Someone is going to pay forward Kyle Palmieri this summer. 

The pending unrestricted free agent forward, who is in the final season of a five-year deal worth $5 million annually, is believed to want to remain with the New York Islanders, and the feeling sounds mutual.

However, with Palmieri 34 years old and the team needing as much salary-cap space as possible to improve in free agency, it feels like a team discount is needed for him to remain on the island. 

Look no further than former Islanders forward Jordan Eberle and his latest contract with the Seattle Kraken. 

In his third season with the Kraken, Eberle was set to become an unrestricted free agent but instead chose to sign a two-year, $9.5 million contract ($4.75 million AAV), keeping him with the franchise through the 2025-26 season.

The deal was widely seen as a team-friendly contract for Eberle as, at the time, he ranked fourth on the Kraken in scoring with 37 points (14 goals, 23 assists) in 58 games and could have likely surpassed the $5 million AAV threshold on the open market.

For Palmieri, his looming contract situation is quite similar, as his point totals align with Eberle’s, with 40 points (19 goals and 21 assists) in 59 games.

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Both ranked fourth in their respective team’s scoring at this point in the season.

As well, the two wingers have had similar careers, comparable in point totals.

At the time of Eberle’s extension, he had 695 points (296 goals, 399 assists) in 998 regular-season NHL games over a 14-season career.

Palmieri currently has 519 points (265 goals, 254 assists) in 877 games over 15 seasons.

On a per-game basis, Eberle was just shy of 0.3 goals and 0.7 points per game when extended, while Palmieri currently has just over 0.3 goals per game and just under 0.6 points per game.

Palmieri’s contributions to the Islanders could likely land him a contract worth above his current $5 million AAV -– especially with the salary cap expected to rise to around 8.5% in 2025-26 -– yet his next contract could look much like Eberle’s if he opts to stay on Long Island on a team-friendly deal.

Eberle, a veteran of 272 games with the Islanders, was selected by the Seattle Kraken at the 2021 Expansion Draft.

The now-34-year-old was pivotal in developing Mathew Barzal’s game and leading the Islanders on two, deep runs in the 2020 and 2021 Playoffs.

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Eberle ultimately found success in Seattle, becoming the franchise’s first-ever All-Star in 2022 and the first player in their franchise's history to score a Stanley Cup Playoff overtime goal, doing so in a 3-2 win against the Colorado Avalanche in Game 4 of the 2023 Western Conference First Round.

For Palmieri,  he has seen a career resurgence under head coach Patrick Roy, ranking first on the team in goals (38) and second in points (69) in 96 regular season games since the Hockey Hall of Fame goaltender turned coach was appointed as the Islanders' bench boss on Jan. 20, 2024.

Now, four years since being acquired by the New Jersey Devils at the 2021 Trade Deadline, Palmieri, a Smithtown, Long Island native, has to figure out what's best for his family.

And the Islanders have to figure out if keeping Palmieri through Friday's trade deadline makes sense.  

Michael Ostrower contributed to this report. 

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