It has been a busy off-season for the New York Islanders after falling short of the playoffs last season. The new brass gets ready for their 2nd year in the FNHL and GM Vanturennout made a ton of improvements to put them into a position to compete again for a playoff spot. From acquiring a top pairing D, to locking up a bunch of core pieces, to spending over 72 M in development, we want to review that body of work and why we think playoffs are in the future for Islander nation.
The first big move came prior to this year’s Entry Draft where the Islanders made a big splash trading away the 9 overall pick to acquire Jacob Slavin from the reigning cup champion Columbus Blue Jackets. This massive addition is going to catapult this team to another level, playing in every situation and mentoring young rising star Bode Wilde. Slavin brings a ton of stability, leadership, and championship pedigree to a team full of young risers. Wilde notched 18 goals last season and will look to build on a 35 point campaign with Slavin as his safety net.
The second move took place in free agency where the Islanders shed a ton of UFA contracts and spent big securing their two star players from last season in Quinton Howden 1yr @ 9M and Richard Bachman 2yr @ 8.25M. Both players hit endorsement deals bringing in close to 23M combined and were monumental in the Islanders battle for playoff spot. Howden notched his third consecutive season with 50 plus assists while anchoring the top line all year. Bachman started 74 of 82 games last season stopping close to 2000 shots while maintaining a .903 Save%.
The second half of free agency and third move saw the Isle lock up five key players to long term deals start with their brilliant young #1Dman Bode Wilde who earned a 7 year deal worth over 43 million(6.25AAV)! The other contracts were all players that had low to no impact on the team last season, but they have the confidence of a GM that believes they will be the solution moving forward in Long Island. A trio of players from Bridgeport farm, Jake Neighbours, Eemil Vero, and Noah Warren all locked up 4-5 year deals that will see them solidify the teams top 4D, and Top 6 forward core. The final contract was awarded to Cross Hanas in hopes he can better his goal totals from last season which saw him get 15 goals while playing half the year in the top 6 during the rookie campaign. This season it will be full time so Islander fans are hoping for a 20-30 goal campaign out of the young sniper.
Fourth move was trading for a young backstop in Niklas Kokko, sending a 2nd and 3rd rounder with some cash to secure a soon to be #1 goaltender for the franchise. Islanders were able to invest over 24 mill into his development which set him up for full time backup duties and gives the team a few more years of development to get him to elite status for the long term.
The final move to wrap up the off-season was signing a couple of important depth pieces that could play up and down the lineup and give the head coach more options this season. I am talking about winger Matt Pumpel and big Tyler Myers, both bring veteran leadership and will be able to show Vero and Warren the ropes and what it takes to have a long, consistent professional career in hockey. Myers is coming off one of his best pro seasons at the ripe age of 37 with more to give, after putting up over 35 points, 10 goals, and +19 last year, great versatility to a team that just did not have much depth on the blueline last season. While Pumpel has consistently produced in his career, mostly in a top 6 role, he will be asked to take a little different role than he is use to, we are referring to mentorship role for Cross Hanas who is coming into a very import year for his growth and development. If the young forward struggle in the top 6 Pumpel should be able to offer consistency filling that spot, but not before the team gets a long look at Hanas.
We predict this team is going to the playoffs this year and
hopefully gain some much needed experience to get over the hump and bring a cup
back to Long Island.
7/17/2025 - 757 words
