Islanders & NHL News: Day one of the draft, and trades are happening
A focused man. | Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
Not on Long Island, though. Expect a quiet week here at home. New York Islanders President and GM Lou Lamoriello met with the media yesterday evening from Nashville, but virtually nothing new was said—nothing of any major significance.
However, other teams have begun to shuffle the decks. Also, the schedules were released.
Islanders Reading
Here is the schedule announcement. The Stadium Series game is on a Sunday and begins at 3:00 p.m. Also, they play the New York Rangers four times. [Islanders]
Live from Lawn Guyland, the #Isles 2023-24 schedule! ️Check out the full schedule: https://t.co/R6dm007IVi pic.twitter.com/vDeAYVgpb1— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) June 27, 2023
However, the Isles and Rangers don’t face off until the calendar flips to 2024, meaning the Islanders and Rangers will have gone the entirety of 2023 without playing one another. [Newsday]
Here are some more interesting notes about the schedule. They open at home against the Buffalo Sabres. They also have more day games at home this season. [Islanders]
Lou had no updates on his pending UFAs or RFAs. He had no update on Josh Bailey or Zach Parise. He did say it’s unlikely that he trades back into the first round, though. And Cory Schneider has given up on getting back to the NHL and will go to Europe. [THN]
The Isles’ first pick is no. 49, so it will be about finding diamonds in the rough. [Newsday]
Over the weekend, the Philadelphia Flyers and St. Louis Blues agreed to the parameters of a Kevin Hayes and Travis Sanheim for Torey Krug trade (with other components), but Krug nixed it with his no-trade clause. Reportedly, the Flyers tried to flip Krug where he’d be willing to go, including the Islanders, but Philly didn’t want to retain salary on Krug. [THN]
Ilya Sorokin received four second-place Hart Trophy votes, including from Stefen Rosner, who explains his ranking. [THN]
Alan Fuehring is waiting patiently for a full-time NHL play-by-play gig; he’s earned it, but it’s a hard job to come by. [Newsday]
Elsewhere
The rumored Pierre-Luc Dubois sign-and-trade finally happened, with Dubois going to the Los Angeles Kings on a new eight-year deal worth $68 million, the Bo Horvat contract. In return, the Winnipeg Jets get Gabe Vilardi, Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari, and a second-round pick. Pretty good return. [NHL]
While Lou was speaking, the New Jersey Devils acquired Tyler Toffoli from the Calgary Flames in exchange for Yegor Sharangovich and no. 80 overall. I would have liked Toffoli. [NHL]
Fun fact about pick no. 80: It was originally the Flames’ pick, and they traded it. Four more trades later, it’s theirs again.
The Draft Pick the #Flames received (#80): -Was originally #Flames-Traded to #SeaKraken for Calle Jarnkrok-Traded to #CBJ for Oliver Bjorkstrand-Traded to #NJDevils for Damon Severson-Traded back to #Flames for Toffoli#CircleofLife#WellTravelledhttps://t.co/FwVK3zpbQk pic.twitter.com/RbcmAOgKSK— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) June 27, 2023
The Toffoli trade signals that perhaps the Flames aren’t thinking win-now as much as long-term, but they do get younger. [Sportsnet]
It was the first domino in Cowtown. [TSN] It’s a sign of trades to come in Calgary. Meanwhile, the Devils get a first-line winger for pennies on the dollar. [Sportsnet]
Kevin Hayes did get traded from the Philadelphia Flyers to the St. Louis Blues after all, but it was a salary dump. The Flyers held 50% of his contract for the next three years and only got a sixth-round pick for their troubles. [NHL]
In a surprising trade, the Colorado Avalanche shipped young Alex Newhook to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for picks. [NHL]
The Toronto Maple Leafs are keeping Sheldon Keefe after all, and they hope to extend Auston Matthews and William Nylander this summer. [NHL]
Because Alex DeBrincat indicated that he won’t sign long-term, the Ottawa Senators don’t have any choice but to find him a new home. [NHL]
The Edmonton Oilers will be moving on from Kailer Yamamoto and Klim Kostin, two guys picked in the first round of 2017, because they can’t afford much in their bottom six. [Sportsnet]
Despite their newfound cap space, it appears unlikely that the Boston Bruins will re-sign Dmitry Orlov. They’re also planning as though Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci won’t return. [TSN]
Oh yeah, the actual draft. Connor Bedard is going no. 1, but after him, there’s plenty of intrigue. Here are Sam Cosentino’s guesses. [Sportsnet]
Ryan Getzlaf, the now-retired, long-time Anaheim Ducks captain, is now a player development coordinator for the only franchise he’s ever known. [TSN]
Schedule announcements have somehow become another gimmick for clubs and their social media teams, but at least some of them are good at it. Some, not so much. [Sportsnet]
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