While it was a fairly calm deadline for the New York Islanders, three former players appeared on the NHL transaction list.
While it was a fairly calm deadline for the New York Islanders, three former players appeared on the NHL transaction list.
While it was a fairly calm deadline for the New York Islanders, three former players appeared on the NHL transaction list.
ANTHONY BEAUVILLIER
Anthony Beauvillier was traded on Wednesday to the Nashville Predators, relinking with now-general manager Barry Trotz for a 2024 fifth-round pick.
The 26-year-old forward played 457 games across seven years on Long Island, recording 102 goals and 107 assists for 209 points.
He immortalized himself in Islanders history by scoring an overtime goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals. It was the final goal ever scored at Nassau Coliseum and it’s one that fans will never forget.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nB9qQT2Rbh0[/embed]
Beauvillier has been on four different teams in the past two seasons, as he was sent to the Vancouver Canucks as part of the package for Bo Horvat, where he spent the remainder of last season.
After playing 22 games this year and scoring only two goals and six assists, he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks for a 2024 fifth-round pick.
The then-Chicago forward continued to struggle, scoring just six points across 23 games before being sent to Nashville.
JORDAN EBERLE
A one-time linemate of Beauvillier’s, Jordan Eberle, signed a two-year contract with the Seattle Kraken on Thursday before the deadline.
The contract has an average annual value of $4.75 million.
Eberle was acquired by the Islanders in the 2017 offseason from the Edmonton Oilers for Ryan Strome, spending four seasons on Long Island.
He scored 76 goals with 93 assists for 169 points over 272 games, mostly playing with Mat Barzal, with whom he developed a close relationship.
Eberle scored the double-overtime winner in Game 5 against the Lightning in 2020:
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o11yBKLzv4c[/embed]
General manager Lou Lamoriello left Eberle unprotected at the 2021 Expansion Draft, and the Kraken took him.
Eberle has spent nearly three seasons in Seattle with 55 goals and 89 assists for 144 points in 219 games.
KYLE OKPOSO
In the final few hours of the deadline, the Buffalo Sabres sent their captain, longtime Islander Kyle Okposo, to the Florida Panthers, who were in first place.
Okposo spent nine years on the island, poting 139 goals across 529 games.
He served as an alternate captain for seven of those years under captains Doug Weight, Mark Streit, and John Tavares.
Okposo contributed to the Islanders' playoff series victory against the Panthers in 2016. He recorded eight points, including a primary assist on Tavares’s double-overtime goal, which clinched the series:
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPhAZ3c-yaY[/embed]
He signed a seven-year deal with the Sabres that offseason and immediately became a leader.
Okposo was named captain prior to the start of the 2022-23 season after serving as an alternate for five straight years.
He now joins a Panthers team that sits atop the Eastern Conference and has a chance to play in his first postseason since the 2016 season.
"I'm very happy for Okie. He's a great guy, a great competitor, extremely knowledgeable with the game, and another guy when I came in that was very great looking out for me and the guys on the team," Islanders captain Anders Lee said. "It's so well deserved for him, and I hope he has a good run, and I wish him nothing but the best.
"At the end of the day, we all have the same goal. And so you just want an opportunity and chance to go after it."