Barry Trotz knows exactly what it takes to build a Stanley Cup champion.
So, a day after his former team, the defending champion Capitals, beat his new team, the Islanders, 4-1, at Barclays Center on Monday night, Trotz had a clear picture of the work ahead.
“We’re headed in the right direction,” Trotz said before giving his tired team, which just completed a stretch of four games in six days, a day off on Tuesday. “We’re trending in the right direction from a total hockey standpoint, from the people running it, such as Lou [Lamoriello], and the infrastructure behind that.