For a team that didn’t do all that much to alter its attacking look, there certainly seem to be some pressing questions about the New York Islanders’ projected lines heading into the 2022-23 season, including which unit will be No. 1.
Mathew Barzal has centered the team’s first line for most of his five seasons as a pro — such is life as the Islanders’ top playmaking center. But which direction will new head coach Lane Lambert go in?
With a week-and-a-half to go until the puck drops on the 2022-23 season, we take a look.
2022-23 New York Islanders projected lines
1st Line: Anders Lee – Brock Nelson – Anthony Beauvillier
The first line is a title that belongs to a team’s top combination of forwards — and this is it. Nelson is coming off a career-high 37 goals in 2021-22, doing a ton of damage with Lee on his left. The Islanders captain found his footing after a season-ending ACL injury in 2020-21 to catch fire late with 28 goals on the season. In the month of March alone, Lee accounted for 11 goals while Nelson tallied 13 playing together. The hope is that the dynamic duo can unlock Beauvillier’s goal-scoring potential after a disappointing 12-goal campaign — the fewest since his rookie season.
2nd Line: Zach Parise – Mathew Barzal – Kyle Palmieri
Cue the raised eyebrows seeing Parise on the second line when he was brought on last season as a bottom-six option. The thing is, the 38-year-old versatile forward clicked with Barzal and Palmieri down the stretch last season to show enough of a spark that Lambert is considering this combination moving forward. Palmieri and Parise have also expressed their comfort and desire to play together, too. Despite his age, Parise has posted 82-game averages of 26 goals and we saw a glimpse of that last season when he scored 14 in his final 49 games. Couple a pace remotely similar to that with Palmieri, who can pop 25-to-30 on a good year with the playmaking prowess of Barzal, and this could be a very productive second line.
3rd Line: Josh Bailey – Jean-Gabriel Pageau – Oliver Wahlstrom
Nearing his 1,000th game, Bailey will have less expectations on his shoulders in a bottom-six role instead of a top-two-line requirement that has often seen the fan base sour on him. His job will to be help facilitate Pageau back to being a 20-plus goal scorer after potting 18 last season while nurturing Oliver Wahlstrom in his second full NHL season. The shot is lethal, his two-way play is developing, now he needs to put it all together.
4th Line: Matt Martin – Casey Cizikas – Cal Clutterbuck
“The Best 4th Line in Hockey” has some miles on them, but they’ll still be looked upon as the heartbeat of the Islanders’ identity. Tenacious play and a strong forecheck will continue to be the name of the game with a future replacement in Ross Johnston waiting in the wings to relieve the veteran Martin or Clutterbuck when necessary.
Defensive Pairings
1st Pair: Adam Pelech – Ryan Pulock
The Islanders’ first pair will be reunited after last season’s messy season forced the two to split at times to spread the skill amongst the blue line. Pelech is one of the top defensive d-men in the game while Pulock remains an invaluable asset with a heavy shot.
2nd Pair: Alex Romanov – Noah Dobson
The young guns of the blue line might also be their best sooner rather than later. The 22-year-old Dobson is a star in the making coming off a rare 50-point season for an Islanders defensemen and will continue to be the top quarterback for the team’s power play. He’ll be paired with the team’s big acquisition of the offseason in Romanov — a quick-skating, hard-hitting defenseman just one day older than his partner — whose distribution skills can only improve playing alongside Dobson.
3rd Pair: Robin Salo – Scott Mayfield
It says plenty about the Islanders’ defensive depth that Scott Mayfield will always be looked upon as a third-pairing defenseman when he would be a top-four option on many other teams. His job in 2022-23 will be to help bring along one of the team’s top prospects in Robin Salo, who will likely play his first full NHL season after appearing in 21 games last year.
For more on the Islanders, visit AMNY.com
Read more: Josh Knoth Becomes First Long Island MLB Draft Pick Since 1971
