Silverman: Smooth-Sailing Islanders Will Face Challenges In Second Half

By Steve Silverman
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With their 4-1 victory over the Rangers on Tuesday night, the Islanders are flying high.

They lead the Eastern Conference with 65 points and the defensive studs that general manager Garth Snow acquired just before the start of the season have more than lived up to expectations.

Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy were brought in to solidify a defense that had been, well, shaky in recent seasons. No team in the East transitions from defense to offense faster than the Islanders, and when John Tavares, Frans Nielsen or Brock Nelson lead the team on the rush, it's a good bet that the Islanders are going to produce an excellent scoring opportunity.

But it's no longer about being a feel-good story or rising above expectations. What the Islanders have done so far is set the bar very high. The East is filled with a lot of good teams, but they don't appear to be facing the same caliber of competition that teams in the Western Conference face every night. The Chicago Blackhawks, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators and St. Louis Blues are capable of painting masterpieces any time they step out on the ice, and Eastern Conference teams are not in that class.

The Eastern Conference teams all have some kind of discernible weakness, and that means the Islanders have a legitimate chance to finish the regular season as the top seed in the playoffs. But there are a lot of issues, and it's not going to be as easy as it was Tuesday night at Nassau Coliseum when they carved up the rival Rangers with ease.

Start with the absence of Kyle Okposo. The right winger was having another strong season skating with Tavares, and he looked like an All-Star a couple of weeks ago when he blitzed the Pittsburgh Penguins for four goals.

Okposo is a solid power forward who can go to the front of the net and hold his position. He may not bounce bodies like Boston's Milan Lucic, but when you try to move him from the dirty area, you are going to lose most of the time.

But Okposo is going to be out for about two months with an upper-body injury, and it's not going to be easy for the Islanders to survive without him. They are not the most physical team in the league, and the loss of Okposo and his 14 goals and 30 assists is going to hurt quite a bit. His attitude and overall enthusiasm has made the Islanders' locker room a very positive place, and he will be missed.

With the Islanders getting ready to host the Bruins and travel to Detroit in their next two games, head coach Jack Capuano has to be a bit concerned. In addition to the Okposo injury, there are several issues that could send the Islanders into a mini-tailspin in the coming weeks. A quick look at the numbers reveals the Islanders can certainly put the puck in the net. They are averaging 3.17 goals per game, just behind the Tampa Bay Lightning (3.18).

However, the Islanders are not the best 5-on-5 team, especially considering their first-place status in the Eastern Conference. The Islanders are scoring 1.16 goals for every goal they allow in even-strength situations, a figure that has them tied for eighth with Detroit and Pittsburgh. It's a decent showing, but it is not dominant.

The power play has been huge for the Islanders this season, but it's because they have been getting more chances (170, fourth in the league) than most of their opponents all season. Tavares has scored nine power play goals, and the Islanders are 12th in the league on the power play, connecting on 19.4 percent. Overall, they have scored 33 power play goals, which is tied for sixth in the league.

The big weakness for this team is the penalty kill. The Islanders are killing just 74.2 percent of their opponents' man-advantage opportunities, ranking 29th in the league. The only team they are better than in that category is the Buffalo Sabres, who are a head-up in the Connor McDavid-Jack Eichel competition for the first pick in the draft next summer.

This is an alarming problem that could cause huge problems for the Islanders down the stretch.

This is one of the key issues facing Capuano, who has a huge job in front of him. His Islanders have thrown down the challenge to the rest of the Eastern Conference and have made a claim to be the best team.

That means they will no longer surprise anyone. They have become the hunted, and there are a couple of vulnerable spots that the pack chasing them are going to attack.

Capuano must find a way to keep this team on track, and it is going to be a difficult challenge.

Follow Steve on Twitter at @ProFootballBoy