from Peter Botte of the New York Daily News,
Jack Capuano has been adamant about not singling out the obvious “secondary players” he often has stated have contributed little this season, but the Islanders’ head coach finally called out a few underachievers by name before Monday’s game against Tampa Bay.
With a three-point cushion over No. 9 Boston and two over No. 8 Philadelphia entering the final week of the regular season, Capuano told reporters that former first-round picks Josh Bailey and Ryan Strome — who have played recently on the top line, flanking captain John Tavares — and center Brock Nelson all “need to pick their s--t up” and work harder over the final five games to help the Isles secure a second straight postseason berth.
“There’s no surprises. We need Strome to be better. We need Brock to be better. We need Bailey to be better. We need guys to be better if we’re going to have any chance at all,” Capuano said. “They see it, it’s black and white. The video doesn’t lie. It doesn’t come down to X’s and O’s, it doesn’t come down to systems. It comes down to how hard you want to compete.
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