Two weeks into the NHL Free Agency period most teams have finished signing big name free agents. A few big names -- Jaromir Jagr for example -- still remain on the open market, but most teams have shifted their attention to the trade market.
One of the most talked about teams is the Ny Islanders. From the day the regular season ended in disappointment, the Isles have been linked to almost every big name on the trade market. Before getting into those rumors, let's quickly recap all the Isles transactions thus far.
The moves
On April 24th, Defenseman Dennis Seidenberg had his contract extended by one-year, this was notable because most felt that this was a precursor to a potential Expansion Draft deal with Vegas.
Then on May 11th, Goalie Linus Soderstrom was signed to a three-year entry level contract, and he will be in contention for the Isles backup net-minder spot this season.
June 9th saw Right-Winger Steve Bernier signed to a two-year contract extension, and then on June 22nd, the big deal went down. Right-Winger Jordan Eberle -- of the Edmonton Oilers -- was acquired via trade for Isles forward Ryan Strome.
The trade reunites Eberle with his Team Canada teammate John Tavares. The hope being that by having Eberle play on Tavares's wing, the enigmatic winger will finally play up to his potential -- a potential that saw him score 34 goals in his sophomore season -- but has regressed since.
On July 1st, NHL free agency began, and the Isles had a number of minor leaguers file for free agency and/or be non-tendered -- nine players in total.
July 5th saw them sign defense prospect Sebastian Aho to a three-year entry contract, and then July 11th and 13th saw them sign two goaltender prospects -- Kristers Gudlevskis (who was acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay for forward Carter Verhaeghe) and Christopher Gibson -- to minor league contracts.
The team's stockpiling of goalies makes sense as they are looking for a capable backup for Thomas Greiss, and word from sources close to the team is that the Isles could return to the three goalie system that created controversy the past two seasons.
The trades
In terms of trades, the Isles traded forward Mikhail Grabovski, defenseman Jake Bischoff, a 2017 first-round draft pick, and a 2019 second-round draft pick to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Expansion Draft considerations. Las Vegas would end up taking goalie JF Berube in the Expansion Draft to complete the transaction.
A few days later, the Islanders would trade stalwart defenseman Travis Hamonic to the Calgary Flames, along with a conditional fourth-round draft pick, for a 2018 first-round pick, 2018 second-round pick, and a conditional second-round pick.
The rumors
Now for the big rumor. It is well known that the Colorado Avalanche have made forward Matt Duchene available in trade talks, and the Isles have been connected to Duchene from the beginning. However, those talks have died down over the last week as it seems that the Avs are willing to hold on Duchene until they hear an offer that they like.
They have also changed around the coaching staff as the Isles have hired Luke Richardson, Kelly Buchberger, and Fred Braithwaite as assistant coaches -- with Braithwaite taking over the goalie coach responsibilities.
It has been a busy offseason in the NHL, but the Islanders have mostly remained quiet on the major league front. How prudent this proves to be remains to be seen, but the future looks bright.
