Roy's Wahlstrom Benching An Islanders Concern

ELMONT, NY — New York Islanders forward Oliver Wahlstrom was taken out of the rotation twice by head coach Patrick Roy in their 5-2 loss to the Calgary Flames on Saturday afternoon.

The 23-year-old didn’t play the final 7:35 of the second period. Despite taking two shifts early in the third, with the Islanders down 3-0 before Brock Nelson got New York on the board, Wahlstrom got taken out of the rotation yet again.

He only had one shift in the final 12:43 of the game, going out there in garbage time with 22 seconds to go.

After the game, Roy had this to say about Wahlstrom’s limited ice time.

“I was looking for a goal. [Wahlstrom] didn’t have his best game,” Roy said. And then the last, what four or five minutes, I tried to double shift Barzal with Pageau and Holmstrom and then after that, Casey [Cizikas] on the wing with them.

“I’m also resilient. And I’m also going to battle till the end and make sure that we give ourselves a chance to come back into the game, so if I feel like things are not rolling the way I think, I’ll try things and get the guys going. That’s also my job.”

Benching a potential goal scorer when goals are needed is rather concerning unless the Islanders and Roy don’t view him as a goal scorer.

That would be even more concerning.

Wahlstrom has yet to develop into the top-six goal scorer the organization envisioned when they drafted him 11th overall in 2018.

And that happens.

Forward Simon Holmstrom, who was taken 23rd overall in the 2019 NHL Draft, was expected to be an offensive player but instead has developed as a bottom-six shutdown forward who can contribute offensively.

Wahlstrom, however, has struggled to find an identity at the NHL level through five seasons, as he doesn’t have the offensive production to be a top-six forward nor the defensive mind or ability to be a bottom-six player.

So, if he’s not going to be in the lineup to provide offense and he isn’t strong defensively, are the Islanders doing a disservice having him in the lineup as they try to climb the standings with 30 games to go?

Under Barry Trotz, Wahlstrom struggled to grasp the 200-foot game aspect of his system.

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Under Lane Lambert, Wahlstrom showed some understanding of the system, but last December, the ACL tear stunted his growth. He’s been playing catch-up this season, but he never got the minutes to do so.

Under Roy, things appeared to be different after general manager Lou Lamoriello decided to waive Julien Gauthier on Feb. 2, citing that they wanted to give Wahlstrom a good look.

“We had to make a decision on one player because of the cap situation,” Lamoriello said. “And we’re going to give Wahlstrom a good look. Fasching is certainly a versatile player, so we made that decision.”

Roy wanted to see what Wahlstrom could do and seemed willing to really work with the young forward and get him going.

“I have time for him. I’m curious to see what his ceiling is, where he is,” Roy said.

Through four games under Roy, Wahlstrom has been taken out of the rotation three times (two games), not including the 4-3 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, where his late penalty in the third allowed John Tavares to tie the game before Pierre Engvall played hero before the third-period buzzer sounded.

Is four games under Roy enough of a “good look” for Lamoriello and his new coach to make a decision on Wahlstrom?

When Hudson Fasching (day-to-day, lower body) returns, does Wahlstrom come out?

Does Gauthier, who suffered an injury in Bridgeport on Friday night, get recalled when he’s ready to go?

What about recalling shutdown centerman Kyle MacLean, who can play the wing and just proved through his first NHL stint that he can be effective for Roy?

Or, with the blue line healthy — with the hope that Alexander Romanov is fine after missing one game — does Lamoriello go out and acquire a bottom-six forward before the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline on March 8?

Regardless, and we say this like a broken record, Wahlstrom is running out of time to prove his worth to the organization.

This is his third NHL head coach, and although Roy seemed to be taking a much different approach to Wahlstrom — a more beneficial one — the results have been the same: Not good enough.

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