The 2021-2022 New York Islanders season has shed light extreme positives and extreme negatives on the defensive end. On one hand, both Noah Dobson and Adam Pelech have played at the level number-one defensemen; on the other hand, Zdeno Chara has been among the most detrimental defensemen in the NHL. While the highs and lows of the Islanders defensemen will catch the front page of local newspapers, the most essential point of analysis lies in Barry Trotz’s lineup decisions on the back end.

The disappointment that has plagued the Islanders in the first half of the season, coupled with the high standard of play in the Eastern Conference, has prompted Barry Trotz to vary from his standard lineup, prioritizing Chara and youngster Sebastian Aho over veteran Andy Greene. While Trotz’s decision to add youth to the lineup is comforting, given his infamous tendency to place extreme faith in veterans, the striking reality of the situation goes as follows: Greene, at 39 years of age, deserves an everyday spot in the lineup over both Chara and Aho.

Greene may be the last name you hear on the Islanders broadcast on any given night, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Whereas Chara’s Expected Goals Above Replacement on Even-Strength Offense (xEVO) and Expected Goals Above Replacement on Even-Strength Defense (xEVD) are -2.6 and -3.2, respectively, and Aho’s are -2 and -1.5, respectively, Greene has managed to stay at least one expected goal above replacement in both departments. Two-way defensemen are hard to come by in the NHL, so to remove one out of the lineup is indefensible.

The other essential component to Greene’s play is his trade value. As the Islanders sit three games below .500, they have little choice but to act as sellers at the trade deadline. Chara, in potentially his last NHL season, has no significant trade value, but as long as Greene continues to play at the level of a league-average defenseman, the Islanders reasonably could acquire a valuable draft pick or prospect from a team in need of an effective rental on the back end. Continuing to leave him out of the lineup likely will diminish the perception of his value across the NHL.

Barring a historic turnaround, the 2021-2022 season will go down as nothing short of catastrophic for the Islanders, but at no point in the season is playing a player of Chara’s caliber over a player of Greene’s caliber excusable. Whether with the Islanders or a buying organization, Greene deserves the chance to prove his value.

All statistics are from Evolving-Hockey and as of March 10, 2022.

Aidan Resnick

Aidan is a freshman at the University of Chicago, studying data science and business economics, and an aspiring sports analyst. In 2019, he attended the Wharton Moneyball Academy, the Carnegie Mellon Sports Analytics Conference, and the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, experiences that inspired him to pursue sports analytics. Aidan’s passion for sports analytics is best represented in his newest sports analytics book, “The Stats Game,” where he illuminates statistical tools and debunks myths in sports analytics, as well as in his victorious Diamond Dollars Case Competition project and in Resnick Player Profiles. A lifelong New York Islanders fan, Aidan always approaches his work with Drive4Five with an analytical mindset, focusing on the newest advancements in hockey analytics to maximize the precision of his content. Aside from sports analytics, Aidan is a dedicated violinist and chess player.