Igniting the Islanders Identity Line

"We played to our identity."

That was the general consensus following the Islanders dominant and resilient 5-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Friday night to extend their series lead to 2-0.

As the Isles dug themselves out of a one-goal deficit that unfolded in just the first minute of play, they regrouped and reset. Following the initial setback, they played true to their branded style of Islander hockey with disciplined efforts and received contributions up and down their lineup.

Namely, the Isles built off of the momentum emitted each shift from their 'Identity Line' made up of Matt Martin, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck.

Following an uncharacteristically quiet series against the Florida Panthers, the Identity Line has come to play against the Caps. Their line - along with the Derick Brassard, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Leo Komarov trio - put on a forechecking clinic as they exhausted the Caps on all cylinders in Game 2.

But the Identity Line's done more than just bang bodies and create energy in an empty Scotiabank Arena, they're chipping in on the scoresheet as well.

Martin delivered the Isles temporary go-ahead goal in the second period and Clutterbuck provided an insurance marker in the expiring minutes of the game.

"It's starting to come for them," Head Coach Barry Trotz said. "They're a big identity line for us. We got some contributions from them with Matt and Clutter taking in. To me, it's knowing who they are in terms of how they play. Both of their goals - they got on people, they turned some of those loose pucks into opportunities and that's what they do."

The line, who the Isles have relied heavily on to establish a hard-hitting and formidable tone, appeared to be back in-sync. Despite an injury-plagued season that left the line fully in-tact for just 19 games during the regular season, according to Natural Stat Trick's Line tool, Trotz was confident a physically-demanding and intense series against the Caps would fuel their fire.

"If you talked to them, they wanted to have a bigger impact in the [Florida] series," Trotz said ahead of the series. "I think this series will probably give them an opportunity to do that. Casey wasn't with us when we were sent home back from Calgary [in March]. Now, he's playing his first couple of games after a long, long layoff. Longer than the other players. He felt that he could have had a bigger impact. Clutterbuck, same thing. He was only a few games into it and back from a long injury. That line was really never together last year at all. They're finally together and I think you're going to see that line have the impact that it usually has."

Both of the Identity Line's goals in Game 2 were emblematic of their notorious style of play. On both accounts, an overbearing forecheck created an opportunity for centering feeds that both Martin and Clutterbuck were rewarded on by crashing the crease. The entirety of the Isles bench fed off of the line's effort.

"Everyone has been involved in every win and success that we have each night," Anders Lee said. "Those guys go out every night and do so much and not always get a reward for it on the sheet. So, when they can put a couple in, a couple of huge goals for us it's great for them and it's great for the whole team. When you get that depth scoring it's just another add."

Cizikas and Clutterbuck are also integral pieces of the Isles' penalty kill, that was a perfect 2-for-2 against the Caps and making both clutch kills in the third period. While the Isles diminished Washington's hope from Clutterbuck's goal with 2:46 remaining in regulation and Lee's empty-netter with 1:39 left in action, the Identity Line saw action during the final three minutes to help ward off any final advances from the Caps.

"We're just trying to play the way that we know how to play," Clutterbuck said. "That's a strength of our team, is getting back to that game that's successful for us. They've got a lot of different ways that they can play. That's a great team, but we're trying to focus on ourselves and do what we can and control what we can control."

With a 2-0 series lead, the Isles are confident in the maturity and persistence of their dressing room. While they hope to build off the momentum from their first two wins, they're concentrating their focus towards a pivotal Game 3 and expecting a desperate effort from an experienced bunch in Washington.

In response, the Isles will need that very relentless and contagious effort from their Identity Line to continue.

"It's hard play against them," Trotz said. "They stay on the right side. They play a physical price. They have enough ability to contribute. It was a little bit of a slow start in the exhibition game and against Florida, but they're starting to get their legs and their identity back."