Should the New York Islanders Re-Sign Robin Lehner?

The New York Islanders’ top priority this offseason is figuring out what to do with Robin Lehner.

The New York Islanders season ended in disappointment at the hand of a 4-0 sweep at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes. While not quite as upsetting as the fate the Tampa Bay Lightning suffered, it’s still not how Isles fans wanted to see it end. Goaltender Robin Lehner deserved a better fate, in particular.

As unhappy as Islanders fans may be, they can’t be completely unsatisfied with how this year panned out. Among the arena drama and overwhelmingly harsh feelings about John Tavares free agency departure, the GM and coaching tandem of Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz were able to right the ship for a playoff team.

A first-round sweep against the Pittsburgh Penguins might have been the icing on the cake. But it left Islanders fans greedy and hungry for more playoff hockey.

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As the off-season begins, the Islanders are going to have to decide what to do with their plethora of free agents. Come July 1st, current Islanders such as Jordan Eberle and Valtteri Filppula lead their free agency class, although one name rises above the rest. The Islander top free agent going into this off-season is, without question, Lehner.

Ever since recovering from off-ice personal and addiction problems this past off-season, Lehner has had a career year with the Islanders. This has earned him and fellow Islanders netminder Thomas Greiss the William M. Jennings trophy. Lehner himself personal nods for the Masterton Trophy for perseverance and the Vezina Trophy for best goaltender.

Lehner, knowing that playoff elimination signaled the end of his one year deal to play on Long island, penned an emotional thank you tweet to the Islanders fan base. In his article he penned with The Athletic detailing his addiction and mental health struggles, he explained how hard it was to be signed last off-season. He particularly went into detail about how painful the process of getting back into professional hockey was post-recovery:

My agent received a few calls, which was encouraging, but most teams were hesitant because I had a reputation. Those meetings with teams were some of the hardest things I’ve had to do in my life, now sober. I couldn’t tell them I was bipolar. I couldn’t tell them anything.

Lamoriello and his rebuilding Islanders, still reeling from the loss of their then franchise player, took a chance of Lehner with a one year deal. Fair to say that the Islanders got more than they ever could have dreamed off out of Lehner and his one year contract. The question now remains should the Islanders resign him, or should Lehner seek employment elsewhere.

After a year of struggling to find a suitor, Lehner would have no shortage of offers this off-season. After all, a career year ending with major award nominations will do that to you. At age 27, he’s still got a lot of hockey left in him, and he’s just started to reach his peak.

Critics would argue that considering Lehner’s career history and numbers in-goal, there’s the risk that 2018-2019 was a one-off year, and not to expect that same type of performance from him again.

While that’s an easy example to back up, as there’s plenty of supporting evidence in goalies that have been one-hit wonders without continued success, to say Lehner can’t repeat his performance from the past year completely disregards the changes he made in his life this past season.

Lehner was successful in-goal because of the personal progress he made. Any prior success he might have had with the Buffalo Sabres were in spite of the personal battle he was dealing with. We may be dealing with Robin Lehner, but now sober, he’s Robin Lehner 2.0. The vices that once held him back have since stayed out of the picture, leading him on the road to more success.

Then the Islanders have to consider Thomas Greiss. Lehner’s success aside, the Islanders had all indications that Greiss would be the goalie of their future. Unlike most goaltending tandems with one starter and one back up, Greiss and Lehner split starts and fed off of each other’s success. With their split starts, (Lehner had four more starts) and nearly matching stats, the duo handedly won the William M. Jennings Trophy.

With the talented goaltender in Greiss, and Lehner certain to expect a multitude of offers, one might expect the Islanders to part ways and fully commit to Greiss. Well, that would most likely be unwise on New York’s part, as Greiss had a career worse year sporting a 0.892 save percentage and 3.82 goals against average. Those number also came from a much smaller sample size, when he only started 25 games as the backup then Islanders number one Jaroslav Halak.

What else does Greiss have working against him? His age. Greiss is sitting at 33 years old, while Lehner looks like the spring chicken at 27. The Islanders might have planned for Greiss to take over the reins as number one once Halak left, but Lehner threw a wrench in those plans, and so far it’s worked spectacularly.

Lastly, think of Lehner himself. Any goaltending statistics and team standing aside, Lehner has found an organization and management where he belongs and can contribute at levels that live up to his potential.

After all he’s been through, that most likely means more to him than any payday ever could. And with the Islanders seemingly heading the right direction, you can’t even use the “maybe he wants to go to a cup contender” argument against him as much.

The islander should without a doubt resign Robin Lehner, but where Greiss fits in the mix might affect the type of contract given. While the split goaltending duties might have worked for the Islanders this season, recent failures of that system, such as the Dallas Stars with Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi, may sway the Islanders to go back to the traditional number one and number two approach. If they do, Lehner would be the clear number one.

Greiss has one more year on his current contract, so the bromance between the Islanders net minders is destined to go into 2020. After then, it might be time for him to be shown the door and explore other options.

Of course, if changes happen and Greiss ends up outplaying the seemingly resurgent Lehner, but don’t bet on him being in an Islanders sweater past next season, perhaps leaving as early as the trade deadline if Lamoriello can find a suitable suitor.

With Lehner being 27, that places him three years out of the cautious 30-year-old mark. The Islanders will want to keep him around for a while, but know anything that extends past five years, which would take Lehner to Greiss’s current age, would be a liability. If all continues to go well, which all indications point to it being, the Islanders would be smart to offer Lehner a four-year or five-year contract extension. The man has also more than earned himself a raise.