3 Islanders Entering Their Final Year With New York

I believe that the New York Islanders will surprise and be a competitive team. Now whether that means competing the entire season and getting into the playoffs or just being in the mix and not being a clear bottom-feeder or seller is another question. The team made some interesting moves to not head into a rebuild, but retool, and I think they've done it by getting young players like Matthew Schaefer (with some luck), Calum Ritchie, and Maxim Shabonov. With some of the top young players about to break in, there will be more changes by next season.

J.G. Pageau

J.G. Pageau had a nice bounce-back season and continues to be a very good two-way center. He is great in his third line role, no higher or lower. With how he performed and could again this season, I think that is a big reason why we didn't see him traded. Maybe the Islanders try to re-sign him, but the team also has Ritchie coming and he could take over that third line role right off the bat. Pageau is in the final year of his deal at $5 million AAV. He could very well be brought back, but Lou Lamoriello isn't in charge anymore, so the expected move may not always be the one that is made now.

Tony DeAngelo

The Islanders liked what they got from Tony DeAngelo taking on a big offensive role for the team last season and signed him to another one-year deal. He will most likely run the top power-play, especially if Schaefer isn't thrown right into the fire. DeAngelo logged three minutes per game on the power play last season and finished with four goals and 19 points in 35 games while playing 23:21 per game. With a bit more health, his role will be reduced, but Schaefer is the future top power-play defenseman and DeAngelo might have to move on while seeking a larger contract after this season.

David Rittich

David Rittich was brought in by the Islanders to be the third-string goalie that has backup potential. The team needs it with the health concerns of Semyon Varlamov. Rittich should back up for a fair bit of the season, but not play too much unless Ilya Sorokin really struggles. I can see a bounce-back by the team's franchise goalie and Rittich only posted a .887 SV% last season with the strong defensive team in the Los Angeles Kings. The goalie market wasn't that strong this season, but I'm thinking the Islanders take a run at a different goalie next offseason or even sooner if Varlamov's health is still a problem.