New York Islanders: Top 8 prospects worth getting excited about
While fans of the team may not agree, the New York Islanders are certainly not the most exciting team in the NHL.
Outside of Mathew Barzal, they lack star talent and have on paper what is one of the weakest lineups in the entire NHL. Despite that, they have made the Playoffs two consecutive years, including making the Eastern Conference Finals in 2019-20, and a quarter through the 2020-21 season they look poised to do so again.
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Their team success in recent years is in large part due to Barry Trotz, who many view as the best Head Coach in the entire NHL. Trotz was hired by the Islanders during the 2018 offseason, fresh off a Stanley Cup Championship with the Washington Capitals. He lacks the firepower on this team he had in Washington and, as a result, has had them play very structured hockey where they give up little to no scoring chances throughout a game. This often results in games being quite boring to watch, but there is no denying it is working.
As mentioned above, this is a team who lacks much star power, particularly up front. The good news for New York Islanders fans in that regard is that while their team doesn’t have the best prospect pool, they do have some forwards near the top of the list who have the talent to become high scoring NHLers in the future.
As mentioned in every other Top 8 Prospects articles throughout this series, any player who has played in more NHL games than any other league in a season, regardless of the season, will not be included. (Exception has been made for the 2020-21 season, given that many leagues, including the AHL have just begun their seasons).
Here are the Top 8 Prospects in the New York Islanders System:
8. Ruslan Iskhakov
The first prospect to pop up on this list is Ruslan Iskhakov, who the New York Islanders selected in the Second-Round (No. 43 overall) of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. At the time he was drafted, he had just wrapped up his first and only season in the MHL (Russian junior league), posting an impressive 30 points in 34 games. Given the fact that just 24 of those 30 points were assists, it wasn’t hard to figure out what type of player Iskhakov was.
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The very next season, Iskhakov headed overseas and played two seasons for the University of Connecticut, posting 21 points in 32 games both seasons. The now 20-year-old would have played in his junior year for Connecticut had it not been for the pandemic delaying the season. Instead, he chose to once again head back overseas, and is currently playing for TPS Turku in the SM-liiga. At the time of writing this, Iskhakov has scored four goals and added 16 assists in 31 games played. While he is still a ways away from becoming an every day NHLer, the skill level is clearly there.
7. Otto Koivula
One of the most under-the-radar prospects the Islanders have in their system is Otto Koivula, who they selected in the Fourth-Round (No. 120 overall) of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. The Finnish forward was able to appear in his first ever 12 NHL games last season, but didn’t make much of an impression as he was held pointless. He also played 36 games in the AHL with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers last season where he had 22 points.
Koivula’s skill has been apparent for some time now, as he had a 21 goal, 46-point season during his first AHL season in 2018-19. Like many this season due to the pandemic, he chose to head to Finland, his home country, and suited up in 14 games with HIFK Helsinki, where he posted 11 points. One other positive for the 22-year-old is that he has a ton of size, standing at a massive six-foot-five, 223 pounds. With that frame, he could be a great addition to the Islanders lineup in the near future.
6. Robin Salo
Though he remains relatively unknown due to having not yet played in North America, Robin Salo is becoming one of the New York Islanders’ best prospects on the backend. The now 22-year-old has been a part of the Islanders organization since being selected with the 46th overall pick of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft. At the time he was drafted, he had been playing in the SM-liiga, and continued to until late in the 2019-20 season when he chose to go to Sweden and play in the SHL.
The switch to Sweden has proven to be a great one, as Salo is currently having his best season as a professional hockey player. In 40 games with Orebro HK this season, he is tied for the team lead in points with 28. The one concern regarding Salo was that heading into 2021 he had still yet to sign an Entry-Level Contract with the Islanders, however the two sides were finally able to work out a deal this past week, meaning we could finally see Salo in North America for the 2021-22 season.
5. Bode Wilde
The most exciting prospect the Islanders have on the blueline is Bode Wide, who they selected in the Second-Round (No. 41 overall) of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. He was drafted shortly after playing for the U.S. National U-18 Team but, instead of going to college the following year, instead headed up to Canada to play for the Saginaw Spirit in the OHL. His first season with the Spirit was fantastic as he had 19 goals and 70 points in just 62 games.
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Thanks to the great season, the Islanders made the decision to have him play the 2019-20 season in Bridgeport rather than return to Saginaw. However, it became clear quickly that Wilde was not yet ready for professional hockey, as he had just two assists in 20 games. As a result, he was reassigned to the Spirit in February, and discovered his offensive touch once again as he had 11 points in 11 games prior to the season being shut down. He is back in Bridgeport this season and will look to prove that he now has what it takes to be a pro hockey player.
4. Kieffer Bellows
Despite being just 22-years-old, Kieffer Bellows is already being labelled a bust by many. The 22-year-old was drafted 19th overall by the New York Islanders at the 2016 NHL Entry Draft and really made a name for himself two years later when he had a 41 goal, 74-point season in the WHL for the Portland Winterhawks. On top of that, he also played for Team USA at the World Juniors that year, his second time attending the event, and had a tournament leading nine goals and 10 points in seven games played.
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Unfortunately, things have gone downhill ever since for Bellows. His first season as a pro in Bridgeport, which came in 2018-19, was an outright disaster as he had just 19 points in 73 games. While he was better the following season, his numbers were still fairly disappointing as he managed 22 goals and 31 points in 52 games. Despite those numbers not being great, he was able to earn his first ever NHL call-up last season, appearing in eight games with the Islanders where he was able to score two goals and one assist. He has started the 2020-21 season in the NHL, but is at risk of being sent to the AHL soon given the fact he has not been able to get on the scoresheet yet. Though he is still relatively young at 22, he will need to have a better season than the previous two if he wants to remain a top prospect for the Isles.
3. Simon Holmstrom
Though it’s still very early, the Islanders may have a First-Round steal on their hands in Simon Holmstrom, who they selected 23rd overall in 2019. The Swedish born forward has had an interesting career path to this point, as he played his 2019-20 season in the AHL as an 18-year-old. While there were some ups and downs throughout the year, he didn’t look out of place and was able to record 15 points in 46 contests.
The now 19-year-old is just three games into his second season with Bridgeport, and has recorded one assist so far. The hope is that he can build off of last year’s totals and put up better numbers, but it is important to remember how young he still is. Most do not begin playing in the AHL until they are at least 20-years-old. Though he is still a ways away, Islanders management has to be excited with Simon Holmstrom’s progression thus far.
2. Oliver Wahlstrom
With the 11th overall selection at the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, the New York Islanders chose to select the incredibly talented Oliver Wahlstrom. Wahlstrom has been on many fans’ radar for a number of years now, thanks to many highlight-reel goals he was scoring as a kid. At the time of being drafted, he had just wrapped up a 62-game season for the U.S. National U-18 Team in which he scored 48 goals and had 94 points.
After that impressive year, Wahlstrom played in just one season with Boston College before turning pro heading into the 2019-20 campaign. His first professional season, which he spent most of in Bridgeport, was just okay as he managed 10 goals and 22 points in 45 games. He was also able to suit up in nine games with the Isles, but was held pointless. As of now, he is with the Islanders to begin the 2020-21 season and has a goal and an assist in eight games played. Given that he is averaging under 12 minutes in ice time per game, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him sent back down to Bridgeport in the near future. Nevertheless, he is an extremely talented and exciting prospect who has a chance to turn into a star at the NHL level.
1. Ilya Sorokin
While it took quite a while for Ilya Sorokin – taken 78th overall in 2014 – to make his way to the NHL, the time is finally here. Islanders fans have been very excited about Sorokin for quite some time, and for very good reason. Over his past five seasons in the KHL (184 games), he has posted a ridiculous 1.38 Goals Against Average (GAA) and a .938 Save Percentage (SV%).
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Those numbers are why not just Islanders fans but NHL fans in general were thrilled this past July when it was announced that the two sides had signed a two-year, Entry-Level deal. Coming into this season, it was made clear that it would be a learning experience for Sorokin, as the Isles had made it clear Semyon Varlamov was still their number one goalie.
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That has held true so far, as he has made 11 starts compared to Sorokin’s four. Still, management has to be thrilled they were finally able to convince him to come to the NHL, as he has the potential to become one of the best netminders in the NHL, while he showed flashes of that on Tuesday with his first career win and shutout in the league.