Ilya Sorokin chat EAST MEADOW, NY -- It made complete sense for New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/players/anthony-duclair-new-york-islanders-toronto-mathew-barzal-bo-horvat-patrick-roy] head coach Patrick Roy to play Mathew Barzal at center in his return to the lineup this past Sunday. Bo Horvat was out with a lower-body injury, so having Jean-Gabriel Pageau on his wing to help with face-offs was a good idea. But when Horvat returned against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday, Roy elected to keep Horvat and Barzal on different lines. The two will remain separate on Saturday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. A majority of the fan base is rattled that Roy would dare to separate the Islanders' dynamic duo. It's a fair complaint because Horvat struggled mightily to produce without Barzal in the lineup. However, people often confuse this with Horvat not having chances to produce, which is far from the truth. Horvat had three goals in 21 games without Barzal at 5-on-5 but had 46 Individual Scoring Chances, per NaturalStatrick.com [https://www.naturalstattrick.com/playerteams.php?fromseason=20242025&thruseason=20242025&stype=2&sit=5v5&score=all&stdoi=std&rate=n&team=ALL&pos=S&loc=B&toi=0&gpfilt=gpdate&fd=2024-11-01&td=2024-12-12&tgp=410&lines=single&draftteam=ALL]. So, there shouldn't be a concern that Horvat can't produce without Barzal. It will be up to Horvat to finish chances. The question is, can Barzal produce without Horvat? Here's the breakdown for Barzal and Horvat with and without each other this season: Through two games not alongside Horvat, Barzal has zero points. But that's an incredibly small sample size, and there's one huge reason why Barzal should have no problem producing offense minus No. 14. The answer is Anders Lee, who is in the middle of a resurgence. He currently leads the team with 13 goals with 12 assists for a team-leading 25 points. He's on pace for his first 30-goal season since he scored 40 in 2017-18. Barzal and Lee have played with each other quite a lot over the years. It was a major story back in January of 2022 when former head coach Barry Trotz split up the two. “I would say, for the most part, I’ve had Leezy and Barzy stapled together,” Trotz said after that practice. “I think there are times when you keep doing the same thing. It’ll work for a few years, and then it will stop working. “Sometimes you just need a refresher.” The two stayed separated for less than a period in that next game before Trotz went right back to them as a pairing. This season, when the two have been on the ice (35:22), the Islanders have possessed the puck 70 percent of the time (Corsi For %), outshooting their opponents 25-8. They've been outscored 1-0 but own an Expected Goals For of 2.45 with only an Expected Goals Against of 0.88 (likley a weak goal against). They've out-chanced their opponents 27-11, with 11 high-danger chances to thier opponent's 7, per NaturalStatrick.com [https://www.naturalstattrick.com/]. Add Pageau to the mix, and that line is up 35-18 in Shot Attempts For vs. Shot Attempts Against, per Moneypuck.com [https://moneypuck.com/lines.htm], in 27:30 minutes together this season. The Islanders enter Saturday's game as healthy as they've been, four points out of a wild-card spot with 49 games to go. Roy needs to find the best lineup combinations to start getting consistent results. So, don't be surprised if he makes some changes, even in the game against Toronto. Time is of the essence, and the hourglass is rapidly emptying.
