New York Islanders: Previews, breakdowns, and prediction for the 2018-2019 Season

Things beyond their control

The New York Islanders might have been able to control who is or who is not on their roster. But,  one thing they cannot control is the schedule and the power of their conference.

The thing that might help the Isles out is their schedule this year. The schedule favors the Isles to an extent. All they have to do is play it and then play well.

The Isles do not play a back to back until their fifth and sixth game of the year, at which point they will already be on the road. They will be in Nashville to play on October 13 before playing the Kings then Ducks in California on the 17th and 18th.

The Islanders also have 12 afternoon games, nine of which are at home. The crowds for matinée games are always rowdy, and the games always fell bigger. Those games can end up giving the Isles an edge down the road.

Overall, the Isles’ schedule is already easier than last season’s. Their west coast road trip is early in the season, and there are less back to backs this year than last.

Also, the month where the Isles have the most games is March. Meaning, when push comes to shove in a potential playoff push, the Isles will have more chances to get themselves into the playoffs later in the season.

The schedule is set up nicely, not the best, not the worst.

But, what the Isles do need to worry about is their conference.

Teams like the Buffalo Sabres, Carolina Hurricanes, and Florida Panthers all got better in the offseason.

The Sabres had the first overall pick and got a generational player in Rasmus Dahlin who will be ready to play.

The Hurricanes, who the Isles open against, got Dougie Hamilton to throw into their growing talent pool.

The Florida Panthers were arguably the best team in hockey  in the last month of last season, their push to the playoffs ended after they simply ran out of time.

Although, I’m not saying all those teams will directly climb above the Isles in the playoff race, points against those opponents are not going to come as easy and they would have in the past.

The Eastern Conference is just as good, if not better than last year, and the Isles already struggled in conference last year.

Also, the Rangers got much worse. Now, bragging rights over the Isles means so much more to them.

Next up, we predict the Isles points total and where they will stand at the end of the season.