PITTSBURGH — It was a year ago that Barry Trotz was in this exact position, only the other side. So he knows first-hand how quickly things can change.
That is why the Islanders coach was trying to keep his club even-keeled as they headed to Western Pennsylvania for Game 3 of this first-round series with the Penguins on Sunday afternoon, having held serve with two dramatic victories at the Coliseum over the past week.
A 2-0 lead in a best-of-seven series is exactly what the Blue Jackets held on Trotz and his Capitals in the first round last year. That just happened to be the beginning of Washington’s run to the Stanley Cup.
“Everyone is well aware of the stuff that happened,” Trotz said Saturday morning before flying out. “It’s just that we look at it as we have to get the next game. The series is far from over. We’re just worrying about trying to get another game. That’s [where] all our focus should have to be.
“Until you get the fourth one, the series is always going.”
Maybe the most reassuring fact for the Islanders is they have been an even-keeled team all season. They are hardly reveling in these two victories, as impressive as they were and as emotional as they were in front of the raucous Coliseum crowd.
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More than the results, the Islanders are proud of the way they have handled themselves in the big moment. They have seemingly agitated the Penguins, most notably the combustible Evgeni Malkin. And they have stifled one of the most gifted players of all time in Sidney Crosby, without a point through the first two games, while coach Mike Sullivan was seemingly caught up in trying to find him a good matchup rather than just letting him play.
“I just think it’s the way that we’re playing,” said center Casey Cizikas, who got much of the matchup load against Crosby thus far. “We’re playing hard, we’re playing physical, and we’re playing smart hockey. We’re getting back on the forecheck, our Ds have good gap. We’re playing Islander hockey right now, and that can be frustrating for teams. If we continue doing that, then we’re going to have more success than not.”
The tensions boiled over at the end of Game 2, when the Islanders had secured a 3-1 win and Malkin got into a cross-checking fit with Brock Nelson that brought all parties together for customary face-washes and jersey-pulling. Rest assured that animosity will not have subsided much by the time the clubs reconvene in front of what will definitely be a boisterous sell-out crowd in Pittsburgh, where the fans are accustomed to their team finding ways to win. Three Stanley Cups in the past decade will do that.
However, the Islanders relish playing on the road, their 24 victories away from home this season tied for third-most in the league. Having split their home games this season between the Coliseum and Barclays Center — where they would play home games in the second round and beyond — it was away from home where they often played their best hockey.
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“I think we’re actually a lot calmer on the road than we are at home,” Trotz said. “That’s what I found all year. We’re a good road team because of the fact we’re not trying to put on a show, we’re just doing our thing.”
It’s going to be a big challenge against the Penguins, who know winning one game would get them right back in the series. If they went back to Long Island for Game 5 on Thursday all square, it would be hard to think the Islanders wouldn’t be feeling a little anxiety.
But that is something they have avoided all season. The mentality under Trotz had been steadfast, even during the swoon of February and mid-March when they won as many games as they lost. So it seems like neither the tenuous hold of a 2-0 lead or the history of that situation Trotz carries with him intimately will alter their approach.
“I think the reason that we do what we do is predictability,” Trotz said. “We’ve been predictable. No sense changing everything right now.”