The young defenseman has another standout week in what’s been the best season of his career.
Week 22 was a decent one for the New York Islanders. They kicked things off with an unfortunate shootout loss against the Washington Capitals, one of the teams they’re trying to catch for a playoff spot, but did manage to come away with a big point.
They then collected two massive wins against the hot Dallas Stars, who are also fighting for a playoff spot, and their rivals the New York Rangers, one of the best teams in the league.
It was unfortunate that they concluded the week with a loss to their other division rivals and one of the worst teams in the NHL, the Philadelphia Flyers, but points in three out of four isn’t bad.
More impressive than practically anything was how well the young Noah Dobson played throughout the entire week, especially in his own zone.
Check out last week’s player of the week and honorable mentions here.
Player of the Week: RHD Noah Dobson
@ WSH: 2 A
@ NYR: 1 A
vs. DAL: 1 A
Average Game Score: 0.98
Average defensive impact: 0.47
In what’s already been the best season of his three-year career, Dobson seems to somehow just get better and better. He’s been the our Islanders player of the week before, but was especially noticeable all over the ice this week.
He was obviously excellent offensively, racking up four assists in four game, while playing extremely well in his own zone in all but one game this week. Dobson was the team’s best player twice this week, against the Capitals and Rangers.
He’s done such a fantastic job that he’s become one-half of the team’s top defensive pair and is positively impacting the guys he plays with.
This week, Dobson was paired with veteran Zdeno Chára, who’s drawn a fair share of criticism since the season commenced.
Chára has gradually been improving his play, but hasn’t looked better this season than he did in Week 22, thanks partly to his partner, Dobson.
The veteran and youngster are currently the team’s best pair, were the team’s best individual defensemen this week, and are both featured on our list (Chára as an honorable mention).
Dobson has gone from being a youngster with a high ceiling to one of the Islanders’ most important and irreplaceable players.
The fact that the team hasn’t looked as defensively sound as it has in previous years makes what Dobson is doing even more important.
The future is bright for this kid.
Honorable Mention #1: C Brock Nelson
@ WSH: 1 G, 1 A
@ DAL: 3 G
Average Game Score: 0.95
Average defensive impact: -0.19
NELLLLLSOOOOONNN pic.twitter.com/OaKazmxAk3
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) March 16, 2022
BROCK & ROLL pic.twitter.com/LWrnLflUHC
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) March 19, 2022
BrockGoal2.MP4 pic.twitter.com/YJjwOg9c8E
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) March 19, 2022
Honorable Mention #2: LW Matt Martin
Average Game Score: 0.60
Average defensive impact: 0.37
Honorable Mention #3: LHD Zdeno Chára
@ WSH: 1 A
Average Game Score: 0.60
Average defensive impact: 0.61
