EAST MEADOW, NY — New York Islanders winger Anthony Duclair is putting the end of his pre-Olympic break firmly in the rearview mirror in hopes of getting back into the good graces of head coach Patrick Roy and into the lineup.
“That’s what the break is for, right?” Duclair said on Wednesday. “It’s kind of reset, recharge, so that’s what I did. I reset my mind, mentally, physically, put everything behind me, what happened in the first half, and now I’m just focused on a strong second half and hopefully make it a long run in the playoffs.”
The veteran forward, now in his second season with the Islanders, was benched twice mid-game in just over a week’s span before being a healthy scratch for the first-half finale in New Jersey against the Devils.
Both benchings were prompted by an inability to back-check — the first time resulting in the benching of his entire line of Mathew Barzal and captain Anders Lee for the third period during a 5-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Jan. 24. He was then seated for the final two periods of a 5-4 overtime win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Feb. 3.
So continues Duclair’s turbulent time in New York, which has seen significant inconsistencies with finding the back of the net. After posting just four goals in his first 39 games, he potted eight in eight, including a three-goal, five-point night on Jan. 6 against the Devils at UBS Arena.
Over his last eight games, he has one goal with three assists, but is a minus-6 rating.
“I don’t think I changed much of my game, to be honest,” Duclair said. “But obviously, there are things I need to improve on, just consistency, I guess. Just make sure that every shift I’m battling out there. But confidence-wise, nothing has changed. I’m super confident in my ability to get back to my scoring ways. I think I want to use this time in the next week or so in practice to get my legs under me. Whenever I come back, come back strong.”
Islanders head coach Patrick Roy said before the break that he had no concerns about Duclair and was confident that he would bounce back. Nice sentiments, yes, but a player brought in to be a top-six winger has to produce and play like one, especially in the midst of a playoff push. That is something that Duclair ultimately realizes.
“All the uncontrollables, I’m not going to be worried,” he continued. “I’m just going to come to practice, have a positive attitude every single day, and continue what I’m doing.”
Upon the start of the NHL’s unofficial second half on Feb. 26, there will not be much wiggle room for Duclair’s game to bobble. The Islanders hold the No. 3 spot in the Metropolitan Division, which is the final automatic bid into the postseason. While they are one point behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for second, the Columbus Blue Jackets are four points back with two games in hand.
If Roy’s men drop out of third place, they sit outside the playoff picture with the Buffalo Sabres and Detroit Red Wings of the Atlantic Division currently possessing the two Wild Card spots.
“This is the time of the season to not really have any emotion or play into things,” Barzal said. “[Duclair] will be back in the lineup at some point. He’ll score a big goal for us down the stretch, or he’ll have some big plays, so I’m not worried about it.”
