The Islanders’ offseason has reached the part where the biggest question is impossible to ignore: who, exactly, is going to score on the wing in the top six?
Mathieu Darche still has time before training camp, but the roster picture is already pretty clear. Down the middle, New York looks strong.
Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat give the Islanders a legitimate one-two punch at center, the kind of tandem that can tilt the ice, hold the puck, and generate real chances. On the back end, they’ve got a defense group built around young phenom Matthew Schaefer.
The trouble is what sits out wide.
Anders Lee tested the market and later signed with the Utah Mammoth, leaving the Islanders without a dynamic scoring winger in the top six. Brayden Schenn is the other notable name in the mix, though he could also end up as the third-line center. Beyond that, New York has young wingers who might grow into the role, but not at this stage of their careers.
That’s why Darche has not rushed into a splashy move. There’s a real difference between solving a problem and creating a bigger one, and handing out long-term money to middle-tier free agents can do exactly that. Keeping flexibility intact clearly matters to this front office.
Still, the current setup leaves the top six looking unfinished.
The cleanest short-term fix would be sliding Barzal to the wing on the top line next to Horvat to open the season. That would open the door for Schenn to take over down the middle on the second line.
Another name worth watching is Patrik Laine, who could be available on a buy-low, high-reward deal with bonuses because of his injury history and the time he missed last season. If the Islanders go that route and unlock him, he could become a 30-40 goal scorer alongside Barzal or Horvat.
For now, the message is pretty simple: Darche does not want to force a move that could come back to bite the team when Schaefer’s contract comes due in two seasons. That leaves Laine as the most intriguing forward option, unless the answer comes from inside the room.
In Other News...
Islanders May Be Waiting Too Long To Trade One Veteran Center
The Islanders have spent the offseason weighing how to squeeze more flexibility out of a roster that still has a few useful veterans attached to meaningful cap hits, and the conversation around Jean-Gabriel Pageau fits right into that larger puzzle. His recent performance and the likelihood of a reduced role have made him a logical name to watch, especially for a team trying to balance present competitiveness with a cleaner path forward.
What makes the timing interesting is that the market may be friendlier now than it will be later, when a player with his profile is more clearly slotted into a smaller role. If New York decides to act while there is still demand, the payoff could be more than just financial breathing room, with the chance to add future assets and give the front office more room to maneuver as it reshapes the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Pete DeBoer Just Named The Islanders' Path Back To The Playoffs
Pete DeBoer did not spend much time sugarcoating the Islanders path back to relevance. In a TSN interview, the new head coach pointed to two areas that have to improve if the club is going to get back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs: a power play that lagged badly last season and a defensive structure that allowed too many dangerous looks against.
For DeBoer, the encouraging part is that neither problem feels permanent if the roster is right and the details sharpen up. He said quick turnarounds are possible in the NHL, and from the Islanders perspective that matters because last seasons miss was not framed as a talent shortage so much as a team that left too much on the table in the key moments that decide games. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Interest In Patrik Laine Says Plenty About Their Offseason
Patrik Laines unsigned status has become one of the more notable offseason lingerers, and the Islanders name surfacing in the conversation says plenty about how teams are weighing his fit. A fully healthy Laine still brings obvious upside, especially on the power play, where his finishing ability can change the look of a unit in a hurry. But with the market slow to develop and only a few clubs even loosely tied to him, the question has shifted from talent to how much a team is willing to commit for that kind of specialized scoring.
For the Islanders, the fit is complicated by a forward group that already looks crowded, which makes any real pursuit harder to see. The Kings have been the other club most credibly linked, though even that remains murky, and the longer Laine stays on the market, the more this starts to feel like a test of patience as much as roster need. What remains unresolved is whether a team will eventually step up with more than a low-risk look and give him the kind of opportunity his track record suggests he can still justify. [Read more 🡒]