The Islanders appear to have an allergy to drafting in the primary round under Lou Lamoriello, but all things considered, their draft record for the reason that general manager took over in May 2018 shouldn’t be so bad.
No, there aren’t any future stars playing for AHL Bridgeport and the jury continues to be out on even probably the most promising children within the system.
The Islanders is not going to be appearing near the highest of any NHL farm system rankings anytime soon, the truth is, they are going to probably stay near the underside.
That, nevertheless, has as much to do with the team making just 16 picks from 2020-22 because the actual record of the players drafted.
On top of that, if the Islanders make the forty ninth pick on Thursday, it can be the organization’s highest selection since 2019.
If there may be an indictment to make, it centers on the seeming lack of interest in keeping draft picks.
The one time the Islanders have used their full stock of picks under Lamoriello was in his first draft in 2018, after they left Dallas with an eight-man class highlighted by Noah Dobson and Oliver Wahlstrom.
Truth be told, Lamoriello didn’t sound all that intrigued by this draft (or another topic) when he spoke to reporters in Nashville, Tenn., on Tuesday.
“Scouts think it’s quite deep,” he said. “But we’ve heard that before. But I believe it’s deep from all the pieces I’ve seen and heard so far as the consistency. It’s pretty deep.”
Barring any trades, the Islanders will pick forty ninth, 113th, 145th, 177th and 209th on Thursday.
Their first-round pick was a casualty of the trade for Bo Horvat.
Their third-round pick became a cap casualty, together with a 2022 second-rounder, when Andrew Ladd was cap-dumped to Arizona in 2021.
It’s actually possible — if not going — that dealing away more picks will likely be essential if the Islanders decide to prioritize moving Josh Bailey’s entire cap hit over the replenishment of their system.
Those are the corners the Islanders have painted themselves into, because of the flat cap and the organization’s enduring belief that the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons are more representative of the team’s potential than 2021-22 and 2022-23.
After they even have picked, the Islanders have done a advantageous job of unearthing players who no less than seem like they will likely be NHL contributors in the future.
Samuel Bolduc (57th overall, 2019), William Dufour (152nd overall, 2020), Aatu Raty (52nd overall, 2022) and Matt Maggio (142nd overall, 2022) all fall under this category, though Raty’s contribution to the Islanders ended up being as a chunk of the Horvat deal.
Arnaud Durandeau (one hundred and sixty fifth overall, 2017) is also one, though he was drafted by Garth Snow, who by some means managed to show up roughly one star per yr from 2012-15.
Simon Holmstrom — the one first-round pick Lamoriello has made since 2018 — didn’t make a big impact over 50 NHL games last season.
The likes of Calle Odelius, Quinn Finley and goaltender Tristan Lennox are all too far-off to have a robust handle on what they might turn into.
The Islanders are unlikely to get picky regarding position, not when the higher a part of their system’s depth consists of just just a few names.
Right defense, though, stands proud as an area wherein the cabinet is bare beyond the NHL top-six.
Despite the Islanders’ depth down the center, it may not hurt so as to add a middle either, especially given questions on how Ruslan Ishakov’s play will translate to the NHL on account of his 5-foot-8, 165-pound frame.
Five picks, with only one before the fourth round, aren’t about to vary the enduring reality that when the present core ages out, it looks like it can be a painful rebuilding process.
Nobody is making big guarantees here.
A mere step forward would suffice.
