Patrick Roy blames himself, but the Islanders’ real problem runs deeper
Photo credit: © James Guillory-Imagn Images
Patrick Roy owned the miss, and the New York Islanders' playoff chase now looks like a blue-line failure as much as a coaching one.
Roy's quote hits because it is blunt. He believed the team was ready, then admitted he failed to reach them before a game they had to control.
That matters, but it is not the whole file.
The sharper line is the one about Ilya Sorokin being exposed. That is the real problem on this Islanders skid.
Sorokin has still put up a 28-22-2 record, a 2.65 goals-against average, a .909 save percentage, and seven shutouts through 52 games. That is elite work behind too many busted layers.
You can feel the exact point where this stopped being about speeches and turned into slot coverage, slow changes, and lost box-outs.
When a goalie is forced to erase mistake after mistake, the room starts cheating for offense. Then the whole structure cracks.
The Islanders were 42-29-5 before that April 3 loss to Philadelphia, then carried a four-game skid into Roy's firing with four games left. That is not one bad night, that is trend data.
"I have a job to do, I have to make sure the team is ready to play a strong game."
"[On Friday], I thought the team was ready to play a strong game, [but] I could have done a better job of approaching the guys, I could have said a few things."
"[The Islanders] felt that Ilya Sorokin was exposed and that they needed a better defensive structure."
- Patrick Roy
"[On Friday], I thought the team was ready to play a strong game, [but] I could have done a better job of approaching the guys, I could have said a few things."
"[The Islanders] felt that Ilya Sorokin was exposed and that they needed a better defensive structure."
- Patrick Roy
Patrick Roy exposed the New York Islanders identity crisis
Fans are right to read this as a roster alarm, not just a bench change.
Mathew Barzal has 19-51-70 in 77 games, and Bo Horvat has 30-25-55 in 64. The top-six produced enough to keep hope alive.
The crack was behind them. Clean exits died, inner-slot coverage slipped, and Sorokin had to wear the damage.
That is why the Islanders jumped to Pete DeBoer now. The club saw a defensive habit problem and chose a coach tied to structure before the market opened.
Roy's honesty deserves respect. His quote also reads like the final proof that this season got away from the Islanders long before the firing.
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