1994–95 New York Islanders season

1994–95 New York Islanders
Division7th Atlantic
Conference13th Eastern
1994–95 record15–28–5
Home record10–11–3
Road record5–17–2
Goals for126
Goals against158
Team information
General managerDon Maloney
CoachLorne Henning
CaptainPatrick Flatley
ArenaNassau Coliseum
Average attendance12,573
Minor league affiliate(s)Denver Grizzlies
Tallahassee Tiger Sharks
Team leaders
GoalsRay Ferraro (22)
AssistsRay Ferraro (21)
PointsRay Ferraro (43)
Penalty minutesMick Vukota (109)
Plus/minusDean Chynoweth (+9)
Patrick Flatley (+9)
WinsTommy Soderstrom (8)
Goals against averageTommy Soderstrom (3.11)

The 1994–95 New York Islanders season was the 23rd season in the franchise's history. The Islanders were unable to qualify for the playoffs, thus ending their two-season playoff streak.

Offseason

Longtime head coach Al Arbour announced his retirement from coaching and was named the team's vice president of hockey operations on June 1.[1] Assistant coach Lorne Henning was named his successor on June 20.[2]

Regular season

After starting the season with a 4–2–1 record, the Islanders fell into a slump from which they could not recover. They would win only 11 of their remaining 41 games, going 11–26–4. The Islanders would finish 12 points out of eighth place and miss the playoffs for the first time since 1992.

Near the end of the season, General Manager Don Maloney decided that the core of players he had left alone for three seasons should be totally revamped, and he undertook a rebuilding project. He traded Pierre Turgeon and Vladimir Malakhov to Montreal for Kirk Muller and Mathieu Schneider, and Benoit Hogue was sent to Toronto for young goaltender Eric Fichaud. Additionally, Maloney allowed the team's leading scorer, Ray Ferraro, to depart as an unrestricted free agent at the conclusion of the season. Fans' displeasure at the GM for trading the popular Turgeon was magnified when Muller balked at joining a rebuilding team. He only played 45 games for the Islanders before being sent to the Maple Leafs.

The Islanders finished the regular season having allowed the most short-handed goals in the NHL, with 11.[3]

Season standings

Atlantic Division
No. CR GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 2 Philadelphia Flyers 48 28 16 4 150 132 60
2 5 New Jersey Devils 48 22 18 8 136 121 52
3 6 Washington Capitals 48 22 18 8 136 120 52
4 8 New York Rangers 48 22 23 3 139 134 47
5 9 Florida Panthers 48 20 22 6 115 127 46
6 12 Tampa Bay Lightning 48 17 28 3 120 144 37
7 13 New York Islanders 48 15 28 5 126 158 35

[4]

Note: No. = Division rank, CR = Conference rank, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
       Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Eastern Conference[5]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 Quebec Nordiques NE 48 30 13 5 185 134 65
2 Philadelphia Flyers AT 48 28 16 4 150 132 60
3 Pittsburgh Penguins NE 48 29 16 3 181 158 61
4 Boston Bruins NE 48 27 18 3 150 127 57
5 New Jersey Devils AT 48 22 18 8 136 121 52
6 Washington Capitals AT 48 22 18 8 136 120 52
7 Buffalo Sabres NE 48 22 19 7 130 119 51
8 New York Rangers AT 48 22 23 3 139 134 47
9 Florida Panthers AT 48 20 22 6 115 127 46
10 Hartford Whalers NE 48 19 24 5 127 141 43
11 Montreal Canadiens NE 48 18 23 7 125 148 43
12 Tampa Bay Lightning AT 48 17 28 3 120 144 37
13 New York Islanders AT 48 15 28 5 126 158 35
14 Ottawa Senators NE 48 9 34 5 117 174 23

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs


Schedule and results

1994–95 regular season[6]
January: 3–2–1 (home: 2–1–1; road: 1–1–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
1 W January 21, 1995 2–1 Florida Panthers (1994–95) 1–0–0 Recap
2 T January 22, 1995 3–3 OT Ottawa Senators (1994–95) 1–0–1 Recap
3 W January 24, 1995 4–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1994–95) 2–0–1 Recap
4 L January 27, 1995 2–5 @ Washington Capitals (1994–95) 2–1–1 Recap
5 L January 28, 1995 1–4 Tampa Bay Lightning (1994–95) 2–2–1 Recap
6 W January 31, 1995 5–1 @ Florida Panthers (1994–95) 3–2–1 Recap
February: 5–6–2 (home: 4–3–0; road: 1–3–2)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
7 W February 2, 1995 5–4 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1994–95) 4–2–1 Recap
8 L February 4, 1995 2–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1994–95) 4–3–1 Recap
9 L February 7, 1995 2–5 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1994–95) 4–4–1 Recap
10 L February 9, 1995 2–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1994–95) 4–5–1 Recap
11 W February 11, 1995 2–1 Buffalo Sabres (1994–95) 5–5–1 Recap
12 L February 14, 1995 2–3 Quebec Nordiques (1994–95) 5–6–1 Recap
13 T February 17, 1995 2–2 OT @ New Jersey Devils (1994–95) 5–6–2 Recap
14 W February 18, 1995 3–2 New Jersey Devils (1994–95) 6–6–2 Recap
15 L February 20, 1995 2–3 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1994–95) 6–7–2 Recap
16 T February 22, 1995 3–3 OT @ Buffalo Sabres (1994–95) 6–7–3 Recap
17 L February 23, 1995 1–4 Tampa Bay Lightning (1994–95) 6–8–3 Recap
18 W February 25, 1995 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1994–95) 7–8–3 Recap
19 W February 28, 1995 2–1 Montreal Canadiens (1994–95) 8–8–3 Recap
March: 2–10–1 (home: 2–2–1; road: 0–8–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
20 L March 2, 1995 3–4 Washington Capitals (1994–95) 8–9–3 Recap
21 L March 5, 1995 1–3 @ Ottawa Senators (1994–95) 8–10–3 Recap
22 W March 7, 1995 3–1 Hartford Whalers (1994–95) 9–10–3 Recap
23 L March 9, 1995 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1994–95) 9–11–3 Recap
24 L March 11, 1995 1–2 @ Quebec Nordiques (1994–95) 9–12–3 Recap
25 L March 14, 1995 4–6 @ Hartford Whalers (1994–95) 9–13–3 Recap
26 L March 16, 1995 3–6 @ Buffalo Sabres (1994–95) 9–14–3 Recap
27 L March 18, 1995 3–4 @ Boston Bruins (1994–95) 9–15–3 Recap
28 W March 23, 1995 1–0 New York Rangers (1994–95) 10–15–3 Recap
29 L March 25, 1995 1–5 @ Hartford Whalers (1994–95) 10–16–3 Recap
30 T March 26, 1995 5–5 OT New Jersey Devils (1994–95) 10–16–4 Recap
31 L March 28, 1995 3–6 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1994–95) 10–17–4 Recap
32 L March 30, 1995 2–3 Boston Bruins (1994–95) 10–18–4 Recap
April: 5–9–1 (home: 2–4–1; road: 3–5–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
33 L April 1, 1995 1–5 Buffalo Sabres (1994–95) 10–19–4 Recap
34 L April 4, 1995 4–5 Washington Capitals (1994–95) 10–20–4 Recap
35 W April 7, 1995 4–3 @ New York Rangers (1994–95) 11–20–4 Recap
36 T April 8, 1995 2–2 OT Florida Panthers (1994–95) 11–20–5 Recap
37 L April 11, 1995 2–5 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1994–95) 11–21–5 Recap
38 W April 12, 1995 3–1 @ Florida Panthers (1994–95) 12–21–5 Recap
39 L April 14, 1995 3–6 @ New Jersey Devils (1994–95) 12–22–5 Recap
40 L April 16, 1995 2–3 New York Rangers (1994–95) 12–23–5 Recap
41 W April 18, 1995 5–2 Quebec Nordiques (1994–95) 13–23–5 Recap
42 L April 20, 1995 1–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1994–95) 13–24–5 Recap
43 L April 22, 1995 2–3 Ottawa Senators (1994–95) 13–25–5 Recap
44 W April 24, 1995 5–3 Boston Bruins (1994–95) 14–25–5 Recap
45 L April 26, 1995 5–6 @ Washington Capitals (1994–95) 14–26–5 Recap
46 W April 28, 1995 4–2 @ New York Rangers (1994–95) 15–26–5 Recap
47 L April 29, 1995 3–4 @ Ottawa Senators (1994–95) 15–27–5 Recap
May: 0–1–0 (home: 0–1–0; road: 0–0–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
48 L May 2, 1995 0–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1994–95) 15–28–5 Recap
Legend:

  Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Player statistics

Scoring

  • Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
  • † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Islanders only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Islanders only.
No. Player Pos Regular season
GP G A Pts +/- PIM
20 Ray Ferraro C 47 22 21 43 1 30
77 Pierre Turgeon‡ C 34 13 14 27 −12 10
26 Patrick Flatley RW 45 7 20 27 9 12
32 Steve Thomas RW 47 11 15 26 −14 60
27 Derek King LW 43 10 16 26 −5 41
68 Zigmund Palffy LW 33 10 7 17 3 6
18 Marty McInnis LW 41 9 7 16 −1 8
92[a] Vladimir Malakhov‡ D 26 3 13 16 −1 32
7 Scott Lachance D 26 6 7 13 2 26
39 Travis Green C 42 5 7 12 −10 25
37 Dennis Vaske D 41 1 11 12 3 53
33 Benoit Hogue‡ LW 33 6 4 10 0 34
24 Troy Loney‡ LW 26 5 4 9 0 23
72 Mathieu Schneider† D 13 3 6 9 −5 30
2 Bob Beers D 22 2 7 9 −8 6
9 Kirk Muller† C 12 3 5 8 3 14
15 Brad Dalgarno RW 22 3 2 5 −8 14
17 Chris Marinucci C 12 1 4 5 −1 2
14 Ron Sutter C 27 1 4 5 −8 21
75 Brett Lindros RW 33 1 3 4 −8 100
6 Chris Luongo D 47 1 3 4 −2 36
24[b] Brent Severyn† D 19 1 3 4 1 34
25 Paul Stanton† D 18 0 4 4 −6 9
28[c] Chris Taylor C 10 0 3 3 1 2
34 Yan Kaminsky LW 2 1 1 2 2 0
47 Rich Pilon D 20 1 1 2 −3 40
3 Dean Chynoweth D 32 0 2 2 9 77
12 Mick Vukota RW 39 0 2 2 1 109
11 Darius Kasparaitis D 13 0 1 1 −11 22
10 Kip Miller C 8 0 1 1 1 0
35 Tommy Salo G 6 0 1 1 0
9 Dave Chyzowski LW 13 0 0 0 −2 11
10 Craig Darby† C 3 0 0 0 −1 0
8 Gord Dineen D 9 0 0 0 −5 2
29 Jamie McLennan G 21 0 0 0 2
30 Tommy Soderstrom G 26 0 0 0 2
34 Milan Tichy D 2 0 0 0 −1 2
38 Andrei Vasilyev LW 2 0 0 0 0 2
36 Jason Widmer D 1 0 0 0 −1 0

Goaltending

No. Player Regular season
GP W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
30 Tommy Soderstrom 26 8 12 3 717 70 3.11 .902 1 1350
29 Jamie McLennan 21 6 11 2 539 67 3.39 .876 0 1185
35 Tommy Salo 6 1 5 0 189 18 3.02 .905 0 358

Awards and records

Milestones

Milestone Player Date Ref
First game Brett Lindros January 21, 1995 [7]
Chris Taylor January 31, 1995
Chris Marinucci March 30, 1995
Tommy Salo April 11, 1995
Andrei Vasilyev April 26, 1995
Jason Widmer May 2, 1995

Draft picks

New York's draft picks at the 1994 NHL entry draft in Hartford, Connecticut.[8]

Round Pick Player Nationality College/junior/club team
1 9 Brett Lindros (RW)  Canada Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
2 38 Jason Holland (D)  Canada Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
3 63 Jason Strudwick (D)  Canada Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
4 90 Brad Lukowich (D)  Canada Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
5 112 Mark McArthur (G)  Canada Guelph Storm (OHL)
5 116 Albie O'Connell (LW)  United States Saint Sebastian's School (USHS-MA)
6 142 Jason Stewart (C)  United States Simley High School (USHS-MA)
8 194 Mike Loach (C)  Canada Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
8 203 Peter Hogardh (C)  Sweden Västra Frölunda HC (Sweden)
9 220 Gord Walsh (LW)  Canada Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
10 246 Kirk DeWaele (D)  Canada Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
11 272 Dick Tarnstrom (D)  Sweden AIK IF (Sweden)

Notes

  1. ^ Malakhov wore number 23 in his first ten games.
  2. ^ Severyn wore number 4 in his first eight games.
  3. ^ Taylor wore number 25 in his first two games.

References

  • "New York Islanders 1994-95 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  • "1994-95 New York Islanders Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  1. ^ "Islanders coach Arbour returns to front office". Tampa Bay Times. June 2, 1994. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  2. ^ "HENNING REPLACES ARBOUR AS ISLANDERS COACH". Deseret News. June 21, 1994. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  3. ^ "1994-95 NHL Summary". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  4. ^ Standings: NHL Public Relations Department (2008). Dave McCarthy; et al. (eds.). THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Official Guide & Record Book/2009. National Hockey League. p. 154. ISBN 978-1-894801-14-0.
  5. ^ "1994-1995 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
  6. ^ "1994-95 New York Islanders Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  7. ^ "1994-95 NHL Debuts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
  8. ^ "1994 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved May 12, 2021.