Trotz Laying Foundation At Islanders Training Camp

There will be plenty of time for Barry Trotz to work on the Islanders' structure. Day one was about laying a foundation.
The new head coach skated the Islanders hard during the first on-ice sessions of training camp at Northwell Health Ice Center. The practice featured a lot of skating and tracking drills as well as some small-area games during the 90-minute sessions.
"Today was all about trying to create a little bit of a foundation and identity and find out which guys are willing to battle and compete," Trotz said. "I don't think there's a guy here who said it was easy."

"We weren't afraid to work today, which I was really happy about," Trotz added. "We learned that we weren't afraid to compete, against ourselves or against someone. And we learned about the importance of details and accountability in some areas."

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The Islanders were expecting their new coach, who joined the team in June fresh off a Stanley Cup win with the Washington Capitals, to make some changes to the team's practices and philosophies.
"Just details," Mathew Barzal said of Trotz's message on day one. "Stopping at the net, backchecking hard and finishing the drills. To be a championship team, you need those championship habits. He knows what it takes. I'm going to listen to him as much as I can."
Trotz enacted some small, but noticeable differences on Friday. The losing side of small-area games skated to the end boards and back and Trotz didn't hesitate to stop drills for offsides and other mistakes.
"Attention to detail, structure and hard work," Josh Bailey said. "For the most part we did that. There's are going to be some instances where we still get familiar with some drills, but all in all, a tough day, but a good day."
Trotz enters the season as the fifth-winningest coach in NHL history with a 762-568-134-60 (W-L-OTL-T). A lofty winning record, plus a Stanley Cup and Jack Adams Award give him instant credibility in the locker room.
"He brings experience," Johnny Boychuk said. "I think everyone is going to be on board. It's just a positive change."

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Trotz is known for being a coach whose teams play with solid defensive structure. The Capitals allowed the NHL's second-lowest goals-against per game (2.45) in the four years Trotz coached in Washington, while also icing the league's sixth-best penalty kill (82.6%).
"Last year we weren't great on that side of the puck and we need to be better for us to win," Boychuk said.
Trotz said implementing his structure will be difficult with the Islanders playing six preseason games in seven days, starting with Sunday's matinee against the Philadelphia Flyers at NYCB Live (Nassau Coliseum). He said he'll be teaching the new structure to the non-game groups while using the exhibitions contests for evaluation.
As for the first day the new coach said he was happy with the effort and is eager to see how his new team responds, especially on the mental side after a taxing physical day.
"There was more life lessons than there was necessarily a systematic approach today," Trotz said. "If you're going to do something good, it's not going to be easy, it's going to be tough."