The New York Islanders have turned to Ben Hutton for a little breathing room on the blue line, signing the veteran defenseman to a Professional Tryout earlier this week.
It’s a move built more for coverage than for impact. With Alexander Romanov out for the season and Ryan Pulock now dealing with an injury, the Islanders’ defense group has been stretched thin. Logan Stanley has been a bright spot, but the reality is simple: the Isles need depth, just like every team in the NHL does.
Hutton fits that lane. He’s a journeyman defenseman, the kind of player who can be kept in the mix if the team needs another body later on.
For now, though, he’s only on a PTO, which means he is not actually on the roster yet. New York would still need to sign him to an NHL contract, and that is far from a sure thing.
Still, with the waiver wire and trade market not offering much help, the Islanders are working with what’s available.
The real question is whether Hutton ends up playing a meaningful role this season. The 33-year-old appeared in 55 games for the Vegas Golden Knights last season, putting up six goals and 15 points. For a third-pairing defenseman on a deep team, that’s a solid line.
He also brings size and plenty of physicality, much like Stanley. But whether that translates into what the Islanders actually need right now is another matter.
A lot depends on how you view the Matthew Kessel-Scott Mayfield pairing, especially with the chatter around Mayfield continuing to grow. Kessel has been steady enough, but not exactly a player who grabs your attention.
Even so, Hutton doesn’t look like a clear upgrade over either of them. That’s why this feels more like insurance than a real shakeup. The Islanders could even send him to Hamilton for a stretch and then bring him back into the NHL picture as the seventh defenseman.
There’s also the argument that Isaiah George or Warren Marshall should be getting regular NHL minutes. That may be the direction this eventually goes. But right now, the Islanders want someone who can handle press-box duty if needed, and Hutton is the name in that spot for the moment.
In Other News...
Islanders Have A Real Shot At A Young Forward They Wanted
Brad Lambert is suddenly available, and the Islanders have reason to pay close attention. The Jets placed the young forward on waivers, putting a once-promising first-round talent within reach for any club willing to take a chance on his upside. Lambert has spent parts of three NHL seasons trying to carve out a larger role, but his production has been limited, and he is now in the final year of his entry-level contract.
For the Islanders, this is the kind of low-cost swing that can make sense if they want to keep adding speed and skill to the organization. They had shown interest in Lambert before, so the fit is not hard to imagine, but waiver claims are rarely straightforward. Even with a player they have already eyed, the Islanders may have to wait and see how the rest of the league responds before they get their turn. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Suddenly Have A Real Shot At A Superstar This Summer
The Islanders are heading into the summer with real flexibility, and that alone changes the conversation around how aggressive they can be in reshaping the roster. Expiring contracts and a projected cap increase have opened the door for general manager Mathieu Darche to think bigger than the usual bargain-bin fixes, especially with his background and connections around the league giving him a wider range of possibilities.
One name already surfacing in insider chatter is a major one, and the appeal is obvious given Darches past working relationship with him. Tampa Bay has made it clear it does not intend to move its star, so any path for New York would have to come through free agency rather than a trade market that appears closed off for now. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Are Already Fighting Through A Problem DeBoer Can't Ignore
The early portion of the season has already forced the Islanders to lean on depth in a way few teams would want this soon. After 14 games, they sit at 7-5-2 and in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, with injuries spreading across the roster and affecting both the blue line and the forward group. Alexander Romanov, Mat Barzal, Matias Maccelli, Calum Ritchie and Ryan Pulock have all been part of the unavailable mix, leaving Peter DeBoer to keep adjusting on the fly.
DeBoer has already tried different line combinations to patch over the gaps, including a look with 11 forwards and 7 defensemen. It is the kind of juggling act that can buy a team time in November, but it also puts a spotlight on how thin the margin is when the injuries keep piling up. For the Islanders, the bigger concern is not just surviving the stretch, but figuring out which version of the roster can actually hold together once the schedule keeps tightening. [Read more 🡒]