Islanders Playoff Push - - Not A Matthew Schaefer-Only Effort
The New York Islanders are proving they can win without relying solely on Matthew Schaefer, as depth scoring and structure have taken over during a critical playoff push.
My immediate takeaway from the New York Islanders’ last two games was that they earned two points while not relying solely on the magic of Matthew Schaefer.
And that matters as the playoff push intensifies, especially with Schaefer currently under the weather. He did not participate in their morning skate ahead of tonight’s Ottawa Senators game, but is expected to play, per head coach Patrick Roy.
He was under the weather during their 3-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday.
After seeing Schaefer log 29:24 in a 3-2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings last Friday, his minutes have actually been down quite a bit over the team’s last two wins.
In Saturday’s 3-2 win over the Calgary Flames, the second of a back-to-back situation, Schaefer played 22:06. He didn’t record a point and wasn’t on the ice for any of the Islanders’ three goals.
Instead, the depth stepped up — Casey Cizikas opened the scoring, while Simon Holmstrom scored twice, including a shorthanded goal.
Then, in the Islanders’ 3-1 win over the Maple Leafs — Schaefer’s homecoming — he did collect the secondary assist on Calum Ritchie’s 2-0 power-play goal, and was on the ice for Brayden Schenn’s opening tally.
But even then, Schaefer’s minutes (22:57) went down from his usual workload as he battled a stomach bug. Again, Schaefer just being on the ice, doing what he does, plays a part in every win the Islanders have had this season and will continue to as they push toward the postseason.
And yet, the Islanders played one of their smartest, most structured third periods of the season to close it out.
That’s the takeaway.
Schaefer will always impact the game — even when he’s not producing. Just his presence, his skating, his decision-making — it all drives play. But for this team to get where it wants to go, it can’t always be about him.
It hasn’t been lately.
And that’s a really good sign.