For Islanders, Matthew Schaefer could make overtime a lot of fun
Islanders center Mathew Barzal and defenseman Matthew Schaefer. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Part of the fun of having a new hockey chess piece like Matthew Schaefer is imagining all of the creative ways to deploy him. That goes for coaches, teammates and fans.
Take Saturday in Philadelphia.
The Islanders had not gone to overtime in their first seven games, so when they did so against the Flyers, it gave us our first chance to see how they would handle a three-on-three session.
Coach Patrick Roy did so by first sending out Mathew Barzal, Bo Horvat and Schaefer.
It made perfect sense, but seeing it unfold in real life was intriguing, to say the least.
Or, as Schaefer told Newsday after practice on Monday: “It’s super-fun. When you get out there and there’s lots of ice to skate, out there with Bo and Barzy, it’s pretty fun.”
The trio’s first stab at overtime did not produce a goal. The Islanders lost in a shootout. But there were flashes. And given the skill set of that threesome, there is no reason to think the strategy will not pay dividends.
“We get our speed going together, we can really get moving,” Barzal told Newsday. “We can definitely make something happen. Me and Schaef just need to use our speed, try to find Bo for a one-timer or something.”
Horvat (nine points), Barzal (seven) and Schaefer (seven) are three of the Islanders’ top four scorers through eight games and are a complementary group.
Horvat is a goal-scorer, Barzal is a creative skater and playmaker and Schaefer not only is fast but can be trusted on defense.
“It was nice to see those three together,” Roy said on Monday. “They had their chances, and I think that was something that we’ll certainly think about repeating. It was nice to do.”
Roy agreed the wide-open ice of three-on-three hockey is well-suited to Schaefer.
The coach said he has taken particular note of Schaefer’s defensive commitment even though he has gone pointless in the past two games.
“I’m very impressed with the way that obviously he supports the attack, but I’m also very impressed with the way he defends,” Roy said. “Penalty-killing, he’s in those shooting lanes, he blocks shots, he’s having great reads.
“He’s quick on those loose pucks, those 50-50s, and he wins those battles. Very impressed with the way he defends.”
The importance of a defenseman on an NHL team cannot compare to that of a quarterback in the NFL, but Schaefer’s injection of excitement both on and off the ice for the Islanders is similar to what the Giants have gotten from Jaxson Dart.
But Dart has the advantage of being 22. Schaefer is only 18, yet by all evidence continues to take his new pro stardom in stride.
“He’s playing great,” Barzal said. “He’s full of energy and he’s fun. We love having him.”
Schaefer loves the Islanders back. In each of the past two games, teammates have come to his defense on the ice when opponents got physical with him.
“We’re a family in here, and we’re all super-close,” Schaefer said. “So any time there’s something like that, I know my teammates are going to have my back and I’m going to have their back, too.”
The Islanders would rather beat the Bruins in regulation time Tuesday night, of course, but if there is an overtime, Schaefer’s “super-fun” instinct will kick in.
He recalled scoring the double-overtime game-winner three-on-three for Team Ontario in the final of the 2023 Canada Winter Games. He was 15 at the time. Now he is trying to make things happen against grown men.
“It’s so fun,” he said of the format. “It’s fun because there’s lots of ice and you can just skate around and make plays with some great guys.”
It’s fun for the rest of us, too.
Warren homecoming
Marshall Warren, who is from Laurel Hollow, spent four seasons at Boston College. On Tuesday, he will be back in the old neighborhood as an Islander when they face the Bruins.
“It’s cool,” Warren told Newsday. “Lot of friends, lot of family there. Lifelong relationships . . . I’ve got a lot of people in my corner there, so it’s cool.”
Warren said his former coach at Boston College, the retired Jerry York, texted him recently.
Warren had two assists in his NHL debut in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Flyers on Saturday. Roy said he would decide on Tuesday morning whether Warren or Adam Boqvist will dress in Boston.
Notes & quotes: D Scott Mayfield sat out practice on Monday but is likely to play Tuesday, Roy said . . . D Alexander Romanov is not expected to play Tuesday but said he hopes to play sometime on the current trip, which after Boston includes games at Carolina and at Washington . . . Roy said Ilya Sorokin will start in goal against the Bruins, then David Rittich against the Hurricanes on Thursday, then Sorokin against the Capitals on Friday . . . Roy said Maxim Shabanov has not yet returned to skating.
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
