Isles Excited to Start the 2024-25 Season After Intense Camp

Head Coach Patrick Roy made it clear from day one, you practice like you play, the details matter and you need to stay even-keel.

The four-time Stanley Cup winner doesn’t like to lose, and he’s been fostering a winning culture since he stepped behind the Islanders bench in January, helping install his philosophies on the fly. During this year’s three-week training camp, Roy utilized that time to the fullest in executing a detailed plan for his group. Now, with an intense camp behind his squad and a new challenge on the horizon, Roy is confident his team is ready for the regular season.

“I felt comfortable with this team the day I was hired,” Roy said. “What I really like is coming here for training camp, working from the start and putting the things that are important. That's why we started with our fundamentals, and we went on slowly to our team structure, and now I feel that we're ready for that first game.”

The Islanders have certainly put in the effort – mentally and physically – in the weeks leading up to Thursday’s season opener against the Utah Hockey Club at UBS Arena. The players are chomping at the bit to begin the regular season and let their quality work in camp produce results.

“So antsy. It's been a long summer and camp's been super long and hard, so we're just excited to be able to play tomorrow,” Mathew Barzal said on Wednesday. “We’ve been working hard in practice for the last two weeks, and feel like I haven't had a camp just focused in a long time.”

What differentiated a Patrick Roy training camp from years prior is the sheer presence he brought in. With each practice in camp, Roy instilled an identify of hard work, focus and playing the game the right way, and he wants to maintain that pace into regular season.

“It’s an intensity that we need to have if we want to win,” Barzal said. “Patty has won, so he knows what kind of intensity to bring in a culture like that. I thought we responded exactly how we should. I think there's a belief in here right now that we got a team that can make some noise and we're looking forward to that.”

The Islanders are coming off a 94-point season where they fell in five games in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Isles are itching to turn the page and start off on the right foot on Thursday.

“It was a tough camp, it did feel long at times but it's great to be on the other end of it,” Kyle MacLean said. “We want to keep that intensity and carry that into the regular season.”

Hard skates at the end of practices were just one example of how hard Roy pushed his group, building up the mental endurance they’ll need for a schedule riddled with back-to-back sets, long road trips and late flights. During hard practices in training camp, the Islanders began to exemplify and appreciate value of persevering even when you’re exhausted.

"He's been pushing us to be the best that he can, and forcing us to go hard every single day,” Casey Cizikas said. “He doesn't like it when practices are getting slow or if the boys are going through the motions - he'll let you know that it's not acceptable. It keeps everybody accountable. It'll go a long way in the regular season, that's something we really appreciate."

Another major emphasis in camp has been team morale, as the Islanders worked hard as a unit and motivated each other, which created a competitive and encouraging atmosphere for both vets and rookies alike.

“Patrick stressed that he wants everyone to work hard each day, and for that to be part of our DNA,” Brock Nelson said. “Everybody, whether you're veteran or not, is trying to push the guy next to you to get better, trying to push yourself to be better. That creates a healthy competition when we feed off each other.”

Proud of the hard work his team has put in, Roy is excited to open the regular season and jump into his first full year as head coach of the Isles. He isn’t hesitant to express his confidence in his roster, and the heart, soul and skill they have displayed in camp.

“I do believe that that we were very fortunate to have a lot of depth on our team,” Roy said. “We’ve got four good lines, six good defensemen and two very good goaltenders. We got a lot of depth. I think that will help us along the way, because there's the schedule is so tough, that we play a lot of games in a short period of time. It’s going to be important that everyone is part of the winning [culture].”