NHL.com's fantasy staff continues to cover the latest trends and storylines in the League through the lens of NHL EDGE puck and player tracker stats. Today, we take a look at the New York Islanders' recent surge and their underlying numbers.
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The New York Islanders, as they did last season, are making a strong second-half push under coach Patrick Roy -- and excelling in various advanced metrics along the way.
The Islanders have won six straight games after their 3-0 road win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday. And with recent injury returns and additions to the lineup, are charging back into the race for a wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the Eastern Conference.
New York has made the playoffs in each of the past two seasons but lost in the first round to the Carolina Hurricanes each time. That said, the Islanders have been among the final four teams twice in the past five seasons (2020, 2021) with many of their core players from those deep runs still on the roster, giving them dark horse potential if they make the postseason.
Here are five key EDGE stats for the Islanders entering the stretch run of the season:
1. Ilya Sorokin
Goalie Ilya Sorokin had his third shutout of the season Thursday, and since entering the NHL in 2020-21, is second in the category (21 in 228 games), behind Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets (23 in 276 games). With injuries to key skaters including forwards Mathew Barzal and Anthony Duclair and defensemen Noah Dobson, Ryan Pulock and Adam Pelech at different points in the season, Sorokin has not had nearly as much goal support (plus-5 goal differential; 51st percentile) as some of the other elite goalies around the League.
But the 29-year-old has been a workhorse in terms of games played (36; tied for seventh) and saves (891; 10th in NHL), especially in the injury absence of teammate Semyon Varlamov, who has not played since Nov. 29. Sorokin has made most of his saves on low-percentage shots on goal (.987 long-range save percentage; eighth in NHL) and has had greater than a .900 save percentage in 22 of his games (62.9 percent; seventh-best rate in League).
2. Anders Lee's bounce-back season
Last season, Lee had his lowest point total in a full season (37 in 81 games) since 2015-16 (36 in 80 games). But the 34-year-old wing has rebounded in a big way for New York, especially in helping to keep his team afloat on the top line during Barzal's absence earlier this season.
Lee, in terms of points (39 in 50 games), already has exceeded his total from last season in far fewer games; he leads the Islanders in points, goals (22), plus/minus (plus-18), even-strength goals (18), even-strength points (33) and power-play goals (four). Per NHL EDGE stats, Lee is near the top of the League in high-danger shots on goal (77; tied for second behind Zach Hyman's 82) and high-danger goals (18; fifth), and has remained on the top line with center Bo Horvat even after Barzal's return.
3. Horvat's prowess and face-off success
Horvat, who leads the Islanders in goals since Jan. 1 (eight in 12 games), has been a do-it-all force for the Islanders, regardless of linemates and the state of the team at different points of the season. Here is a look at Horvat’s robust EDGE stats profile:
Top skating speed: 23.53 miles per hour (97th percentile)
20-plus mph speed bursts: 185 (98th percentile)
Total skating distance: 158.29 miles (94th percentile)
Top shot speed: 92.79 mph (92nd percentile)
High-danger shots on goal: 43 (90th percentile)
High-danger goals: 10 (90th percentile)
Midrange shots on goal: 52 (94th percentile)
Horvat also has remained an elite center in terms of face-offs: among players to take at least 300 face-offs, he leads the NHL in face-off win percentage (60.6 percent). The Islanders, as a team, lead the League in face-off win percentage (55.3 percent).
4. Speed bursts and Barzal's return
Barzal, who has been limited to 29 of New York's 50 games this season, has been productive with 14 points (four goals, 10 assists), a plus-12 rating and 53 shots on goal in 19 games since returning (Islanders are 11-8-0 during that span). Barzal also leads New York in shot attempts differential at 5-on-5 (plus-139) this season.
The Islanders are in the middle of the pack in shot attempts percentage at 5-on-5 (49.3 percent, 18th) but rank ahead of many playoff contenders in the category, including fringe teams in the East like the New York Rangers (49.0 percent), Montreal Canadiens (48.3 percent), Detroit Red Wings (48.3 percent), Boston Bruins (48.0 percent) and Columbus Blue Jackets (47.8 percent).
Barzal, known for his skating speed, has helped the Islanders rank eighth in 20-plus mph speed bursts (1,179); Despite missing significant time, Barzal still is in the 86th percentile in the category (99). Horvat leads New York in 20-plus mph speed bursts and ranks just outside the top 10 of the entire League, and center Brock Nelson also ranks highly in the category (105; 88th percentile).
5. Defenseman reinforcements
The Islanders are playing their best hockey of the season despite a stretch that has seen Dobson and Pulock sustain injuries. Defenseman Alexander Romanov has stepped up in the absence of those top defensemen, and the recent additions of Tony DeAngelo (signed one-year contract) and Scott Perunovich (acquired from St. Louis Blues) also have helped New York stay afloat.
Although the Islanders' penalty kill is tied with the Red Wings for the worst in the NHL (69.8 percent) this season, it has shown drastic improvement this month; New York leads the League on the PK in January (91.3 percent through 12 games). DeAngelo is averaging 25:11 of ice time in his first three games since joining the Islanders, and Romanov has four points (two goals, two assists), 10 shots on goal, 17 hits and 14 blocked shots in his past four games. Perunovich has had assists in consecutive games since the trade.
It's a small sample size, but DeAngelo's offensive zone time percentage on the power play (70.3 percent; 99th percentile) has been off the charts and could help the Islanders improve their League-worst man-advantage unit (11.7 percent) down the stretch. The Islanders also claimed defenseman Adam Boqvist, who had an outstanding offensive zone time percentage at all strengths (47.8; 98th percentile) with the Florida Panthers this season, on Friday.
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More: NHL EDGE stats for NYI
