New York Islanders Coach Patrick Roy Makes Shocking Call That Costs the Team Against the Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs were up 2-1 late against New York when Patrick Roy made a shocking call that would ultimately cost the Islanders any chance of victory.
The New York Islanders haven't been at their best in 2024/25, and ahead of the post-holiday break, Head Coach Patrick Roy took to the microphone to promise fans that the team will continue working hard to turn things around in 2025.
Unfortunately, back-to-back losses to end the calendar year isn't exactly how he envisioned that going, with their New Years Eve clash with the Toronto Maple Leafs ending in dramatic fashion.
Down 2-1 with less than a minute to go, the Islanders and Maple Leafs had a faceoff in the Islanders zone, and instead of keeping his netminder in until the team took possession, Roy pulled his goaltender.
Things unsurprisingly went about as well as you would expect, with Toronto winning the faceoff before John Tavares would seal the game with an empty netter, with Roy's face after the goal telling the entire story.
Given the way that the Islanders have played as of late, it's clear that some risks need to be taken if they want to turn things around and push for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but in this instance, the risk simply didn't work as the Maple Leafs quickly sealed the game.
Without game breaking talent, this is the type of risk the Islanders will likely continue to take all season long, but if they can't start winning consistently, some major changes will likely need to be made, whether or not that's behind the bench or on the ice, as this is a team that is expected to win, at least from General Manager Lou Lamoriello.
