Something started to click for Mathew Barzal on Saturday night.
If he wants to have the puck on his stick as much as he’s used to, he’s going to need to make that happen.
It won’t simply come to him.
That lesson is a by-product of him playing on the wing full-time for the first time, having done so last season for just seven regular-season and six postseason games with an injury in between.
The goal and assist he put up in Saturday’s loss to the Hurricanes was not-so-coincidentally Barzal’s best game in a largely anonymous season so far, and results from an attitude he must keep intact.
“Sometimes when you’re on the wing, you can kinda get caught in shifts where maybe the puck doesn’t come to your side of the ice a little bit,” Barzal said before going scoreless in the Islanders’ 4-2 loss to Minnesota on Tuesday. “I thought last game I did a better job of just demanding it. And just need to continue to do that. That was really it.”
Tuesday’s game ended up being a different form of case study, since Barzal was moved back to center with Bo Horvat out injured.
But again, he spent more time with the puck on his stick than has become the norm and played 24:43, a high among forwards.
Acquiring Horvat forced Barzal away from his natural position, and it is worth remembering that he is still learning the wing.
But the goal here is to get the most out of the Islanders’ two stars, not get a watered-down Barzal.
Four assists and one goal at even strength in 11 games would be the latter.
But Barzal said he believes he’s starting to find his stride.
“I think it’s just about finding my spots,” Barzal said. “Finding when I can kinda vacate a little bit, swing a little lower or get the puck low and bring it back, hold onto it a little longer, that kinda thing.”
“People might think it’s an easy transition from center to wing because maybe they think the centerman does more. I think it’s quite the opposite, really. It’s been a little more — I wouldn’t say challenging, but it’s just different. You have the puck in different areas of the ice, different situations. I’m still getting used to it a little bit. I thought [against Carolina], I found kinda what I need to do to be a successful winger.”
Horvat was described as day-to-day and is dealing with a presumed left ankle issue after blocking Brady Skjei’s shot late in Saturday’s game.
Adam Pelech was back in the lineup after missing Saturday’s game with a lower-body injury.
Scott Mayfield also played after missing Monday’s practice for maintenance, giving the Islanders a healthy top-six on defense for the first time since opening night.