Mathew Barzal has been one of the Islanders top players for the last few years. His elite speed, shifty skating, incredible passing, dynamic playmaking ability and his amazing stick handling has made him one of the leagues best young stars. Barzal has greatly improved his defensive game, but he can improve. Here are five ways Mat Barzal can improve his game now and for the rest of his career to take the next step into becoming a two-way force.

1: Stay more disciplined.
Mat Barzal is the best player on the Islanders, so agitators on other teams try to get in his head. He must try to tune that out. Barzal sometimes lets it get to him and takes bad penalties every once in a while. Whether its roughing, hooking, slashing or tripping, Barzal could help his team by staying out of the box and by being on the ice playing great hockey like he usually does.

2: Shoot the puck more.
Barzal is known for being more of a playmaker than a goal scorer, as he tends to set up plays with his tremendous passing ability. Although this is not a bad trait to have, Barzal does not shoot the puck enough. Barzal has an incredible shot and he could score so many more goals if he used it more. It is quick, fast and accurate. Instead of being 100% pass-first, Barzal should try to put the puck in the back of the net himself sometimes.

3: Make quicker decisions.
Barzal likes to skate around the entire offensive zone maneuvering opponents looking for a perfect play. He needs to learn to make the quick and simple play. A give and go could be effective to get Barzal into more open ice. Getting the puck out of the defensive zone is also something to improve on. Barzal sometimes doesn’t put enough power on a clear or tries to skate with the puck too much before a clear. Faster decisions could improve Barzal’s game tremendously as he develops into a smarter player.

4: Get stronger.
The ability to push through players more so than just by flying by them with speed could be huge. Barzal is more speed and efficiency but if he can be even stronger, he would not get hit so easily and could be even better on the puck than he already is. He will not be pushed around as easily and could stay focused on helping his team win. Getting stronger could also make Barzal’s shot even better.

5: Show up in big moments.
Something to improve upon would be consistency. Barzal is a very streaky player and when he is at his best he is very hard to contain. He is all over the ice creating tons of scoring opportunities. At times, however, Barzal can be very unnoticeable and that cannot happen for a player of his skill. If he can play at a high level at all times he will make the jump to NHL superstar. He scored a goal and had one assist in Game 4 against the Panthers. Coming up clutch like this for the Islanders will make him even more valuable.

Mat Barzal is a fantastic player for the New York Islanders, but he can improve. If he does these things, the NHL will need to watch out.

John Smark