Latest From Islanders GM Mathieu Darche After Submitting Season-Opening Roster
The Islanders have submitted their 23-man roster to the NHL office.
On Monday morning, New York Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche shared his thoughts with us after submitting his season-opening roster to the NHL office.
On Matthew Schaefer Making The Roster
Darche: “Well, listen, he had a great camp. You saw it all. His skating abilities. But just the way overall he’s conducted himself in practice, the way he works in practice, the way he played in those games. He got better as camp went on. Even in his first game on the road in Philly against basically their whole lineup, he made a mistake in the first. It didn’t rattle him. Had a good game after that. So he’s proven that he deserves to be in the lineup on Thursday in Pittsburgh. We’ll go from there.”
On The History Of 18-Year-Old Defensemen In The NHL:
Darche: “You’ve seen teams having young guys, they keep them up and they manage the workload. But like I said from the start, the way he’s gonna play is gonna dictate what we do. He’s completely earned his spot on the team and in the lineup on October 9. He will be in the lineup. And we’ll take it as we go. He’s been really, really impressive. For an 18-year-old, his fitness testings were great in training camp. He’s strong; he’s not an undersized defenseman by any means. Being an 18-year-old playing professional hockey, being in the NHL in a market like New York, I think his maturity really gave me confidence that that won’t be an issue. You guys have met him, and from the first day we sat with him at the combine, that’s what stood out. So that’s what comforts me, that he’s ready for this. And then we’ll start the season and see where it goes at this point. He’s earned his spot in the lineup for that first game.”
On Isaiah George, Injury Updates, & Competition
Darche: “Isaiah George had a really good camp. I’m excited. He’s 21 years old, so I want him playing minutes. That’s why we assigned him to Bridgeport. We wanted him to be with us all weekend when we did our little team retreat in the Hamptons, so the future’s bright for Isaiah. He played games last year, that’s what I told him yesterday. I said it was a very positive camp, but we need him playing minutes. It’s not the right fit to sit in the NHL. I’d rather have him play. Trust me, I’d be surprised if we don’t see him during the year at some point. He’s done a great job.”
Darche: “As far as the competition, yes we have a lot of forwards but that’s what’s good. Internal competition as to who’s in the lineup and what minutes you’re playing. So that internal competition is always good. I’m very comfortable with the group we have right now.”
Darche: “And as far as the injuries, Semyon Varlamov is still skating. It was a bigger surgery. So we’re just taking it as it comes. He’s on the ice every day, he’s working hard, so we’ll see where that goes. Pierre Engvall will have a follow-up with the doctor next week so we’ll see if he’s clear to rejoin the team or not. We hope he will. And after that obviously you need work after not having a training camp but he skated this morning. It was a day off for the players but he was on the ice skating. Varly was on the ice skating. And for Calum Ritchie, it’s just a minor injury. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him on the ice in the next two or three days on his own to start, just a little rehab. We expect that in a couple of weeks, he should be good. It’s nothing major. But again, he’s a 20-year-old that you’re not gonna cut the rehab by five days just to have him back quicker. So that’s where we’re at right now, injury-wise.”
On Calum Ritchie’s Development Path
Darche: “Down the line, he’ll probably be a centerman. But it’s easier for a centerman to play on the wing than a winger to play center. Coming from a winger, the center position, it’s extra (responsibility), especially in the defensive zone. He’s had a great camp, honestly. Really comfortable with him on the ice. He’s competed. We saw even in the game in Jersey how he can make plays on the power play, and he was able to be responsible both ways, so he’s really done a great job at training camp. Unfortunately, that injury came, and we’ll see where it goes once he’s healthy. We’ll have a few games played at that point, and then we’ll make a decision once we get to the point where Calum is ready to play. Listen, it’s a great prospect to have in your organization, so we’re excited to have him.”
On Emotions, Roster Set, And Team Readiness
Darche: “My emotions are finally we get going. I’m excited. I like how we progressed through camp. Regardless of the results of some of the games, I like how we’ve progressed, especially in our last two games, the way we’ve played. That’s what I’m excited about. We have good depth at forward, so we have healthy competition. It’s been a busy summer that I’ve really, really enjoyed and, let’s face it. I guess I’m a lucky person. I got the job, and Kenny Morrow got us the good luck to win the first overall pick, and then you get a player like Matthew Schaefer. It’s a pretty good situation to come in as a new general manager. There’s still some evaluation on my end that’s going to go on through the year because, let’s face it, I’m new here. I know the team from being an opponent the last few years, but you know more on your players, on their personalities. That’s why I’d spend a lot of time communicating with players through the summer and at this training camp, so we’ll keep going. But it’s really exciting. Like, I can’t wait for Thursday. Sometimes I almost feel like putting on my helmet and my skates except I can’t skate anymore and, my pants, for some reason, they shrank in retirement — they’re a bit tighter. I’d love to be out there.”
On Emil Heineman
A: “His shot is elite. I knew his shot was elite. I still remember the first practice of training camp, he was going bar-down on every shot. And his compete level, that’s what I like. When I told you guys from the start, I want players that compete, that battle, that’s what he does. He plays that straight game: stop and start on pucks. He doesn’t go for the big loop. He goes on the forecheck. That’s why he’s a good fit right now with where we have him to go get the puck for those guys, and when you give him an opportunity, he can score. I’m really excited. I think he’s had a great camp, and hopefully he keeps progressing and being a solid contributor for us.”
On The Prospect Pool
A: “I think we have a lot of good prospects coming. One of them is going to be in our lineup. Another one we’ll see when he gets healthy. But we have Isaiah George, who we mentioned earlier, that’s down there. We have some guys in college, too, who are coming in the next year or so. I’m excited about what’s coming. We’ve signed guys in Bridgeport, too and like I told all the guys in Bridgeport when they went down, ‘What happened last year in Bridgeport, I couldn’t care less. Everybody starts with a clean slate with me.’ So, whatever the results of last year, does it affect? I’ll be at a lot of games. I’m actually going next Sunday to the game in Bridgeport because we don’t play. I’ll be at a lot of games and the be the person when I call Rocky and I go, ‘Here’s what we need, who should be the guy that we call up?’ You want to be the guy that Rocky says is the guy that’s been playing hard, he’s been playing the right way. I’m of the mentality that I’m not here to justify draft picks or not. So whether the guy is a draft pick or the player is a college junior free agent that we acquired or just a free agent that we signed, whoever plays best for what we need will get the opportunity. The draft is just one way of acquiring a player. The goal is to reward the player who plays the right way. Again, it depends what you need, also. It could be a winger, it could be a center. Is it more of an offensive guy we need? Is it more of a checker? So all these affect who we call up. I think Bridgeport will do well. The AHL is the toughest league to coach in because the NHL team sneezes and you get sick down there. So you have your injuries, you have the NHL injuries. So the reality of it is it’s always a challenge. But I’m really confident with the coaching staff we have down there. And the players. A lot of those players I didn’t know. A few of those guys got more than one game at training camp because I want to see as many players as possible this year. But we decided to reward guys who had more than one game. We’ll see how they play in Bridgeport.”
On What Stood Out At Camp
A: “What I like actually about our team, I’ve challenged some players, too. I felt like our practice standards went up throughout camp. That’s what I wanted. The first few days, not that they were bad, but I think we have another step. And as it went on, especially the last four or five practices, you’ve noticed the energy went up. Guys are cheering when they’re scoring. And there’s little banter going on, so it creates competition in practice. I want our practice standards to be high. I just felt that we kept progressing during camp, and that’s what I was most happy about at training camp. At the end of the day, practices don’t win you games, but practices set you up to win games. I really like that we’ve progressed and the energy we’ve had in the last few practices. You see that the players are excited now. I feel there’s more life in practice. And I told the players, they took it upon themselves. At the end of the day, it can’t be the GM, it’s not always the coach. The peer accountability, the peer competition, you expect everyone to work hard in practice, don’t call each other out if they don’t. I really like how we’ve progressed through training camp, and hopefully we have two more solid practices before we head to Pittsburgh and get ready on Thursday.”
On Using Mat Barzal At Center
Darche: “Yes, for sure, that’s how we’re going to start. It doesn’t mean that during games, sometimes when Patrick plays with the lines, he doesn’t go a shift on the wing here or there. I think he’s done it one or two games like that. Mathew can use his speed. He’s an elite player, so we’re comfortable having him at center.”
On Maxim Shabanov
Darche: “Well, you saw him at the rookie camp. You can see he was a step ahead of most of the rookies, and as he should be. He’s 24 years old, and he’s played in the KHL. It was an adjustment at the start. We knew it was going to be an adjustment because it’s a North American game. But honestly, I felt he’s progressed. The last game was his best game, not because he scored, but because he made more plays and won more battles. You can see his skill level. So I’m really excited to see him progress. He’s earned the spot in the lineup as well. So we’ll see. We’ll see where it goes. I just found he got better in camp. One day, Patrick said he came out of his office. And Shabby was just waiting there. And like he was waiting for 20-30 minutes. Next time, just knock on my door. Ny himself would go to the coaches, and because obviously, the language at the start, so they can sit with him, because then we could talk about systems on the ice, but they can go over them again with him. So that came from him. It wasn’t even the coaches asking. That’s a good mindset for him to have, that he knows he has some things to work on. And by himself, he went to the coaches to get that information. And that’s why I think in the last couple of games he’s played, he’s progressed. He’s made a few of those flashy plays that you like to see from him. He bounced it off the boards and some things between the legs, and then, ironically, that’s the way he scored, which is almost a grinding type. He drove the net, and Tsyppy gave him a great pass, tipped it over the goalie. So I like the way he’s progressed. It’s an adjustment playing the North American game. And I think he’s progressed as camp went on, and I’m excited to see how the season is going to go.”
On Antony Duclair
Darche: “We took it easy for him at the start, just to make sure that his groin was fine. And looking at the way he’s played in the games. I think he had a point in every game. He scored two goals. He had a lot of sauce on that last pass to Emil Heineman. That was a hell of a pass that landed perfectly. So I’m really happy with him. He came in with a great mindset. Everybody knew that he met with Patrick this summer, with a great, positive attitude, and he’s going to be a big part of our team. What’s great with Duke is that he can play everywhere in the lineup, too. And I liked his commitment, how he came in, and every game, I thought he was one of our good forwards at training camp.”
On Himself As General Manager
Darche: “I know the golf is impressive on Long Island, but you know what? I felt prepared for this. To be honest with you, I’ve been extremely fortunate in Tampa that Julian Brisebois had me involved in every single facet of the hockey operations department. So I felt ready. Nothing was new. It was new because at the end of the day I make the decision. And it started, obviously, with the draft and the trade that we made and all that. So obviously, you’re wearing that one because you’re the one at the end of the day... Like when I was in Tampa, I was giving my opinion, but Julian made the decision. Now I make the decision, but I think I trusted myself to work with my strengths, which is communicating, being collaborative with the people in the office, like I want input from everyone. I want people to challenge me and challenge the way of thinking. There’s different opinions, and let’s discuss them. And with the coaches, there’s been a lot of communication with the coaches. Every day, we sit together and we chat about the roster and the players. At the end of the day, I’m making this decision. Of course, I am, because I’m the general manager. At the end, someone needs to make the decision. But again, I think I just realized that I expected to work a certain way because of the way I am. I’m not trying to be Julian Brisebois. We’re different people. I have to be me, and I’m confident that I’m heading in the right direction. He helped me get to know the players quicker, because, like I said, I like to communicate with players, and so I’m excited to move forward.”
