2) Relying heavily on rookies
There’s no dodging this one.
Everyone has seen the steady decrease of production in Ryan Strome. Since the 2014-15 season, Strome has been struggling heavily, even going as far as being sent down to the AHL last season.
The Islanders put a lot of stock in their young players, and so far Brock Nelson has been the most consistent product (career high 42 points in 2014-15).
Anders Lee has been rebounding significantly, but still was a hamper on the team’s offense for enough time to remove them from contention.
Younger forwards like Alan Quine and Shane Prince will make contributions to the lineup in the future, but, still, have a couple of years before they hit their real potential.
