The Islanders are moving on.
After completing the series sweep of the Penguins on Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena, the Islanders have won their second playoff series in 26 years.
The Islanders outscored the Penguins 14-6 in the series, limiting the Penguins to one goal in each of the final three games. Barry Trotz believes the series was much closer than the numbers may show.
"Our group was very focused on playing the right way," Trotz said after his team's win. "We knew that we had a tremendous team that we were playing against. And the series, at the end of the day, it's 4-0. But to me, there wasn't much separation. We got a couple of breaks here or there, goaltender made a timely save, we were able to respond right after a goal and didn't allow them to carry momentum for long periods of time. To me, that was pretty key for us. If this was Game 7, I wouldn't be surprised."
Robin Lehner was the man making those "timely saves" for the Islanders, and now leads all postseason goaltenders with a .956 save percentage. He also acknowledged how close this series was, despite the sweep.
"It was four really tight games," Lehner said. "Even if we won four, they were down to the wire, every single one of them. You get that sense of relief a little bit, because they're a hell of a hockey team. It's 2-1, if they score, you don't want to give them life. There were some nerves here in the end, but we stuck together."
That "togetherness" was a common theme from the Islanders when speaking of where their success comes from. Trotz stressed the importance of playing "for the guy next to you." Jordan Eberle, while not coming from the greatest environment in Edmonton, called this Islanders team one of the most tight-knit teams he's been on.
The Islanders' forward depth also set them apart. Each of the Islanders' top-3 lines contributed at least two goals in the series, and the fourth line, while they didn't score, played a huge role in shutting down Sidney Crosby and the Penguins' stars.
"Strength is in the group," Eberle said. "I think you've heard a lot of us say it many times. We roll four lines and we're able to structurally play well. We're able to get wins and play the right way. We've done that all year."
Eberle scored the game-tying goal in the win, just 1:34 after Jake Guentzel's opening goal. Quickly squashing any lead or momentum the Penguins had was a common theme throughout the series.
"Especially on the road, when they get momentum, you hear the crowd cheering when they score first and you're able to get the next one to quiet them down, it's big," said Eberle. "Playoffs is all about momentum. It shifts all over the place, and it's obviously a big shift."
The Islanders now await the winner of the Capitals-Hurricanes series, where the Capitals currently lead, 2-1. Trotz could very well face his former team in the second round.
"I'm going to study Carolina, Washington quite well," said Trotz. "I'm going to have to really spend my time on Carolina. We played them a number of times early in the year and haven't seen much of them since. ... It if happens to be Washington, they have a very strong hockey team. They have all the goods to do it again. I have a lot of respect and great relationships with everybody, that's a special group. But if we end up playing them, they're the opposition."
"If we end up playing Carolina, there's a lot of character," Trotz continued. "I've had Justin Williams, and I know his character. I know his leadership. I know that team in Carolina, you watch them, and they have a lot of heart. They've got some highly-skilled players, guys like (Sebastian) Aho. They might have one of the most underrated D-corps in the National Hockey League. You talk about a team that's playing as a team? They're playing as a team. No matter what happens, we're absolutely going to have our hands full in the next round. They're both terrific hockey teams."
Luckily for the Islanders' next opponent, they won't have to make the trip to the old Nassau Coliseum. The remaining Islanders home games will be played at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, an arena the Islanders last used on Feb. 16.
