islanders

J.G. Pageau Gives Islanders and Their Fans a Glimpse of Future with Memorable Debut

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J.G. Pageau, New York Islanders

The New York Islanders didn’t come away with a victory last night. What they did come away with, was a look at what could be on display for the future.

J.G. Pageau, the newest Islander after he was acquired Monday morning from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for three future draft picks and then signed shortly thereafter to a six-year, $30-million contract, starred in one of the most memorable debuts for the team in recent memory.

“He’s as advertised,” head coach Barry Trotz said about Pageau to reporters following the game.

Pageau started the game on the third line with Michael Dal Colle and Josh Bailey, and his presence could immediately be felt. That trio was one of the best all night for the Isles until all hell broke loose.

Late in the second period right after he recorded his first goal — one that helped the Isles finally solve Rangers goalie Alexander Georgiev after they’d been buzzing all night — Pageau sent a pass to Dal Colle who was caught with his head down, thus taking a ferocious hit up high from Rangers d-man Jacob Trouba. Pageau then went right after Trouba, standing up for his teammate. In that one moment, he endeared himself to his teammates and the hearts of the fans who jam-packed Nassau Coliseum.

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“He’s standing up for teammates right away,” teammate Brock Nelson said. “He hasn’t been here long, but guys have respected him before, he’s going to fit right in.”

Pageau himself also knew he had to something for his new club.

“I want to prove that I want to be part of the family and be part of that group,” he said about the incident. “You saw Bails dropped his gloves right away too. I think it just shows how guys care for one another here.”

Pageau received a five-minute major, ten-minute misconduct and two-minute instigator penalty for his response to Dal Colle going down. But that didn’t matter. The fans still serenaded him with “Pageau, Pageau, Pageau!” chants ala the “Ole” chants he would receive when he played in Ottawa.

As the Islanders rallied to force overtime without Pageau, Dal Colle and d-man Andy Greene — who went shoulder first into the boards in the first period — Pageau was set to come back out for the extra session. He wouldn’t get his chance as the Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad would win the game on a booming slapper that beat Isles goalie Semyon Varlamov just 28 seconds into overtime.

Even with the stinging defeat, Pageau’s night couldn’t have been a better introduction. He was all over the ice, winning face-offs, engaged in the play and showed his physical nature despite his 5’10 frame.

“He made a great first impression on all of us,” veteran Josh Bailey said. “We already knew what he could bring to the table, but I think our fans for sure got a glimpse of it tonight.”

“Here’s a player, we wanted him, we got him for the next six years. He’s impactful, you see how he changes our team in so many ways. You saw how he stepped up. What a great pickup by Lou (Lamoriello). The picks (we gave up in the trade) are nothing, I can tell you that — a lot of picks never play. You’ve got a solid guy who fits right in the hockey team. You saw the character, how he plays. Glad he’s on our side,“ Trotz added.

Looking beyond last night, no one knows how the next six years will play out for Pageau and the Isles. But on his first night in orange and blue, he showed a glimpse of what he will mean to the organization moving forward.

Lou Lamoriello Takes Big Swing for the New York Islanders at the Trade Deadline

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New York Islanders, Lou Lamoriello

Lou Lamoriello believes in his team, and today, he made it clearly known by making the biggest move in his tenure as general manager of the New York Islanders thus far, as well as the Isles’ biggest trade deadline acquisition in nearly 13 years.

This morning, Lamoriello swung a deal for Ottawa’s Jean-Gabriel Pageau for a 2020 conditional first-round pick, 2020 second-round pick, and a 2022 conditional third-round pick. He then signed the 27-year-old to a long-term deal for the next six years at $5 million AAV.

“First of all, we felt that with our lineup, to solidify down the middle we needed a center iceman,” Lamoriello said in a conference call with reporters just after the 3 P.M. deadline had passed. In particular a right shot.”

The addition of Pageau immediately makes an Islander club, who has been struggling to find the right recipe for their third-line center since Valtteri Filppula left in free agency and since Casey Cizikas went down. They’re now deep down the middle for the foreseeable future with he, Mathew Barzal, Brock Nelson and Cizikas.

What the trade also does is add some juice to a forward corps who have been in desperate need of a spark in recent weeks.

“When you’re looking at a center you try to get a complete player who can play in all situations and certainly this young man fit the bill. He has signed an extension and we’re delighted with that, especially with the age he’s at and what we feel he can bring,” Lamoriello added.

Lamoriello wasn’t done there, as it looked like he was also gunning to snag another big-time name, Zach Parise.

Parise and Lamoriello go way back to when Parise was drafted by Lamoriello when he was the general manager in New Jersey. The deal couldn’t come to fruition, and although Lamoriello wouldn’t confirm or deny that there was some smoke to the fire, it once again showed he was taking initiative to keep improving this core group.

I had written on Friday that the pressure was on Lamoriello to do something major, even after he traded for veteran d-man Andy Greene last Sunday. Trading for Pageau was exactly that. It sends a message to the fans, players, and the coach that this is a win-now organization that’s not focusing on the future like years prior.

Making a move like this speaks volumes about Lamoriello and how he’s continuing to keep this franchise moving in the right direction.

He’s tried at the deadline last year and failed. He failed in the offseason with Artemi Panarin. This time around, he didn’t. He connected and it was a home run.

Lamoriello in one instance again changed the narrative that this franchise has a bright future ahead of it. And yes, it might be not be until down the road when we know just how important this day was. But at this moment, Lamoriello got the job done and swung for the fences to do it.

 

The Pressure is on for Islanders G.M. Lou Lamoriello

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New York Islanders, Lou Lamoriello

The New York Islanders season has reached a critical stage, and for general manager Lou Lamoriello, the heat has been turned up to a different level.

With the NHL Trade Deadline just days away, the Isles have lost four straight games following last night’s 3-1 loss in Colorado. They’ve produced only two goals over the previous 240 minutes of play and are now are positioned in the second wild-card spot in the Metropolitan Division.

“Right now we’re going through some adversity, some guys are drying up, we’ve got some people out, and we need some people to step up,” head coach Barry Trotz said after the game. “We can’t look back on this trip, we can’t do anything repair this trip, but we can repair our next game and the following game and focus on what’s ahead of us.”

That frustration being shown by Trotz, the players in the room and the fans, has been mounting for a while. The Islanders’ offense has all but vanished, defensively they’re struggling even with the addition of Andy Greene for Adam Pelech, and the goaltending has been spotty for several weeks now. The playoffs aren’t a guarantee now either as it once was earlier this season when the team manufactured a 17-game point streak.

Those factors combined should provide Lamoriello with enough motivation to make an impact move or two.

Why, you ask?

The East still very much seems open this year, and the Islanders aren’t that far off from being one of those top-echelon teams. They’ve also shown they can play with some of those top teams, having beaten Tampa, Boston, Washington, etc. And getting that extra bit of help could also shorten that gap and give them the boost to make some noise this last quarter of the season.

Plus, a seismic move for the franchise is long, long overdue. No disrespect to Andy Greene, but the Isles haven’t had make-you-jump-out-of-your-seat trade in-season since Thomas Vanek in 2013. You could also throw Ryan Smyth in there, but guess what, that’s already 13 years ago when former g.m. Garth Snow was in his first season calling the shots upstairs. Also, it’s not as if Lamoriello, during his tenure on Long Island, hasn’t shown any unwillingness to add to the organization. He took his swing at Artemi Panarin in the offseason, and he was in on forwards Mark Stone and Matt Duchene at last year’s deadline though before they were dealt elsewhere.

So you see, Lamoriello could very much get something done. And yes, we all know he’s harped on if a deal is struck that acquisition has to be the right fit and bring the right character to the Isles’ room. But, in the position his team is in at this moment, sometimes you have to put those things to the side and just go for it for the sake of keeping your team moving in the right direction.

The stakes are higher more than ever for Lamoriello to make this team better. This is a win-now team despite what some may say. And missing the postseason would be an abject failure on Lou, as well as the entire organization, especially after the Islanders shocked the hockey world with 103-point season and a first-round sweep of the Penguins.

The Islanders will play two more times before Monday’s deadline, starting tonight against Detroit. Whatever happens during that time, it won’t change the fact that the pressure is on Lamoriello to get something done.

He needs too.

The Isles season might be hanging in the balance.

 

The New York Islanders need Anders Lee To Step Up Now

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New York Islanders, Anders Lee

The New York Islanders’ offense as of late has hit a wall. In particular, their captain, Anders Lee, has been one of the biggest culprits.

In the last three games, Lee has recorded a ridiculous 20 shot attempts, and somehow, none of them have been able to find the back of the net. The Isles as a whole only have one goal in their last 180 minutes of play.

“It’s been tough for us lately to find goals,” Lee said after Monday’s loss in Arizona.

“We got that one from [Beauvillier] and couldn’t get the second one. We had chances over and over and we’ve just got to find a way to put it in.”

Lee’s struggles couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Islanders, who are clawing tooth and nail for positioning in the extremely tight Metropolitan Division. Heading into the final matchup of their four-game Western road swing tonight, the Isles find themselves in the final wild-card spot in the Metro.

The team being in that spot only makes it more crucial for Lee to snap out of this funk he’s been in.

Frankly, Lee needs to find that next level and fast. His season has been mired with inconsistent play despite 17 goals and 33 points through 58 games. He’s of the main drivers on offense for head coach Barry Trotz behind Mathew Barzal and Jordan Eberle, as well as the team’s primary goal-scoring threat. Plus g.m. Lou Lamoriello also paid him quite nicely in the offseason — $49 million to be exact — for moments like the one facing the team now.

As a captain, this is the time of year where your leaders are your best players. The Islanders need Anders Lee to be that guy starting now and down the stretch.

Andy Greene Thrives in New York Islanders Debut

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New York Islanders, Islanders

Andy Greene made quite the first impression in his first game with the New York Islanders.

Greene, 37, whom the Islanders traded for on Sunday from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a 2021 second-round pick and 21-year old prospect David Quenneville, logged 19:46 of ice time and recorded an assist in the Isles’ 2-1 loss to the Arizona Coyotes.

“Duck’s legs under water,” the newly acquired D-man told reporters after the game. “I was sitting there trying to make simple reads and simple plays. Try to ease my way into the game and go from there.”

The Islanders had been ailing big time in the absence of Adam Pelech, who suffered a freak injury at the beginning of last month. Greene came in yesterday and immediately filled that void. His presence was felt right away when the Islanders were trailing 1-0.

Just before the six-minute mark of the middle period, the Coyotes came in on an odd-man rush and got off on Islanders goalie Semyon Varlamov that left a rebound and a wide-open cage. Greene, the heady player he’s known to be, saw a streaking Clayton Keller making his way to the front of the net and saved it from being a 2-0 game by blocking Keller’s stick from putting home the loose puck.

“I really liked his game,” head coach Barry Trotz said.

Greene wasn’t done there. He contributed on offense, something that’s rare even for him; Greene only had 11 points on the season before yesterday’s game.

In the third with the Islanders down a pair and them pressing, he threw a shot from the point that was deflected home by Anthony Beauviller, cutting Arizona’s lead in half and notching his first point for his new squad.

The Isles’ penalty kill also saw a boost with Greene’s addition. They went a perfect 2-for-2, and Greene himself blocked one shot and saw 2:32 of ice time with the Isles shorthanded.

“It’s what the doctor ordered,” Trotz also said. “He’s poised. I thought he handled their top line and he’s a good complement for Pully. It’ll definitely be a good fit for us.”

Islanders G.M. Lou Lamoriello still is in need of a forward and could make another move with the NHL Trade Deadline now six days away. But his first acquisition, Greene, showed in one game what he’s going to bring for this team down the stretch.