Another year, another winter that will feature plenty of trade speculation regarding the Islanders and a search for an elite, goal-scoring forward.
The Islanders have been one of the NHL’s best teams to start the 2019-20 season following a 17-game point streak that saw them catapult up the Eastern Conference standings.
But the major shortcoming of the staunch, organized team is goal scoring, which became clearly evident during the team’s California road trip that saw them score just two goals in three nights.
Adding a top-tier scorer before February’s trade deadline would see the Islanders go from an Eastern Conference contender to Stanley Cup contender in Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz’s second year with the organization.
The main issue, however, is whether or not the Islanders truly want to “go for it” right now. They’ll have a golden opportunity to acquire a game-changing forward in Taylor Hall.
The writing is already on the wall that his days with the New Jersey Devils are up as he’ll be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
With the Devils going nowhere, retaining Hall will be a difficult task. But New Jersey offering a lengthy contract worth $10 million-to-$11 million per year when there are other glaring needs may not be the best choice, either.
It makes a trade within the coming three months the most logical option, thus presenting the Islanders with another opportunity to pull off a blockbuster — something the organization has rarely done.
But should the Islanders go for Hall?
At the surface, sure.
This has been one of the game’s top left-wingers over the past three seasons when healthy.
Dating back to his MVP-winning season in 2017-18, Hall has 54 goals and 97 assists in 154 games. That’s almost a point-per-game pace that would give the Islanders a legitimate threat to line up alongside the elite playmaker that is Mathew Barzal.
New Jersey’s asking price is going to be astronomical, though, which is a pitfall when it comes to signing a rental that is under team control for just a few more months.
History has not been kind to the Islanders when it comes to outbidding the opposition — even when they have the highest offer.
A sign-and-trade — like Mark Stone with the Vegas Golden Knights last season — would obviously make pulling the trigger on a deal an easier call for the Islanders. But they would have to part with some key names.
The rebuilding Devils would likely want a first-round draft pick along with a young forward and/or a defensive upgrade.
That would mean the Islanders would have to part with a combination of prospects like Oliver Wahlstrom, Kieffer Bellows, Bode Wilde, or Noah Dobson.
Those are some of the names that made Lamoriello on his team’s future and dealing them would provide a 180 on the organization’s philosophy.
Lamoriello was out on the likes of Stone, Matt Duchene, and Artemi Panarin at the trade deadline last year because he didn’t want to deal from his crop of youngsters.
“We weren’t going to get into a situation where we sacrificed what our plan is, because we feel very good about this hockey team,” Lamoriello said.
Expect that mindset to carry over through this winter.
