Once victim of numbers game, Anders Lee excelling for Islanders

UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- The “numbers game.” We hear it every training camp when certain players get cut from the NHL roster and are assigned to the AHL. "We wanted to keep you with the big club, but..."

Anders Lee of the New York Islanders was introduced to the numbers game in October when he was sent to Bridgeport following camp. His nine goals in 22 games last season, followed up by a strong preseason wasn’t enough to help him make the final roster.

“You work hard all summer and try not to make that happen,” said Lee after Thursday’s morning skate. "[W]hen it did you just go down there motivated. You got to work a little bit harder and fine-tune your game a little bit. So I just went down there, put my head down and worked. You can’t really control those kind of things. You just got to go out there and try to fix it.”

Lee didn’t allow his frustration to affect his game. He used that negative energy to make his stay in Connecticut as brief as possible. Two weeks after being demoted, he was called up by the Islanders after scoring three times and recording five points in five games with the Sound Tigers.

Four months later, Lee is still on Long Island and is filling in for the injured Kyle Okposo on the Islanders’ top line. The NHL promotion, along with being put next to John Tavares, has resulted in 19 goals, second most on the team, and 29 points. He’s also tied for second in goals scored among rookies.

Lee isn’t just putting his stick on the ice and waiting for Tavares to get him the puck. The 24-year old Notre Dame product is creating his own chances, a sentiment recently echoed by head coach Jack Capuano, and backed up by the Islanders captain.

“I think it’s not secret why he’s had success all year,” Tavares said. “It’s just his presence in front of the net. The good job he does getting to the net, being such a big body, strong on his skates, and he gets very good body position. It’s not always easy to go there, and when you do go there you’ve got to be good at it.”

Technically, Lee is considered a rookie by Calder Trophy standards. Entering the 2014-15 season, he had played 24 games, just under the award minimum. And as with anything, the experience was incredibly beneficial.

“Any time you’re coming in as a young guy or as a rookie, you need as many games as you can get in,” he said. “You start to settle in more. You start to feel out the game, understand the NHL game.”

A restricted free agent after this season, Lee is setting himself up for a nice payday in the summer, but that is currently on the backburner in his mind. He said his agent will handle contract matters with GM Garth Snow after this season. As the Islanders cruise toward a playoff berth and the forward enjoys a breakout season, those talks would only serve as a distraction. One that isn’t needed at the moment.

For now, Lee will just keep doing what he did during his time in Bridgeport: keep his head down and play, while riding out this final and (so far) wildly successful season at Nassau Coliseum.

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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy

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