they started the season by killing a franchise record 28 straight power plays, finishing the year with a penalty kill of 82.2 percent (ninth-best).

So far in 2023-24, Houda's penalty kill hasn't bailed out the Islanders lack of discipline, currently at 69.5 percent through 17 games, allowing 18 goals on 59 tries.

What's changed from a season ago?

Lambert's often said that his penalty killers have been too passive and have been retreating with every goal that's gone in, while Noah Dobson shared that it's their hesitation that is proving costly. 

The Hockey News caught up with an NHL scout to get their outside point of view of the problems plaguing the penalty kill.

Leaving The Weak Side Guy Open

Puck-watching is something the Islanders have done a tad too often on the penalty kill this season. And when you get caught puck-watching, opponents can sneak into different spaces, usually unguarded.

"They are losing the weak-side man so often," the NHL scout said. "Just ignoring them."

Three out of the 18 power-play goals allowed have come due to this mistake. 

For those that don't know, the strong side of the ice is whatever side the puck is on at a given moment, while the weak side is the side without the puck.

Last Wednesday, Vancouver Canucks J.T. Miller was left wide open on the weak side before Elias Pettersson found him for a one-time dagger to cut the Islanders' lead to 2-1. 

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQRnLPDxN6E[/embed]

The Canucks had been moving around rather well with a few chances before Pettersson received the puck in the left dot. The Islanders had done a strong job clogging the slot, with three guys collapsing down low. 

But the mistake that was made is that they had four guys on essentially two forwards:

Failing To Pick Up Opponent Down Low

It's a fine line for a penalty kill, as down a man, it's impossible to guard the entire offensive zone. The strong power plays move around the ice often, aiming to get the opponent's penalty kill to break their structure. 

Sometimes, the penalty killers get baited, leaving their designated area of the ice, whether on a fake shot, a fake pass, or in an effort to get to a loose puck and get a clear. 

"The Islanders killers, too often, are covering up areas instead of picking up a man when play dictates that, especially down low," the scout said. 

Take this example from the Islanders 4-3 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes: 

This was the most prevalent issue after going back and watching the 18 goals the Islanders have allowed on the penalty kill. 

Six goals against have come from late coverage or lack of coverage in the low slot while three have gone in from lower, whether it be tap-ins or loose pucks. 

Struggling To Clear

Another issue that has plagued the Islanders penalty kill this season has been a failure to clear the zone.

"When clearing opportunities present themselves, they have been failing." said the scout. 

There's two examples, both from the Seattle Kraken game, as defenseman Ryan Pulock had a chance to clear the zone on two separate kills, yet both clearing attempts failed. 

The first failed clear allowed Seattle's Matty Beniers to snipe one through a screen. The turnover is not on the highlight reel. 

The second failed clear led to Oliver Bjorkstrand picking up a loose puck and finding Alex Wennberg at the back post:

Failing to clear the zone plagues every penalty kill in the league at one point or another. Sometimes, it's strong forechecking by the opponent. Other times, it's strong plays at the blue line to keep the puck in the zone. 

Another thing we tend to see happen is the Islanders failing to pick up sticks, which the scout also noticed.

"When covering up a man, the Islanders are not picking up sticks."

If you look back at any of the replays above, especially the slot shots, there were chances for players to lift sticks or at least stick-check the shooter. Also, on screenshots, which have beaten Islanders netminders four times, there were chances for defensemen to lift sticks and move bodies to help mitigate screens. 

Final Thoughts

There's no easy fix to the Islanders penalty kill problems, given the number of mistakes that are hurting the units right now. 

Down a man, it's impossible to cover all five opponents.  

But when the Islanders penalty kill is going strong, their forwards are aggressive, attacking the puck carrier, while the defenseman down low are blocking slot or backdoor passes.

Just right now, they've been leaky in too many areas and are getting burned. 

What would help is winning more face-offs on the kill, as the Islanders have won 49.5 percent when down a man (or two). 

Given how strong the power play has been this season, at 22.9 percent (11-for-48), the penalty kill is holding the Islanders back from racking up points and holding onto leads (blown leads in 10 of 17 games).

If the shorthanded units can clog up a few holes, the points will come at a higher rate for New York, who, despite losing seven of their last eight games, sit just three points out of third place in the Metropolitan Division.