Pool Outlook for Long Island

The New York Islanders had one of the most interesting seasons, especially after everything was published in the preseason, they went ahead and dropped a bomb on the Metropolitan Division, acquiring Johnny Boychuk from the Boston Bruins and picking up Nick Leddy from the Chicago Blackhawks, all in the same day and reshaping the look of their franchise in one full swoop.

It's hard to say what exactly that did for expectations when that happened, but as soon as Boychuk hit the ice for the Islanders, the league, fans and poolies alike, were all in shock as to the wonder of what was going to happen on the ice.

Now with a superstar up front, a very decent blueline and newly-acquired starting goalie, the Islanders were not a joke anymore and nor did they play like one.  The Islanders were a competitive team and certainly showed their mettle in the regular season and the fanfare soon followed.

There is a difference between a good regular season team and a good playoff team, most of which stems from playoff experience, which going into the playoffs this year, they didn't really have in some areas.  They did gain a lot of experience in their 7-game series against the Capitals, which likely puts them in a better position for next year, so there have been more gains made and that's a positive.

The Islanders popularity definitely gained in the hockey pool this past year as well, as their year-end roster had 16 players touched by the pool, even though three of them were dropped through the year, mostly due to injury.  I would say that the Islanders are trending the right way and with some positive moves in the off-season, I think all that popularity would be justified.

You can tell that the Islanders were turning into a real team in the 2015 season, because their number one goalie was picking up a boatload of wins.  Jaroslav Halak finished the year with 38 wins and 89 points this past year, which was good enough for 5th overall and among goalies, making him into a legitimate 1st round selection in the hockey pools next season.  Halak was looked upon to be a workhorse in the crease and he did so and succeeded.

Up front, John Tavares was in the race for the Art Ross Trophy, falling just short with his 38 goals and 86 points in all 82 games this season.  He certainly had himself a fantastic year, living up to all of his hype.  In total, the Islanders had seven pool-worthy forwards and then another one on the border, as Kyle Okposo and Ryan Strome were top 100 forwards, while Frans Nielsen, Brock Nelson, Anders Lee and Josh Bailey were all strong in the supporting cast.  Nikolai Kulemin was on the outside looking in, just a couple spots out from the top 184 forwards and may get some extra consideration next season.

On the blueline, where we started this post, is probably where the Islanders were most impressive, as they had five players within the top 92, which made their blueline one of the most prolific for points this year.  In order, it was Nick Leddy, Johnny Boychuk, Travis Hamonic, Thomas Hickey and Lubomir Visnovsky, all doing the business on the island.  Visnovsky was on the bottom end of that total, even by playing just over half of the games in the season, due to injury.

Maybe the biggest issue for the Islanders and the reason why they were not quite division leaders/winners, was the depth in goal beyond their best player this year.  The Islanders acquired Michal Neuvirth for Chad Johnson at the deadline and was able to get some starts before the end of the year, but there were some struggles, as they rested Halak down the stretch.  Neuvirth, even with his time in Buffalo, still wasn't a pool-worthy goalie, ranking 53rd among keepers with only 14 points.

2016 Pool Outlook

The better part of the Islanders' core is signed on for the 2016 season, which has to make everyone very excited, including the team, which moves to Brooklyn and a new building in the Fall.  There is no question that this team has the potential to remain as exciting as they were in 2015 and their popularity at the draft will be quite high.  Last season, 11 players were drafted from Long Island in September and I think we might see something better than that this coming September/October.

Now that we're seeing the cycle of players through the Islanders system work their way through junior, some playing a bit in the AHL and then graduating to the big leagues and it is paying off.  The team's defense should be getting a boost from Griffin Reinhart this season, as he has already seen eight games in the bigs this past year and 2011 2nd round pick, Scott Mayfield, got some playoff time.  I would keep an eye on the 2014 1st round picks, Michael Dal Colle or Josh Ho Sang, but seeing their team's progression for their young players, they may be held back, barring a massive training camp.

Free Agency and the Salary Cap

Restricted free agency is going to be where the bulk of the work is done in this off-season, as most of the pool-worthy players heading to free agency are going to be restricted.  Brock Nelson, Anders Lee and Thomas Hickey headline those who need new deals.  Lubomir Visnovsky is the biggest unrestricted player, but his time may be up, thanks to his health issues.

Having a bundle of youth on board does help the bottom line for the team, as their cap number isn't outrageous... yet.  Currently, I have 27 players with cap hits disclosed on my sheet and they are coming in at $62.9 million, which leaves lots of room for whatever else they need to do to make this team successful.

Needs at the 2015 Entry Draft

With the team becoming more and more successful, their quality of picks at the Entry Draft become lesser and lesser.  That's okay though, it is still a valuable asset in the league, one that they used this year to acquire Thomas Vanek last season.  The Islanders chose to defer their pick in the deal to the 2015 draft, which was a wise decision, as their pick got significantly worse than the 5th overall pick they had at last year's draft.  The organization could always use more young talent, but the Islanders are now in the function of winning now, so moving that pick helps.

What I Said Last Year, At This Time...

In offering up a prediction for the 2015 season, I would go so far as to say that the season will ride on the lapels of GM Garth Snow and how he can help Tavares and company. Finding a defenseman to guide his youngsters will be key, as Lubomir Visnovsky doesn't seem to be the guy, thanks to injuries and likely a lack of drive at age 37. If Snow can get a piece or two like this in order for the Islanders this Summer, I think we'll see some real excitement on Long Island and likely some good hockey pool draft picks. Oh yeah, and they'll be in the Wild Card race for the playoffs.

Dear Garth Snow,

You can give me credit for the Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy moves at any time now.  Were they the biggest reason why you jumped over the wild card race and into the divisional spots?  I don't think I am the only one to think so.

Sincerely,
The Opiated Sherpa

For the 2016 season, I have a strong feeling that John Tavares is only going to get better and he'll be taking this team and pushing it even farther.  The Rangers still appear to be very strong in the Metropolitan Division, but I think with the improvements that the Islanders and their captain can still make, they can really take a chunk out of the 12-point difference in the standings.  I get the feeling that the playoff run, as short as it was, did the team wonders for their maturity and long-term goals and with that kind of leadership, they will put up a reasonable challenge to the Rangers and likely earn home-ice in the first round of the playoffs next year.