The New York Islanders acquired goaltender Michal Neuvirth in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres on Monday. The Islanders have 84 points and lead the Metropolitan Division, and Neuvirth gives them valuable depth in the net.

On the surface, Neuvirth’s numbers appear strong, but they get stronger when his performance is put into context.

There is no denying the futility of the Sabres this season. They have generated just 37 percent of the shots in their games, seven percentage points below the next-lowest team in the league. Of the 20 players who rank at the bottom of the league in Corsi For in even-strength time, 18 have skated for the Sabres this season.

The performance of the players in front of him hurt Neuvirth’s basic stats. Among goalies with at least 1,000 minutes of even-strength ice time, Neuvirth faced 35.4 shots per 60 minutes, most in the league. Despite that, Neuvirth ranks fifth among such goalies with a 93.8 adjusted save percentage.

Much of Neuvirth’s success is the product of making the saves he’s supposed to as well as many that he’s not expected to make. Among goalies with at least 1,000 minutes of even-strength time, Neuvirth ranks in the top eight in save percentage against shots from low-danger and high-danger areas.

Neuvirth can most help the Islanders on the penalty kill. Starter Jaroslav Halak has an 84.5 adjusted save percentage on the penalty kill, fourth-lowest among Eastern Conference goaltenders with at least 50 minutes of shorthanded ice time. This is related to the Islanders allowing 64.5 shots per 60 minutes when on the penalty kill with Halak is in the net, most among goalies to play at least 40 games.

Neuvirth faced similar conditions with the Sabres, who gave up 56.5 shots per 60 minutes on the penalty kill, yet he had an adjusted save percentage more than a full percentage point higher than Halak.

As seen in the included hextally chart, Neuvirth is strong at limiting the success of shooters from all areas of the ice. In particular, he is strong at preventing goals from areas where shooters have a low probability of scoring. By avoiding these goals, Neuvirth was able to perform at a high level consistently, even with the worst puck-possession team in the league playing in front of him.