Brock Nelson went scoreless in a month for the fourth time in his NHL career.
New York Islanders forward Brock Nelson is a pending UFA this offseason.
In what could be his final season as a member of the team he's called home for 12 seasons, Nelson is in the midst of a slump.
Nelson went the entire month without scoring a single goal and has not gone scoreless in 15 games:
It’s no secret that Nelson has been a streaky player, but it does not help the Islander's situation.
If the team hopes to make the playoffs, they need all hands on deck. A scoreless month from one of their better players is quite the opposite of what a winning team needs.
If the Islander chooses to go towards the seller route at the trade deadline, Nelson is a player that teams are interested in, and the Islanders hope that Nelson will be able to get them back a big package.
While Nelson will still be a sought-after forward ahead of March 7th's NHL Trade Deadline, it's not ideal for the Islanders to see their 33-year-old forward regress.
At some point, age was going to play a factor in production, which is why not moving Nelson last season was a risk for the Islanders.
If Nelson, as streaky as he's been, can get hot in the month of January before his appearance in the 4 Nation's Face-Off, he can get his value back to where it was at the beginning of the season.
Without salary retention, Nelson could get the Islanders a first-round pick and a prospect.
With salary retention, the Islanders may be able to get back a few picks/prospects and even an NHL-ready player.
In 38 games this season, Nelson has 10 goals and 11 assists for 21 points.
He is on pace for 21 goals this season, which would be his fewest since 2017-18.