The big number for the Islanders on the first day of free agency was $26.53 million, as in the player payroll scheduled to come off their books one year from Wednesday, which is the date now crucial to the franchise’s future after general manager Mathieu Darche hit the gas on a short-term retool this week.
Everything the Islanders did, and everything they didn’t do — namely compromise on term to bring back captain Anders Lee — was aimed not at building a playoff-contending roster for next season, but a Cup-contending roster in 2028 and beyond.
Of the contracts they had on the books before Wednesday, seven will expire after this season, though Simon Holmstrom and Emil Heineman do figure to be part of the future. Of the contracts they signed Wednesday, all five were for one year, even the two-way deal for Matt Luff. Five more contracts expire in 2028, including one player Darche traded for (Brayden Schenn) and another he extended (Tony DeAngelo).
You don’t need to be a genius to see where this is going. And I’d hazard a guess to say the Islanders won’t be eager to extend many of those players, again with the exceptions of Holmstrom and Heineman.
