Why do the Islanders not let their prospects participate in rookie showcases?
The New York Islanders opened rookie camp this past Thursday.
During the first four days of on-ice work, the prospects worked on their skating, puck handling, and physicality.
While other clubs opened up rookie camps around the same time, most convened in several hub cities for rookie games or showcase tournaments over the weekend.
However, the Islanders are one of two teams that doesn't attend these rookie showcases. The other team is the Washington Capitals.
The Islanders previously met with the Philadelphia Flyers for annual prospect games in the mid-2010s, but since then, the Flyers have met with the rival New York Rangers instead.
Other events around the league took place in Buffalo, Nashville, Traverse City, and British Columbia, to name a few.
With New York and Washington staying on their own for rookie camp this year, it's worth noting that participating in rookie tournaments has its set of perks.
For starters, you can look at the showcase featuring four of the league's recent powerhouses in Nashville.
The Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, and Carolina Hurricanes have players who got exposure in game action before ultimately becoming NHL regulars.
For the Lightning, Brayden Point, Anthony Cirelli, Ross Colton, Mathieu Joseph, and Erik Cernak all became regulars, ultimately winning the Stanley Cup.
Among other alumni are Kevin Fiala, Viktor Arvidsson and Juusse Saros of the Predators.
Florida and Carolina have circled in and out of participating.
Washington was formerly a mainstay in the tournament, bringing up the likes of Chandler Stephenson, Jonas Siegenthaler, and Ilya Samsonov.
Another hotbed for talent is the Young Stars Classic, featuring the Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets.
Among notables are Elias Pettersson and Jared McCann for Vancouver, Kyle Connor and Cole Perfetti for Winnipeg, and Matthew Tkachuk and Rasmus Andersson for Calgary.
Edmonton's alumni include Ethan Bear, Kailer Yamamoto, Connor McDavid, and Leon Draisaitl.
Granted, McDavid and Draisaitl were born to be superstars at the NHL level, but giving other notable names a platform to showcase their skills is a good way for those in the executive branch to see what they have in their prospects, especially when competing against other teams.
Participating in a tournament also gives the Islanders an outlet to change a narrative about their farm system.
Their prospect pool is consistently ranked near the bottom of NHL rankings, but that's not to say they can't have a few names come out of their system.
Cole Eiserman didn't make an appearance at Islanders rookie camp this year, but he certainly is the centerpiece after the Islanders got him at 20th overall in this year's draft.
Those in the organization are also high on the likes of forwards Matthew Maggio, William Dufour, Alex Jefferies, and defensemen Isaiah George and Marshall Warren.
As a result, the rookie showcase is an avenue the Islanders are missing out on.
Even as the team gets back into the swing of things with rookie camp, having the opportunity to lace up against other teams' prospects is a good way to gauge the system and specific individuals' progress.
Whether the Islanders go out of their way to participate in one is to be determined, but there's an incentive for the team to find a way to get involved.
Rosner's Response:
Let me play devil's advocate here. Of course, having prospects compete against other prospects is similar to preseason hockey, as it allows management to see how their players stack up against others from around the NHL.
But that's likely why general manager Lou Lamoriello doesn't partake.
Why show your prospect pool to other teams?
We already know that the narrative surrounding the Islanders' system isn't a positive one, usually graded toward the bottom of the NHL.
And, yes, letting the prospects shine against others could certainly lead to the Islanders garnering more respect in that regard -- or not -- but we know Lamoriello could care less about how the media views his players.
It's about protecting value.
Let's use Aatu Räty as an example.
The Islanders' second-round pick in 2021 was believed to be the steal of the draft. When he came over from Finland, he was solid in his first stint in Bridgeport, scoring seven goals and eight assists in 27 games.
Then, Lamoriello made the decision to call up Räty on Dec. 23, 2022, with the prospect scoring two goals in 12 games with the big club.
Fans were enamored with the newest "young stud," but just a few months later, Räty was on a plane to Vancouver, along with Anthony Beauvillier and the team's 2023 first-round pick, with Bo Horvat, Vancouver's captain, on the opposite flight.
It became clear that Lamoriello called up Räty to showcase him, which worked wonders for him in the trade market.
Clearly, Räty's game had flaws, and although Vancouver likely did its due diligence, it seems they thought he would be better than he has been.
Since heading to Vancouver, he's only played three NHL games, mostly playing for the AHL's Abbotsford Canucks in a bottom-six role.
It's quite possible that if Räty had taken part in a showcase against other NHL hopefuls and rising stars, maybe his value would have diminished, and a trade like the Horvat deal would never have come to fruition.
Outside of value, there's also the risk of injury.
The Islanders' prospects are battling each other hard at Northwell Ice Center, but in a showcase, the othe team's prospects will try to do everything they can to show their respective team that they deserve a shot.
That includes laying big, sometimes dangerous hits, which could result in injury.
Injuries can happen anywhere, but they're definitely more likely when tensions are high.
With preseason games coming up shortly, the Islanders youngsters -- at least some of them -- will get a chance to compete and showcase what they got.
So, there's that.