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Islanders, Jets Explored Brock Nelson Trade At Deadline

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The New York Islanders landed a Trade Deadline steal when they sent aging veteran Brock Nelson to the Colorado Avalanche for top prospect Calum Ritchie, defenseman Oliver Kylington, and draft picks in the 2026 first-round and 2028 third-round. But new reports have shared that New York could’ve found a jackpot return even if their offer with Colorado fell through. Marco D’Amico of Responsible Gaming reports that the Winnipeg Jets were also aggressive in their pursuit of acquiring Nelson – and were ready to offer a package very similar to Colorado’s. D’Amico specifies that Winnipeg would have offered up one of Brad Lambert, Brayden Yager, or Colby Barlow in the return, in addition to future draft capital.

New York can rest happy with how things ended up, but acquiring one of Winnipeg’s top names would have been just as lucrative. All three prospects offer their own upside, led by 2023 14th-overall pick Brayden Yager, who scored 82 points in just 54 WHL games this season. He also chipped in 14 points in 16 playoff games – but fell short of the championship run he went on with the Moose Jaw Warriors last season. Yager is likely headed for the pros next season, and could rapidly rise up Winnipeg’s depth chart with a hot start to his career.

Lambert is another top prospect, though expectations around him have cooled slightly after he scored 35 points in 61 AHL games this season – 20 fewer than he managed in 64 games last year. Lambert’s a dynamic and skilled forward, but is still a bit small for pro competition. He offers plenty of upside, but will need to first rediscover the scoring he posted last year.

Barlow is perhaps the most unheralded of the bunch after wrapping up his age-20 season in the OHL. He scored 32 goals and 61 points in 62 games this year. That mark continued his quiet slide down the OHL leaderboard – after he posted 40 goals and 58 points in 50 games last year, and 46 goals and 79 points in 59 games of his draft year in 2022-23. But Barlow intercut that with three points in three AHL games at the end of last season, and could translate as a hard-nosed scorer with pro-level physicality.

But while all three prospects carry reason for upside and reason for question, D’Amico specified that a deal with the Jets fell through because Nelson was unwilling to waive his no-trade clause to head to Canada. He instead waived it to land in Colorado, earning the Islanders the rights to Ritchie just a few months after he made the NHL roster directly out of training camp. Ritchie played in seven games and scored his first NHL goal before returning to the OHL for a dominant season. He posted 70 points in 47 regular season games, and 25 points in 21 playoff games, while serving as the clear-cut top center on an Oshawa Generals lineup that made it all the way to the OHL Championship.

Islanders Name Mathieu Darche General Manager

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2:01 p.m.: Darche has been given the title of general manager and executive vice president of hockey operations, the Islanders announced. Giving him a dual title suggests they won’t be hiring another person for oversight, at least not yet – Darche will report directly to ownership. Minority owner John Collins had the following statement:

Mathieu is the perfect choice to lead our hockey operations. He will be given every resource available to put the Islanders first-in-class on the ice, with our business initiatives, and in the community. Mathieu has served as a key member of the Tampa Bay Lightning and has a diverse background in top-level business models. He is a proven winner and is committed, as is our ownership group, to building a group that will be highly competitive next season and beyond.

11:33 a.m.: The Islanders are expected to name Mathieu Darche as their new general manager later today, sources tell Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. The now-former assistant GM of the Lightning was one of two finalists for the role alongside Kings senior advisor and former Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin, per multiple reports.

Darche, 48, steps into the GM’s chair for the first time. He has some big shoes to fill, succeeding Hall-of-Fame executive Lou Lamoriello in the role after the Isles announced last month they wouldn’t be renewing his contract.

It’s a quick ascension for Darche, who’s only been in front-office roles for six years. After ending his playing career as an NHL/AHL tweener in 2013, he worked in the private sector before joining the Lightning, where he played a career-high 73 games in the 2007-08 season, as their director of hockey operations for the 2019-20 campaign. Darche kept the role until his departure from the organization today, although the organization added the AGM title to his duties beginning with the 2022-23 campaign.

The Quebec native has gotten plenty of experience as part of the management team of a perennial contender. He was involved in the Lightning’s three straight trips to the Stanley Cup Final from 2020 to 2022 and won on his first two tries. While playoff success has evaded Tampa in the years since, they’ve remained a consistent threat in a tough Atlantic Division and have navigated some seismic roster changes like the departure of franchise fixture Steven Stamkos, continually retooling to stay just young enough to extend their championship contention window.

Darche won’t be the only front-office hire the Islanders announce in the coming days. They’re also looking for a president of hockey operations to oversee Darche, hiring two people to replace the dual roles Lamoriello held. That could very well be former Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan, who’d been granted permission to interview with the Isles before Toronto announced they wouldn’t extend his contract.

He’ll be charged with steering the ship through a retool on Long Island that started in the final months of Lamoriello’s tenure. He jettisoned top-six staple Brock Nelson to the Avalanche at the trade deadline but gave their limited prospect pool a huge boost in the form of center Calum Ritchie, a star playmaker with OHL Oshawa whom Colorado drafted 27th overall in 2023, and a 2026 first-round pick. The lottery balls also bounced the Isles’ way to vault them from 10th to first overall in this year’s draft, giving Darche his pick between dynamic two-way defender Matthew Schaefer or star offensive center Michael Misa as the cornerstone of his retool.

Image courtesy of Eric Bolte-Imagn Images.

Islanders Close To Hiring Next General Manager

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According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, the New York Islanders are closing in on their next General Manager. Pagnotta did not provide specifics but mentioned that Mathieu Darche and Marc Bergevin remain in the conversation. Arthur Staple of The Athletic confirmed Pagnotta’s findings.

Neither name is surprising, as the Islanders reportedly gave both a second interview a few days ago. Still, as Staple notes, it could prove a hurdle if the Islanders hope to hire Brendan Shanahan. Yesterday, New York reportedly received permission to interview Shanahan. Although the Toronto Maple Leafs announced they will proceed without him, he may not appreciate that a General Manager was appointed before him.

Whoever is ultimately named the Islanders’ next General Manager will have an important task ahead of them in the coming weeks. Aside from the needed roster changes, the Islanders won the 2025 NHL Draft Lottery on May 5th, giving them this summer’s first overall pick.

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Islanders Obtain Permission To Interview Brendan Shanahan

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1:45 p.m.: The Leafs have granted New York’s request and made Shanahan available for interview, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports.

12:57 p.m.: The Islanders have asked the Maple Leafs for permission to interview Brendan Shanahan for their vacant president of hockey operations role, Chris Johnston of The Athletic reports Monday. It’s still unknown whether that permission was granted, Pierre LeBrun of TSN relays.

Shanahan, who’s served as Toronto’s president since the 2014-15 season, is on an expiring contract. After another Game 7 defeat and no Conference Finals appearances during his 11-year tenure, few expect him to receive an extension offer from the Maple Leafs.

While Toronto’s ownership group doesn’t “want to make any knee-jerk or emotional decisions,” Johnston writes, their blown 2-0 series lead to the Panthers in the second round and 6-1 losses in Games 5 and 7 at home “has left ownership disappointed and embarrassed,” per league sources. If they opt not to renew Shanahan’s contract, it’s likely they’ll move forward with general manager Brad Treliving as their top hockey operations decision maker and not replace Shanahan’s president role.

As for the Islanders, they’re looking for both a president and general manager after parting ways with Lou Lamoriello, who held both of those roles, a month ago. Their search is reportedly down to Kings senior advisor Marc Bergevin and Lightning assistant GM Mathieu Darche. While they may consider giving dual POHO/GM duties to Bergevin, who had experience pulling double duty during his time with the Canadiens, Darche would be a GM-only hire as he steps into the chair for the first time. Toronto’s willingness to let Shanahan get involved in the Islanders’ search could thus influence their decision between Bergevin and Darche.

Shanahan’s role with the Leafs was the Hall-of-Fame winger’s first with an NHL club. His previous executive experience came with the league offices as their VP of hockey and business development from 2009 to 2011 and then VP of player safety from 2011 to 2014.

Islanders’ Bo Horvat Suffers Lower-Body Injury

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According to an announcement from the New York Islanders, forward Bo Horvat sustained a lower-body injury for Team Canada during the IIHF World Championships. The team stated that Horvat is returning to New York for evaluation from the team’s doctors.

Horvat wraps up his first international tournament in seven years with four goals and eight points in six games for Team Canada. Canada will enter the playoff round as the highest-ranked seed from the ’Group A’ Division.

While the Islanders were vague about Horvat’s injury, the team remains hopeful he can begin training camp on time. He’s been remarkably healthy since moving from Vancouver to Long Island during the 2022-23 season, appearing in 162 regular-season contests for the Islanders over the past two years.

In a separate announcement, Hockey Canada shared that they have already found Horvat’s replacement for the remainder of the tournament. Top prospect for the 2025 NHL Draft, Porter Martone, has joined Team Canada’s roster.

Martone is considered a safe top-five selection in this summer’s draft, and could even find his way into the top-three. He recently concluded his junior season with the Brampton Steelheads, recording 37 goals and 98 points in 57 games, along with an additional four goals and nine points in six postseason contests.

He’s no stranger to international hockey, either. Martone is only a year removed from an impressive showing at the U18 World Junior Championships for Team Canada, scoring five goals and 17 points in seven tournament games.

Islanders Hold Second Interviews With Marc Bergevin, Mathieu Darche

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The New York Islanders have reportedly held second interviews with two general manager candidates. The first is former Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin, per Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. The second is Tampa Bay Lightning assistant general manager Mathieu Darche, per Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News. Seravalli went on to add that Bergevin and Darche are expected to be the final two horses in the race for New York’s GM role.

Little has come out about the Islanders’ search for a new GM, but the final picture of the race features two very different candidates. Bergevin is among the most tenured front office staff in the hockey world, headed for the 20th anniversary of his first hockey management role this summer. Meanwhile Darche was hired in Tampa Bay just six seasons ago, and has only served as assistant general manager for the last three years.

That imbalance helps Bergevin’s resume look particularly bolded. He served 10 years as the Canadiens’ GM from the start of 2012-13 to the end of 2021-22. His tenure was headlined by six postseason appearances, including a flash-in-the-pan run to the 2021 Stanley Cup Final. Bergevin managed the careers of iconic Canadiens players like Carey Price, Max Pacioretty, Shea Weber and P.K. Subban – including the shocking trade that swapped the latter two in 2016. He also managed the draft warrooms that selected Artturi Lehkonen (2013), Mikhail Sergachev (2016), and Cole Caufield (2019).

Bergevin’s management of his stars, and his control over Montreal’s heap of draft picks each year, earned criticism as Montreal dragged into a decade with little significant postseason success. But his extended tenure, and recent advisor role with the emerging Los Angeles Kings, could entice the Islanders as they look to change GMs for the first time since 2018.

If the Islanders are willing to be a bit more flexible with their job requirements, they could find a candidate-with-upside in Darche. The 48-year-old has already won two Stanley Cups in his young managerial career, serving as Director of Hockey Operations while the Lightning won back-to-back Cups in 2020 and 2021. Darche was promoted to assistant general manager one year later, and has quickly built a reputation for lucrative contract management and negotiations. That could be invaluable expertise as he eyes an Islanders roster with three contracts north of $8MM.

The Islanders missed the postseason for just the second time since 2019-20 this season. Their GM hire will be quickly tasked with reversing those fortunes, with a roster that wields stars Mathew Barzal, Ilya Sorokin, and Bo Horvat; as well as the first-overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. Both candidates have plenty of postseason experience, though their management careers are a competition of quality versus quantity.

Offseason Checklist: New York Islanders

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The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that aren’t taking part in the playoffs plus those eliminated in the first round.  Accordingly, it’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at the Islanders.

Things were optimistic for the Isles heading into 2024-25 after adding Anthony Duclair in free agency to bolster the top line and having a full season of Patrick Roy behind the bench as head coach. Things went awry almost instantly out of the gate, though, and injuries and other factors ended the Isles’ brief postseason streak at two years. After flopping around in mushy middle territory since back-to-back Eastern Conference Final appearances several years ago, a front-office shakeup resulted from this year’s disappointments with general manager Lou Lamoriello’s contract not being renewed. That’s the leadoff subject in this checklist as the Isles attempt to use this summer to rediscover their identity and direction.

Reshape The Front Office

After seven years and a pair of General Manager of the Year awards, the Lamoriello era is over on the Island. While the 82-year-old leaves New York with some solid building blocks, he’s also saddled them with some ill-advised long-term contracts for depth players that quickly appear headed for buyouts or waivers (Pierre Engvall, Scott Mayfield). They’re now looking for a new face – or two – to fill their GM and president of hockey operations roles.

Per multiple reports, they’ve been connected to various candidates but have lost out on their two preferred ones. Hall-of-Fame executive Ken Holland would have been a similarly-minded hire to Lamoriello’s in 2018, but he spurned the Islanders’ interest to take over the Kings’ GM vacancy. Canadiens executive VP of hockey operations Jeff Gorton declined to speak with the Islanders when they called Montreal about interviewing him.

There are more than enough candidates to choose from in their absence. Regarding NHL GM experience, they interviewed former Blue Jackets executive Jarmo Kekäläinen. They are also said to be interested in L.A. senior adviser Marc Bergevin, who ended up being second fiddle to Holland in the Kings’ search for a new GM. Neither has the track record of managing contenders that Holland has nor the expert drafting record Gorton boasts. Still, they’ve navigated similar situations to what the Isles find themselves in now. Bergevin helped some goalie-reliant Habs teams in the mid-2010s make deep playoff runs and even got them to a Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2021. Kekäläinen also built Columbus into a consistent playoff contender in the late 2010s, the only time they’ve qualified for the postseason in consecutive seasons.

More under-the-radar options they’ve interviewed include Lightning assistant GM Mathieu Darche and Devils AGM Kate Madigan. Both would be first-time GMs at the NHL level. It would be a tad surprising to see them go in those directions, considering the NHL experience their first choices for the position had. But the former has been in GM conversations for years and is the most appealing first-time target.

Whatever the choice is, they’ve got to make it before the draft, where they hold the first overall pick for the first time since selecting John Tavares in 2009 after winning the lottery. While 2025 is a weaker draft, the Isles’ next GM is getting a significant jumpstart to a long-lagging prospect pool that also received a lovely parting gift from Lamoriello in the form of Avalanche first-rounder Calum Ritchie in this year’s Brock Nelson deadline deal.

Get Ilya Sorokin More Help

Some eyebrows raised when the Isles signed a then-35-year-old Semyon Varlamov to a four-year, $11MM deal two summers ago to continue as countryman Ilya Sorokin’s backup. While the veteran has provided the Isles some solid goaltending in his tenure there, concerns about giving him such a lengthy commitment emerged aggressively this season.

Varlamov’s season ended in December after undergoing a knee procedure. While he anticipates being ready for training camp in the fall, he struggled to a .889 SV% and 3-4-3 record in 10 starts before going under the knife. That resulted in Sorokin making 55-plus starts for the third straight year, during which his numbers have steadily declined. It’s clear he needs more rest, and it’s becoming even more clear that Varlamov can no longer help him with that.

Entering this year, Varlamov had logged a SV% above .910 in five consecutive campaigns. With only two years left at a $2.75MM cap hit, he’d draw significant trade interest if the Islanders opted to shop him amid a relatively weak UFA market. That trade could look like a backup-for-backup swap that allows the Isles to get someone more comfortable making 30 starts behind Sorokin, or it could be a cap dump that will enable them to hedge their bets on one of the few UFA options capable of shouldering that workload.

Shoring up their minor-league depth should be a priority, too. AHL Bridgeport has iced some highly underwhelming rosters over the past few years, including between the pipes. A high-end No. 3 option to complement Varlamov and allow Sorokin not to increase his workload if the former gets injured could also be another solution here.

Make Decisions On Defense

The Islanders only have three defensemen signed to one-way deals for next season. One of those is Mayfield, who may not even be in the opening night lineup. That leaves Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock as the only current certainties for 2025-26.

The most pressing decisions are regarding the length of deals to pursue with pending restricted free agents Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov. The former is still just 25 and erupted for a 70-point campaign last year but took a significant step back in 2024-25. Could that be enough to convince the Isles’ new GM to pursue another bridge agreement and risk losing him in unrestricted free agency in just a few years? It seems likely – his profile likely commands him at least $8.5MM per season on a max-term extension. The Islanders’ appetite to dole that out after a season in which he had 39 points and a -16 rating in 71 games probably isn’t very strong. If they opt to select defenseman Matthew Schaefer first overall, Dobson could become expendable altogether and net them a trade return that allows them to put more work into reshaping their forward group.

They’d be more amenable to a long-term deal at a mid-range cap hit with Romanov, who’s emerged as a solid top-four complementary piece on the Island. Injuries limited him to 64 games this year but he managed 20 points for a career-high 0.31 points per game mark while averaging over 22 minutes per game and leading the club with 165 blocked shots. Now fully proven as a stable partner for Dobson moving forward, he’ll get a definite raise on his current $2.5MM cap hit.

Their other RFAs on the back end are Adam Boqvist and Scott Perunovich, a pair of puck-moving in-season pickups. Qualifying offers for either one are uncertain, but Boqvist is more likely to stick around. The 2018 No. 8 overall pick found more stable footing in New York after they claimed him off waivers from the Panthers, finishing the year with eight points in 17 games in bottom-pairing minutes and fringe power-play usage. He could stick around as a No. 6/7 option to help out the Islanders’ beleaguered goal production. Perunovich, meanwhile, suited up just 11 times after being acquired from the Blues in January. That doesn’t bode well for his chances of sticking around on the NHL roster as the Isles look to reload with more established names.

It could be they decide both Boqvist and Perunovich are expendable if they reach an extension with pending UFA Tony DeAngelo. The much-maligned offensive rearguard came over from Russia midseason to fill the void left by injuries to Dobson and Pulock and provided solid offense from the point, finishing the year with 19 points and a -11 rating in 35 games. He certainly won’t see over 23 minutes per game next year, but he got a larger sample than either Boqvist or Perunovich and is more likely than either to start next year as the No. 3 righty behind Dobson and Pulock.

Restart Kyle Palmieri Extension Talks

The Isles didn’t move Palmieri at the trade deadline, mostly because they had an extension mostly in place. With Lamoriello gone and no deal signed, Palmieri’s next deal plunges into uncertainty. The 34-year-old has played 82 games in back-to-back years and finished third on the team in scoring with 24 goals and 48 points this season. Still a very good middle-six scorer, can the incoming GM bring him back at a slight discount compared to his current $5MM cap hit?

Doing so would give them the flexibility to move on from some less desirable contracts, namely Engvall’s and Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s, as they look to reload their forward group. That forward corps could include a name like James Hagens or Michael Misa on opening night next year, depending on how they use their top pick, making cap flexibility even more attractive to build around one of them while they’re still on their entry-level deals.

Regardless of all that, Palmieri’s the type of player the Isles should look to retain on a short-term deal if they’re serious about quickly reloading for next season. He’s been remarkably consistent over his four full years on the Island – his 24-24–48 scoring line actually matched his 82-game average during his New York tenure. He’s more of a known commodity to them than UFA replacements that would cost the same (or even more) for similar rates of scoring production.

Image courtesy of Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images.

Islanders Could Pursue Brendan Shanahan For Next President

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  • According to The Athletic’s Arthur Staple, Brendan Shanahan could be a name to look out for regarding the New York Islanders’ President of Hockey Operations and General Manager vacancies. Shanahan has served as the Toronto Maple Leafs’ President since the 2014-15 season, and his contract expires on June 30th this summer. Should Toronto fail to reach the Stanley Cup Final or Eastern Conference Final, Staple believes the Islanders could encourage Shanahan to make a lateral move to the East Coast, and hire Toronto’s special assistant to the General Manager, Shane Doan, as their next General Manager.

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Islanders To Interview Jarmo Kekalainen For GM Position

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Several candidates have interviewed or will soon be interviewed for the Islanders vacant general manager position including Ken Holland, Marc Bergevin, Mathieu Darche, and Kate Madigan.  There’s at least one more candidate for the spot as Arthur Staple of The Athletic reports (subscription link) that former Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen is also expected to interview for the job this week.

Kekalainen was one of the NHL’s more longer-tenured GMs until last spring when he was let go after spending parts of a dozen seasons running the Blue Jackets.  Over that time, Columbus made the playoffs only five times and only once did they make it past the first round.  Having said that, a large chunk of the Blue Jackets’ current core was either acquired or drafted by Kekalainen.

The 58-year-old also has spent time working with Ottawa and St. Louis before joining Columbus.  With the Sens, he started out as a European scout before becoming their Director of Player Personnel in 1999.  Three years later, he joined the Blues as their top amateur scout before moving to an assistant GM role three years after that.

As far as candidates go, Kekalainen is certainly one of the most experienced options available.  He also has plenty of familiarity with the division from his time with Columbus and would have seen or scouted most of New York’s current roster.  On the flip side, missing the playoffs in each of the last four years with the Blue Jackets might hurt his candidacy to replace outgoing GM Lou Lamoriello.

Staple also touches on how Lamoriello might be impacting the team’s efforts to replace him.  He relays that owner Scott Malkin is actually hoping to keep the 82-year-old past the end of his contract on June 30th in an advisory role.  While the belief is that Lamoriello would act as an advisor to Malkin and not the new GM, his continued presence could act as a deterrent to potential candidates who might be unnerved at the prospect of shaking up the roster that Lamoriello built while Lamoriello still has some involvement with the team.

To that end, Staple notes that the search is not running as fluidly as it first seemed though it’s unclear how much is tied to Lamoriello’s potential advisory role.  Holland appeared to be their top choice but he’s interviewing for the same role in Los Angeles and may prefer to remain on the West Coast.  Staple suggests the door isn’t entirely closed on Holland getting the job if he doesn’t join the Kings but at the moment, it’s unlikely he’d take the role.

For now, Kekalainen joins Darche and Bergevin as those expected to formally interview for the job in the coming days so if one of those emerge as the successful candidate, the search will be over.  Otherwise, they might have to start widening their search to find their next general manager.

Islanders To Interview Mathieu Darche For GM Vacancy

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The Islanders have received permission to interview Lightning assistant general manager Mathieu Darche to fill their GM vacancy, Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News and NHL.com reports (link from The Elmonters).

Darche has been receiving calls for GM roles ever since Tampa Bay’s back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021. He was a contender for the Canadiens’ in-season vacancy in 2022 before they hired Kent Hughes, and he was also considered for the Canucks’ vacancy in the same window. More recently, he was a finalist for the Penguins’ GM job two years ago before president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas decided to take over the role himself.

The 48-year-old Darche has been in the Bolts’ front office since 2019. He first joined as their director of hockey operations but had AGM added to his title ahead of the 2022-23 campaign. Working under Tampa GM Julien BriseBois, Darche has played a role in not only assembling the Bolts’ championship squads but keeping them in legitimate playoff/championship contention in the years since.

The Quebec native had a 250-game NHL career spanning parts of nine seasons as a depth call-up, mainly consisting of stops in Montreal and Tampa (although he was also a member of the inaugural Blue Jackets). His position with Tampa is the only front-office role he’s held since retiring as a player in 2012.

He’ll emerge as one of the stronger backup options to Hall-of-Fame executive Ken Holland, whom Arthur Staple of The Athletic said earlier this week is New York’s preferred candidate to succeed Lou Lamoriello in the GM’s chair. Other names firmly linked to their search so far include Kings senior advisor Marc Bergevin and Devils AGM Kate Madigan.

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