New York Islanders: Lou Lamoriello strikes again with huge blockbuster trade

Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac are now members of the New York Islanders.

We had our first major move in the buildup to the Trade Deadline on Wednesday night as the New York Islanders acquired forwards Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac from the New Jersey Devils, with Isles General Manager Lou Lamoriello making it clear that his team are all in to win this season.

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It is fair to say that we are now cooking with gas as we edge closer to the 2021 NHL Trade Deadline on Monday following last night’s massive transaction, which saw the Islanders send a First Round pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, a conditional Fourth-Round selection in 2022 and depth players A.J. Greer and Mason Jobst to the Devils for Palmieri and Zajac.

The Islanders also announced that the Devils would be retaining 50 percent of both Palmieri and Zajac’s salaries, with Palmieri in the final year of his five-year contract with a $4,650,000 cap hit, while Zajac is also an Unrestricted Free Agent this offseason.

It remains to be seen what Lamoriello’s long-term plans are for both players and whether he intends to sign both to long-term deals shortly or wait until the end of the season to start negotiations but, for now at least, the incredibly experienced and savvy executive has acquired two players that can help his team now for half the price.

We’re going to really delve into this trade throughout the day given that Palmieri was always one of the biggest names to watch heading into the Trade Deadline, but the Islanders went one step further by adding another depth forward while the Devils got a couple of draft picks that can certainly help them to continue to build for the future.

New York Islanders, Lou Lamoriello strike big with trade for Palmieri & Zajac

There was no doubt that the New York Islanders were going to be buyers in the lead-up to the Trade Deadline given that they are battling for top spot in a loaded East Division, while they also needed to fill the void left by the season-ending injury to Captain Anders Lee.

As such, the Isles have long been linked to Kyle Palmieri and, given General Manager Lou Lamoriello’s deep-reaching ties to the New Jersey Devils, it was no surprise that he decided to do arguably his biggest business of the year with his former team.

What was a surprise, however, was the fact that the Isles acquired another player from the Devils in gritty forward Travis Zajac, which just hammers home the point that Lamoriello expects his team to embark on a deep postseason run again this year and perhaps go one better than reaching the Eastern Conference Finals as they did in 2019-20.

Palmieri should certainly help the Islanders do just that and he will slot straight into their top-six forward unit, either sliding in on the top-line and giving elite center Mathew Barzal a genuine weapon to play with, or anchoring the second-line and helping to give this team really balanced scoring throughout the line-up.

While not having a vintage year with eight goals and nine assists for just 17 points in 34 games, it is worth noting that Palmieri was stuck on a New Jersey team that has struggled for most of the year, and it is important to look at the whole picture and remember that the 30-year-old right-winger has been a consistent producer in the NHL with five straight seasons of 20 or more goals prior to this year, including a 30-goal season in 2015-16.

And the Travis Zajac aspect of this trade is also really interesting. The veteran, who Lamoriello knows well dating back to his days with the New Jersey Devils, is the perfect type of player for both Lamoriello and Head Coach Barry Trotz, and he’s the golden type of player for the way this Islanders team plays hockey.

Currently in his 15th season in the NHL, the 35-year-old should also be a good fit in that locker-room and he gives the New York Islanders both depth and flexibility on a nightly basis, both down the stretch and come the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

For instance, Zajac is a solid two-way bottom-six center who can slide up and down the lineup if needed, he can play a big, physical 200-foot game and, while not as productive as he once was, he can still chip in with offense as proven by his 18 points (7 G, 11 A) in 33 games for the Devils this year.

Zajac is also a Barry Trotz type of player in that he’s incredibly reliable in the faceoff circle with a career win percentage of 53.7, while he’s won 49.9 percent of his draws this season, and he can also block shots, lay the body on and he can also play on the wing as well.

Plus, if the Islanders lose a key guy down the stretch or early in the postseason, as they did with gritty forward Casey Cizikas in last year’s Playoffs, then they now have the ideal insurance policy in Travis Zajac who should prove to be an invaluable role player for New York.

Overall, we now have our first real big movement ahead of the Trade Deadline and it is the New York Islanders and their trusted lieutenant in Lou Lamoriello who have made the first major move on the chessboard when it comes to underlining their intention to go all out and win in 2020-21, and the additions of Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac from the New Jersey Devils backs that up, while the team on the other side of the Hudson River are clearly focussing on their future and adding assets to their exciting young core.