For years, Rick DiPietro has been considered one of the biggest draft busts of all time, and it’s hard to argue against it. Selected first overall in 2000 by the New York Islanders, he was immediately hailed as the team’s goalie of the future and around whom they would build their franchise. Yet 13 seasons after he was drafted, the team bought him out of a deal that they will be paying until 2028-29. It’s a black mark on the organization, there’s no question about that, but very little of what happened is DiPietro’s fault.
Not only did injuries completely derail his career, but DiPietro was never put into a position to succeed. Either he was thrown to the wolves on a weak roster created by a management group that failed to identify and acquire talented players, or he was buried by an organization that was ashamed that they selected him in the first place. Not even the greatest goalies of all time could have rectified the Islanders of the early 2000s. While his tenure is unquestionably disappointing, he shouldn’t be considered a draft bust.
Mike Milbury’s Mismanagement
Mike Milbury has gone down as one of the worst general managers in NHL history. From 1995-2006, he led the Islanders to just three playoff berths and five playoff wins and finished in the league’s top 10 just once, coming in eighth place in 2001-02. His impact arguably caused the franchise to struggle for another decade after his departure.
But in 1999-00, Milbury didn’t have that reputation yet. Sure, he was seen as an overconfident manager, but that’s what the Islanders needed to get out of their four-year playoff drought. So, when a young, hot-shot goalie decided to enter the 2000 Draft rather than wait for 2001, giving up his college eligibility, Milbury saw a chance to give his franchise a huge boost. Not only would he be making history by selecting a goalie first overall for the first time in modern history, but he would also solidify the team’s shaky crease.
DiPietro was far from a bad pick, even at first overall. In his first season with Boston College, he won Hockey East’s Rookie of the Year, New England’s Most Valuable Player, and also was named the best goaltender at the 2000 World Juniors while playing with Team USA. He was labelled as a future all-star and certainly someone a team could build around. However, it was a risky move, with Milbury admitting, “The danger spot obviously is going with a youthful goaltender.”
Related: Top 10 Worst Mike Milbury Moves
But what made it so much worse was the fact that, despite the risk, Milbury decided to go all-in on their new goalie. Moments before making the pick, he shipped out Kevin Weekes, who had been the team’s starter that season, along with prospect Kristian Kudroc and a second-round pick to the Tampa Bay Lightning for the fifth-overall pick, plus two more that year in later rounds. He then dealt his previous franchise goalie Roberto Luongo, selected fourth overall in 1997, to the Florida Panthers. That trade, which saw Olli Jokinen join him in exchange for Mark Parrish and Oleg Kvasha, has gone down as one of the worst in NHL history – not even the players involved thought it was a good move.
All of a sudden, the Islanders went from two great, young goalies with NHL experience, to just one unproven netminder. It was brash and unnecessary, forcing DiPietro into a situation that gave him little room to fail. He had to succeed, or the team was out of luck.
Plenty of Skill, But Too Much Pressure
With few other options, the Islanders gave the 19-year-old DiPietro the starting role for the 2000-01 season. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t go well. In 20 games, he put up a rough .878 save percentage (SV%) and an even worse 3-15-1 record, which forced the Islanders to turn to aging goalie John Van Biesbrouck, who didn’t fare much better. But how could he? The Islanders had just one 30-goal scorer that season, and their defence corps was young and inexperienced. Kenny Jonsson, Zdeno Chara, and Roman Hamrlik all finished with a plus/minus at or below minus-20.
DiPietro spent the rest of his rookie season in the American Hockey League (AHL), where he wasn’t much better, recording a .880 SV% in 14 starts with the Chicago Wolves, but at least there was a bit less pressure for him to find his footing. He remained in the minors for all of 2001-02, and with fewer eyes watching his every move, he rebounded, putting up a solid .913 SV%, 59 starts, plus another 20 games in the playoffs as the Bridgeport Sound Tigers went all the way to the American Hockey League (AHL) finals, where they lost to the Wolves in five games.
The Islanders gave DiPietro another shot to claim the starting job in 2002-03, but he once again struggled, starting just 10 games and putting up a .894 SV%, and the Islanders quickly turned to veteran Chris Osgood, who, like Van Biesbrouck, also struggled, which led to the Islanders trading him to the St. Louis Blues in March 2003. While the Islanders floundered, Dipietro continued to thrive in the AHL and was a .924 SV% goaltender, which was one of the best in the league.
Finally, in 2003-04, DiPietro looked ready to handle the NHL. He made 50 starts over the season and put up an impressive five shutouts and a .911 save percentage (SV%), which ranked ahead of Nikolai Khabibulin, Olaf Kolzig, and Thomas Vokoun. In 2005-06 following the lockout, he took a mild step backward, winning 30 of his 63 starts and posting a .900 SV%, but he was beginning to show his elite skill; despite his weaker numbers, the Islanders were even worse without him, winning just six games over the rest of the season.
The Record-Setting Contract
It was clear that DiPietro was on the verge of becoming a franchise cornerstone, and new GM Garth Snow knew this better than anyone. The former goalie played with the Islanders from 2001-06, which saw him back up the former first-overall pick for two seasons, giving him intimate knowledge of how he thought and worked. With that insider knowledge, he decided to sign DiPietro to a 15-year, $67.5 million contract in September 2006, the longest deal the NHL had ever seen.
Instantly, fans and analysts were critical of the deal. Even NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly didn’t speak favourably of it, saying, “Time will tell whether this will be a good decision or a bad one for the Islanders.” DiPietro had been good, but nowhere near good enough to earn that kind of money. It was clearly a bet on the future, but 15 years seemed excessive.
Admittedly, the deal looked to be a decent bet in the following seasons. DiPietro was instrumental in getting the Islanders back to the playoffs in 2006-07, then was selected to the All-Star Game in 2007-08. But the good times did not last for long, because after nearly six seasons with the franchise, the chaos and pressure were beginning to take a toll on the young goalie.
DiPietro’s Injuries Never Stopped
In March 2007, DiPietro suffered the first of many concussions, causing him to miss the remainder of the season. One year later, he underwent hip surgery, and nine months after that, he was under the knife again, this time for swelling in the knee.
Knee issues continued to come up, causing him to miss more and more games. By 2012-13, he was a shell of the goalie he had been. He hadn’t appeared in more than 26 games in a season since 2007-08 when he was selected to the NHL All-Star Game. His mental state was fractured, undoubtedly aided by multiple concussions, and he was no longer able to play at the highest level.
In an act of desperation, the Islanders cut ties with their biggest mistake, buying him out of his monster contract, which forced the team to keep him on their payroll until 2028-29. Fortunately, his story hasn’t ended in tragedy. After his hockey career ended, he got into broadcasting, where he’s quickly become one of the better up-and-coming commentators. Still, had the Islanders provided more support around him during his formative years or brought him up more slowly, they could have prevented many of those injuries. While he may never have lived up to his first-overall selection, he very well could have been a top goalie in the NHL.
DiPietro Was Not a Bust
Every draft class has its share of busts; not even the first overall selection is safe from it. Some talented junior stars simply can’t handle the increased pressure and pace of the NHL. But with all that was going on around the Islanders at the time, DiPietro was more a product of ineptitude rather than a bust. Several highly-touted prospects failed to make an impact with the franchise in those years, and had someone else selected the talented netminder, it’s very possible he would have had a long and successful career. Unfortunately, all we can do is speculate, but if a career is cut short by mismanagement, poor development practices, and a string of devastating injuries, then that player does not deserve to be called a bust.
