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Mathew Barzal

New York Islanders Sign Hudson Fasching To Extension

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The New York Islanders have signed forward Hudson Fasching to a two-year contract extension. The Islanders announced the extension that will keep the Apple Valley native in New York through the 2024-25 season. The 27-year-old appears to have finally found a home for the foreseeable future after bouncing around the past few years. Fasching is a former fourth round pick of the Los Angeles Kings and signed a two-way contract with the Islanders last summer.

Fasching set career highs in almost every offensive category this season with 10 goals and nine assists in 49 games while finishing +10. He also dressed in 18 games for Bridgeport in the AHL putting up 11 points. He had just three points in 38 NHL games coming into last season and decimated those numbers as he finally found a role in New York.

Fasching was once a highly touted prospect when he played at the University of Minnesota, and now after his career year he will get a bit of security with the first one-way contract of his career. He is set to count $775K against the salary cap according to CapFriendly and will likely continue his role in the Islanders bottom six. Although he has demonstrated an ability to slide up and down the lineup having taken some shifts with Mathew Barzal last season.

Injury Notes: Barzal, Romanov, Caufield, Forsberg, Norris

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The New York Islanders have a tall task ahead of them in their first-round playoff matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes, as they’re looking to eliminate a club many view as a Stanley Cup contender. They will get some crucial help, though, as one of the team’s top offensive players, Mathew Barzal, is set to return from injury for Game One. (via The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz) Barzal hasn’t played since a February contest against the Boston Bruins, and was on a hot streak with six points in four games before going down with his injury.

In total, Barzal scored 51 points in 58 games this season. He flashed chemistry with mid-season trade acquisition Bo Horvat, and is a proven playoff performer with 38 points in 49 career contests. As relayed by The Hockey News’ Stefen Rosner, Barzal said today that he’d been feeling good for a while, but wanted to make sure he was 100% ready to return before entering the lineup once again.

Some other injury notes from across the league:

  • Although the Islanders will get Barzal back in time for the playoffs, the same can’t be said for another one of the team’s young talents. Head coach Lane Lambert told the media today, including Kurz, that defenseman Alexander Romanov will not be available for the first game of their series against Carolina. Romanov has been skating by himself and is inching closer to a return, but remains unavailable. Acquired by the Islanders at the 2022 draft, Romanov last played on April 1st and has scored 22 points this season playing nearly 20 minutes a night.
  • Montreal Canadiens forward Cole Caufield updated the media, including Sportsnet’s Eric Engels, on the state of his injury recovery today. Caufield said that he’s cleared to play golf as of June 1st, and that he’d “definitely” be back to shooting pucks before then. Caufield’s rehab from the shoulder injury that ended his season is an important storyline for Canadiens fans to monitor, seeing as he’s one of the team’s brightest young talents and has an important summer of contract negotiations set to begin.
  • As relayed by Sportsnet’s Wayne Scanlan, Ottawa Senators netminder Anton Forsberg is doing well in his recovery from his season-ending injury and will be back on the ice by July. Forsberg suffered a torn MCL in February, which ended his season. The 30-year-old signed a contract extension to remain a Senator last summer and should be expected to remain in the team’s offseason plans for its crease, assuming his recovery continues to move in the right direction.
  • Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports word from Senators center Josh Norris that the 23-year-old’s shoulder is feeling good and that he expects to be back on the ice in the next month. Norris played just eight games this season due to a shoulder injury. It was initially reported that Norris would not need surgery, and the optimism that he could return peaked when he was activated and played three games in January. Norris did ultimately need to undergo shoulder surgery, though, and the operation ended his season. That means that 2022-23 ended up a lost season for Norris, who scored 35 goals and 55 points in 2021-22.

Islanders Rule Oliver Wahlstrom Out For The Season

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If the Islanders are going to earn a Wild Card seed, they’ll be doing so with winger Oliver Wahlstrom.  GM Lou Lamoriello announced today that Wahlstrom has been ruled out for the season due to a lower-body injury suffered back in December.

The 22-year-old looked to be on his way to establishing new career highs offensively as he had seven goals and nine assists in 35 games prior to the injury.  The uptick in per-game production came despite his playing time remaining relatively flat at just over 12 minutes a night as he seemed to adjust well under first-year coach Lane Lambert.

That said, this certainly isn’t the way that Wahlstrom wanted his entry-level contract to end with only playing half of his platform season.  He’s set to become a restricted free agent this summer without arbitration rights and while he’ll undoubtedly earn more than his $874K qualifying offer, he’s almost certainly looking at a short-term bridge contract.

Fortunately for New York, there was also some good news on the injury front as the Isles also revealed that center Mathew Barzal is set to resume skating either today or tomorrow.  The 25-year-old has missed more than a month with a lower-body injury but still sits second on the team in scoring with 14 goals and 37 assists in 58 games.  Getting Barzal back for the final few games would go a long way toward helping them lock down a playoff position.

Metro Notes: Barzal, Lindgren, Carlson, Lazar

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The New York Islanders are currently in the first wild card positon, but it will be a dogfight till the end of the season to secure their spot in the postseason. Every game matters and there was some good news this morning as head coach Lane Lambert told reporters, including Andrew Gross of Newsday, that the team is hopeful Mathew Barzal can return before the end of the regular season.

Barzal was listed as week-to-week over a month ago and hasn’t played since his third shift on February 18. The 25-year-old forward had 51 points in 58 games when he went down to injury, and would be a huge boost for the Islanders if things do come down to the last few games of the season.

  • One of their Metropolitan Division rivals is about to get their own injury reinforcement, as Ryan Lindgren will return tonight for the New York Rangers. Lindgren hasn’t played since February 25, but returns to a Rangers team that has won four straight and is slowly closing the gap between them and the division leaders.
  • Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic reports that John Carlson is close to returning for the Washington Capitals, but won’t play tonight. The injured defenseman was spotted in a regular jersey for the first time yesterday and is expected to make his long-awaited return this week. Carlson has been out since suffering a skull fracture back in December.
  • The New Jersey Devils will be without Curtis Lazar for the next little while, as head coach Lindy Ruff explained he will “miss some time” with a lower-body injury. The 28-year-old forward was acquired from the Vancouver Canucks at the deadline and has yet to register a point in three games with the Devils.

New York Islanders Recall Samuel Bolduc

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The New York Islanders have announced a couple of roster moves ahead of tomorrow night’s matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Islanders announced that defenseman Samuel Bolduc has been recalled from Bridgeport and in a subsequent move Otto Koivula has been sent back to Bridgeport on loan.

Bolduc was the Islanders 2019 second round pick and was an AHL all-star this season with 35 points in 56 games. He’s dressed in six games with the Islanders notching a single goal while averaging over 15 minutes of ice time per game. Bolduc will likely replace Sebastian Aho after Aho was injured in Saturday’s 4-1 win over San Jose with an apparent upper body injury.

Bolduc has had quite the bounce back after struggling through most of last season. In 57 games last year he managed only 7 points and looked lost at times. Now a year later the Laval native has found his game and will get another opportunity at the NHL level.

For Otto Koivula he once again finds himself shuttled back to Bridgeport in what is now his fifth season in the AHL. Koivula managed two assists in eight games while with the big club which brings his NHL point total to four assists in 26 career NHL games. Koivula has been a dependable scorer in the AHL in previous seasons but has struggled this year with just 25 points in 45 AHL games. Koivula still hasn’t been able to use his 6’5” frame to turn into the power forward the Islanders hoped he would become when they drafted him in the fourth round of the 2016 NHL entry draft. At 24 years of age time could be running out for the young Finn to establish himself as an everyday NHL forward.

The Islanders currently sit in the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference two points up on the Pittsburgh Penguins and three points up on the Florida Panthers, although both teams have games in hand on the Islanders. They are still without the services of Mathew Barzal who has been out of their lineup for over a month with a lower body injury. This has further depleted the offense for a team that already struggled to score goals this season. With very little margin for error, Bolduc will likely be expected to come into the Islanders lineup to provide them with sound defensive hockey.

Islanders Activate Cal Clutterbuck Off IR

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The Islanders enter tonight’s action with a four-point advantage on a Wild Card spot and will welcome back one of their long-time veterans tonight as the team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve activated winger Cal Clutterbuck off injured reserve.

He had missed close to two months with an upper-body injury, his third upper-body issue of the season.  In between missing those contests, the 35-year-old has put up four goals and four assists along with 130 hits in 34 games while averaging 12:09 per night, primarily on the fourth line.

It appears that Clutterbuck will be taking the place of Otto Koivula in the lineup tonight against Washington as Newsday’s Andrew Gross relays (Twitter link) that Koivula is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury.  The 24-year-old is averaging less than seven minutes per game in his first eight NHL appearances of the season but still has a pair of assists, matching his output from 2021-22.

Meanwhile, New York will still be waiting at least a little longer for two of their key injured forwards to return.  Gross adds (Twitter link) that there remains no timetable for center Mathew Barzal to resume skating as he tries to work his way back from a lower-body injury.  However, the expectation is that Jean-Gabriel Pageau should accompany the team on their upcoming West Coast road trip; the veteran has missed the last month with an upper-body injury.

Mathew Barzal Out Week-To-Week With Lower-Body Injury

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11:40am: The Islanders have clarified, explaining to reporters, including Kevin Kurz of The Athletic, that Barzal is “week-to-week” and is expected to return at some point this season.

10:30am: The New York Islanders will be without one of their most dangerous offensive players, as Mathew Barzal is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. The star forward suffered it over the weekend against the Boston Bruins, playing just three shifts before leaving the game.

New York would end up losing badly without him, and now may have to find a way to stay in the race without him for a long stretch. Indefinitely, of course, doesn’t necessarily mean Barzal will be out long-term but is usually the terminology used when a player has been ruled out but is still being evaluated for potential surgery. Hopefully, in this case that won’t be required, and the Islanders will have the smooth-skating forward back in the lineup before long. If not, their offense is going to take a significant hit.

Barzal, 25, has 51 points in 58 games this season and is part of a trio with Brock Nelson and Anders Lee that drives almost all of the Islanders forward offensive production. Jean-Gabriel Pageau (who is also injured) is the next highest-scoring forward with 29 points in 56 games, while Zach Parise is the only other forward with more than ten goals.

Luckily, the Islanders did just add Bo Horvat, who will likely be given even more responsibility than he already has. Horvat is averaging more than 21 minutes a night with the Islanders so far, and has three goals and four points in seven games since coming over from the Vancouver Canucks. If Barzal misses significant time, he will need to continue his outstanding season to help New York reach the playoffs.

Metropolitan Notes: Hallander, Barzal, Noesen

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Penguins prospect Filip Hallander was stretchered off the ice late in yesterday’s AHL game between Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Charlotte, relays Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  The injury occurred off a faceoff with his legs getting tied up with a Charlotte player, causing him to fall to the ice, landing on the side of his head.  Play was quickly whistled down as the 22-year-old was motionless on the ice and the game was called at that point.  The team released a brief statement this morning (Twitter link) indicating that he has been released from the hospital and is resting at home.  They will not be providing any further information about the injury at this time.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Islanders center Mathew Barzal was a late scratch in Friday’s loss to Calgary due to what was termed a tweak, notes Newsday’s Andrew Gross (Twitter link). It’s likely that the issue was sustained the night before in Edmonton.  Barzal took part in the pregame warmup so it’s likely his absence will be a short-term one.  The 25-year-old has had a bit of a bounce-back season offensively and is on pace for numbers comparable to his rookie season when he had 22 goals and 85 points.
  • Hurricanes winger Stefan Noesen isn’t expected to play today against Columbus, reports team reporter Walt Ruff (Twitter link). After playing sparingly with Carolina last season, the 29-year-old is on pace for a career year with eight goals and a dozen assists through his first 37 games played which is pretty strong production for someone averaging just over 12 minutes a game in ice time.  While there’s no word on how long Noesen will be out, it doesn’t appear that this will be a long-term absence.

New York Islanders Extend Mathew Barzal

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6:33 pm: According to CapFriendly, Barzal will receive exactly $9.15MM in base salary across all eight seasons. A 22-team no-trade clause will kick in for the 2024-25 season and continue for the duration of the contract.

11:44 am: The New York Islanders have signed Mathew Barzal to an eight-year extension worth a total of $73.2MM. The deal will start in 2023-24 and carries an average annual value of $9.15MM.

Barzal, 25, is heading into the third season of a three-year, $21MM bridge contract he signed in 2021 and would have been due a qualifying offer of $8.4MM next summer. That also would have been his final year as a restricted free agent, he would have had arbitration rights, and could have potentially walked himself right to unrestricted free agency by agreeing to a one-year deal. With all of that in mind, the Islanders had to pay up to keep Barzal in the fold long-term, buying out a very expensive RFA season and seven more UFA years.

At $9.15MM, he will become the team’s highest-paid player by quite a bit, blowing by the previous $7MM cap that Anders Lee carries through 2025-26. While the last couple of seasons hasn’t been quite as impressive as Barzal’s incredible 85-point rookie campaign in 2017-18, his dynamic offensive skill is something that is difficult to come by. There’s little doubt that Barzal is the most talented forward on the team, and now with a contract like this in hand, he becomes the pillar to build the rest of the offensive group around.

The question, of course, is whether the Islanders will be able to support Barzal with enough skill once he’s earning so much. A $9.15MM cap hit makes him the 21st highest-paid forward in the league, ahead of some very consistent goal scorers like Filip Forsberg and Mika Zibanejad, and some young up-and-coming talents like Brady Tkachuk and Robert Thomas. The contract that CapFriendly notes as most comparable is Brayden Point’s $76MM extension, which kicks in this year, but that is a pretty high bar for Barzal to reach on a consistent basis.

With more than $71MM now committed to next season, with a roster of just 17 players, Islanders management will need to make some tough decisions in the years to come. Ilya Sorokin, Josh Bailey, and Anthony Beauvillier are all scheduled for unrestricted free agency after 2023-24. The team is likely betting on the salary cap taking the sharp increase that has been reported, or else things are going to get tight, quick.

Either way, this locks a fan favorite in for the better part of his career, and allows Islanders fans to breathe easy about Barzal’s future. The 16th overall pick from 2015 is now under contract through 2030-31 and now has no negotiations to distract him from getting back to the point-per-game player he has proven capable of being.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Mathew Barzal

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There’s a strong class of restricted free agents next offseason, headlined by young wingers like Timo Meier, Jesper Bratt (again), and Alex DeBrincat, to name a few. There’s also New York Islanders cornerstone Mathew Barzal, who said today during the first day of camp that he wants to get an extension done prior to the start of the regular season. However, in true Islanders fashion, little is known on how close the team and Barzal are on an extension, according to The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz.

Barzal added that it’s not a hard deadline he’s imposing, rather, it’s just a desire to get it out of the way.

If [it’s not done before the start of the season], I’m not really worried about it just because my heart’s here and I know that we’ll get something fair and something both sides will be happy about.

Given precedence with the Islanders, we likely won’t know about the extension until it’s already signed. Barzal is entering the final season of a three-year, $21MM bridge deal signed days prior to the 2020-21 season.

Over the course of the past two years, Barzal’s scored 32 goals, 74 assists, and 104 points in 128 games while averaging 18:20 per night. While all of those figures have cooled off from the pace he set for himself during his Calder-winning 2017-18 campaign, he remains a vital young piece in an otherwise aging forward core.

His importance to the team, now and in the future, is something general manager Lou Lamoriello is keenly aware of, saying “without question” that he’d like to see Barzal in an Islanders jersey long-term. Depending on which rumors one listens to, Lamoriello demonstrated that commitment to Barzal by making a head coaching change this past offseason.

In any event, it seems likely at this point that Barzal will avoid another uncertain situation as a restricted free agent holdout as he did in 2020.

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