Tony DeAngelo’s Offensive Game For Islanders More Than Making Up For Defensive Metrics

Tony DeAngelo

Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

EAST MEADOW, NY – The knock on New York Islanders defenseman Tony DeAngelo’s game has always been that his offensive talent doesn’t overcome his defensive warts.

It’s a key reason he wasn’t offered an NHL deal this past summer and why he had to play in the KHL before getting his latest opportunity on Long Island.

Since signing a one-year prorated deal on Jan. 25, he has played six games with the Islanders. His expected goals against per 60 minutes of 3.08 and 71.35 shot attempts against per 60 are among the worst on the Islanders over that span at 5-on-5, according to naturalstatrick.com.

Everyone loves to get caught up in the stats, but stats only tell part of the story. And since DeAngelo’s storybook starts with the Islanders, his defensive metrics haven’t affected the script negatively in the slightest.

DeAngelo has fit into the Islanders’ playbook like a puzzle piece, especially alongside Alexander Romanov.

The 29-year-old’s ability to skate with the puck, get up the ice and hit forwards on the money with outlet passes is a huge reason why the club is 5-1-0 since he’s joined them and makes up for whatever defensive blunders we’ve seen from the newest No. 4.

Averaging 25:26 of ice time, DeAngelo has recorded four points with one goal and three assists, scoring the overtime-winner in their 3-2 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning last Saturday.

While the Islanders’ power play has not been successful since DeAngelo took over as the top unit’s quarterback – going 1-for-10 since Jan. 25 – it has looked much more effective, in part because of his innate ability to command the blueline.

We’d be remiss without saying that goaltender Ilya Sorokin, who was named NHL’s first star of the week on Monday and is playing an incredible brand of hockey right now, has bailed out his teammates on this latest stretch, including DeAngelo.

Even if the advanced metrics have been poor, the results have not been.

Since DeAngelo joined, the Islanders’ defensive structure has been more dynamic. He makes plays in his own zone, stealing a puck off the goal line in Sunday’s 6-3 loss to the Florida Panthers.

He also gets back and recovers, which has saved the Islanders’ butts countless times.

With Romanov’s emergence as the Islanders’ No. 1 shutdown defenseman, DeAngelo doesn’t have to be elite in his own zone. His job is to be ready to catch a pass and make plays with his skates to get the puck out of the zone.

But to say DeAngelo hasn’t helped the team defensively at all wouldn’t be right.

He’s even been given some penalty-kill minutes, too, with Scott Mayfield out of the lineup.

When DeAngelo has been on the ice at 5-on-5, the Islanders have outshot their opponents 69-62 and, more importantly, outscored them 7-3, according to naturalstattrick.com.

All the Islanders have done, minus one game, is win with DeAngelo in the lineup. He’s bringing it all for his new team at a time when the battered Islanders desperately need the support.

“It’s been great,” DeAngelo told The Hockey News on Thursday. “As I said a few times, it’s a really good group of guys that are bought into the structure, and that’s why you’re seeing the results you’re getting when guys are bought in the way they are. When you’re competing for the playoffs, it’s easy to hop in and just buy in, right, into what we’re doing, so it’s been really nice.”

DeAngelo and the Islanders will look to improve to 9-1-0 in their last 10 games when they face the Winnipeg Jets on Friday night. This is the first of a back-to-back, and they will then face the Minnesota Wild on Saturday night to conclude their schedule before the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off break.