nhl hockey

New York Islanders: Matt Martin Signs New Contract

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New York Islanders, Matt Martin

Longtime New York Islanders enforcer Matt Martin has just signed a new deal to stay with the team. The deal is worth $1.5 million dollars over 4 years. A long deal, but this will certainly keep Martin in town for the rest of his career. This deal is beautiful if you truly know what the 4th line brings to this team. There are several implications for the team’s plan going into the future with this contract. So, what does Matt Martin’s new contract mean for the Islanders?

Ross Johnston’s Future

Ross Johnston was signed to a four-year deal worth $1 million dollars a year recently. Martin has also been re-signed for four years, so what does this mean for Ross Johnston? I believe this is basically the end for him on the Islanders. I will forever standby the fact that Martin is a better Hockey player than Johnston. When you need someone to apply pressure and maybe score, you put in Martin. When you need an enforcer who can just beat people up, you put in Johnston.

This is the NHL, not the UFC. Playing good Hockey is way more important than beating up the other team and taking penalties.

Other Players’ Contracts

Thomas Kuhnhackl, Andy Greene, Corey Schnieder, and Mat Barzal all still need new contracts. Corey Schneider will probably sign the 1 year, $700k deal that he was reported to sign in October.

Andy Greene will most likely also sign for an amount around that. I would say a deal around 1 year worth $850k.

Mat Barzal will take almost all of the remaining cap space left with about $800k left for Kuhnhackl. Johnny Boychuk must officially retire first for all this to work, I don’t know what’s the holdup though. And Dmytro Timashov’s new deal is still waiting to be announced. Don’t worry Isles fans, they will resign Barzal soon.

New York Islanders: Training camp roster announced

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New York Islanders

New York Islanders‘ training camp officially hit the ice this morning. And just before the team hit the ice, general manager Lou Lamoriello released the official training camp roster. There were 34 skaters and 4 goalies on this roster, and it managed to answer so many questions. Without any further stalling or build-up, who made it to the 2021 Islanders’ training camp?

Forwards

Let’s get the elephant in the room out of the way. Mat Barzal is on the training camp roster, but he did not take the ice today. This means Barzal has taken a physical and can get on the ice the second he signs his next contract. Another surprise was forward, Tom Kuhnhackl. This offseason, it looked as if Kuhnhackl was forgotten, but I guess Lamoriello had another trick up his sleeve. Kuhnhackl also didn’t take the ice today, it’s either he doesn’t have a contract yet, or because of his shoulder. Dmytro Timashov was on the ice, and that means he did receive an official contract, so that’s one less person to sign. Also, Kieffer Bellows and Oliver Wahlstrom made a few good defensive plays today. Finally, Josh Ho-Sang has still not been invited to camp, and his time with the Islanders has gotten even more toxic than my last relationship.

Defense

The Islanders invited 12 defensemen to training camp, and only half of them will be playing on opening night. Honestly, I don’t see a single top 6 spot up for grabs right now. There are 6 defensemen competing to be the next man up if an injury occurs. This is the case unless Andy Greene just totally forgets what Hockey is. I think either Sebastian Aho or Grant Hutton will receive the honor of being called the 7th defenseman.

Goalies

Four goalies received an invite to Islanders’ training camp this year. Take a guess who got invited. Obviously, Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin would get an invite. And there literally is no one else behind them other than Corey Schneider and Jakub Skarek. No shockers here. This is the full training camp roster. The Isles are in for another successful season if they can develop their young guns properly.

New York Islanders: Mat Barzal contract negotiation update

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Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders

New York Islanders training camp started today, and to everyone’s surprise, they still haven’t re-signed franchise center Mat Barzal. Contract negotiations resumed just last week after the all the dates were announced. Regardless of this, Barzal could sign any day now. General manager Lou Lamoriello and fellow Islanders’ teammates believe that Barzal will sign within the coming days.

Mat Barzal is currently on Long Island and is quarantining in hopes of joining his team immediately after signing his contract. Everyone around the Isles are confident in Barzal’s new contract, but the terms of the deal have not been finalized.

When I think about this contract, I look at similar players around the league. Players like Mitch Marner and Pierre-Luc Dubois. These elite players got bridge deals after holding out for many, many months. Mat Barzal is no exception to this trend. Barzal is 100% looking at a 2-3 year deal. This helps both sides. The Islanders get time to resign all their guys like Anthony Beauvillier, Adam Pelech, and Ilya Sorokin to long term deals. While Barzal can earn even more for a longer period of time-based on his play for the next few years. A bridge deal is the only deal in play here.

Amount

Excuse me if I sound like a broken record here, but the Islanders don’t have a ton of salary cap. The terms of Matt Martin’s contract has not come out yet. The same thing goes for Andy Greene.

I assume it’s either the league minimum or very close to it. So, this leaves the Islanders with about $7.5 million dollars left to sign their franchise center. This is probably not enough to sign Barzal. But Lou Lamoriello can just send someone down or put Andrew Ladd on LTIR and solve this cap space issue. I believe the deal will come in at around $8.5-$9 million dollars. So, my final prediction for Mat Barzal’s new contract is 3 years worth $8.7 million a year.

New York Islanders: Projecting the line for Opening Night

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New York Islanders

The NHL has agreed to resume play on January 13th, that’s not too far from now. And the New York Islanders lineup still has a ton of questions left to be answered. Questions such as, who will be on the third line? What will the defensive lines look like without Devon Toews? Will Oliver Wahlstrom or Kieffer Bellows make the cut? These are the questions that go through the head of every Islanders fan daily. So, what will the lines look like when the Islanders take the ice next?

First Line

I don’t think this line will change that much. Jordan Eberle had a down year last year and looks out of place sometimes, but there’s no one to take him down a line. The first line is going to be Anders Lee, Mat Barzal, and Jordan Eberle for at least one more year. When all three of these forwards are on their game, it’s hard to slow them down. Yes, I believe Mat Barzal will be signed within the coming weeks. The contract negotiations just resumed between the two sides the other day. As for the defense, it’s going to be Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock. No shockers here.

Second Line

During the playoffs, the Islanders had the best second line in Hockey. The combination of Josh Bailey, Brock Nelson, and Anthony Beauvillier was dangerous. These 3 have some of the best chemistry I’ve ever seen in Hockey. There’s no way you can break this line up. It just wouldn’t make sense to do that. Now, for the defense, Nick Leddy and Scott Mayfield will man the second line. The only reason not putting Noah Dobson on this line for Leddy is not wanting two guys with the same shooting hand. I still think you can get around this, but no one really knows Dobson’s abilities.

Third Line

There’s only one guy on this line who I know will actually be here. J.G. Pageau will be the third line center, and he’s not a third-line guy. Pageau plays like a top 6 forward, and if the Islanders didn’t have Nelson or Barzal, he would be in the top 6. On the left-wing of Pageau, I have Leo Komarov. Leo Komarov is a grinder, and Barry Trotz loves his grinders. On the right-wing of Pageau, I have Kieffer Bellows. I understand Bellows shoots left-handed, but he’s waited a long time for this opportunity, I don’t think he can let this one slip away. Very easy to see Oliver Wahlstrom take this spot, though. The bottom pairing for the defense is none other than Noah Dobson and Andy Greene. Greene will most likely retire after this year, but not before transferring all his knowledge to Dobson.

Fourth Line

Albert Einstein was called one of the smartest men on Earth when he discovered the equation: E=mc^2. Barry Trotz is called one of the best coaches in Hockey for keeping Martin, Clutterbuck, and Cizikas together. These three play their best Hockey when they’re together. Though they may be older and slower than they once were, they still get the job done. I don’t see Ross Johnston taking anyone’s spot for a long time.

Goalies

I think it’s pretty obvious who will be in net this year. It’s going to be the duo of Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin, and I think every Islander fan already knew this.

New York Islanders: Who is Dmytro Timashov and what does he bring to the Island?

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New York Islanders, Dmytro Timashov

The New York Islanders made the first NHL trade in 60 days. The last trade in the NHL saw the Islanders trade away top 4 defenseman Devon Toews to Colorado. General manager Lou Lamoriello has now traded for the rights to Red Wings prospect Dmytro Timashov.

This trade is an absolute win for the Islanders. If Timashov breaks out and solidifies a spot in the top 9, this trade makes Lamoriello look like a hero. But, if Timashov fades away to the AHL forever, no one remembers this trade. Future considerations for a possible up and coming prospect, it seems like a good deal on paper. But, the paper doesn’t matter, the player does. Now, who is Dmytro Timashov?

Scouting Report

When Dmytro Timashov was drafted, he was praised as one of the most exciting players from the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. He was a very agile skater with great mitts for his young age. Elite Prospects called him a dangerous player who could wow audiences in the future.

It’s been 5 years since he was drafted, what happened to all this potential? Timashov now seems a step slower than the competition. And I’m never the guy who uses height against someone, but Timashov is lacking height. This doesn’t mean that he can’t use his height to his advantage though. He just needs to be taught how. Timashov will most likely be a top 9 forward in the NHL who could get some serious ice time on the power play kill.

Production

Despite all the negatives I’ve just pointed out in his game, he still puts up some good numbers. In the AHL, he recorded 48 goals, 69 assists, and 117 points in just 241 games. That means he put up around half a  point per game.

Remember, the AHL isn’t just a league for bums, it’s real competition, and Timashov proved he could contribute. Timashov played in 39 games for the Maple Leafs this season and recorded 4 goals and 5 assists. I believe that with good coaching and a better system, Timashov could break out very soon. Dmytro Timashov will most likely start the year in the AHL and maybe break onto the 3rd line halfway through the season.

New York Islanders: Breaking down the possible division realignment

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New York Islanders

The National Hockey League has taken giant steps to get a 2020-2021 season on the way. Earlier this week, it was confirmed that the season will start on January 13th. Only a couple of hours later, the NHL announces there will be a division realignment due to COVID-19.

The New York Islanders are in the “USA 1” division. This is just my name holder for the division, so don’t look so far into this. This division has a bunch of good teams and a few terrible teams. I think it’s the most well-rounded division out of the four. Let’s see who will be the Islanders’ toughest task in this new 56 game season.

Boston Bruins

There’s something about Boston. I don’t know if it’s in the drinking water or the clam chowder, but every year one Boston team is great. The Bruins have been great for so unbelievably long, and they show no signs of slowing down. Their true top line is the scariest line in the league. Along with forwards like Jake Debrusk, Craig Smith, and Charlie Coyle, their forward core is deep.

On the other hand, their defense got much worse during the offseason. They lost two key defenders in Zdeno Chara and Torey Krug. The speedy Islander forwards shouldn’t have much trouble navigating through the new defense.

Washington Capitals

I love and hate the Washington Capitals. They’re such a good team, and I love their top line, but man, they need to go away. People call the Islanders pesky, but what about the Washington Capitals? They keep getting more and more talented as the years go on. Yes, they lost Braden Holtby. But, they gained Daniel Sprong, Justin Schultz, and Henrik Lundqvist. I fully expect the Capitals to make another run at the Stanley Cup with their newly improved roster.

New York Islanders: Reverse retro jersey reaction

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New York Islanders, NYI

The New York Islanders Reverse Retro jerseys are finally here, and damn, they look good. It’s a jersey based on tradition, based on the dynasty of the Islanders. These jerseys are the epitome of what Lou Lamoriello stands for.

This is not a general manager who cares for the little things. Lamoriello is here to help the Isles win a cup, not look clean for only 3 games a year. As I’ve said before, Lou Lamoriello didn’t even want to have a Reverse Retro jersey. But, even without the care for a new jersey, I still think the jersey is as good as it could’ve been.

The Blue

The blue is a dark navy that suites the Islanders really well. I wanted the Islanders to look like supervillains on the ice. And the dark navy only compliments that statement. It’s boarding on purple, and it’s just beautiful. When it came to the blue, all I wanted was for it to be much darker. Definitely gives off that 1980’s feel. Just what everyone wanted to feel. The teams are similar—immense talent on both teams with an even better coach.

The Stripes

The stripes were flipped from the home jersey. Normally the orange is on top of the white, now it’s the other way around. I think it actually looks better that way. The way that the orange looks on the dark navy really pops. I would almost want the orange to be darker than what it is. I think the colors contrast really well between these two jerseys. There’s nothing I hate about this Reverse Retro jersey. My expectations for creativity weren’t high, and it worked out. I think these jerseys are fine for the Islanders. They are here to win championships, not to have the best alternate jersey in the league

New York Islanders: The Fisherman jerseys will not be brought back

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new york islanders hockey player watching the crowd

The New York Islanders have been plagued throughout their history for one reason. Those damn Fisherman jerseys. The ugliest and worst jerseys of the last millennia. Not one person who played on the Island liked those jerseys. Nevertheless, there was hope for some fans that the New York Islanders would have the Fisherman’s come back. This “hope” is completely gone now. The Reverse Retro jerseys will not be the Fisherman.

The jerseys come out on Monday, but this rumor has already been put to bed. Peter Schwartz’s inside source says that Lamoriello wasn’t going to let them play in Fisherman’s. Lamoriello didn’t even want Reverse Retro jerseys, and the final design is very conservative. So what is the final design?

1980 Jerseys

I’m actually not surprised if the Isles go this route with their jerseys. This was the year that the Islanders used in the AdidasHockey Reverse Retro video. It’s a very simple and clean design. The fans have a soft spot for this jersey and the year. It’s a throwback that everyone can appreciate. The jerseys are a bit lighter than what the Isles will end up doing, but it will mainly be based around this design. The main patch is definitely my favorite part.

2001 Jerseys

These dark jerseys are nothing short of sexy. This jersey just screams Alexei Yashin. This also matches more of what the AdidasHockey Reverse Retro video showed for the Islanders. I think the darker jersey’s suites the tone of the season a bit more. The Islanders need to be the supervillains of the league, and that dark blue almost purple gives off of a supervillain feel.

2007 Jerseys

These are my favorite jerseys by far. It’s actually not even close. They keep the supervillain feel and add a bit more orange to the sleeves. I think the orange makes these jerseys close to perfect. If the Isles do bring this jersey back, everyone will be happy. I think the final product will be a mix of these jerseys and the 1980 jerseys.

New York Islanders: Adam Pelech must be re-signed now

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Adam Pelech, New York Islanders

The New York Islanders have to resign key players like Anthony Beauvillier and Adam Pelech next year. Adam Pelech must be resigned right now, and there’s no debate about it. The Islanders with Pelech is like Barry Bonds with steroids.

Already a great team made even better by an outside force that’s underappreciated. The Islanders were 25-10-3 when Adam Pelech was healthy. And the second Pelech tore his Achilles, the Islanders dropped basically every game. They went 10-13-7 and were going to miss the playoffs until COVID. Let’s see what his contract would look like.

Length

If the Islanders can sign Pelech long term, there is no way they won’t. But, the salary cap is tight on the Island, so this might end up being a bridge deal. For the sake of argument, I’m just going to say that he gets signed long term. Now, how many years does this contract entail? 6 years seems perfect for the poke check master. It’s not a short deal, and it isn’t the maximum amount. It gives flexibility for both sides if things go sour. Hopefully, it won’t. Pelech deserves some big money, but how much?

Money

This contract is not going to be cheap at all. Adam Pelech is a top 20 defenseman in the league to people who actually know Hockey. I would even go as far as saying he would be in the Norris trophy contention if the offensive game wasn’t so heavily praised in a defenseman. Adam Pelech should earn $6-6.5 million a year for his efforts. This is a pretty generous deal for the Islanders. Pelech will take a slight pay cut to stay on the Island and win here. It’s the same thing Ryan Pulock did. Pelech will take the pay cut so the Isles can resign Beauvillier and Casey Cizikas, and others. These players aren’t greedy, that’s why they’re here.

New York Islanders: Why haven’t any signings been made official yet?

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Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders

The New York Islanders have not made an official signing in a really long time. There was speculation about signing Cory Schneider and resigning Andy Greene and Matt Martin. But that was about a month ago. It’s been a full month, and none of those signings are official. Why is that? Well, it’s a simple reason, really, the Islanders are saving cap space.

$8.9 Million

This is the number, the one number every Islander fan has heard of every day since free agency started. Your top two players need contracts, and you only have $8.9 million to spend. Lou Lamoriello obviously knows this, and that’s a reason why he hasn’t been able to sign anyone else.

Mat Barzal is taking at least $8 million of the available cap space, and 900k isn’t going to reason Ryan Pulock. Now, I know that teams can spend 10% over the cap until training camp rolls around. The Islanders cannot use this method at all. The Isles do not have the trade bait that other teams have. No one is taking Andrew Ladd’s contract. There has to be a different way.

Burying Contracts

The Islanders have to bury their bigger contracts in the AHL. If you bury Thomas Hickey, Leo Komarov, and Johnny Boychuk, the Isles get a little under $4 million in cap space to work with. This $4 million will be used to sign Matt Martin, Andy Greene, and Cory Schneider. And possibly another couple of guys. Now, Andrew Ladd gets put on LTIR, this frees up another $5.5 million.

The Islanders would have over $14 million to sign 2 players. Barzal takes up $8 million, Pulock gets $6 million, everyone is happy. This scenario is ideal for the Islanders if they can’t trade any of their big contracts away. But, the first method of trading is far and away, the best way to save cap.