Total Failure

After a year of loudly proclaiming that the status quo was unacceptable, the New York Islanders' season came to an almost perfectly ironic end this past weekend, with the 2021-22 version of the team landing on 90 points and a .549 winning percentage-- the exact totals managed by their 2020-21 predecessors.

Even worse, and unlike last year, 90 points was not enough to secure a playoff spot, leaving the Islanders out of the EHE postseason for the first time since 2019.

Worth noting is that the Islanders finished with the 10th most wins in the league, and were the sole non-playoff team with a positive goal differential. Combined with the fact that the Isles were one of the league's best defensive outfits (3rd in goals against, 6th in shots against, 9th on the penalty kill), the argument could be made that this was a playoff-calibre team that simply ended up on the wrong side of a coin flip.

But of course, things aren't that simple.

The Islanders also had an offense that could generously be described as "disappointing," but considering the personnel on hand, might more rightly be called "pathetic."

Despite an overabundance of elite finishing skill on the roster, the Islanders posted the league's 24th-ranked offense in Goals For, thanks in part to a laughably bad powerplay that clicked at just 13.1% for the season, good for a league ranking of 29th. With the team controlling play at an almost elite rate (10th overall in SF+SA percentage) it's clear that an inexplicable inability to put the puck in the net was what killed the Islanders' season.

Whatever the case, and for as much as the Islanders faithful might want to point to wins and defensive numbers, missing the playoffs can only be considered a total failure for a team whose stated goal at the beginning of the year was to contend for the Stanley Cup.

To that end, and in an exceptionally unusual move, none of the Islanders' staff or players have yet been made available for end-of-year interviews. Instead, the team has only released a brief statement:

Such an unprecedented decision reflects the level of dissatisfaction surrounding the Islanders at the conclusion of a confounding season, and it will certainly be interesting to hear what the owners, management, and players have to say in one weeks' time.

Stephen Gough

Wow some long meetings if the players can’t say anything until July 31. Lol

Total Failure
Islanders conclude disappointing season with playoff miss

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Kyle Phillips (Fixed the graphic btw That's what I get for posting late at night.)

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