Casey Cizikas could sense it. The fourth line was close to breaking through. When the Islanders center spoke with head coach Patrick Roy before the game, he said, “It’s coming. We feel it.”
And in their 5-2 victory over the Panthers on Saturday, when the Islanders erupted for five goals in the second period to mark their best offensive frame of the season, Cizikas’ prediction came to fruition.
Marc Gatcomb started the scoring barrage with his second goal of the season. And to cap everything, Cizikas collected his ninth goal.
“It’s contagious,” Bo Horvat said of the fourth line. “I mean, you see how hard they work and the stuff they create just by hard work, and it doesn’t take talent to work hard — and they show that every single night that their work ethic and compete, it drives our group. It really does. It’s been fun to watch them.”
In his pregame news conference, Roy said that the fourth line deserved some goals. They deserved to get rewarded for how they’d been playing. Maybe they were just tense. Maybe they needed to loosen up around the net. But in a year defined by plenty of line shuffling, he expressed optimism in his current iteration of that group — with Cizikas centering Gatcomb and Kyle MacLean.
Gatcomb delivered his goal 5:28 into the second period, when he sped through center ice, veered down the right side and flipped a shot toward the net that snuck past Daniil Tarasov. It’s one that the Panthers backup goaltender likely wants back, Gatcomb said, but “that’s a huge momentum shifter.” And after three goals followed, Cizikas capped the frame with a goal after his second swing at a rebound turned into a goal.
That group has tried to do everything they can to contribute, Gatcomb said. Sometimes, and especially recently, it might not end up on the scoresheet. Cizikas had scored just once this month. MacLean hadn’t scored since Jan. 13. For Gatcomb, the goal drought started Dec. 9.
But Saturday, they collected five of the Islanders’ 18 high-danger scoring chances at 5-on-5, according to Natural Stat Trick, capturing just how important depth production can be during the push for a postseason spot.
“You’re happy for them, because they play so well and they play so hard,” Roy said. “The intensity from the start of their shift to the end of their shift is the same. … I mean, it’s a tough line to play against.”
Brayden Schenn’s three-point afternoon marked his first multipoint game since joining the Islanders ahead of the trade deadline. He scored during the second period and assisted on the goals from Simon Holmstrom and Emil Heineman. Schenn also blocked three shots, the second most on the Islanders behind just Ryan Pulock.
“That’s what he’s been doing since he’s been here,” Roy said. “This afternoon, I mean, he had the points, but I mean, I feel like he’s been playing like this since he’s been here.”
Matthew Schaefer, who moved into a tie with Stefan Persson (1977-78) for most points by an Islanders defenseman during his rookie season (56), was on the ice for four of their five goals during the scoring burst.