CHICAGO — The Islanders have been led by star players all year, so it may not be all that surprising that as the development of their top players slows, so does the team's momentum.
The 4-2 loss in Winnipeg (the Islanders' fifth loss in six games) showed they are top-heavy themselves by comparison.
Other than Kyle Connor's late empty-net goal, the Jets didn't win this game because of their usual scorers.
They accomplished that with goals from Gabe Vilardi, Neal Pionk and Mason Appleton. Vilardi is the only player among those three to score double-digit goals this season.
Third-line center Dominic Toninato created a series of five-on-five scoring chances.
All 18 skaters were pulling the rope.
In contrast, the Islanders only have two frontmen who have scored more than five times at 5-on-5 this season, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Their usual top two line would be Anders Lee, Bo Horvat, and Matt Barzal. and Pierre Envall, Brock Nelson, and Kyle Palmieri.
With Casey Cizikas and Engvall out and Barzal moving back to center instead of Horvat's wing, the Islanders haven't been able to deploy those combinations as well as they would like.
Perhaps not coincidentally, Barzal went scoreless in three straight games for the first time all season.
Nelson hasn't scored a goal in his last four games. Horvat has only accomplished that once in six games.
To make matters worse, Adam Pelech is far from 100% back from injury and committed an unfortunate turnover at the net that led to Appleton's goal on Tuesday night.
If four former and current All-Stars – Barzal, Horvat, Nelson and Pelech – struggle at the same time, the Islanders won't win many games. Simple like that.
At least for Barzal and Horvat, it might mean finding a way to get them on the ice together as much as possible.
It's understandable that manager Lane Lambert moved Barzal back to center after Cizikas' injury — after all, Barzal has been a center his entire career, which allows the Islanders to play players out of position. , you can avoid being forced to make a call — above.
But early results were disappointing, with Barzal giving three of the year's most obscure performances.
Barzal and Horvat have kept each other in check all season.
With both men on the ice, the Islanders outscored opponents 30-19 at 5-on-5 on 54.19 percent of expected goals, according to Natural Stat Trick.
Without Horvat next to him, Barzal has a minus-4 plus/minus and an expected goal percentage of 34.93 percent at 5-on-5.
Without Barzal next to him, Horvat is plus-1 with an expected goal percentage of 40.89 percent at 5-on-5.
With Engvall injured, the Isles placed Cizikas on injured reserve on Wednesday, freeing up a spot on the roster for call-up center Kyle MacLean.
If McClain is in Friday's lineup, a reunion between Barzal and Horvat could be possible. This solved one problem for him.
Of course, Nelson will still be without Engvall, but Engvall's ability to transition the puck is key for the second line despite his own lack of scoring numbers.
The Islanders have tried Hudson Fassing in Engvall's usual second-line position twice in recent weeks. No results.
Julien Gauthier or Simon Holmstrom would be the obvious choices to try next.
As for Pelech, there's not much the Islanders can do other than hope he gets more comfortable and back to his old form with each game.
Coming back from injury is rarely easy, and that will continue to be kept in mind as other players on the shelf rejoin the team.
There is no perfect solution here. The same goes for the seasons.
