New York Islanders: Three things to watch for during the last 10 games

Get better on the power play.

During Sunday’s game vs the Wild, most of the contest came down to the penalty kill and the power play. The Islanders were finally able to break through on the power play and score with the man advantage. That helped them win the game in OT and earn a critical extra point.

However, the larger sample of the Islanders power play is putrid. And while it has not necessarily hurt the Islanders this season, their power play offense is this team’s biggest flaw.

In the last 10 games, it would be encouraging to see them get the power play clicking so that it can be an asset for them by the time the playoffs role around.

Right now, at the time of this writing, the Islanders rank 26th in the league in the power play at just over 15%. Before Sunday, they ranked 30th in the NHL with just 30 power play goals on the season. To be in the bottom of the league is bad enough to begin with. However, looking at the league wide power play stats, the Isles need to catch up with some teams they could end up facing in the playoffs.

The Lightning, Bruins, Capitals, Penguins, and Maple Leafs all rank in the top 10 in the league in Power Play %. While you see that the Islanders played all of these teams well in the regular season on the surface, the playoffs will be different.

The playoffs is where the cream always rises to the top and part of that is being able to convert on the power play at least a reliable pace. The Islanders need to get this together these last 10 games or it will hurt them in the playoffs.

Constantly wasting the power play could end up being the difference in losing or winning a few games in a playoff series. While the power play can’t just be fixed overnight, these last 10 games can become a solid sample size to ensure they enter the playoffs firing on all cylinders.