Lou Lamoriello and the New York Islanders are playing a dangerous game this summer.
The rest of the Metropolitan Division continues to improve by leaps and bounds, especially their crosstown rivals in the New York Rangers.
An eventful offseason has seen the Rangers add Jacob Trouba and Adam Fox to improve their blue line before drafting Kaapo Kakko with the second pick of the NHL Draft.
Most notably, however, was the signing of star winger Artemi Panarin, who turned down a larger contract from the Islanders to join the Blueshirts.
Panarin seemed to be the Islanders’ top option in free agency this summer as Lamoriello has been quiet since Jul. 1.
The Islanders retained captain and left winger Anders Lee while picking up veteran goalie Semyon Varlamov. It prompted star netminder Robin Lehner, who helped carry the Islanders to the playoffs last year, to join the Chicago Blackhawks.
That’s been it.
For a team that is in desperate need of goal scoring, it’s been an anticlimactic start to the offseason as the offense was a major issue last season.
The Islanders’ ranked 12th out of 16 teams in the Eastern Conference with 228 goals scored while their power play was ranked 29th out of 31 NHL teams.
Without a single upgrade to the forward lines while losing their No. 1 goalie does not bode well for the Islanders next season, especially with the rest of the division improving.
It appears the free agency route will continue to be a lost cause until the team’s new arena is built at Belmont Park, meaning the Islanders have to utilize the trade market to ensure they remain a playoff contender.
To acquire offensive talent, the Islanders must deal from a position of strength in the form of their defense. Both Nick Leddy and Thomas Hickey are trade chips that could at least get a conversation going with blue-line-needy teams.
With the Wild continuing to continue their shake-up after trading Charlie Coyle, Nino Niederreiter, and Mikael Granlund, Jason Zucker remains a top trade target.
The 27-year-old is coming off a 21-goal season but put up as many as 33 two seasons ago.
The Rangers are also expected to trade Chris Kreider to clear cap space for Panarin and Trouba’s contracts. Kreider put up 28 goals last season but it’s unlikely the two New York teams would hook up for a trade.
Lamoriello might find a savior in the desert, though, as the Vegas Golden Knights could trade restricted free agent Nikita Gusev due to salary cap issues.
The Russian product has yet to play a single game in the NHL as he attempts to make the jump to North America from the KHL.
Last season with SKA St. Petersburg, the 27-year-old recorded 17 goals and 65 assists (82 points) in just 62 games.
