New York Islanders Must Be Active At Trade Deadline

If there’s one team that needs to be active prior to the NHL trade deadline it’s the New York Islanders.

The New York Islanders are only one point outside of a wild card position in a season where making the playoffs is an absolute must. Making the postseason is crucial, as the Isles need to show John Tavares the franchise is progressing forward instead of continuing to spin its wheels in the mud like previous years.

Their captain will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. Like any other talented player, Tavares wants to compete for a Stanley Cup. Should New York miss the playoffs once again, the sense is it’d be a lot easier for Tavares to walk away from the only team he’s ever known.

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Unfortunately for the Islanders, targeting a team need isn’t simple as the team has plenty of holes to fill in the lineup. The most urgent team need is goaltending, where Jaroslav Halak and the recently injured Thomas Greiss haven’t inspired any confidence with their play this year.

To make matters worse for New York, goaltending has been an issue all season and the club still hasn’t addressed the issue. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Flyers were able to make a move for Petr Mrazek just hours after losing their starting goaltender to injury.

No doubt Tavares noticed the move and saw how a division rival and a team the Islanders are chasing in the standings were able to get stronger in a hurry. This was a clear indication by the Flyers they intend to win this season. A lack of moves by Islanders has to raise questions about their own desires to find success this year.

Although the goaltending market may be thin there are still other ways New York can improve their postseason chances. Additional scoring and defensive depth are two areas the Islanders could explore should they be unable to bring in a new goaltender.

If the Islanders aren’t going to keep pucks out of their own net, adding some scoring punch in the form of Mike Hoffman or Rick Nash could be key. New York has mostly had success by outscoring their opponents so adding another scoring weapon to the lineup could only increase their chances of making the playoffs. Even former Islanders like Michael Grabner or Thomas Vanek could provide a significant boost to the third line.

New York’s blue line is razor thin meaning any fresh bodies are welcomed at this point of the season, even fifth or sixth defensemen could go a long way. Johnny Boychuk recently returned to the lineup after missing a quarter of the season but at 34-years old he can’t solve all the defensive issues. Even if the Islanders were to make the postseason with their current defensive group it’s hard to imagine the club finding consistent success without any deadline acquisitions.

One thing New York has in their favor is the additional draft picks they acquired courtesy of last summer’s Travis Hamonic trade. As a result, the Islanders have their own 2018 first and second-round draft picks, along with the Calgary Flames’ 2018 first and second round picks as well. Coughing up one of those four picks to help secure a wild-card spot could be the difference between re-signing Tavares or not.

Besides Tavares, the Islanders will have plenty of other free agents the club will have to focus on this coming summer. Josh Bailey, the team’s second-leading scorer behind Tavares, will also be an unrestricted free agent in July, while defenseman Calvin de Haan and center Brock Nelson will both be restricted free agents.

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With four key players all set to earn new contracts at the end of the season there is a good chance New York could look like a totally different team at the start the 2018-19 season.

However, if the Islanders hope to keep the centerpiece of the franchise by re-signing Tavares, they must prove to him at the trade deadline the team is committing to winning.

For updated NHL trade rumors, be sure to check out our Rumors page.

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