New York Islanders Offseason Moves and Grade

As noted in my first column Sunday, I took a quick, high-level look at the off-season moves made by each of the three New York Metropolitan area and division teams. I kicked off the series with a look at the Devils’ offseason moves. This blog covers the Islanders with the closing foray to discuss the Rangers’ transactions.

New York Islanders:

In:
– Signed F Eetu Lukas to a three-year, entry-level contract.
– Inked D Samuel Bolduc to a two-year contract with an $800K AAV
– Acquired future considerations from Chicago Blackhawks for RW Josh Bailey
– Signed F Julien Gauthier to a two-year contract at $787,500 AAV and Fs Karson Kuhlman and Brian Pinho to one-year, two-way contracts with a $775K AAV each
– Inked Ilya Sorokin to an eight-year deal with an $8.25 million AAV
– Locked up Semyon Varlamov for four years with a $2.75 million AAV
– Retained Scott Mayfield for seven years with a $3.5 million AAV
– Committed to Pierre Engvall for seven years, with a $3 million AAV.
– Signed RW Oliver Wahlstrom to a one-year contract at his qualifying offer of $874,125
– Signed G Jakub Sharek to a two-year, two-way contract.

Out:
– Bailey, traded to Chicago to free up cap space and deal a defensive liability
– Zach Parise (unsigned and still could return) Damon Severson (signed an eight-year, $50-million contract with New Jersey and was traded to Columbus for a third-round pick),

The Islanders made a late-season charge to slide into seventh place and the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference with 93 points, one ahead of the Panthers. While the Panthers made a magical run to the Stanley Cup Finals, New York – thought by some to possibly be able to put together a similar story – fell in six games to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Islanders lost a pair of overtime contests and suffered an additional one-goal defeat while falling to the ‘Canes in six games. Offense, an issue throughout the season, was a problem again, as New York scored just one goal in a pair of contests and 15 in the six contests.

GM Lou Lamoriello entered the off-season with two primary goals. First, locking up Ilya Sorkin long term and, second, augmenting the offense. His big move at the trade deadline was acquiring Bo Horvat from Vancouver in exchange for Anthony Beauvillier, Aatu Raty and a first-round draft pick. Both sides committed to each other, putting pen to paper on an eight-year, $68 million contract extension in February. Horvat struggled to find his footing on the Island, suffering through an 11-game goalless drought, but should excel next to Mathew Barzal, who has moved from center to wing. Captain Anders Lee completes the first line.

Bailey, drafted ninth overall in 2008 by the Islanders, played 15 years on the Island. New York was able to shed the full $5 million owed to the winger by only having to attach a 2026 second-round. Of all the moves made by the Islanders after the season, this might have been the biggest win due to the small cost to create cap room. Especially when you factor in Chicago buying out Bailey, taking on cap space the next two years. Bailey’s offense dried up the past few seasons, and his defensive issues became even more pronounced recently.

Engvall, acquired from Toronto at the nth hour of the trade deadline, seamlessly fit on the second line. You can certainly argue the length and dollars of the contract is troublesome, but the seven years kept the cost down. Engvall will start opposite Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri but projects to slide down a trio at some point over the term of the deal. Nelson was by far the team’s best and most consistent forward, making the six-year, $36 million deal he signed in May 2019 look like a bargain. Palmieri struggled initially and after returning from missing nearly two months with an injury. But he caught fire down the stretch, helping the team make the playoffs.

New York’s fourth line – their energy line – of Matt Martin–Cal Clutterbuck-Casey Czikas can still turn the tide of a game. But they are starting to get a little long in the tooth and have lost a little off their fastball. New York has other options, like Ross Johnston, who will see time, and Julien Gauthier, who has tremendous speed but stone hands.

Jean-Gabriel Pageau has three years remaining on the six-year, $30 deal he signed in February 2020. He has settled in as a 40-point scorer, though he likely is not worth $5 mil per season. Hudson Fasching and Oliver Wahlstrom, who has been a disappointment and was sidelined with knee injury after December 27 last season, could line up opposite JGP. Gauthier might get a look as well as could Simon Homstrom, but the third line looks to be a little bit of a hole. This is why Parise, who tallied 21 goals for the blue and orange, could end up getting re-signed.

Lamoriello struck out on adding offense last year, failing to acquire Timo Meier. Other options, including Tyler Toffoli, went by the wayside, continuing a pattern since he stepped in as GM. If he ends up with one legacy on the Island, his inability to seal the deal and bolster the scoring might be it. If William Dufour continues his ascension offensively, he could help fill a major need, but that’s a lot of pressure to place on a former fifth-round pick who saw just one game in the NHL last season.

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The blue line – at least the first four – is mostly set. Adam Pelech-Noah Pulock is the top pair, though the duo hasn’t taken that next step forward that many thought. Alexander Romanov, acquired before last year’s draft for a first-round pick, and Noah Dobson, the team’s best offensive and overall blueliner, will be the second pair. Romanov had his ups and downs in his first year on the Island but displayed a physical presence, dishing out 198 hits and blocking 129 shots. He underwent surgery this offseason but is expected to be ready for training camp.

Bolduc, a second-round pick in 2019, will likely get a chance in the fall to compete for a spot on the NHL roster out of training camp. He picked up 10 goals and 35 points over 56 AHL contests with Bridgeport this past campaign and played 17 games with the parent club. Right now, Sebastian Aho is the third-pair blueliner, but if Bolduc is ready, his presence won’t be an impediment. Seven years for Mayfield is extensive, but like Engvall’s deal, that term length kept the AAV at $3.5 million. At 30 years old, the contract won’t age well. Mayfield, however, should be a solid blueliner for at least half the deal.

Where New York excels is between the pipes. Ilya Sorokin, a Vezina Trophy finalist thanks to a 31-22-7 record with a 2.34 goals-against average and .924 save percentage last season, will be staying on the Island for eight years. His contract should be the starting point for his compatriot Igor Shesterkin next deal. Sorokin has been nothing short of brilliant since joining the Islanders three years ago. Lamoriello’s signing of Varlamov before the 2019-20 season helped pave the way and played a small part in Sorokin coming to the US. Having Varly around is a comfort factor for Sorokin. The four-year deal is likely two years too long, though when the cap does finally rise by a decent amount – we all hope – the contract will look a lot better.