The 2024 NHL draft is set to begin on Friday night in Las Vegas. This is the first big event of the New York Islanders’ offseason, as they hold several draft picks. The draft period offers a chance for the Islanders to develop their team now and well into the future. With the draft just days away, let’s preview what’s in store for the Islanders this year.
After trading away their first round pick last year, the Islanders currently hold a first rounder. They had the 18th overall pick before trading back in the first and second rounds with the Chicago Blackhawks to gain an extra second rounder. The team is only without their third and seventh round picks this year. Their third rounder was involved in the Pierre Engvall trade and their seventh rounder was used to acquire Robert Bortuzzo. With all of those moves in mind, here’s the Islanders current draft capital.
To this point, no one knows what the Islanders plan on doing with their first round pick. If they keep it and use it, it’ll be Lou Lamoriello’s first time doing so in a while. He last made a first round selection when he took Simon Holmstrom with the 23rd pick in the 2019 draft. If the Islanders do go the route of making the selection, drafting a forward would be their most logical option.
Their current forward group is aging, and the prospects in their system are of questionable quality. They urgently need to start bolstering that system and develop their forwards of the future. Thankfully, there’s expected to be a handful of high potential forward talents available in the late first round. Taking a chance on one of those prospects would be a great first step towards revitalizing one of the league’s worst prospect pools.
As the Islanders seek to bolster their roster, their first round pick has become subject to trade rumors. The most pervasive rumor going around is potentially acquiring Winnipeg Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers. The 28-year-old winger is coming off a 25-goal, 32-assist season and has one year remaining on his contract with a $6 million AAV. With Ehlers’ ability to play the left wing, he’d be a lethal and affordable addition to the Bo Horvat-Mat Barzal line.
Among the more unlikely but possible trade routes are players such as Mitch Marner or Patrik Laine. Both of them fulfill a need for another young, scoring winger but have very unaccommodating cap hits. And in Marner’s case, the Islanders would have to fork over a substantially larger trade package to get a deal done.
It’s also worth mentioning that the Islanders could acquire a player there have been practically no rumors about. In 2022, many draft day trade rumors were focused on players like Alex Debrincat and J.T. Miller. But when it was all said and done, the Islanders’ first round pick was traded in a deal that brought Alex Romanov to Long Island. While it’s worth keeping an eye on rumors, expecting the unexpected is also key with Lamoriello at the helm.
Another big storyline to follow is the extra second round pick the Islanders acquired. As is true with their first rounder, having two second rounders gives them a lot of great opportunities. Those picks can also prove valuable in a trade or in adding even more depth to their depleted prospect system. It’s also worth keeping an eye on any defenseman the Islanders draft past the first round. Players like Adam Pelech, Scott Mayfield, Devon Toews and Sebastian Aho exemplify the ability of the Islanders to find capable defensemen later in the draft.
Featured image courtesy of NHL.com
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