Andrew Gross: Islanders can study Columbus for example of quick turnaround
Islanders left wing Anders Lee, left, fights for position with Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Dante Fabbro in the first period of an NHL game in Columbus, Ohio, on Feb. 28. Credit: AP/Sue Ogrocki
Funny thing about rear-view mirrors: Objects are actually closer than they appear.
Or teams.
Because the Islanders departed Columbus on Feb. 28 with the Blue Jackets definitely in their rearview mirror as nine points separated the teams in the playoff race.
Fast forward to Sunday night at UBS Arena and it was the Blue Jackets who had a chance to put the Islanders even further behind in their rearview mirror. The Blue Jackets passed the Islanders for third place in the Metropolitan Division on Thursday and carried a two-point edge with one game in hand into the teams’ fourth and final match of the season.
Before getting to what happened, let’s get this point out of the way: The Islanders were still closer to a playoff berth than all the gloom-and-doom emanating from Saturday night’s 7-3 loss to the Canadiens would have one believe.
Starting a stretch of playing 10 of the regular-season’s final 12 games at home, the Islanders still could overtake either the Penguins or Blue Jackets in the division or the Bruins or Red Wings for a wild-card spot. That, of course, would entail staying ahead of the Senators and Flyers.
“It’s going to be nice to be back home and with our fans,” Jean-Gabriel Pageau said.
Don’t take this as trying to put a positive spin on things, which is something coach Patrick Roy did after Saturday’s defeat when he noted if the Islanders beat the Blue Jackets it would mean they’d won seven of their last 10 at UBS Arena.
It’s just using the Blue Jackets as an example of how quickly things can turn around.
“I don’t think you can get frustrated with that,” defenseman Ryan Pulock said after Saturday’s loss ended a 1-2-0 Canadian swing. “This time of the year, you’ve just got to play every shift, every period. You’ve just got to play the right way and, at the end, it will take care of itself. What’s important is to regroup in here.
“I think we can’t get away from what we’re doing. We can’t get away from the game plan. There’s going to be nights when things go against you. You can’t deviate.”
Unfortunately for the Islanders, Pulock was not available to help them regroup on Sunday as both he and Anthony Duclair were out with lower-body issues.
The Blue Jackets were 19-19-7 on Jan. 12 when they replaced coach Dean Evason with long-ago Islanders bench boss Rick Bowness, who turned 71 shortly after.
The Blue Jackets entered Sunday with an 18-2-4 mark under Bowness and brought a 12-game point streak (8-0-4) into the match.
Sure, Bowness has implemented some changes to the Blue Jackets’ system.
But the main thing that’s on display is the confidence with which the Blue Jackets are skating. Bowness quickly reminded his new players of the talent they do have.
That confidence is exactly what the Islanders needed to regain after letting consecutive games slip away in the third period.
“You’d like to come in with two wins in a row but that’s not the case,” Roy said. “Every year, during the season there’s some challenges that happen. This is what we built all year, for a moment like this, making sure that we stay focused on what we control.
“Confidence, in my opinion, and I could be totally wrong because I’m not a psychologist, but confidence is something that could be fragile but could be strong at the same time. Which means, a couple of good shifts, your confidence is coming back. It’s important for us to focus on our game. If you focus on the standings or if you focus on what happened yesterday or what happened the night before, I think you’re doing the wrong thing.”
The Canadiens scored four as the Islanders started deviating and chasing goals rather than sticking to their game plan as they fell behind. In Thursday’s 3-2 loss in Ottawa, the Senators outshot the Islanders 11-1 over the final 20 minutes with Brady Tkachuk scoring the winner with 13 seconds remaining in regulation.
“[Thursday] night it was too many battles that were lost,” Anders Lee said. “[Saturday] was more they made plays through us. We had a couple of missed assignments. I wouldn’t say it was an effort problem like I felt like we thought we were a little short on the other night.”
As a result, the Islanders entered Sunday in the rearview mirror when it came to the playoff chase.
But closer than they appear.
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
