Roster/Rumors/Speculation/Trade Talk - 2023-24: Hotel California

[The Real JT]

I think trading Nelson is crazy, Palmieri we’d be selling high and I’m ok with that

You’d be selling high on both of them. Wait until the TDL and you run the risk of losing most of their value. For a team with a thin prospect/asset pool that’s bad management IMO.

The comeback to that argument is that it signifies a tear down or rebuild. That’s not necessarily the case. The assets gained in trading those two players could be used for younger, skilled but less proven NHL ready talent.

 

[MarsTBOW]

Except you know he'd be playing LW with Horvat and Barzal by Halloween....

Gosh NO!
No Beau Please!!!!!
2nd to Bailey, easily the most infuriating Islander in the last 5 years!

 

[Throttle]

Gosh NO!
No Beau Please!!!!!
2nd to Bailey, easily the most infuriating Islander in the last 5 years!

Bc he was expected to be a top 6 player.

If he’s brought back as a bottom six for $2M and under, he brings speed (and warts), but he does have 31 points in 55 playoff games. That’s not too shabby.

 

[Osakahaus]

IDK about that. If they merely signed Hogberg I'd tend to agree with you. But they SIGNED him.

Says its a league min contract at 775K for NHL

 

[MJF]

Bringing back Beauvillier as a playoff performer is quite a hedge for a regular season desert on a team that struggles to make the playoffs. There’s better places to spend the money.

If Beau comes back we’ll put signs all over the room to remind him to have fun out there.

 

[YearlyLottery]

Except you know he'd be playing LW with Horvat and Barzal by Halloween....

I am not sure this is true. We rarely saw Beauvillier up on the first line with all the coaches before. That being said the isles need for a low cost high upside player to actually penetrate into the top six. I am not saying that is Beauvillier though. Sadly he never gained the man strength that seemingly so many players get. He had a few really solid seasons with the Islanders and would be a great fourth liner (or even on the third if they run Cizikas on line three with Pageau getting moved).

These are the types of moves that need to be made rather than further belief in the core.

 

[Throttle]

Here we go. Expecting the perfect player for like $1.5-2M in the bottom six. Like three of them. Good luck.

 

[islesfan3913]

The more I think about it, the more it makes sense to move Pulock this offseason. A top four of Pelech, Dobson, Romanov, and Mayfield is still very solid. Pulock’s cap hit isn’t great for his level of production and his offense hasn’t come along as we hoped it would, but I could definitely see a team taking that contract for a top four right handed defenseman. I think a hockey trade for a top six forward is definitely something that should be looked into.

I know many here wouldn’t be a fan of it at all, but a part of me wonders if Lou will be on the phone with his former employers in Toronto and try to dangle Pulock and Nelson in a Marner trade. Strictly considering just the value, needs of both teams, and contract situations and none of the drama around Marner, a deal centered around those three could make a lot of sense IMO.

 

[doublechili]

A top four of Pelech, Dobson, Romanov, and Mayfield is still very solid.

I liked your post, so sorry to pick on the part I disagree with, but swapping out Pulock with Mayfield in the top 4 would result in the Isles being hemmed in the zone even more than they were this past season. If they're going to move Pulock or Pelech (and they probably should), they need to replace them on the 2nd pairing with a skilled PMD to improve their puck movement.

 

[YearlyLottery]

Here we go. Expecting the perfect player for like $1.5-2M in the bottom six. Like three of them. Good luck.

MacLean and Fasching may both combine for $2 million......

 

[periferal]

And what if it was a more realistic contract like 2 year and 7 million.

What if Lou magically becomes Bill Torrey?

What if... What if... What if...

Why in the world would Lou hand out a 2 year deal when all he does is give out 5-7 year contracts to FAs? And Nelson's next contract is going to be his last chance to cash in so I can PROMISE you he ain't taking a 2-year deal. Not when if he goes to UFA the market will offer him at least 5 years.

All that said...Are we never trading a player while he still has value again? Are we just going to let every single vet lose all their trade value once they sign a long-term deal no other team wants and/or they just start fading into Andersville?

We need to get younger and faster and whether or not it's painful for Isles fans to accept it or not, Nelson is the 2nd best trade chip they have right now behind Dobson. At some point something has to give or you're just going to have a bunch of average and fading 35-38 year olds on long-term deals that are going to handcuff this team for literally years.

 

[MJF]

MacLean and Fasching may both combine for $2 million......

I don’t see the point of bringing back a retread because he’s now right-sized for a salary slot. We already have in house candidates for the bottom 6.

 

[YearlyLottery]

I don’t see the point of bringing back a retread because he’s now right-sized for a salary slot. We already have in house candidates for the bottom 6.

That is absolutely fine. I can also agree with that. The TYPE of players he is (speed speed speed) is what this team needs more of. So while Beauvillier does not need to be the addition they need additions like him. They also need speed on the back end. I think @Richie Daggers Crime brought this up with his 5% of serious posts which I agreed with 100%.

 

[MarsTBOW]

Bc he was expected to be a top 6 player.

If he’s brought back as a bottom six for $2M and under, he brings speed (and warts), but he does have 31 points in 55 playoff games. That’s not too shabby.

Yes, but in the Role of a 4th Liner he is expected to be defensively responsible right?
And Hit Right?
LMAO He gets lost so often that he needs a seeing eye Dog to find the man he is supposed to cover!
When he was here he was allergic to Contact like Engval is...
I get your Point, I just would rather not waste a roster spot on him...

 

[MJF]

That is absolutely fine. I can also agree with that. The TYPE of players he is (speed speed speed) is what this team needs more of. So while Beauvillier does not need to be the addition they need additions like him. They also need speed on the back end. I think @Richie Daggers Crime brought this up with his 5% of serious posts which I agreed with 100%.

What we need are guys with hands who can move the puck quickly, accurately, and not squeeze their sticks into sawdust. Speed is fine as long as the guy can handle the puck.

 

[Throttle]

Yes, but in the Role of a 4th Liner he is expected to be defensively responsible right?
And Hit Right?
LMAO He gets lost so often that he needs a seeing eye Dog to find the man he is supposed to cover!
When he was here he was allergic to Contact like Engval is...
I get your Point, I just would rather not waste a roster spot on him...

Let’s see what other options come along. It’s all early speculation and discussion.

 

[Throttle]

I liked your post, so sorry to pick on the part I disagree with, but swapping out Pulock with Mayfield in the top 4 would result in the Isles being hemmed in the zone even more than they were this past season. If they're going to move Pulock or Pelech (and they probably should), they need to replace them on the 2nd pairing with a skilled PMD to improve their puck movement.

I don’t think Mayfield at this point can be a top 4 guy outside the Trotz game plan. Agreed, it would be getting hemmed in own zone or an icing fest.

 

[islesfan3913]

I liked your post, so sorry to pick on the part I disagree with, but swapping out Pulock with Mayfield in the top 4 would result in the Isles being hemmed in the zone even more than they were this past season. If they're going to move Pulock or Pelech (and they probably should), they need to replace them on the 2nd pairing with a skilled PMD to improve their puck movement.

I definitely agree Mayfield would be the big player sticking out there in a negative way. However I do think we could get away with it if we were able to bring back Reilly and add a really solid bottom pairing RHD. I would prefer Mayfield on the bottom pairing as well, but I just don’t think we would have the assets either in terms of players or cap space to bring one in. I’d rather try to upgrade the top six forwards and take the hit on paper defensively and hope the addition of a strong bottom pairing defender can help. Also, Sorokin coming back strong would be a big help on defense which I think we all expect to happen.

 

[Chockey22]

I definitely agree Mayfield would be the big player sticking out there in a negative way. However I do think we could get away with it if we were able to bring back Reilly and add a really solid bottom pairing RHD. I would prefer Mayfield on the bottom pairing as well, but I just don’t think we would have the assets either in terms of players or cap space to bring one in. I’d rather try to upgrade the top six forwards and take the hit on paper defensively and hope the addition of a strong bottom pairing defender can help. Also, Sorokin coming back strong would be a big help on defense which I think we all expect to happen.

If mayfield is in the top 4 for more than a handful of games, the Isles are in serious trouble. I'm not opposed to moving Pulock for more top 6 forward talent, but if the plan is to promote Mayfield, that top 6 talent coming back better be elite, because the team D will be much worse.

What we need are guys with hands who can move the puck quickly, accurately, and not squeeze their sticks into sawdust. Speed is fine as long as the guy can handle the puck.

exactly - Gauthier brought speed; but not much more. I think Beau is an improvement on Gauthier, so if the competition is between those two for the fourth line, sure bring back Beau - as long as it's cheap

 

[YearlyLottery]

What if Lou magically becomes Bill Torrey?

What if... What if... What if...

Why in the world would Lou hand out a 2 year deal when all he does is give out 5-7 year contracts to FAs? And Nelson's next contract is going to be his last chance to cash in so I can PROMISE you he ain't taking a 2-year deal. Not when if he goes to UFA the market will offer him at least 5 years.

All that said...Are we never trading a player while he still has value again? Are we just going to let every single vet lose all their trade value once they sign a long-term deal no other team wants and/or they just start fading into Andersville?

We need to get younger and faster and whether or not it's painful for Isles fans to accept it or not, Nelson is the 2nd best trade chip they have right now behind Dobson. At some point something has to give or you're just going to have a bunch of average and fading 35-38 year olds on long-term deals that are going to handcuff this team for literally years.

I can accept Nelson not being traded at the deadline. I can accept even keeping Nelson for another contract. I cannot accept keeping Nelson if all of the Lee, Pageau, Pelech, Palmieri, Pulock players are coming back though.

Nelson is such a great trade chip for this team. IF the deal is done correctly it can set the Isles up in a similar way the Tavares trade should have set them up at the time.

 

[PWJunior]

I can accept Nelson not being traded at the deadline. I can accept even keeping Nelson for another contract. I cannot accept keeping Nelson if all of the Lee, Pageau, Pelech, Palmieri, Pulock players are coming back though.

Nelson is such a great trade chip for this team. IF the deal is done correctly it can set the Isles up in a similar way the Tavares trade should have set them up at the time.

Trading Nelson would be a seismic move, but I agree that it could really set up the Isles to re-stock the cupboard and add young skill for a re-tool. I would try and load up 2025 or even 2026 picks for extra lottery tickets for Hagens or McKenna. As part of the return, try and get a conditional top-10 protected 2025 pick that could be a 2026. Get a 2025/2026 2nd also. In a Dream scenario, something wacky happens and we get McKenna in 2026. Boom Shakalaka!

 

[ekill08x]

I think trading Nelson is crazy, Palmieri we’d be selling high and I’m ok with that

not getting the most out of an aging asset whose due a new contract after next year is way crazier.

 

[JTToilinginToronto]

As much as I hate bringing players like this back, I think he’d be a great fit with Cizikas.

We have enough 4th liners as is. I don't think we need any more.

Team can easily fill out its 4th line even if Martin and Clutterbuck are shown the door.

 

[Throttle]

not getting the most out of an aging asset whose due a new contract after next year is way crazier.

Opposite view: Nelson wants to stay and remain an Islander his entire career. From draft to retirement.

 

[Lek]

ummm....we are seriously having a conversation about Beau and Gauthier?

Sheeeeeesh.....