PITTSBURGH — Barry Trotz and his coaching staff certainly put time and effort into the decision. But, in retrospect, the Islanders' coach knew he couldn’t go wrong.
Goalies, right or wrong, get the bulk of the credit or a majority of the blame for their team’s success or lack thereof in the playoffs and Robin Lehner was certainly a big part of the Islanders’ strong defensive efforts in the first three games of their first-round series that had them on the brink of a sweep in Game 4 on Tuesday night at PPG Paints Arena.
The last of the Islanders’ six sweeps of a best-of-seven series came in the 1983 Stanley Cup Final against the Oilers.