Final Thoughts On 2024-25 Season

Thank you for the support this entire season.

Stefen Rosner

and

The Elmonters

Apr 18, 2025

Well guys, it was a season.

Before I share my final thoughts, I would like to thank each and every one of you for your support this season.

My project, The Elmonters, could not have become a reality without all of you.

So, thank you for reading and reacting, which allowed me to continue doing what I love, building a new community for this amazing fan base in the process.

The content won’t be stopping — not even close — as we explore numerous avenues and looming decisions for this team, along with whatever news comes our way.

The failures of this season stem from several factors. The team had injuries to Mathew Barzal, Anthony Duclair, and Semyon Varlamov, which cannot be overlooked, as well as the loss of each of their starting defensemen.

That’s not an excuse, but a reality. It’s kind of crazy the Islanders were still in the playoff mix for most of the season with the injuries.

But, the reality is that even with the injuries, the Islanders hurt themselves with poor play too often this season.

The continual blown leads in the first half was a major reason why the Islanders missed the playoffs.

But the biggest culprit of this season was the Islanders’ special teams.

Yes, the penalty kill had an awakening in the second half of the season, but it still wasn’t collectively good enough (72.2%). But the power play was the killer, coming through just 26 times on 207 opportunities (12.6%).

Going back to the first-half blown leads, how many of those games turn into wins if the Islanders execute on the power play to increase their lead at some point of the game but specifically the third period?

In the second half, the power play didn’t get better, at all. Even after Tony DeAngelo was signed, the Islanders scored 12 power-play goals on 92 attempts (13%) in the 35 games he played in.

You cannot win in this league consistently if your power play isn’t effective. It’s a reality that has plagued this team for years and really came to the forefront this season, with the penalty kill failures.

The reality of the situation is that this Islanders’ team isn’t talented enough to be an offensive force at 5-on-5, with the 17th most 5-on-5 goals (1.97 per game), but the eighth most 5-on-5 shots (23.21 per game).

Finishing was a problem, clearly.

That’s where special teams has to help out and they failed miserably.

There’s no question the Islanders need to add a finisher this summer, maybe more than one. However, they also need to develop a new power play philosophy.

Tommy Albelin demonstrated that he could connect with the players and achieve success down a man, but John MacLean struggled yet again to establish consistency on the man advantage.

It’s on the players and it’s on the system in place.

We’ll see what happens with the general manager, the coaching staff, the pending restricted and unrestrcited free agents, the NHL Draft and free agency, all in due time.

There’s a lot of work cut out for this organization to turn this team not just into a playoff hopeful again, but a true Stanley Cup contender.

I’ll have you covered every step of the way.

Thank you again for reading. More to come.

Stefen Rosner