Anders Lee getting into groove on Islanders’ top line: ‘There’s a little bit of nuance’

Dec 9, 2023; Elmont, New York, USA; New York Islanders left wing Anders Lee (27) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Los Angeles Kings during the third period at UBS Arena. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-USA TODAY Sports

EAST MEADOW, N.Y. — There’s a bit of “nuance” to the style of Anders Lee’s play that makes the difference between a scoring drought and an avalanche of goals as thin as the blades of his skates. 

Things are going well for the New York Islanders captain, who has six goals in his last 11 games after scoring just once over the first 15 games of the season. Five of those six, including two third-period tallies that forced overtime in his team’s 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night, have been from the crease of just inches from it.

That’s always been Lee’s M.O.: Get to the front of the net and either clean up the mess, re-direct the puck, or take the goalie’s eyes away — the kind of close-range play that develops in milliseconds. 

“It’s just part of the read of playing around the net,” Lee told amNewYork. “You’ve got to understand where the puck is going and where it might come off the path. You’re trying to get a stick on it and trying to get body positioning, trying to get a rebound. All that happens pretty quickly and sometimes, taking the goalie’s eyes away is a better play than positioning yourself for a rebound. There’s a little bit of nuance.”

Sometimes, all it takes is, as Lee described it, “feeling good,” to grease the wheels of production.

“If you’re feeling good, you tend to handle [touches around the net] a little bit better,” Lee said. “They’re not going to all go but you just feel like if they start working in your favor, things start going a little bit. Gotta keep your foot on the gas and keep going after it, but things start to go your way and you definitely feel better.”

It also hasn’t hurt that he was reunited with Bo Horvat and Mathew…