When you've lost 11 straight games, there are a lot of things that you can point to as contributors to a team's futility: a struggling power play, poor decisions, lack of attention to details. There are also issues like a season-opening 13-game road trip, major injuries, and a COVID-19 outbreak that can throw a wrench into the plans of a team that was expected to be a Stanley Cup contender.
Like the bumper sticker says: "SH** HAPPENS."
The Islanders have been dealing with a lot of that this season, but there's still a lot of hockey left to be played. Tuesday's night's 5-3 win in Ottawa snapped the Isles' 11-game losing streak, and gave them a winning feeling for the first time in over a month. The victory has also now bridged the long losing streak into a situation where the Islanders can now start feeling better about themselves because they believe in each other again.
The Islanders are now streaking in the other direction with points in four straight games.
"It's incredible to think what we've gone through this last month," said Head Coach Barry Trotz. "I've never gone through it. These guys have never gone through it. The way that they just stuck together and battled…I gotta give them a lot of credit."
It's just one game, but it would be the understatement of the century to say just how important Tuesday's victory was for the Islanders, who are trying to fight their way back into playoff contention. A look at the standings shows just how big of a mountain the Islanders still have to climb: they trail the Red Wings by 12 points for the second Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.
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As they get ready for Thursday night's game with Nashville at UBS Arena, all the Islanders can do is continue to fight the good fight and work their way back up the ladder.
"I look at that the last four games we've gotten points," said Trotz. "That's how you get out of these long streaks. You just gotta collect points. Just gotta grind out next game next game next game and then get people back and hopefully just string a couple of wins here and there and maybe get ourselves back in the running a little bit."
It can be hard to fathom how a team that went to the NHL's final four in each of the last two seasons could find themselves in the position that the Islanders find themselves in today.
The losing streak was a tough pill to swallow for a group that takes a lot of pride into how they play and what they've accomplished over the last few years. But this group has also shown a ton of resiliency during the Lou Lamoriello/Barry Trotz era, so it's not a surprise to hear that, despite the losing, the Islanders were hanging in there and trying to figure out a way to stop the bleeding.
"This was a shot to us and very tough mentally to grind out," said Captain Anders Lee, who scored two goals in Tuesday's win in Ottawa. "There's times when it feels like it's never going to go your way and the only way to get out of something like this is sticking together, sticking with the program, having each other's backs and we've seen that the last few nights."
Throughout the losing streak, a plethora of unfortunate circumstances played a role in the Islanders' malaise. You could point to the schedule, the injuries, and the eight positive COVID-19 cases, but there has also been the lack of scoring, defensive breakdowns, and an ugly power play that is showing signs of life, even if it surrendered yet another shorthanded goal on Tuesday night.
There isn't one single reason why the Islanders have struggled this season.
"We all share the blame," said Trotz. "We all said we're going to fight through this together and we didn't waver from that. The only way you have success in this league is by sticking together because there are so many things that affect you. We want to get wins for the fans. We've dug ourselves a really big hole and we just gotta keep digging ourselves out."
Now that the Islanders have put the brakes on their losing streak, they can turn their attention to not only extending their points streak, but also finally get their first win at UBS Arena.
The Islanders have lost their first six games at their new home, but perhaps after the win in Ottawa they'll have a little more juice for Thursday's tilt with the Predators in Elmont.
"It's been a tough stretch," said Lee. "We stuck together and we've built our game a little bit the last few nights. Now we can put this stretch behind us and really start to build off of it."
The Islanders have a lot of building to do in order to get back into the playoff picture, but they've certainly shown some signs of life over the last four games. As they continue to wait for Casey Cizikas to return from COVID-19 protocol and for injured players Ryan Pulock and Brock Nelson to make their returns, the Islanders are doing what they can to accumulate points, get whole, and get back their winning ways.
They've started the process of fixing what has been broken by sticking together.
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