Latest news with #Barzal
New York Post
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Post
Mathieu Darche has Mat Barzal decision to make — and it could impact Islanders' entire offseason plan
One of Mathieu Darche's most important decisions this summer isn't a decision at all, but a question that could prompt multiple: When the Islanders' general manager pulls up his team's depth chart, is Mat Barzal slotted as a right wing or a centerman? Surely, no matter what the answer is, Barzal likely will play both positions at various points during the season depending on need. Advertisement That's not the point. The point is that where the Islanders want Barzal playing has a cascading effect on their offseason. It's the hinge point as to whether they view themselves as having enough depth to trade a center, or need to go get one instead. If the perfect-world scenario for Darche is to keep Barzal on Bo Horvat's right wing — out of his natural position but a spot where the eye test and advanced numbers alike show both players accessing the best versions of themselves over the past two seasons — then the Islanders find themselves with four bottom-six centers, and needing someone who can play on their second line. Advertisement 3 Mat Barzal moves the puck during an Islanders' game against the Penguins in December 2024. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post Jean-Gabriel Pageau, who stepped into the 2C spot out of need after the Islanders dealt away Brock Nelson at the trade deadline, never looked like a fit there. Granted, by that point in the season, the Islanders were banged-up and nearly everyone was playing up a line higher than would have been ideal, so you can put a caveat on the data. Still, Pageau was rolling along pre-trade deadline with a superb 55.76 expected goals percentage, 54.51 corsi for percentage and 56.01 goals for percentage at five-on-five, per Evolving Hockey. Advertisement Post-deadline, his numbers fell off a cliff: 50.15 expected goals percentage, 49.83 goals for percentage, 46.29 corsi for percentage. When you go further down the depth chart, similar issues abound. Casey Cizikas, Kyle MacLean and Calum Ritchie — assuming the 20-year-old Ritchie starts next season in the NHL and not the AHL — would all be well-suited to center the fourth line. Advertisement 3 Mathieu Darche addresses reporters during a press conference May 29, 2025. Corey Sipkin for the NY Post Cizikas' numbers improved post-deadline last year when he became the 3C, but that had as much to do with finally getting to play down the middle as anything else — needing to play wing for most of the year was a misadventure the Islanders would do well not to repeat And, whether Barzal is at center or not, at least one of those three would need to be moved out of position as things stand right now. Cizikas' 2024-25 season shows the risk inherent there. 3 Mat Barzal scores a goal during the Islanders' loss to the Flyers on Jan. 16, 2025. Robert Sabo for the NY Post It's true, and a cliché that it's easier to move a center to wing than vice versa. Still, the Islanders have simultaneous problems here: too many centers and no way of slotting everyone in their ideal positions. One potential shortcut could be trading Pageau, whose name has biannually popped up in the rumor mill for the past few years. Advertisement With one year left on his deal at $5 million and a 16-team no-trade clause, Pageau — who proved last season he still has a lot left in his tank and can help a team immensely in the right role — would have some value if made available. Darche has seemed reluctant to undergo a huge roster makeover in his first summer in the job, but whether or not dealing a 32-year-old player on an expiring deal who would be a prime candidate to get moved at the trade deadline anyway constitutes a major swing is in the eye of the beholder. It's a safe guess, however, that the Islanders are not comfortable playing any of Cizikas, Ritchie or MacLean on the second line to start the season. Advertisement So if they're moving Pageau, it means there's a level of comfort splitting up Horvat and Barzal to start the season, even with the success they've achieved together. That, or Darche believes an extra $5 million could buy him someone to solve the problem on July 1.
New York Post
01-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Post
Mathew Barzal was forced to watch Islanders' collapse after gut-wrenching injury: ‘It killed me'
Mat Barzal didn't make it a secret how miserable it was for him to watch the Islanders slip out of the playoff race, unable to do anything about it. The 27-year-old from Coquitlam, British Columbia, had already missed time early in the season, working his way back from an upper-body injury, only for his left kneecap to break just six weeks later when Barzal blocked a shot. Advertisement He missed the season's final 10 weeks after undergoing surgery, and without him the Islanders suffered a disastrous finish, dropping 11 of their final 14 games and getting eliminated from the race in Game 78 of 82. 'You miss so many moments,' Barzal said at breakup day after the season ended. 'Boys come back from the road, talking about the road trip at the lunch table. Watching the games, having a big road win. There's nothing better than going on the road and winning a big game. Just not being able to be a part of that stuff, it killed me. 'I'm not sugarcoating it. It was horrible mentally.' Advertisement The what-if of Barzal's health could, in time, turn into one of the greater what-ifs in franchise history for the Islanders. At the time he got hurt, the Islanders were playing their best hockey of the season. Including the win in Tampa on the night Barzal got hurt defending a lead late in regulation — the Islanders allowed the game-tying goal but won in overtime — the club had won seven in a row, with Barzal notching six points during that span. His was far from the only injury, with the Islanders suffering a trio of hits to their blue line around the same time, but it seemed to be the breaking point. 3 Mathew Barzal missed the season's final 10 weeks after undergoing kneecap surgery, and without him the Islanders suffered a disastrous finish. Corey Sipkin for New York Post Advertisement The Isles lost five of their next six on either side of the 4 Nations break, and aside from increasingly rare fits and starts, couldn't get their offense going for the rest of the season. If Barzal had stayed healthy, would the Islanders have been in better position at the trade deadline and hung onto Brock Nelson? Would they have snuck into the playoffs and perhaps kept Lou Lamoriello as general manager another season? CHECK OUT THE LATEST NHL STANDINGS AND ISLANDERS STATS Unlikely, but unanswerable. In any case, whatever the new regime looks like, one of the biggest questions heading into next season will be whether Barzal can return to full strength from the jump. Advertisement If it lingers, a knee issue has potential ramifications for a player whose game is as predicated on skating as Barzal's. 3 Islanders star Mathew Barzal skates up the ice with the puck during a game against the Islanders last season. Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images And no matter what the roster looks like, the Islanders will be depending on him to get back to the level he was at in 2023-24, when he put up 80 points for the first time since his rookie season skating alongside Bo Horvat for much of the year. Even more than that, with the Islanders expected to market their individual players more heavily with Lamoriello out of the picture, Barzal is an obvious candidate to become — explicitly — the face of the franchise. That will only increase the pressure to perform. 3 Islanders star Mathew Barzal skates with the puck during a game against the Avalanche last season. NHLI via Getty Images He said this offseason will be anything but normal for him, and there will be no breaks in his rehab or vacations to Europe. The goal is to not miss a beat. Advertisement 'If not [the same workout regimen], even harder than what I've done in the past,' Barzal said. 'Really wanting to persevere through this. I love the game, I love being around my teammates. This is kind of everything to me. 'To not be able to play as many games as I missed sucked mentally and physically. My drive to get back to the player I was coming into camp last year is at an all-time high.'
NBC Sports
05-02-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Islanders place Mathew Barzal on IR with lower body injury
NEW YORK — The New York Islanders placed Mathew Barzal on injured reserve on Tuesday with a lower body injury. Barzal, who missed 21 days earlier this season with an upper body injury, was hurt in the third period of the Islanders' overtime win at Tampa Bay on Saturday. He left in the final minute of regulation after taking a shot by the Lightning's Darren Raddysh off his left leg. Barzal has six goals and 14 assists in 30 games this season. The Islanders began the day in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, four points out of a wild-card spot.
Fox Sports
05-02-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Islanders place Mathew Barzal on IR with lower body injury
Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Islanders placed Mathew Barzal on injured reserve on Tuesday with a lower body injury. Barzal, who missed 21 days earlier this season with an upper body injury, was hurt in the third period of the Islanders' overtime win at Tampa Bay on Saturday. He left in the final minute of regulation after taking a shot by the Lightning's Darren Raddysh off his left leg. Barzal has six goals and 14 assists in 30 games this season. The Islanders began the day in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, four points out of a wild-card spot. ___ AP NHL: recommended
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Islanders place Mathew Barzal on IR with lower body injury
NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Islanders placed Mathew Barzal on injured reserve on Tuesday with a lower body injury. Barzal, who missed 21 days earlier this season with an upper body injury, was hurt in the third period of the Islanders' overtime win at Tampa Bay on Saturday. He left in the final minute of regulation after taking a shot by the Lightning's Darren Raddysh off his left leg. Barzal has six goals and 14 assists in 30 games this season. The Islanders began the day in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, four points out of a wild-card spot. ___ AP NHL:
