With the 2023-24 NHL season fast approaching, the New York Islanders are in the midst of another uneventful offseason. General manager Lou Lamoriello doubled down in his belief that his current roster has what it takes to bring the Stanley Cup back to the franchise. While things have been quiet on Long Island, despite the club being mentioned in possible trade talks looking to improve their top-six forward group, they retained nearly all their free agents. They’ve re-signed veteran goaltender Semyon Varlamov, defenceman Scott Mayfield, and forwards Pierre Engvall and Oliver Walhstrom throughout the offseason. The Islanders will enter this season with very few roster changes, but this can hardly be seen as good.
Islanders Remain Stagnant in an Improving Metropolitan Division
After failing to address their offensive woes via free agency or a prospective trade, the Islanders’ and Lamoriello’s same old song and dance isn’t good enough. While their divisional rivals have been busy adding the pieces they believe will help lead them to win the ultimate prize, the Islanders have done very little to make improvements. While having management that believes in their roster is excellent, bringing back the same roster season after season and expecting significant improvement is troubling for a franchise that barely made the playoffs last season.
The Carolina Hurricanes made a big free-agent splash by signing defenseman Dmitry Orlov and gritty forward Michael Bunting. Tony DeAngelo also returned to the Hurricanes this summer, bolstering a deep defensive corps. The Hurricanes enter the season as serious contenders and have been flirting with a Stanley Cup Final appearance for the past few seasons. After losing out in the Eastern Conference Final to the Florida Panthers last spring, the Hurricanes’ general manager, Don Waddell, made the necessary moves to push his club over the top.
Another divisional rival, the New Jersey Devils, have significantly improved over the offseason. Not only were they able to lock up their trade deadline acquisition, Timo Meier, but they also brought in some Stanley Cup-winning experience. In a trade with the Calgary Flames, they added veteran winger Tyler Toffoli to their forward group. The Devils made leaps and bounds last season with young star in the making Jack Hughes having a breakout campaign. Expect them to keep pace with the Hurricanes in a tightly contested Metropolitan Division.
The Pittsburgh Penguins, who the Islanders narrowly topped to clinch a playoff berth last season, have made the most recent splash in the NHL headlines. After missing the playoffs for the first time following 16 consecutive appearances, the Penguins have undergone front-office changes, bringing in former Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas as their new president of hockey operations and general manager. He has had a busy offseason in the “Steel City,” making moves such as acquiring Stanley Cup winner Reilly Smith from the Vegas Golden Knights. They have also added depth forwards Vinnie Hinostroza, Noel Acciari, and Matt Nieto, but none of their moves were as groundbreaking as landing Erik Karlsson from the San Jose Sharks.
Related: Sharks’ Defense Gets New Look After Erik Karlsson Trade
Even the Islanders’ biggest rivals, the New York Rangers, made some noteworthy changes after a disappointing postseason performance last season. While they went all in for the Cup at the trade deadline by acquiring Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrick Kane, they couldn’t retain either player’s services for the upcoming campaign. Instead, they made a few offseason moves that rank much lower on the Richter scale. After Blake Wheeler was bought out of the final year of his contract with the Winnipeg Jets, they took a flyer on the 37-year-old and signed him to a one-year contract worth $800,000. The Blueshirts also added some depth at the center position with Riley Nash, Nick Bonino, and Tyler Pitlick signing as free agents. They also signed veteran goaltender and three-time Stanley Cup champion Jonathan Quick to back up Igor Shesterkin this season.
Islanders Continue to Miss Out on Marquee Names
Lamoriello can’t be single-handedly blamed for the Islanders’ quiet offseason, as he was again in the running to acquire another marquee name in Alex DeBrincat. The Ottawa Senators, however, ended up trading him to the Detroit Red Wings, as he joined a list of players such as Johnny Gaudreau, Nazem Kadri, Tarasenko, and Kane, who were linked to the Islanders but ultimately landed elsewhere. It’s not due to a lack of effort from the Hall of Fame GM, as these marquee names have found other offers more fitting to their needs. Whether strictly hockey-related or family-oriented decisions, the Islanders have had difficulty landing the big-name attractions needed to help return the franchise to the state of glory exhibited in the 1980s.
There is, however, some light at the end of the tunnel, as the Islanders were able to lock up Bo Horvat and world-class goaltender Ilya Sorokin to long-term contract extensions. Horvat signing an extension shortly after last season’s blockbuster deal signals a possible turning of the tides about how star players view the club. While time is running out for Lamoriello and the Islanders to land a top-six forward before the opening puck drop on the new season, there is hope that, in time, they will be able to bring in another bonafide star. A name such as William Nylander is increasingly intriguing after the recent news of Auston Matthews’ massive contract extension.
Islanders’ Lack of Change May Cost Them
Although, as mentioned above, it’s not entirely Lamoriello’s fault as he has swung and missed while attempting to land star players. He also had very little salary cap space due to questionable contracts. Aside from Sorokin signing an extension this summer, getting Josh Bailey’s contract off the books was a massive win for the franchise. What he chose to do with the created cap space by, in turn, handing out some more questionable contract terms is baffling. Varlamov’s four-year deal will expire when the netminder is 39 years old. Mayfield’s seven-year deal will expire when the defenseman turns 38. At $3.5 million for the contract term, Lamoriello is betting on a significant future increase to the salary cap for the contract to be more team-friendly as it ages.
Instead of trying to address the Islanders’ most significant need with their lacking offense, he opted to retain the same roster, and now the franchise and the fanbase may have to pay the price. It was evident in their first-round meeting with the Hurricanes last spring that the series’ outcome may have changed with an additional goal-scoring forward in their lineup. That same lack of offense also nearly caused them to miss the playoffs for a second consecutive season, as they didn’t clinch until the final days of the 2022-23 campaign. When looking at the changes their divisional rivals have made this summer, the Metropolitan Division has only gotten tougher, and the Islanders will once again be in a heated battle just for playoff contention.
Without adding that highly coveted top-six forward, barring some surprising performances from within the current roster, the Islanders will remain a bubble team rather than genuine contenders. It’s been speculated that Einstien once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” It surely doesn’t take an Einstein to see that this team needs help offensively, and failing to address the issue will only continue to cost them.
