Stefen Rosner on Morning Cuppa Hockey Talking Islanders Maxim Tsyplakov [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/latest-news/new-york-islanders-maxim-tsyplakov-patrick-roy-hits-nhl-calder-second-line] wasn't known for his playmaking in the KHL, finishing his final season across the pond with just 16 assists to accompany his 36 goals. But, so far, Tsyplakov has been a playmaking machine, with eight assists and two goals through 16 games this season. His latest was a thing of beauty, faking a shot in the slot with two Edmonton Oilers collapsing on him before hitting Kyle Palmieri on the money for a one-time finish to tie the game at 1-1 in the second: With that assist, Tsyplakov now has seven assists at 5-on-5 this season, which leads the Islanders. He has also cracked the top 10 amongst forwards who have played 200-plus minutes at 5-on-5 in assists per 60, sitting at 1.87: When he arrived on Long Island, Tsyplakov was expected to be a goal-scorer, but he's thriving with the apples, not the ginos. As Thomas Hickey said during his postgame chat with Shannon Hogan, the goals and assists will likely balance out. Although seeing Tsyplakov light the lamp more would be a sure positive, he's playing with two goal scorers, so as long as that line continues to produce, it shouldn't matter who leads the line once the red light comes on.
