New York Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello kickstarted the trades last season and, since joining the Islanders in 2018, has made a trade on deadline day only once.
New York Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello kickstarted the trades last season and, since joining the Islanders in 2018, has made a trade on deadline day only once.
The New York Islanders battle the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night at 7 PM ET, a game that they desperately need to have.
Due to results not going their way on Tuesday night, New York sits seven points back of the Philadelphia Flyers (two games in hand) for third place in the Metropolitan Divison and seven points back of the Tampa Bay Lightning (three games in hand), who hold down the second wild-card spot.
If the Islanders can stay within striking distance, there's no question that Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello is going to look to make moves to help the squad get into the postseason, even if the chances are slim.
The Islanders have four games remaining before the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline on March 8, eight points up for grabs.
Sure, Lamoriello could wait until the deadline to add, but when was the last time he did that?
Lamoriello started the trade train last season, acquiring Vancouver Canucks captain Bo Horvat on Jan. 31, over a month before the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline on March 3.
He then traded for Toronto Maple Leafs forward Pierre Engvall on Feb. 28.
Standing pat at the 2022 NHL Trade Deadline, Lamoriello didn't wait for trade deadline day in 2021, acquiring Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac on Apr. 7, five days before the deadline on Apr. 12.
The last time that Lamoriello waited until the day of the deadline to bolster his club was when he acquired Jean-Gabriel Pageau from the Ottawa Senators on Feb. 24, 2020.
The Islanders have $135,000 in available cap space, so in order to acquire any player, Lamoriello will need to trade a contract or two either in the same deal or in a different deal to be salary-cap compliant.
There's no time to waste, and if Lamoriello has the ability to bring in a player that could give them a shot at climbing the standings and qualifying for the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs with 24 games to go, expect him to make a move to before next Friday at 3 PM.
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