New York Islanders coach Patrick Roy, center, calls out to players during the first period of the team’s NHL hockey game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
ELMONT, N.Y. — The silver linings New York Islanders head coach Patrick Roy was taking from his team’s 3-2 loss to the defending Stanley Cup-champion Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night was as wide as the end boards.
“If we keep progressing like we are right now,” he began, “we’ll win a lot of games.”
In what was just Roy’s second game as head coach after being named Lane Lambert’s replacement on Saturday, the Islanders posted a season-high 42 shots on Golden Knights netminder Adin Hill, who stopped 40 of them.
The team was more direct in its passing — especially in the defensive zone to help cut down on some giveaways, though they were still an issue — more aggressive to get up in the offensive play, and more careful with the puck. As a byproduct, they out-chanced the Knights 27-13 and allowed 27 shots, which was 16 fewer than the 43 they yielded in Roy’s debut 3-2 overtime victory against the Dallas Stars in which they were outplayed for large portions.
“They should be positive. I’m very positive,” Roy said. “I mean, 27-to-13 scoring chances. What can I say? Sometimes the puck just doesn’t go in. We played a good game and we were just not rewarded with it. We have to find a way to put that puck in the net but at the same time, it would be a shame if we had our heads between our legs after a performance like this.
“We looked more like a team that was playing a good game. It was not as scrappy and was more organized.”
This is the kind of hockey Roy wants the Islanders to play, rather than the timid, at times nervous brand they exhibited across the final weeks of Lambert’s tenure as head coach. The early days of his tenure have seen him preach a more enterprising offense predicated on a…
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