Notes from the third day of training camp
© Madison Peyser/New York Islanders
When Head Coach Patrick Roy said that he’ll put in quality work with special teams early into New York Islanders Training Camp, he stuck to that plan on the third day.
“Obviously, it was a great day,” Bo Horvat said. “We need to work on our special teams, and to have a full practice dedicated to it this early in camp gets us feeling confident going into preseason and the rest of the year.”
Roy wanted to get an early jump on special teams practice, not only because it’s a major area for improvement, but also to leave enough time for changes. After an extensive session with players sharpening their skills shorthanded and on the man advantage, he was satisfied with the level of energy and enthusiasm he’s seen from the group.
“I was very impressed,” Roy said after practice. “Obviously our new coaches, Bob Boughner and Ray Bennett, they did a really nice job today with them. It’s nice to see how receptive the guys were and how excited they are. It’s nice to practice early on, and if there are adjustments to be made before the season, we’ll do it.”
Boughner and Bennett are coaching the penalty kill and power play, respectively. The players found the session to be a productive one. Tony DeAngelo, who joined the team in January and brought in a power play prowess, said he enjoyed Bennett’s tips on the man advantage.
“He gives a fresh perspective on things,” said DeAngelo, who served as a quarterback on the point. “It gives us a look they had in Colorado, the same kind of hands and they’ve had a lot of success that we could piggyback off the success they’ve had under [Bennett]. We know we have the talent to do it, we just have to execute.”
Bennett is a new face to most players, except for Jonathan Drouin. The new Isles winger collected 31 power play points over his last two seasons coached by Bennett. Drouin said Saturday’s practice had a sense of familiarity from the coach that oversaw Colorado’s power play, which ranked top 10 in the NHL in the past five seasons including their Stanley Cup victory in 2022.
“Obviously we had a very good play in Colorado,” Drouin said. “I think he wants to bring some of that stuff he did over there to the group we have, the base of it looks similar.”
See below for a full breakdown of the special teams group on Saturday:
Forwards:
7 – Max Tsyplakov
10 – Simon Holmstrom
11 – Anthony Duclair
13 – Mathew Barzal
14 – Bo Horvat
16 – Marc Gatcomb
21 – Kyle Palmieri
27 – Anders Lee
32 – Kyle MacLean
44 – JG Pageau
49 – Maxim Shabanov
51 – Emil Heineman
53 – Casey Cizikas
64 – Calum Ritchie
Defensemen:
3 – Adam Pelech
6 – Ryan Pulock
24 – Scott Mayfield
28 – Alexander Romanov
34 – Adam Boqvist
36 – Isaiah George
48 – Matthew Schaefer
77 – Tony DeAngelo
Goalies:
30 – Ilya Sorokin
33 – David Rittich
Snapshots from the third day of New York Islanders Training Camp. Photos by Madison Peyser/New York Islanders.
See below for the rest of the group in attendance on Day 3:
Forwards:
20 – Matthew Highmore
25 – Chris Terry
26 – Julien Gauthier
43 – Liam Foudy
45 – Alex Jefferies
52 – Daylan Kuefler
55 – Cameron Berg
56 – Max Dorrington
58 – Cam Thiesing
61 – Joey Larson
62 – Ross Mitton
67 – Gleb Veremyev
68 – Adam Beckman
71 – Matthew Maggio
78 – Tomas Poletin
81 – Hunter Drew
82 – Luca Romano
84 – Eetu Liukas
Defensemen:
4 – Cole McWard
37 – Kashawn Aitcheson
38 – Travis Mitchell
39 – Calle Odelius
41 – Marshall Warren
42 – Jesse Pulkkinen
74 – Ethan Bear
85 – Luke Rowe
89 – Cam McDonald
Goalies:
35 – Tristan Lennox
50 – Marcus Hogberg
70 – Henrik Tikkanen
79 – Burke Hood
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