Florida Panthers vs New York Islanders Playoff Prediction

Offense

When it comes to these two teams we have an offense vs defense matchup.  In this case, the Panthers offense is superior to that of the Islanders.  The Panthers offense has been the highlight of the season.  Scoring is something that Florida knows how to do well while it’s not a strength for New York, at least from looking at this statistic.  They sit at 22nd in the league for goals per game average.  So for the attack then, the boys in the peninsula have the edge.

Backend

Now, if you thought the Panthers were all set, you would be mistaken.  Even though they may have the upper hand on offense, their backend is outmatched by New York.  Whether you believe this is a problem with the defense, goaltending, coaching or any variation it’s still true.  Overall New York’s backend is better.  To put in perspective how bad the Panthers are at keeping pucks out of their net, here is a stat to reflect on.  The boys down south have had 224 goals against this year which is 6th worst in the league this season.  So the winner of the backend category is the Islanders.

Season Series

This could possibly bring some light as to what is to come for this series in the summer.  The New York Islanders and Florida Panthers faced off 3 times in the 2019-20 season and Florida lost all of them.  The Islanders won by 1 goal in two games and 2 goals in one game.  So the Panthers didn’t get blown out on any of those games but still they lost.  Granted, what happens in the playoffs could end up being different than what happened this season.

Special Teams

The Panthers may have an advantage with normal 5 on 4 special teams but here is the quick version.  Florida is better on the power play and New York is better on the penalty kill.

Prediction

New York over Florida in 4 games