Sunday, I kicked off a series of columns focusing on one or two weaknesses or areas of need for each of the three NY Metro Division and local squads. The first article focused on the Devils. This column covers the Islanders, and I will wrap up the series again with the Rangers later this week.
Long-term deals – Lou Lamoriello, in essence, opted to run it back with the prior roster with minimal changes. Not only is the squad basically the same, but Lamoriello handed long-term extensions to Pierre Engvall (seven years), Scott Mayfield (seven years), and Semyon Varlamov (four years), all of whom were pending unrestricted free agents. The longer-term deals enabled the Islanders to reduce the salary cap hit with the belief/expectation that the cap will rise and if they need to buy out those deals, the impact will be minimal. The flip side is that the team is not necessarily improved, though you could argue acquiring Bo Horvat and retaining Ilya Sorokin accomplished that goal.
Scoring – where is the offense coming from when you get past the first line and Brock Nelson? Horvat should be better in his first full season on the Island, and the hope is that his presence and playmaking allow Mathew Barzal to produce as he did his rookie year in 2017-18. Anders Lee is good for 25 or so goals, while Brock Nelson has taken a significant step forward; then what?
Is Engvall going to morph into a scorer? Which Kyle Palmieri will we see, the one who slumped again in the first or scored in the second half? Can Jean-Gabriel Pageau pot 20+ tallies on the third line? The jury is far out on Oliver Wahlstrom, and who is coming up through the pipeline?
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Relying on Julien Gauthier to spin his stone hands into gold is likely, not wise. Simon Homstrom might get a look, while Zach Parise, who tallied 21 goals for the blue and orange, could end up getting re-signed. As I wrote in the last column, 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.
Sorokin must again stand on his head to lead the Islanders to the playoffs. He has done it before and could do it again. But that’s not an optimal or sustainable strategy.