2014–15 New York Islanders season

2014–15 New York Islanders
Division	3rd Metropolitan
Conference	5th Eastern
2014–15 record	47–28–7
Home record	25–14–2
Road record	22–14–5
Goals for	252
Goals against	230
Team information
General manager	Garth Snow
Coach	Jack Capuano
Captain	John Tavares
Alternate captains	Cal Clutterbuck (Jan-Apr) Frans Nielsen Kyle Okposo
Arena	Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Average attendance	15,334 (41 games)
Minor league affiliate(s)	Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL) Adirondack Thunder (ECHL)
Team leaders
Goals	John Tavares (38)
Assists	John Tavares (48)
Points	John Tavares (86)
Penalty minutes	Matt Martin (114)
Plus/minus	Ryan Strome (+23)
Wins	Jaroslav Halak (38)
Goals against average	Jaroslav Halak (2.43)

The 2014–15 New York Islanders season was the 43rd season in the franchise's history. This was the team's final full season of play at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The Islanders competed in the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference (NHL) for the second season.

Jaroslav Halak entered the season as the team's new starting goaltender, leading their previous starting goaltender, veteran Evgeni Nabokov, to sign with the Tampa Bay Lightning as a free agent. Chad Johnson was brought in to be Halak's backup, however he was later traded for Michal Neuvirth who took over the role. John Tavares served as the team's captain for the second season, alongside Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen in their sixth and first seasons, respectively, as alternate captains. Around the midpoint of the season, Cal Clutterbuck was named an alternate captain after an injury sidelined Okposo.

The Islanders qualified for the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs after finishing the season in third place in the Metropolitan Division and fifth in the Eastern Conference with 101 points. The playoff berth was the team's second post-season berth in three seasons, having qualified in 2012–13 but not in 2013–14. The team was eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, losing in seven games to the Washington Capitals.

Off-season

On May 22, 2014, the Islanders signed unrestricted free agent goaltender Jaroslav Halak to a four-year extension to keep him under contract through the 2017–18 season after trading for him from the Washington Capitals for the Blackhawks' fourth-round pick in the 2014 Entry Draft earlier in the month. The Islanders also acquired two defenseman on October 4, 2014, one week before their first regular season game—Johnny Boychuk was traded from the Boston Bruins in exchange for 2015 (used on Brandon Carlo) and 2016 draft picks, while Nick Leddy was traded from the Chicago Blackhawks along with amateur goaltender Kent Simpson in exchange for T. J. Brennan, Ville Pokka and the rights to Anders Nilsson.

Regular season

October–December

Anders Lee was recalled to the Islanders in October.

Before the Islanders began their regular season, Matt Carkner, Calvin de Haan, Michael Grabner and Lubomir Visnovsky were placed on injured reserve (IR), while previous first round Islanders draft picks, rookies Griffin Reinhart and Ryan Strome, impressed the coaching staff enough to make the opening night roster for their first times. The team won their first four consecutive games, including a back-to-back against the Carolina Hurricanes in games one and two. de Haan and Visnovsky returned to the team during October, leading to the decision to send Reinhart back to the Islanders' minor league affiliate, the American Hockey League's Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Soon after, injuries to Mikhail Grabovski and Josh Bailey led the team to call up Anders Lee from the Sound Tigers. As Lee began to cement his place on the roster and Grabovski was set to return, coaching staff had to make a decision in order to open up a roster spot, as only 23 players maximum are allowed on a team's roster before the trade deadline. Ultimately, rather than sending Lee back, it was Colin McDonald who was placed on waivers, which he cleared on his way to the Sound Tigers. Their 6–4–0 record by the end of October matched their best record in the team's first ten games since the 2001–02 season.

In recent seasons, the Islanders have not had positive results in the month of November. The previous season saw them finish with a November record of 4–13–1. Bailey returned from his hand injury during the month, while Eric Boulton, who had only played three games so far in the season, was placed on IR. They finished the month with an 11–3–0 record, only the second time in franchise history they recorded at least 11 wins in the month of November. It was also the first time they were undefeated in home games (6–0–0) during the month since the 1984–85 season. On November 28, Head Coach Jack Capuano recorded his 300th game with the team, a number not reached since Al Arbour hit the number in the team's early years, with the closest to Capuano being Terry Simpson with 81 Islanders' games coached.

As December began, injuries provided setbacks with Michael Grabner and Lubomir Visnovsky returning to the IR, joined by Johnny Boychuk, Travis Hamonic and Casey Cizikas. Visnovsky and Cizikas missed only two and three games respectively, but defenseman Boychuk and Hamonic needed the majority of the month to recover. Griffin Reinhart was recalled from the Sound Tigers at the beginning of the month, but was sent back down once the injured defenseman were set to return. Joining him on the Sound Tigers would be Cory Conacher, who was waived on December 13 after recording only three points in 15 games. Conacher was originally placed on the team's top line, alongside John Tavares and Kyle Okposo, however he did not last long there as the coaching staff began trying out various other players to fill the spot. Jaroslav Halak suffered a lower body injury on December 20, after recording his 11th consecutive win earlier in the month and passing the previous franchise record of 10 set by Billy Smith. The injury led to Kevin Poulin being called up from the Sound Tigers; he only played in one game, a 3–4 shootout loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Halak returned the following game, in a 4–3 overtime win against the Washington Capitals. The team finished the calendar year of 2014 with a share of first place in their division for the first time in 27 years.

January–April

The Islanders put together a 6–3–0 January record to bring into the All-Star Game break. Near the beginning of the month, Lubomir Visnovsky was placed back on IR with an upper body injury and would later be joined by Eric Boulton with a lower-body injury, who had been taken off the list about a month prior on December 11 and only played once since. Michael Grabner returned from his lower body injury on January 6 after missing eight games. On January 10, John Tavares was named to the All-Star Game as the sole representative of the Islanders. After injuries to goaltenders Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings and Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators, Halak and the Pittsburgh Penguins' Marc-Andre Fleury were named as their replacements. At the All-Star Game, Tavares scored four goals, matching an All-Star Game record for an individual player's goals scored, while Halak stopped six of tens shots in the third period; their team, captained by Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks, won the game by a record-setting score of 17–12. After the break, it was announced that alternate captain Kyle Okposo would miss six-to-eight weeks after receiving an upper-body injury, later revealed to be a detached retina that he had recently received surgery for. The injury led to Cal Clutterbuck being named as an alternate captain. In their first game back from the break, the Islanders defeated the rival New York Rangers, earning their third consecutive victory over the team, all by a gap of three goals; this marked the first time the Islanders won three consecutive games against the Rangers since 2007.

On February 19, Halak tied a franchise record for most wins in a season after earning his 32nd against the Nashville Predators, with 30 saves against 32 shots. He went on to break the record, recording his 33rd win of the season on February 27, in a 2–1 victory over the Calgary Flames. Injuries continued rolling, with Casey Cizikas and Mikhail Grabovski both being placed on IR, with a lower body injury and an upper body injury, respectively. Matt Carkner was removed from IR after spending the entire season sidelined from back surgery, and was sent to the Sound Tigers after clearing waivers. As the team continued their push for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division standings, it was announced that defenseman Nick Leddy signed a seven-year contract worth $38.5 million on February 24.

Going into it, I thought our team deserved an opportunity to build off what they started here in the first three quarters of the season. I think there's a lot of good chemistry and it's a team in that locker room. We didn't want to delete any of the players out of it if we could. ——Islanders General Manager Garth Snow, on the NHL trade deadline

The NHL trade deadline on March 5 ended with the Islanders making four trades. Two of the trades involved minor league players Cory Conacher and David Leggio sent to the Vancouver Canucks and Arizona Coyotes, respectively, in exchange for Dustin Jeffrey and Mark Louis. Halak received a new backup goaltender when Chad Johnson was sent to the Buffalo Sabres, with the Islanders picking up Michal Neuvirth in return. General Manager Garth Snow cited Neuvirth's good play during the season and Johnson's relatively poor performance thus far as the reason for the trade; Johnson had attained an 8–8–1 record with a .889 save percentage with the Islanders. Outside of the goaltending change, the main roster went untouched with the exception of adding Tyler Kennedy, who was acquired from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a conditional 2015 draft pick. Snow recognized the team's chemistry as the main reason for not making any major main roster trades. The first game the Islanders played after the trade deadline was set to debut Kennedy, but an upper body injury announced just before the start of the game prevented him from playing. During the game, Matt Martin kneed Dallas Stars defenseman Trevor Daley, resulting in a one-game suspension. With Kennedy injured and Martin suspended, Eric Boulton and Casey Cizikas were activated off of IR before the next game on March 5 against the Nashville Predators after missing 19 and eight games, respectively. The following game featured the debut for Neurvirth with the Islanders, as the team fell in a shootout to the Florida Panthers. Capuano chose to start him again the following game, as Neuvirth picked up his first win with the team in a 4–3 overtime victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 9.

Without Nick Leddy, who was injured against the Maple Leafs, the Islanders faced the Rangers on March 10 for their fourth matchup of the season, which ended in a Rangers victory for the first time of the season series. The Islanders dropped their next three as they continued playing short of Leddy, stringing together a four-game losing streak for the first time in the season. During the stretch, Jaroslav Halak missed two games due to a lower-body injury. Halak and Leddy both returned the following game against the New Jersey Devils on March 21, as Halak shut out the Devils in a 3–0 victory. The team's struggles continued as they looked to secure a playoff berth, going 2–3–2 over the next seven games before their trip to the postseason was locked in on April 9; the Florida Panthers defeated the Boston Bruins and eliminated the possibility of the ninth-seeded Bruins catching the Islanders in the standings. Despite having clinched, the following game against the Pittsburgh Penguins had high stakes, with the Penguins still chasing a playoffs spot and the Islanders looking to get the home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs; the Islanders ultimately won, 3–1, and locked up an opening playoff series against the Washington Capitals. The final game of the season, which was also the final regular-season game the Islanders would play at Nassau Coliseum (until the 2018–19 NHL season), was a 5–4 shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, as the Islanders were unable to pick up both points with home-ice advantage against the Capitals on the line.

Playoffs

See also: 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs

The New York Islanders entered the playoffs as the Metropolitan Division's third seed. They lost to the Washington Capitals in seven games.

Standings

Divisional standings

Metropolitan Division
New York Rangersx y z p	82	53	22	2	5	252	192	113
Washington Capitalsx	82	45	26	7	4	242	203	101
New York Islandersx	82	47	28	1	6	252	230	101
Pittsburgh Penguinsx	82	43	27	6	6	221	210	98
Columbus Blue Jackets	82	42	35	3	2	236	250	89
Philadelphia Flyers	82	33	31	7	11	215	234	84
New Jersey Devils	82	32	36	7	7	181	216	78
Carolina Hurricanes	82	30	41	4	7	188	226	71

Conference standings

Atlantic Divison (Top 3)
Team	GP	W	L	OTL	SL	GF	GA	Pts
New York Rangersx y z p	82	53	22	2	5	252	192	113
Montreal Canadiens x y	82	50	22	5	5	221	189	110
Tampa Bay Lightningx	82	50	24	3	5	262	211	108
Washington Capitalsx	82	45	26	7	4	242	203	101
New York Islandersx	82	47	28	1	6	252	230	101
Detroit Red Wings x	82	43	25	4	10	235	221	100
Ottawa Senatorsx	82	43	26	6	7	238	215	99
Pittsburgh Penguinsx	82	43	27	6	6	221	210	98
Boston Bruins	82	41	27	4	10	213	211	96
Florida Panthers	82	38	29	5	10	206	223	91
Columbus Blue Jackets	82	42	35	3	2	236	250	89
Philadelphia Flyers	82	33	31	7	11	215	234	84
New Jersey Devils	82	32	36	7	7	181	216	78
Carolina Hurricanes	82	30	41	4	7	188	226	71
Toronto Maple Leafs	82	30	44	3	5	211	262	68
Buffalo Sabres	82	23	51	3	5	161	274	54

Schedule and results

Pre-season

2014 Pre-Season Game Log: 4–2–1 (Home: 3–2–0 ; Road: 1–0–1)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Recap
1[a]	September 22	Ottawa	2–3	NY Islanders		Leggio		1–0–0	Recap
2[a]	September 22	Ottawa	2–3	NY Islanders	SO	Poulin		2–0–0	Recap
3	September 24	Carolina	4–2	NY Islanders		Halak	9,888	2–1–0	Recap
4[b]	September 26	New Jersey	2–3	NY Islanders	SO	Johnson	11,823	3–1–0	Recap
5	September 30	NY Islanders	5–3	Boston		Poulin	17,004	4–1–0	Recap
6	October 2	NY Islanders	1–2	New Jersey	SO	Halak	10,032	4–1–1	Recap
7[c]	October 4	Boston	6–1	NY Islanders		Johnson		4–2–1	Recap
Notes: a Games were played at Mile One Centre in St. John's, Newfoundland. b Game was played at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. c Game was played at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Regular season

2014–15 Game Log
October: 6–4–0 (Home: 3–2–0 ; Road: 3–2–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 1 October 10 NY Islanders 5–3 Carolina Halak 18,680 1–0–0 2 Recap 2 October 11 Carolina 3–4 NY Islanders Johnson 16,170 2–0–0 4 Recap 3 October 14 NY Islanders 6–3 NY Rangers Halak 18,006 3–0–0 6 Recap 4 October 16 San Jose 3–4 NY Islanders SO Halak 11,248 4–0–0 8 Recap 5 October 18 NY Islanders 1–3 Pittsburgh Halak 18,655 4–1–0 8 Recap 6 October 21 Toronto 5–2 NY Islanders Halak 11,408 4–2–0 8 Recap 7 October 23 NY Islanders 3–2 Boston Johnson 17,565 5–2–0 10 Recap 8 October 25 Dallas 5–7 NY Islanders Johnson 15,208 6–2–0 12 Recap 9 October 28 Winnipeg 4–3 NY Islanders Halak 11,508 6–3–0 12 Recap 10 October 30 NY Islanders 0–5 Colorado Johnson 12,892 6–4–0 12 Recap
November: 11–3–0 (Home: 6–0–0 ; Road: 5–3–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 11 November 1 NY Islanders 1–3 San Jose Halak 17,562 6–5–0 12 Recap 12 November 5 NY Islanders 3–2 Anaheim OT Halak 16,448 7–5–0 14 Recap 13 November 6 NY Islanders 2–1 Los Angeles SO Johnson 18,230 8–5–0 16 Recap 14 November 8 NY Islanders 1–0 Arizona Halak 14,689 9–5–0 18 Recap 15 November 11 Colorado 0–6 NY Islanders Halak 12,888 10–5–0 20 Recap 16 November 14 NY Islanders 4–3 Florida SO Halak 10,010 11–5–0 22 Recap 17 November 15 NY Islanders 2–5 Tampa Bay Johnson 19,204 11–6–0 22 Recap 18 November 18 Tampa Bay 2–5 NY Islanders Halak 12,908 12–6–0 24 Recap 19 November 21 NY Islanders 5–4 Pittsburgh SO Johnson 18,653 13–6–0 26 Recap 20 November 22 Pittsburgh 1–4 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 14–6–0 28 Recap 21 November 24 Philadelphia 0–1 NY Islanders SO Halak 12,409 15–6–0 30 Recap 22 November 26 Washington 2–3 NY Islanders OT Halak 16,170 16–6–0 32 Recap 23 November 28 NY Islanders 2–5 Washington Johnson 18,506 16–7–0 32 Recap 24 November 29 New Jersey 1–3 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 17–7–0 34 Recap
December: 8–4–1 (Home: 5–2–0 ; Road: 3–2–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 25 December 2 Ottawa 2–3 NY Islanders OT Halak 13,888 18–7–0 36 Recap 26 December 4 NY Islanders 2–1 Ottawa Halak 20,511 19–7–0 38 Recap 27 December 6 St. Louis 6–4 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 19–8–0 38 Recap 28 December 9 NY Islanders 4–5 Minnesota Johnson 18,904 19–9–0 38 Recap 29 December 11 NY Islanders 3–6 St. Louis Halak 18,028 19–10–0 38 Recap 30 December 13 Chicago 2–3 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 20–10–0 40 Recap 31 December 15 New Jersey 2–3 NY Islanders SO Halak 13,408 21–10–0 42 Recap 32 December 19 NY Islanders 2–1 Detroit Halak 20,027 22–10–0 44 Recap 33 December 20 Tampa Bay 1–3 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 23–10–0 46 Recap 34 December 23 Montreal 3–1 NY Islanders Johnson 16,170 23–11–0 46 Recap 35 December 27 NY Islanders 3–4 Buffalo SO Poulin 19,070 23–11–1 47 Recap 36 December 29 Washington 3–4 NY Islanders OT Halak 16,170 24–11–1 49 Recap 37 December 31 NY Islanders 5–2 Winnipeg Halak 15,016 25–11–1 51 Recap
January: 7–5–0 (Home: 3–1–0 ; Road: 4–4–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 38 January 2 NY Islanders 2–1 Calgary Halak 19,289 26–11–1 53 Recap 39 January 4 NY Islanders 2–5 Edmonton Halak 16,839 26–12–1 53 Recap 40 January 6 NY Islanders 2–3 Vancouver Halak 18,562 26–13–1 53 Recap 41 January 9 NY Islanders 3–2 New Jersey OT Halak 16,592 27–13–1 55 Recap 42 January 10 NY Islanders 5–2 Columbus Johnson 16,589 28–13–1 57 Recap 43 January 13 NY Islanders 3–0 NY Rangers Halak 18,006 29–13–1 59 Recap 44 January 16 Pittsburgh 3–6 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 30–13–1 61 Recap 45 January 17 NY Islanders 4–6 Montreal Halak 21,287 30–14–1 61 Recap 46 January 19 Philadelphia 4–7 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 31–14–1 63 Recap 47 January 27 NY Rangers 1–4 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 32–14–1 65 Recap 48 January 29 Boston 5–2 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 32–15–1 65 Recap 49 January 31 NY Islanders 1–4 Detroit Johnson 20,027 32–16–1 65 Recap
February: 9–5–1 (Home: 6–4–0 ; Road: 3–1–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 50 February 3 Florida 4–2 NY Islanders Halak 14,704 32–17–1 65 Recap 51 February 5 NY Islanders 3–2 Philadelphia SO Halak 19,042 33–17–1 67 Recap 52 February 7 NY Islanders 1–2 Boston Johnson 17,565 33–18–1 67 Recap 53 February 8 NY Islanders 3–2 Buffalo Halak 18,900 34–18–1 69 Recap 54 February 10 Edmonton 2–3 NY Islanders Halak 15,608 35–18–1 71 Recap 55 February 12 Toronto 2–3 NY Islanders Halak 15,388 36–18–1 73 Recap 56 February 14 Columbus 3–6 NY Islanders Halak 15,678 37–18–1 75 Recap 57 February 16 NY Rangers 6–5 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 37–19–1 75 Recap 58 February 17 NY Islanders 4–1 Carolina Johnson 12,665 38–19–1 77 Recap 59 February 19 Nashville 2–5 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 39–19–1 79 Recap 60 February 21 NY Islanders 2–3 Washington SO Johnson 18,506 39–19–2 80 Recap 61 February 22 Vancouver 4–0 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 39–20–2 80 Recap 62 February 24 Arizona 1–5 NY Islanders Johnson 15,888 40–20–2 82 Recap 63 February 27 Calgary 1–2 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 41–20–2 84 Recap 64 February 28 Carolina 5–3 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 41–21–2 84 Recap
March: 4–6–3 (Home: 1–5–1 ; Road: 3–1–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 65 March 3 NY Islanders 2–3 Dallas OT Halak 17,453 41–21–3 85 Recap 66 March 5 NY Islanders 4–3 Nashville Halak 17,113 42–21–3 87 Recap 67 March 7 NY Islanders 3–4 Florida SO Neuvirth 14,474 42–21–4 88 Recap 68 March 9 NY Islanders 4–3 Toronto OT Neuvirth 18,984 43–21–4 90 Recap 69 March 10 NY Rangers 2–1 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 43–22–4 90 Recap 70 March 13 Ottawa 2–1 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 43–23–4 90 Recap 71 March 14 Montreal 3–1 NY Islanders Neuvirth 16,170 43–24–4 90 Recap 72 March 17 NY Islanders 1–4 Chicago Neuvirth 22,080 43–25–4 90 Recap 73 March 21 NY Islanders 3–0 New Jersey Halak 16,592 44–25–4 92 Recap 74 March 24 Minnesota 2–1 NY Islanders SO Halak 16,170 44–25–5 93 Recap 75 March 26 Los Angeles 3–2 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 44–26–5 93 Recap 76 March 28 Anaheim 3–2 NY Islanders Neuvirth 16,170 44–27–5 93 Recap 77 March 29 Detroit 4–5 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 45–27–5 95 Recap
April: 2–1–2 (Home: 1–0–1 ; Road: 1–1–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 78 April 2 NY Islanders 3–4 Columbus SO Halak 15,361 45–27–6 96 Recap 79 April 4 Buffalo 0–3 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 46–27–6 98 Recap 80 April 7 NY Islanders 4–5 Philadelphia Halak 17,927 46–28–6 98 Recap 81 April 10 NY Islanders 3–1 Pittsburgh Halak 18,673 47–28–6 100 Recap 82 April 11 Columbus 5–4 NY Islanders SO Halak 16,170 47–28–7 101 Recap
Legend:       Win (2 points)       Loss (0 points)       Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Playoffs

2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs

Eastern Conference First Round vs. (M2) Washington Capitals: Washington wins 4–3 # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 April 15 NY Islanders 4–1 Washington Halak 18,506 Islanders lead 1–0 Recap 2 April 17 NY Islanders 3–4 Washington Halak 18,506 Series tied 1–1 Recap 3 April 19 Washington 1–2 NY Islanders OT Halak 16,170 Islanders lead 2–1 Recap 4 April 21 Washington 2–1 NY Islanders OT Halak 16,170 Series tied 2–2 Recap 5 April 23 NY Islanders 1–5 Washington Halak 18,506 Capitals lead 3–2 Recap 6 April 25 Washington 1–3 NY Islanders Halak 16,170 Series tied 3–3 Recap 7 April 27 NY Islanders 1–2 Washington Halak 18,506 Capitals win 3–4 Recap Legend:       Win       Loss

Player statistics

Islanders Captain John Tavares lead the team in goals, assists, and points.

Forward Matt Martin lead the team in penalty in minutes.

Goaltender Jaroslav Halak serves as the team's starting goaltender.

Final stats

Skaters

	Regular Season						Playoffs
Player	GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM
Tavares, JohnJohn Tavares	82	38	48	86	5	46	7	2	4	6	2	2
Okposo, KyleKyle Okposo	60	18	33	51	−8	12	7	2	1	3	1	2
Strome, RyanRyan Strome	81	17	33	50	23	47	7	2	2	4	1	2
Nielsen, FransFrans Nielsen	78	14	29	43	8	12	7	1	1	2	−1	0
Nelson, BrockBrock Nelson	82	20	22	42	6	24	6	2	0	2	1	2
Bailey, JoshJosh Bailey	70	15	26	41	3	12	7	2	3	5	1	0
Lee, AndersAnders Lee	76	25	16	41	9	33	5	0	1	1	−2	7
Leddy, NickNick Leddy	78	10	27	37	18	14	7	0	5	5	0	0
Boychuk, JohnnyJohnny Boychuk	72	9	26	35	15	14	7	0	2	2	−1	2
Hamonic, TravisTravis Hamonic	71	5	28	33	15	85	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kulemin, NikolayNikolay Kulemin	82	15	16	31	7	21	7	1	1	2	0	2
Hickey, ThomasThomas Hickey	81	2	20	22	−12	26	7	0	1	1	5	2
Visnovsky, LubomirLubomir Visnovsky	53	5	15	20	−3	8	4	0	2	2	5	0
Grabovski, MikhailMikhail Grabovski	51	9	10	19	3	8	3	0	0	0	−1	0
Cizikas, CaseyCasey Cizikas	70	9	9	18	−2	24	7	1	0	1	1	0
Clutterbuck, CalCal Clutterbuck	76	7	9	16	1	60	7	2	1	3	1	26
Martin, MattMatt Martin	78	8	6	14	−4	114	7	0	1	1	1	12
Grabner, MichaelMichael Grabner	34	8	5	13	4	4	2	0	1	1	1	2
de Haan, CalvinCalvin de Haan	65	1	11	12	3	24	5	0	1	1	−2	2
McDonald, ColinColin McDonald	18	2	6	8	−3	0	2	0	0	0	1	2
Strait, BrianBrian Strait	52	2	5	7	−1	32	7	0	0	0	−3	4
Kennedy, TylerTyler Kennedy † || 13 || 2 || 3 || 5 || −3 || 2 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 0 || −3 || 2
Donovan, MattMatt Donovan	12	0	3	3	4	0	2	0	0	0	0	10
Conacher, CoryCory Conacher ‡ || 15 || 1 || 2 || 3 || −3 || 14 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0
Boulton, EricEric Boulton	10	2	0	2	−1	30	0	0	0	0	0	0
Mouillierat, KaelKael Mouillierat	6	1	1	2	−3	8	0	0	0	0	0	0
Reinhart, GriffinGriffin Reinhart	8	0	1	1	1	6	1	0	0	0	−2	0
Zolnierczyk, HarryHarry Zolnierczyk	2	0	0	0	−1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Mayfield, ScottScott Mayfield	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	−1	0

Goaltenders

Regular Season

Player	GP	GS	TOI	W	L	OT	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Halak, JaroslavJaroslav Halak	59	59	3550	38	17	4	144	2.43	1673	0.914	6	0	1	2
Johnson, ChadChad Johnson ‡ || 19 || 17 || 1053 || 8 || 8 || 1 || 54 || 3.08 || 488 || 0.889 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0
Neuvirth, MichalMichal Neuvirth † || 5 || 5 || 306 || 1 || 3 || 1 || 15 || 2.94 || 126 || 0.881 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0
Poulin, KevinKevin Poulin	1	1	65	0	0	1	3	2.77	26	0.885	0	0	0	0

Playoffs

Player	GP	GS	TOI	W	L	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Halak, JaroslavJaroslav Halak	7	7	418	3	4	16	2.30	215	0.926	0	0	0	2
Neuvirth, MichalMichal Neuvirth	1	0	11	0	0	0	0.00	6	1.000	0	0	0	0

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Islanders. Stats reflect time with the Islanders only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Islanders only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.

Notable achievements

Awards Regular Season Player Award Awarded Nielsen, FransFrans Nielsen NHL Third Star of the Week October 27, 2014 Halak, JaroslavJaroslav Halak NHL First Star of the Week December 1, 2014 NHL All-Star game replacement selection January 15, 2015 Tavares, JohnJohn Tavares NHL All-Star game selection January 10, 2015 NHL Second Star of the Month (January 2015) February 2, 2015 Okposo, KyleKyle Okposo NHL Third Star of the Week January 19, 2015 Lee, AndersAnders Lee NHL Rookie of the Month (February 2015) March 1, 2015

Milestones Regular Season Player Milestone Reached Reinhart, GriffinGriffin Reinhart 1st Career NHL Game October 10, 2014 1st Career NHL Assist December 9, 2014 1st Career NHL Point December 9, 2014 Okposo, KyleKyle Okposo 100th Career NHL Goal October 14, 2014 400th Career NHL Game October 30, 2014 300th Career NHL Point March 24, 2015 Kulemin, NikolayNikolay Kulemin 200th Career NHL Point October 25, 2014 Leddy, NickNick Leddy 100th Career NHL Point November 11, 2014 300th Career NHL Game January 13, 2015 Halak, JaroslavJaroslav Halak 150th Career NHL Win November 11, 2014 300th Career NHL Game January 4, 2015 32nd win (tied franchise record) February 19, 2015 33rd win (new franchise record) February 27, 2015 Martin, MattMatt Martin 300th Career NHL Game November 22, 2014 Nelson, BrockBrock Nelson 100th Career NHL Game December 9, 2014 Strait, BrianBrian Strait 100th Career NHL Game January 13, 2015 Tavares, JohnJohn Tavares 200th Career NHL Assist January 16, 2015 400th Career NHL Game February 3, 2015 Boychuk, JohnnyJohnny Boychuk 100th Career NHL Point January 29, 2015 Bailey, JoshJosh Bailey 200th Career NHL Point February 3, 2015 Grabner, MichaelMichael Grabner 300th Career NHL Game February 5, 2015 de Haan, CalvinCalvin de Haan 100th Career NHL Game February 7, 2015 Nielsen, FransFrans Nielsen 500th Career NHL Game February 8, 2015 Hamonic, TravisTravis Hamonic 300th Career NHL Game February 17, 2015 100th Career NHL Point February 21, 2015 Mouillierat, KaelKael Mouillierat 1st Career NHL Game February 21, 2015 Mouillierat, KaelKael Mouillierat 1st Career NHL Assist February 24, 2015 1st Career NHL Point February 24, 2015 1st Career NHL Goal February 24, 2015

Roster

Roster as of final playoff game

#	Nat	Player	Pos	S/G	Age	Acquired	Birthplace
12	Canada	Bailey, JoshJosh Bailey	4.0 C	L	34	2008	Bowmanville, Ontario
36	Canada	Boulton, EricEric Boulton	6.0 LW	L	47	2012	Halifax, Nova Scotia
55	Canada	Boychuk, JohnnyJohnny Boychuk	2.0 D	R	40	2014	Edmonton, Alberta
7	Canada	Carkner, MattMatt Carkner	2.0 D	R	43	2012	Winchester, Ontario
53	Canada	Cizikas, CaseyCasey Cizikas	4.0 C	L	33	2009	Toronto, Ontario
15	Canada	Clutterbuck, CalCal Clutterbuck  (A)	7.0 RW	R	36	2013	Welland, Ontario
44	Canada	de Haan, CalvinCalvin de Haan	2.0 D	L	32	2009	Carp, Ontario
46	United States	Donovan, MattMatt Donovan	2.0 D	L	33	2008	Edmond, Oklahoma
40	Austria	Grabner, MichaelMichael Grabner	7.0 RW	L	36	2010	Villach, Austria
84	Belarus	Grabovski, MikhailMikhail Grabovski	4.0 C	L	40	2014	Potsdam, East Germany
41	Slovakia	Halak, JaroslavJaroslav Halak	1.0 G	L	38	2014	Bratislava, Czechoslovakia
3	Canada	Hamonic, TravisTravis Hamonic	2.0 D	R	33	2008	Winnipeg, Manitoba
14	Canada	Hickey, ThomasThomas Hickey	2.0 D	L	35	2013	Calgary, Alberta
26	Canada	Kennedy, TylerTyler Kennedy	4.0 C	R	37	2015	Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
86	Russia	Kulemin, NikolaiNikolai Kulemin	6.0 LW	L	37	2014	Magnitogorsk, Soviet Union
2	United States	Leddy, NickNick Leddy	2.0 D	L	33	2014	Eden Prairie, Minnesota
27	United States	Lee, AndersAnders Lee	4.0 C	L	33	2009	Edina, Minnesota
17	Canada	Martin, MattMatt Martin	6.0 LW	L	34	2008	Windsor, Ontario
42	United States	Mayfield, ScottScott Mayfield	2.0 D	R	33	2011	St. Louis, Missouri
13	United States	McDonald, ColinColin McDonald	7.0 RW	R	39	2012	New Haven, Connecticut
48	Canada	Mouillierat, KaelKael Mouillierat	4.0 C	L	36	2015	Edmonton, Alberta
29	United States	Nelson, BrockBrock Nelson	4.0 C	L	32	2010	Warroad, Minnesota
30	Czech Republic	Neuvirth, MichalMichal Neuvirth	1.0 G	L	36	2015	Ústí nad Labem, Czechoslovakia
51	Denmark	Nielsen, FransFrans Nielsen  (A)	4.0 C	L	39	2002	Herning, Denmark
21	United States	Okposo, KyleKyle Okposo  (A)	7.0 RW	R	36	2006	St. Paul, Minnesota
60	Canada	Poulin, KevinKevin Poulin	1.0 G	R	34	2008	Montreal, Quebec
6	Canada	Pulock, RyanRyan Pulock	2.0 D	R	29	2013	Grandview, Manitoba
8	Canada	Reinhart, GriffinGriffin Reinhart	2.0 D	L	30	2012	North Vancouver, British Columbia
37	United States	Strait, BrianBrian Strait	2.0 D	L	36	2013	Waltham, Massachusetts
18	Canada	Strome, RyanRyan Strome	4.0 C	R	30	2011	Mississauga, Ontario
28	Sweden	Sundstrom, JohanJohan Sundstrom	4.0 C	R	31	2011	Gothenburg, Sweden
91	Canada	Tavares, JohnJohn Tavares  (C)	4.0 C	L	33	2009	Mississauga, Ontario
11	Slovakia	Visnovsky, LubomirLubomir Visnovsky	2.0 D	L	47	2012	Topoľčany, Czechoslovakia

Injuries

Michael Grabner missed 38 games due to injury over the course of three times on injured reserve.

Kyle Okposo was put on the injured reserve list after a surgery to re-attach a retina, missing 22 games.

Updated as of February 15, 2014

New York Islanders 2014–15 player injuries

Player	Injury	Placed on IR	Removed from IR	Games missed
Matt Carkner	Back	September 22, 2014	February 15, 2015	56
Calvin de Haan	Lower body	September 23, 2014	October 16, 2014	3
Michael Grabner	Lower body	September 26, 2014	December 3, 2014	24
	Lower body	December 17, 2014	January 6, 2015	8
	Undisclosed	February 7, 2015	February 17, 2015	6
Lubomir Visnovsky	Back	September 29, 2014	October 23, 2014	6
	Undisclosed	December 3, 2014	December 9, 2014	2
	Upper body	January 4, 2014	January 31, 2014	10
Mikhail Grabovski	Concussion	October 16, 2014	October 25, 2014	4
	Upper body	February 20, 2015	April 23, 2015	26
Josh Bailey	Hand	October 25, 2014	November 13, 2014	8
Eric Boulton	Lower body	November 13, 2014	December 11, 2014	12
	Lower body	January 17, 2015	March 5, 2015	19
Travis Hamonic	Upper body	December 2, 2014	December 19, 2014	7
Johnny Boychuk	Undisclosed	December 3, 2014	December 19, 2014	6
Casey Cizikas	Upper body	December 6, 2014	December 15, 2015	3
	Lower body	February 16, 2015	March 5, 2015	8
Jaroslav Halak	Lower body	December 20, 2014	December 28, 2014	3
Kyle Okposo	Detached retina	January 19, 2015	March 10, 2015	22

Suspensions and fines

Two players received fines during the season, while only Matt Martin received a suspension. Anders Lee was given a $2,286.29 fine on December 9, 2014, for elbowing St. Louis Blues defenseman Carl Gunnarsson; the incident occurred during NHL Game No. 397 in New York on December 6, 2014, at 7:15 of the second period. Cal Clutterbuck received a fine on January 28, 2015, for $2,000 due to diving/embellishment, which occurred during NHL Game No. 676 in New York on January 19, 2015, at 19:04 of the second period. Martin received a one-game suspension with a $5,376.34 forfeit on March 5, 2015, for kneeing Dallas Stars defenseman Trevor Daley in NHL Game No. 948 the day prior; he was ejected from the game and received fifteen total penalty minutes.

Transactions

The Islanders acquired Johnny Boychuk from the Boston Bruins in a trade on October 4, 2014.

Nick Leddy was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks in an October 4, 2014 trade.

Following the end of the Islanders' 2013–14 season, and during the 2014–15 season, this team has been involved in the following transactions:

Trades

Date	Details
June 27, 2014	To Tampa Bay Lightning 2nd-round pick in 2014 MTL's 2nd-round pick in 2014	To New York Islanders NYR's 1st-round pick in 2014
June 28, 2014	To Florida Panthers 3rd-round pick in 2014	To New York Islanders 3rd-round pick in 2015
June 28, 2014	To Tampa Bay Lightning 7th-round pick in 2014	To New York Islanders 7th-round pick in 2014 7th-round pick in 2015
October 4, 2014	To Boston Bruins PHI's 2nd-round pick in 2015 (Brandon Carlo) 2nd-round pick in 2016 conditional 3rd-round pick in 2015	To New York Islanders Johnny Boychuk
October 4, 2014	To Chicago Blackhawks T. J. Brennan Anders Nilsson Ville Pokka	To New York Islanders Nick Leddy Kent Simpson
November 25, 2014	To Vancouver Canucks Andrey Pedan	To New York Islanders Alexandre Mallet 3rd-round pick in 2016
March 2, 2015	To San Jose Sharks Conditional 7th-round pick in 2015	To New York Islanders Tyler Kennedy
March 2, 2015	To Buffalo Sabres Chad Johnson 3rd-round pick in 2016	To New York Islanders Michal Neuvirth
March 2, 2015	To Vancouver Canucks Cory Conacher	To New York Islanders Dustin Jeffrey
March 2, 2015	To Arizona Coyotes David Leggio	To New York Islanders Mark Louis

Free agency

Free agents acquired

Date	Player	Former team	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)
July 1, 2014	Chad Johnson	Boston Bruins	2 years, $2.6 million
July 1, 2014	T. J. Brennan	Toronto Marlies	1 year, $600,000
July 1, 2014	Kael Mouillierat	St. John's IceCaps	1 year, $675,000
July 1, 2014	Cory Conacher	Buffalo Sabres	1 year, $600,000
July 1, 2014	David Leggio	Hershey Bears	1 year, $700,000
July 1, 2014	Jack Skille	Columbus Blue Jackets	1 year, $750,000
July 1, 2014	Harry Zolnierczyk	Pittsburgh Penguins	1 year, $650,000
July 1, 2014	Mikhail Grabovski	Washington Capitals	4 years, $20 million
July 1, 2014	Nikolay Kulemin	Toronto Maple Leafs	4 years, $16.75 million
March 31, 2015	Ross Johnston	Charlottetown Islanders	3 years, entry-level contract

The Islanders lost two players to free agency on July 1, 2014 – goaltenders Anders Nilsson and Evgeni Nabokov. Nilsson signed a one-year contract with the Ak Bars Kazan of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), while Nabokov signed a one-year, $1.55 million contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The team acquired nine free agents, all on July 1, 2014. Of the nine signed, five players played at least one regular season game with the team – Chad Johnson, Cory Conacher, Harry Zolnierczyk, Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolay Kulemin, though Conacher and Zolnierczyk have spent the majority of the season with the Islanders' AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

Waivers transactions

One player was picked up off waivers during the season – Jack Skille was claimed by the Columbus Blue Jackets on October 5, 2014. Seven other players were put on waivers by the Islanders during the season and sent to the Sound Tigers once cleared: David Leggio, Kevin Poulin, Harry Zolnierczyk, Aaron Ness, Colin McDonald, Cory Conacher and Matt Carkner. Poulin, Zolnierczyk, and McDonald were all recalled to the Islanders at least once during the regular season.

Player signings

Date	Player	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)
July 15, 2014	Casey Cizikas	2 years, $2 million
July 15, 2014	Calvin de Haan	3 years, $5.9 million
July 24, 2014	Kevin Poulin	1 year, $650,000
September 29, 2014	Michael Dal Colle	3 years, $9.375 million entry-level contract
October 4, 2014	Joshua Ho-Sang	3 years, $3.4125 million entry-level contract
February 24, 2015	Nick Leddy	7 years, $38.5 million contract extension
March 12, 2015	Johnny Boychuk	7 years, $42 million contract extension
April 2, 2015	Stephon Williams	2 years, entry-level contract
April 8, 2015	Kyle Burroughs	3 years, entry-level contract

Draft picks

Michael Dal Colle was the Islanders' first selection at the draft, taken fifth overall in round 1

The 2014 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 27–28, 2014 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Islanders finished 26th overall in the league standings during the 2013–14 season, to secure the fifth overall pick.

The team's two second-round picks went to the Tampa Bay Lightning as a result of a trade on June 27, 2014 that sent a 2014 first-round pick to the Islanders. Their third-round pick went to the Florida Panthers as a result of a trade on that sent a 2015 third-round pick to the Islanders. The Islanders' fifth-round pick and Thomas Vanek were traded to the Montreal Canadiens on March 5, 2014 in exchange for Sebastian Collberg and a conditional second-round pick in 2014; the condition was based on the Candiens qualifying for the 2014 playoffs. The team's seventh-round pick went to the Lightning as a result of a trade that sent the Lightning's seventh round picks in 2014 and 2015 to the Islanders.

Round	#	Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1	5	Michael Dal Colle	LW	Canada	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
1	28	Joshua Ho-Sang	C/RW	Canada	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
3	78	Ilya Sorokin	G	Russia	Metallurg Novokuznetsk (KHL)
4	95	Linus Soderstrom	G	Sweden	Djurgardens IF (Sweden-Jr)
4	108	Devon Toews	D	Canada	Quinnipiac Bobcats (ECAC Hockey)
6	155	Kyle Schempp	C	United States	Ferris State University (WCHA)
7	200	Lukas Sutter	C	United States	Red Deer Rebels (WHL)

External links

• 2014–15 New York Islanders Media Guide