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Barry Trotz led the Islanders to the playoffs in his first season as their head coach.
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Now with Islanders, Barry Trotz looks to again climb playoff mountain

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

Now with Islanders, Barry Trotz looks to again climb playoff mountain

UNIONDALE, N.Y. — One of New York Islanders coach Barry Trotz’s best friends is man named Jamie.

Jamie, it turns out, has climbed Mount Everest — the Mount Everest, Trotz reaffirmed Wednesday morning. A couple times, too.

There’s a parallel here in that Trotz, in his first year with the Islanders after helping the Capitals win the Stanley Cup a season ago, also wants to get back to the top of the mountain.

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“I have a good friend who’s climbed Mount Everest, but he failed three or four times; I don’t know the number,” Trotz said. “But he made it, and he made it multiple times now. I’m like, ‘Really? That’s really difficult.’ ”

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It’s not all that dissimilar to winning the Stanley Cup, if you think about it.

“One thing I can tell you — and I do have the experience now — is that it’s sort of addicting,” Trotz said. “That’s why I think you see people win multiple times. For as long as that trophy has been around, there’s not as many names on that trophy as you’d think. There’s a lot of repeat offenders in there.

“It’s an addicting type of thing. You want to do it again because you know you can.”

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The Penguins obviously want to prevent Trotz from coming anywhere near the top of the mountain — they’d prefer he never leaves its base — but you can’t deny the incredible impact Trotz has had on the Islanders, taking them from worst to first when it comes to defense in the NHL.

Behind Trotz’s structured approach, the Islanders aren’t the flashiest team, but their style of play reflects their personnel, a move similar to what coach Mike Sullivan did after taking the Penguins over in December 2015. Only instead of speed and offense, Trotz has gone all in on goal prevention.

“I think it’s important as a coach to make sure that you define an identity for your team,” Sullivan said. “I think Barry has done a terrific job with this Islanders team, as he did when he was in Washington, as well. He’s a real good coach.”

Tom Kuhnhackl has been on both sides of the equation. He was in Pittsburgh when Sullivan became head coach and saw the definitive direction he took things. Now, he’s playing for the Islanders, battling for a right-wing spot on a line with Brock Nelson and Josh Bailey.

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For Kuhnhackl, the key to the Wednesday night opener and the series will be staying out of the penalty box. That will theoretically stop the Penguins power play from becoming the difference and also make them — per Trotz’s not-so-subtle instructions — go through every possible layer to get their offensive chances.

“We know what kind of team they are — they’re good,” Kuhnhackl said. “And they can be good on the power play. We have to make sure that we stay out of the box as much as we can and make them play a 200-foot game.”

This is the fourth consecutive year a Trotz-coached team will face the Penguins in the playoffs. The first two lost, then the Capitals broke through last year en route to the franchise’s first Stanley Cup.

With the Islanders in the playoffs for the first time since 2015-16, having Trotz, his players said, should be a huge advantage. Because they know what to expect. Because they’re been given consistent messages. Because they know he’ll make the necessary adjustments.

“Coming off of last year and how many times he’s played Pittsburgh, you’re all ears when he speaks,” captain Anders Lee said.

Which led to a few humorous exchanges Wednesday morning, including Trotz reprising one of his favorite lines from Washington’s Cup run last year.

“By the way, it’s getting warm out there — hydrate,” Trotz said. “Gonna stick with that one.”

It is sound advice, words of wisdom of which even Jamie would approve.

Complimenting Crosby

Trotz coached Alex Ovechkin in Washington but still said that Sidney Crosby remains the “gold standard” in the NHL as far as producing offense, especially at this time of year.

“Be on the right side of him, make him go through you,” Trotz said when asked how the Islanders can limit Crosby’s effectiveness. “If he gets an opportunity, he’s still the gold standard in the league. A very complete player. This is the time of year where Sid ups his game. I’ve seen it.”

Very soon, Crosby could potentially emerge as a legitimate candidate for the Selke Trophy, handed out each year to the league’s top defensive forward. Trotz said he’s taken note of how Crosby’s game has evolved over time and has been extremely impressed.

“I look at Sid, he’s like fine wine,” Trotz said. “He’s gotten better and better with age. He’s added more to his toolbox. Same with [Evgeni] Malkin, [Phil] Kessel and all that. They’ve all added things to their game, there’s no question. I don’t think they’ve regressed. I don’t think they’ve stayed the same. I think they’ve just gotten better.”

The crowd factor

This will be the Islanders’ first playoff series at Nassau Coliseum since 2014-15, as their postseason games in 2015-16 were played at Barclays Center.

Nassau is the smallest building in the league and probably the loudest, too.

Trotz and the Islanders are expecting nothing less.

“We’re going to need all of their energy to sustain what we want to do,” Trotz said of the home crowd. “They’re right on top of you. It’s hard not to hear them.”

Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.

First Published: April 10, 2019, 6:19 p.m.

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Barry Trotz led the Islanders to the playoffs in his first season as their head coach.  (Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press)
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