"The Skinny"
By Eric Hornick
Game 34
Detroit 3, Isles 2
Alex DeBrincat scored two power play goals in the third period, the latter with just 2:17 to play, as the Detroit Red Wings rallied for a 3-2 win over the Isles before a sellout crowd of 19,515 at Little Caesars Arena.
Emil Heineman scored a career-high 11th goal 4:27 into play to give the Isles an early lead; Scott Mayfield's first goal of the season tied the game with 8:34 to play, but Mayfield was in the penalty box for the winning goal.
The Isles fall to 15-7-2 in their last 24 games; they return home for the front-end of a back-to-back as they face Vancouver on Friday,
The Scoring:
1st Period
Emil Heineman (11) Mathew Barzal (17), Jonathan Drouin (13) 04:27 NYI 1,DET 0
2nd Period
No Goals
3rd Period
Axel Sandin-Pellikka (4) Lucas Raymond (25) 02:03 NYI 1,DET 1
Alex DeBrincat (19) Moritz Seider (19), Lucas Raymond (26) 03:55 NYI 1,DET 2 PPG
Scott Mayfield (1) Jean-Gabriel Pageau (8), Anders Lee (13) 11:26 NYI 2,DET 2
Alex DeBrincat (20) Moritz Seider (20), Lucas Raymond (27) 17:43 NYI 2,DET 3 PPG
The Skinny
The Isles are 19-9-3 since they opened 0-3-0; the 41 points since October 16th are the most of any team in the Eastern Conference…The Isles went 0-1 on the power play and allowed goals both times they were short; the Isles are 8-30 on the power play in the last ten games and have allowed three goals in six times short over the last two games… The Isles lost in regulation for the first time this season when leading after two periods (10-1-1); they drop to 17-2-3 when leading or tied …Mathew Barzal earned an assist for the fourth straight game as he extended his point streak to five games … Scott Mayfield scored for the first time since April 8th in Nashville… Alex DeBrincat scored twice, including the game-winner, for the second straight game; he had only one goal in 18 previous games against the Isles… DeBrincat is the first Red Wing to score 20 goals in each of his first three seasons since Brendan Shanahan, who did so in his first nine seasons in Detroit…Lucas Raymond assisted on all three goals; it is the seventh time he has three assists in a game…John Gibson stretched his winning streak to six games, one shy of his career high…The Isles remain in 2nd place in the Metropolitan Division; they remain three points behind Carolina and are one point ahead of Philadelphia and Washington.
Milestone Men
• Matthew Barzal recorded his 488th point, tying Patrick Flatley for 15th place.
• Anders Lee still needs three goals to become the fifth Islander with 300 goals.
• Ryan Pulock remains tied with Noah Dobson (230) for 6th on the club's defenseman point list; Pulock is two points behind Kenny Jonsson for 5th.
• Emil Heineman played his 100th NHL game.
• Matthew Schaefer played his 34th game, matching Dave Chyzowski for the second-highest total by an 18-year-old in club history; Tim Connolly holds the record – 81 games.
First Times in a Long Time
• Detroit scored multiple power play goals in a game against the Isles for the first time since January 31, 2015.
• The Isles were held to 18 shots on goal; it is their fewest in a game against the Red Wings since they had 17 shots at Joe Louis Arena on March 17, 1995.
• The Isles have been held to 18 shots on fewer in consecutive games for the first time since October 28-31, 2000 (at Montreal and vs. Boston).
December to Remember
The Isles are 6-2-0 in the first eight games this month, including five wins over teams that have won the Stanley Cup in the 2020s. The Isles have twelve points in December and 88 points in calendar year 2025 (with six games to play); they had 11 points last December and finished calendar year 2024 with 86 points.
Return to Form
Ilya Sorokin was 2-4-1 (.868 and 3.75) in his first seven games this season; he is 10-5-1 (.929 and 1.99) since October 31st with three shutouts. Only Jesper Wallstedt (4) has more shutouts in that span or this season; Jeremy Swayman (11) is the only goalie with more than ten wins in that span.
In December, Sorokin is 5-0-0 with a .933 save percentage and a 2.12 goals-against average.
Detroit had only 21 shots on goal tonight. Sorokin has won each of his first nine games facing at least 30 shots; that breaks a tie with Chico Resch's 1980-81 streak for the second-longest in club history, and the longest to start a season. Mark Fitzpatrick won ten straight when facing 30 shots in the 1989-90 season.
Big Save Dave
David Rittich is 7-3-1 on the season. In his last six games (4-1-1), he has stopped 144 of 156 shots for a 1.94 GAA and a .923 save percentage.
Islander goalies not named Sorokin won only five games all last season (tying a franchise record for fewest by the non-winningest goalies on the team).
Most Ice Time by an Islander Teenager, Game
1. Matthew Schaefer 28:53 11/28/2025 vs PHI (SO)
2. Matthew Schaefer 28:12 12/9/2025 vs VEG
3. Matthew Schaefer 27:40 10/25/2025 at PHI (SO)
4. Matthew Schaefer 27:30 11/22/2025 vs. STL
5. Matthew Schaefer 27:23 11/23/2025 vs. SEA (SO)
A 20-year-old Islander has played more than 28:53 only twice (Bryan Berard -31:30; Travis Hamonic -28:54). The younger of these was Hamonic (vs PIT) on April 8, 2011, when he was 20 years, 235 days old; Schaefer will not hit that age until April 27, 2028.
Most Ice Time by an 18-Year-Old, Game
1. Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) 29:15 12/4/2018 vs TOR (OT)
2. Drew Doughty (LA) 29:04 11/22/2008 vs COL (SO)
3. Matthew Schaefer 28:53 11/28/2025 vs PHI (SO)
Schaefer has played at least 27 minutes five times and at least 26 minutes nine times. He is the first 18-year-old to do either of these things since ice time became official.
Most Goals by an 18-Year-Old Defenseman
1. Phil Housley (BUF) 17 (1982-83)
2. Bobby Orr (BOS) 13 (1966-67)
3. Matthew Schaefer 9 (2025-26)
Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) 9 (2018-19)
Zach Bogosian (ATL) 9 (2008-09)
Most Power Play Goals by an 18-Year-Old Defenseman
1. Phil Housley (BUF) 10 (1982-83)
2. Matthew Schaefer 5 (2025-26)
Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) 5 (2018-19)
Most Goals by an Islander Teenage Defenseman
1. Matthew Schaefer 9
2. Bryan Berard 7
Only nine Islander teenagers, regardless of position, have scored at least nine goals, led by Bryan Trottier's 32 and Pat LaFontaine' 26.
Most Assists by an Islander Teenage Defenseman
1. Bryan Berard 32
2. Matthew Schaefer 14
Only eleven Islander teenagers, regardless of position, have recorded at least 14 points, led by Bryan Trottier's 95 and Tim Connolly's 75.
Most Points by an Islander Teenage Defenseman
1. Bryan Berard 39
2. Matthew Schaefer 23
Only ten Islander teenagers, regardless of position, have recorded at least 23 points, led by Bryan Trottier's 63 and Tim Connolly's 51.
Schaefer will still be a Teenager for the next 132 Isles games.
Most Games Played as an 18-Year-Old (Isles history)
1. Tim Connolly 81 (14-20-34)
2. Mathew Schaefer 34 (9-14-23)
Dave Chyzowski 34 (8-6-14)
Home for the Holidays
The Isles are in a stretch where they play 13 of 17 games at UBS Arena through December 27th. They are 7-5-1 so far in this stretch (6-3-1 at home and 1-2-0 on the road).
Did Somebody Say Comeback?
The Isles have nine come-from behind wins this season, including four when they trailed in the third period. The opponents have come-from-behind to win seven times this season, including three times in the third period.
Overtime Is Our Time
The Isles are 3-0 in games decided by an overtime goal, and they are 3-3 in shootouts.
Empty Netters
The Isles have scored 5 empty-net goals and allowed 6.
Most Career Empty Net Goals
1. Bryan Trottier 27
2. John Tavares 20
3. Mike Bossy 15
4. Brock Nelson 13
5. Jason Blake 11
Casey Cizikas 11
Building on a Lead
The Islanders have had a two-goal lead 19 times this season:
• Score the next goal: 8 times
• Allowed the next goal: 8 times
• Game ended with 2-goal difference: 3 times
Last Year vs. This Year
• 2025-26 19-12-3 for 41 points in 34 games
• 2024-25 13-14-7 for 33 points in 34 games; they did not reach 41 points until their 42nd game.
Offense from Defense
• Today: 1-0-1
• Season: 14-52-66
• Last Season (Final) 32-129-161
Rookie Scoring
• Today: 0-0-0
• Season: 17-26-43
• Last Season (Final) 19-30-49
The 17 rookie goals are tied for the most in the NHL while the 43 points trail only Chicago.
Home and Road
The Isles are 19-12-3 overall; they are 10-6-2 at home and 9-6-1 on the road.
Detroit is also 19-12-3 overall; they are 10-6-1 at home and 9-6-2 on the road.
East and West
The Isles are 10-8-3 against the East (4-4-2 vs. Metropolitan and 6-4-1 vs. Atlantic) and 9-4-0 against the West (3-4-0 vs. Central and 6-0-0 vs. Pacific).
First Things First
The Isles are 14-4-2 when scoring first and 5-8-1 when allowing the opening goal.
The Shots
Isles 7-7-4=18
Detroit 8-5-8=21
The Isles are 4-9-2 when they outshoot their opponents, 1-0-1 when the shots are even and 13-3-0 when the opposition has more shots.
In the Nets
Ilya Sorokin made 18 saves; he is 12-9-2 this season and 5-5-2 vs. Detroit.
John Gibson made 16 saves; he is 10-7-1 this season and 5-5-1 vs. the Isles.
Special Teams
The Isles were 0-1 (2:00); Detroit was 2-2 (1:31).
The Isles are 11-3-1 when they score at least one power play goal and 8-9-2 when they do not. The Isles are 6-5-3 when they allow at least one power play goal and 13-7-0 when they do not.
The Isles are 11-1-0 when they outscore the opposition on special teams, 3-5-1 when they are outscored, and 5-6-2 when special team goals are equal. (Their only loss when outscoring the opposition on special teams was in the home opener against Washington.)
Three is a Magic Number
The Isles are 16-2-3 when they score at least three goals (including shootout winners) and are 3-10-0 when they do not.
One-Goal Games
The Isles are 11-3-3 in games decided by a single goal including 5-3 in regulation. They are 3-0 in games decided in overtime and are 3-3 in shootouts. The Isles are 3-2 in games in which an empty-net goal turns a 1-goal game into a 2-goal game.
Back-to-Backs
The Isles are 2-3-0 on the front end and 4-1-0 on the back end this season; the next back-to-back will be on December 19-20 when they host Vancouver and visit Buffalo.
The Isles are 4-3-0 when the opponent is on the back end, including 2-1-0 when the Isles also played the previous day.
Ice-time Leaders
Isles: Matthew Schaefer (25:56); Detroit: Simon Edvinsson (25:05)
Mathew Barzal led Isles forwards (22:26).
Face-offs
Isles 29, Detroit 24 (55%)
Jonathan Drouin won 4 of 4 for the Isles; JT Compher won 9 of 16 for Detroit.
Hit Count
Isles 16 (Marc Gatcomb -7)
Detroit 14 (Michael Rasmussen -3)
Fights
None. Season total: 4 (Mayfield, MacLean, Lee, DeAngelo)
Blocked Shots
Isles 21 (Emil Heineman -5)
Detroit 19 (Jacob Bernard-Docker -3)
For the Analytics Crowd
Corsi: All situations: Isles 52, Detroit 62
Corsi: 5-on-5: Isles 46, Detroit 57
5-on-5 leaders:
Isles: No Isle was a "+"
Detroit: Max Crozier +12
High Danger Scoring Chances (per Natural Stat Trick)
All situations: Isles 5, Detroit 13
5-on-5: Isles 5, Detroit 12
Scratches
(Pierre Engvall-LTIR), (Semyon Varlamov-IR), (Ethan Bear-IR), (Alex Romanov-IR), (Kyle Palmieri-IR), (Bo Horvat -INJ), Adam Boqvist, Max Tsyplakov
Games Lost to injury: 156. (Last season's total: 304)
The Ironmen
Casey Cizikas is the Islanders' ironman, having played 142 consecutive games. Anders Lee (116) is the only other Isle to have also played every game since the start of last season.
National TV Games
The Isles are 2-1-0 in games that air on one of the NHL's US national broadcast partners. Their next appearance will be on ESPN+ on January 6th vs New Jersey.
Matinee Isles
The Isles are 2-3-2 in matinee games this season; the next matinee will be at 3:00pm on New Year's Day against Utah. The NHL considers games that start before 5:00 local time to be afternoon contests. Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Isles are 17-20-14 in matinees.
Challenges
Isles: 0 successful, 1 failure (No goalie interference – VEG 11/14)
Opponents: 0 successful, 4 failure (No hand pass – WAS 10/11), (No interference – DET 10/23), (No offside – WAS 10/31), (No interference – COL 12/4)
Hockey Opps: 1 favorable, 1 unfavorable (No missed stoppage- NJ 11/10), (goalie interference -DAL 11/18)
Quickies (Two goals in under a minute)
For (2): DET 10/23, CBJ 11/2
Vs (4): BOS 10/28, COL 11/16, PHI 11/28, TB 11/30
Quick Responses (One team scoring within a minute of other team)
Isles responses (3): OTT 10/18, SJS 10/21, BOS 11/4
Opponent responses (3): WPG 10/13, CAR 10/30, COL 12/4
Multi-Goal 3rd Period Comeback Wins
For (0):
Vs (0):
Last Minute Heroes (Tying or go-ahead goals in the final three minutes of the third period):
For (5): Anders Lee, GWG(18:57)10/18 OTT, Matthew Schaefer, GTG (18:53) and Simon Holmstrom GWG (19:22) 11/2 CBJ, Kyle Palmieri GAG (17:07 11/10 NJ)- Isles won in OT, Mathew Barzal (17:23 11/13 VEG); Isles won in OT
Vs (3): Simon Nemec GTG (19:55 11/10 NJ) but NYI won in OT, Pavel Dorfeyev (19:46, 12/9 VEG) but NYI won in SO; Alex DeBrincat GWG (17:43 12/16 DET)
OT Winners
For (3): Mathew Barzal 11/10 @ NJ, JG Pageau 11/13 @ VEG, Matthew Schaefer 11/14 @ UTA
Vs (0):
Shootout Winners
For (3): SEA 11/23, VEG 12/9, TBL 12/13
Vs (3): PHI 10/25, BOS 11/4, PHL 11/28
All-time Islander Leader Boards:
Games Played (skaters)
1. Bryan Trottier 1,123 *** 2. Denis Potvin 1,060 *** 3. Josh Bailey 1,057 ***
4. Casey Cizikas 931 *** 5. Brock Nelson 901 *** 6. Bobby Nystrom 900 *** 7. Anders Lee 875 …
20. Kenny Jonsson 597 *** 21. Garry Howatt 596 *** 22. John Tonelli, Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock 594 *** 25. Scott Mayfield 567 *** 26. Mathew Barzal 563
Goals
1. Mike Bossy 573 *** 2. Bryan Trottier 500 *** 3. Denis Potvin 310 ***
4. Clark Gillies 304 *** 5. Anders Lee 297 …
19. Mariusz Czerkawski 145 *** 20. Mathew Barzal 143…
26. Steve Thomas/Matt Moulson/Mark Parrish 118 *** 29. Casey Cizikas 117
Assists
1. Bryan Trottier 853 *** 2. Denis Potvin 742 *** 3. Mike Bossy 553 …
5. Clark Gillies 359 *** 6. John Tavares 349 *** 7. Mathew Barzal 345…
18. Tomas Jonsson 249 *** 19. Frans Nielsen, Kyle Okposo, and Anders Lee 230…
24. Ed Westfall 181 *** 25 Noah Dobson 180 *** 26. Ryan Pulock 176…
32. Ziggy Palffy 163 *** 33. David Volek 154 *** 34. Casey Cizikas 153
Points
1. Bryan Trottier 1,353 *** 2. Mike Bossy 1,126 *** 3. Denis Potvin 1,052…
12. Bob Bourne 542 *** 13. Anders Lee 527…
14. Derek King 499 *** 15. Patrick Flatley and Mathew Barzal 488
27. Ed Westfall 286 *** 28. Casey Cizikas 270
+/-
1. Bryan Trottier +467 ***2. Denis Potvin +456 *** 3. Mike Bossy +380
15. Bob Lorimer +105 *** 16. Adam Pelech +86 *** 17. Tomas Jonsson +76 *** 18. Garry Howatt +75 *** 19. Pat Price +70 *** 20. JP Parise +67 *** 21. Ryan Pulock +64 *** 21. Jude Drouin +58 *** 23. Patrick Flatley +57 *** 24. Greg Gilbert +54
Defense Goals
1. Denis Potvin 310 *** 2. Tomas Jonsson 84 *** 3. Kenny Jonsson 57 ***
4. Ryan Pulock 54…
13. Bryan Berard 31 *** 14. Scott Mayfield 29 *** 15. Adam Pelech and Vladimir Malakhov 27
Defense Assists
1. Denis Potvin 742*** 2. Stefan Persson 317 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 249 ***
5. Noah Dobson 180 *** 6. Ryan Pulock 176 …
9. Jeff Norton 166 ***10. Mark Streit 139 *** 11. Adam Pelech 138…
15. Tom Kurvers and Gerry Hart 108 *** 17. Bryan Berard and Scott Mayfield 100
Defense Points
1. Denis Potvin 1,052 *** 2. Stefan Persson 369 *** 3. Tomas Jonsson 333…
5. Kenny Jonsson 232 *** 6. Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock 230…
10. Mark Streit 179 *** 11. Adam Pelech 165…
16. Johnny Boychuk and Bryan Berard 131 *** 18. Scott Mayfield 129
Goalie Games
1. Billy Smith 674 *** 2. Rick DiPietro 318 *** 3. Glenn Resch 282 ***
4. Ilya Sorokin 276 …
8. Jaroslav Halak 177*** 9. Glenn Healy 176 *** 10. Semyon Varlamov 173
Wins
1. Billy Smith 304 *** 2. Glenn Resch 157 *** 3. Ilya Sorokin 137 …
7. Jaroslav Halak 88 *** 8. Roland Melanson 77 *** 9. Semyon Varlamov 76
Shutouts
1. Ilya Sorokin and Glenn Resch 25 *** 3. Billy Smith 22 ***
4. Rick DiPietro and Semyon Varlamov 16
On the Farm
Cole McWard scored 4:29 into overtime Sunday as Bridgeport improved to 10-11-1-1 on the season with a 4-3 win at Belleville to conclude a sweep of their Canadian road trip; Henrik Tikkanen made 24 saves for his fourth straight win.
Bridgeport is tied with Hartford for the final playoff spot; they host Syracuse on Wednesday.
Leaders: Goals: Joey Larson- 9; Assists: Matthew Maggio-13; Points: Maggio and Alex Jefferies-17
Goalies: Marcus Hogberg 4-7-2, 3.25, .876; Henrik Tikkanen 4-0-0, 1.92, .919
Season Series Stats
The Isles win the season series, 2 games to 1 (and 4 points to 2).
The teams split a pair of games in Detroit; the Isles are 2-5-1 in their last eight visits to the Motor City.
UP NEXT
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 19th —VANCOUVER AT ISLANDERS 7:00PM
[MSGSN (pre-game at 6:30), WRHU 88.7 FM, WRCN 103.9FM, Isles + UBS Arena App]
The Isles welcome the Vancouver Canucks to UBS Arena on Friday as they look to snap a four-game home losing streak, and five-game home winless streak against the Canucks. The last Islander home win against Vancouver came on November 13, 2018, at Barclays Center as Thomas Greiss made 22 saves in a 5-2 victory. Not including Utah, Vancouver is the only team to earn regulation wins in every game they have played at UBS.
The Isles have had much more success against the Canucks on the West Coast; they are 6-0-3 in their last nine trips to Vancouver. The teams will play at Rogers Arena on January 19th.
Eric Hornick has been the statistician on Islander home game telecasts since January 21, 1982. Information contained in "The Skinny" has been gathered from various sources. Follow Eric @ehornick on Twitter & on his blog www.nyiskinny.com
Forever1940 is the nom de plume of Eric Hornick, statistician on Islander home telecasts since January 21, 1982. Visit my blog: NYISkinny.com and follow me on Twitter @ehornick
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