Islanders End Of Year:

The criticism continues as we dive deep into the successes and failures of the Islanders defence, goalies, coaches and management this past season.

Defence:
Ryan Suter: Suter came in at the deadline to provide some leadership and quality defence in the playoffs. In the 12 playoff games played, he managed to be a +6 and added a goal and three assists. Not terrible, but maybe not worth the cost of a 3rd round pick, 6th round pick, and prospect Alex Kannok-Leipert. B

Adam Larsson: Larsson came in at the deadline to play on the top defence pairing alonside Ryan Suter. In the playoffs he was a plus 6 and provided four apples. We expected more but considering he only cost moving down in the draft from second to fourth round, it could've been worse. B

Michael Del Zotto: Another defensive acquisition at the trade deadline for the playoffs. Del Zotto was a +5 in the playoffs and had five points. We still have Del Zotto signed for one more year, so lets hope he can build on this mediocre start. C+

Braydon Coburn: Coburn was another defenceman acquired at the deadline. He provided three points but was also a -6 in the playoffs. I think it's safe to say we would've been better off without the veteran blue liner. D

Ilya Lyubushkin: The Russian Bear was a solid force for us all year. He didn't see as much ice time in the playoffs due to the four defencemen acquired at the deadline, but through the regular season he logged twenty points and was a +23 with 120 hits. B

Matt Irwin: Irwin was a force all year leading the RHL with 79 penalty minutes. When Matt wasn't spending time in the penalty box, he was out laying bone crushing hits (138), while leading the teams defence in assists (25) and points (28). A+

Jordie Benn: Benn had a limited role for much of he year and was a healthy scratch in the playoffs. He was ok.. i guess? But we surely will not be missing his $3.5 million cap hit next season. D-

Brad Hunt: Hunt was a bottom pair guy in the regular season, and never saw the ice in the playoffs. He's still under contract next season, but it wouldnt surprise me if he's still riding pine. D-

Goalies:
Tristan Jarry: Tristan was with us for most of the season, and likely the main reason we found ourselves in a playoff position.  Pacman acquired Jarry in one of his first trades as the Islanders GM along with a 7th round pick. Going the other way was  veteran centre Jordan Staal, prospect Declan Chisholm, and goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks (RIP). He was a playing very well 
in his time here winning 29 of 46 games with a 2.56 GAA and .914 Sv%, which is why it was a shock to fans when he was traded 
to the Vegas Golden Knights for Jack "Soup" Campbell, but it came with a draft pick upgrade, and Islanders fans love Soup. A+

Jack Campbell: Campbell came into the fold mid February and was able to provide steady goaltending for the most part winning 
13 of the 25 games played, just enough to keep the team in a playoff position. He had a 2.50 GAA and .919 Sv% in those 25 games and was a big part in getting the team to game seven in the second round. A

Devan Dubnyk: Dubnyk's stats speak volumes. A record of 3-7-1 to go along with a GAA of 3.64 and a Sv% of .844.  He was the NHL equivalent of a pylon between the pipes and most nights he was called upon fans knew to expect a loss. With a cap hit of $5 million, Devan will not be missed as he plans his retirement this offseason. F

Coaches:
Bruce Cassidy: Cassidy led a team that was constructed of rejects and giveaways to 45 wins, 101 points, a wild card finish, and ot all the way to game seven of the second round. This in a year that was planned to be a rebuild. We think he exceeded all expectations. A

General Manager: 
Pacman: In his rookie season as a General Manager of a RHL franchise Pacman was able to acquire future assets while still icing a veteran team that played an exciting brand of hockey and was able to get to the second round of the playoffs. Though he still has a lot of work to do this offseason, we think he has finally got this franchise heading in the right direction. Safe to say he's the right guy for the job. A+