Salary Cap Deep Dive: New York Islanders
Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2023-24 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
New York Islanders
Current Cap Hit: $84,906,199 (over the $83.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Simon Holmstrom (one year, $863K)
After a quiet rookie year, Holmstrom has become a shorthanded scoring specialist this season, being among the league leaders in that department. Even so, he is primarily deployed in a bottom-six role which will limit his earnings upside. A bridge deal seems quite likely although he could push his way toward the $1.5MM mark if he can keep up his current pace.
Signed Through 2023-24, Non-Entry-Level
D Sebastian Aho ($825K, UFA)
D Robert Bortuzzo ($950K, UFA)
F Cal Clutterbuck ($1.75MM, UFA)
F Matt Martin ($1.5MM, UFA)
D Mike Reilly ($1MM, UFA)
After an injury-riddled 2022-23 campaign, Clutterbuck has managed to stay healthy this season and play a bigger role than many expected. Still, he’s 36 with a lot of physical games under his belt. In theory, he should be looking at a dip in pay but GM Lou Lamoriello has gone to painstaking lengths to keep his fourth line together so it’s hard to rule out the possibility of another deal like this one. Martin’s injury issues should limit his mark but again, a lower-cost extension heading into his age-35 year is likely an option at least being considered.
Reilly has fared pretty well since coming over on a waiver claim from Florida. Given his limited NHL time the last couple of seasons though, it’s hard to foresee a big raise coming his way. Perhaps something closer to $1.5MM if he keeps up his current production in the second half but for him, securing a multi-year agreement might be more of a priority. Bortuzzo was brought in to cover some minutes in the wake of the injuries on the back end but is likely looking at something near the minimum if he wants to play a 14th NHL season. Aho has established himself as a regular over the last couple of seasons and showed a bit of offensive upside last year. That should push him into the $1.5MM range on a multi-year deal; he should have a few suitors on the open market.
Signed Through 2024-25
D Noah Dobson ($4MM, RFA)
F Hudson Fasching ($775K, UFA)
F Julien Gauthier ($787.5K, UFA)
F Brock Nelson ($6MM, UFA)
F Kyle Palmieri ($5MM, UFA)
D Alexander Romanov ($2.5MM, RFA)
Nelson has had somewhat of a career resurgence in recent years, putting up his best two years in the last two seasons and is hovering near a 70-point pace again this season. That makes him a bit of a bargain, a thought that didn’t seem as likely when this contract was first signed. If he can hold this pace over the next year and a half, another small jump could be doable on a shorter-term agreement.
Adding Palmieri made sense to try to add to New York’s offense in 2021 but it’s fair to say that he has underwhelmed on that front since being acquired. He’s getting paid more at the level of a 45-point player and injuries have stopped him from getting more than 33 in a single season yet. It’s not a crippling overpayment but he’s going to need to do more if he wants to get this much on the open market in 2025. Gauthier and Fasching are end-of-roster players that, at this point, appear likely to remain around the minimum salary moving forward.
When the Islanders opted to use their leverage to get Dobson to take a bridge deal, it was one that it looked like he’d outperform fairly quickly. It’s safe to say that has happened and then some. After putting up 100 points over the last two seasons, the 24-year-old is now around the point-per-game mark, making him one of the top-scoring blueliners in the NHL. We know point producers get paid but add his strong two-way play to his output and New York has a player primed for a hefty increase in salary. At this point, with Dobson having arbitration rights, it’s looking like the question won’t be if he’ll double his current AAV but rather by how much more it’ll go up beyond that.
Romanov was another player who was more or less forced into a bridge contract with their cap situation at the time. The 24-year-old has been a consistent presence on the second pairing over the last few years but doesn’t have the offensive numbers to push him into the higher-paid tier of defenders. Still, a long-term agreement that buys out some UFA eligibility should go past the $4MM mark.
Signed Through 2025-26
F Jean-Gabriel Pageau ($5MM, UFA)
F Anders Lee ($7MM, UFA)
Lee has been an impactful power forward for most of his time with the Isles but is starting to show signs of slowing down. He’ll be 36 when this deal is up and his next contract, if there is one, will likely be half of this one or less. Pageau, meanwhile, has been a steady middle-six center over the past several years although his production has dipped this season as well. If he’s trending toward being more of a true third liner at this point, this deal will become an overpayment fairly quickly. He’ll be 34 when this contract is up and he’ll likely be heading for a fair-sized dip in pay as well.
Multiple Teams Showing Interest In Acquiring Rights To Sasha Chmelevski
Sasha Chmelevski’s first attempt at playing pro hockey in North America didn’t go particularly well and when his contract with the Sharks expired in 2022, he opted to head back home to play in the KHL; San Jose tendered a qualifying offer to retain his rights at that time. However, after a strong couple of seasons there, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports (Twitter link) that teams are showing interest in acquiring his rights and that Chmelevski’s agent has been granted permission to try to facilitate a swap. Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic notes (Twitter link) that the Canucks are among the teams showing interest.
The 24-year-old center was a sixth-round pick by San Jose back in 2017 (185th overall) out of OHL Ottawa. Chmelevski was a productive player in his final two years with the 67’s, collecting 151 points in 124 games over that stretch.
Chmelevski spent the majority of his entry-level deal with San Jose at the AHL level where he posted respectable numbers, collecting 35 goals and 53 assists in 122 games with the Barracuda. Meanwhile, while he didn’t score at the NHL level in 24 games with the Sharks, he did post ten assists despite spending a lot of time in the bottom six.
But Chmelevski’s decision to return to the KHL with a shot at more guaranteed money and a big role has paid off. He’s in his second season with Salavat Yulaev and currently sits tenth in league scoring with 21 goals and 22 assists in 49 games. Based on the trade interest, it appears there are at least some teams that are open to giving him an NHL look next season.
With San Jose in the midst of a rebuild, it’s a bit surprising that they don’t seem to be one of those teams. Otherwise, they’d be trying to work out an agreement with Chmelevski themselves. But with multiple teams showing interest, they might be able to pick up a decent draft pick or prospect for his rights which is still not a bad outcome for a player who opted to go overseas two seasons ago.
Golden Knights Recall Two From AHL, Place Tobias Bjornfot On IR
Vegas has made a pair of roster moves in advance of their game tonight against Calgary, announcing (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled center Byron Froese and goaltender Isaiah Saville from AHL Henderson. To make room on the roster, defenseman Tobias Bjornfot has been placed on IR.
Froese is in his second season with Vegas after signing a two-year, two-way deal for the league minimum in free agency back in 2022. The 33-year-old got into nine games with the Golden Knights last season where he had a pair of points but has played exclusively with the Silver Knights this year, collecting six goals and six assists in 33 games. Froese has 125 NHL appearances under his belt, many of which have been in a fourth line depth role which is the one he’s likely to fill if he sees any game action. Jack Eichel didn’t take part in the game day skate so it appears Froese’s recall is to hedge against Eichel not being available.
As for Saville, he was just sent back down yesterday and has been shuffled back and forth recently due to the uncertain availability of both Adin Hill and Jiri Patera. The 23-year-old has missed the bulk of the campaign after starting the year on season-opening IR, limiting him to seven appearances with Henderson where he has a 2.52 GAA and a .914 SV%.
Bjornfot, meanwhile, was claimed off waivers from Los Angeles earlier this month. Since then, the 22-year-old has played in a pair of games, bringing his season total to three as he has spent the bulk of the year in a reserve role. There’s no word yet on the nature of the injury and how long he might be out of the lineup. Between IR and LTIR, Vegas now has eight players on injured reserve.
Metropolitan Notes: Flyers, Ovechkin, Kakko
Among the teams that the Flyers discussed a Cutter Gauthier trade with was the Avalanche, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman noted in the latest 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link). Friedman suggests that Philadelphia’s target from the Avs may have been blueliner Bowen Byram, an option that wasn’t palatable for Colorado in a one-for-one swap. Of course, Gauthier wound up being moved to Anaheim for another blueliner, Jamie Drysdale, who is off to a nice start with his new team with a pair of assists in his first two games while averaging nearly 21 minutes a night. With Drysdale being a right-shot player and Byram a left-shot blueliner (which Philadelphia has more of in their system), it’s possible that Colorado’s rejection may work out better for them in the long run.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin was scratched today due to a lower-body injury, the team announced (Twitter link). It has been a tough year for Washington’s captain as the 38-year-old has been limited to just eight goals and 19 assists in 38 games although his 27 points still lead the team. Ovechkin has missed several practices in recent days with this lingering issue and it looks as if they’re going to try resting him outright to see if that helps the injury heal.
- Rangers winger Kaapo Kakko isn’t quite ready to return yet, relays Newsday’s Colin Stephenson (Twitter link). The 22-year-old has missed the last six weeks with a lower-body injury and while he’s skating with the team, head coach Peter Laviolette indicated that they want to give Kakko a ramp-up period before returning so it appears he’ll need a bit more time. Kakko has struggled this season, notching just three points in 20 games before the injury.
Atlantic Notes: Anderson, Chartier, Bellows
The Canadiens announced (Twitter link) that winger Josh Anderson will not play tonight due to a lower-body injury and that he will be evaluated on a daily basis. The 29-year-old had a dreadful start to his season as he was held without a goal for his first 24 games but since then, he has fared better with seven goals and two assists in his last 17 outings. His spot in the lineup will be taken by Joshua Roy who was recalled late last night. Montreal presently has over $25MM in salaries for their injured players per CapFriendly with this injury pushing that number past the $30MM mark.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic:
- Senators center Rourke Chartier has been activated off LTIR, TSN 1200 reports (Twitter link). The 27-year-old has missed the last four weeks with a concussion. Chartier has played in a career-high 25 games so far this season on Ottawa’s fourth line, picking up two points while winning just over half of his faceoffs. With Anton Forsberg landing on LTIR on Friday, the Sens don’t need to make a corresponding move to get cap-compliant.
- Nick Barden of The Hockey News points out that Kieffer Bellows’ PTO with AHL Toronto has now come to an end. After not catching on with a team to start the season, the 25-year-old joined the Marlies in early November and was quite productive, notching 14 goals and 12 assists in his 25-game stint. Bellows is eligible to sign another PTO or a full-season contract with either the Marlies or Maple Leafs but with the success he had, the veteran of 95 career NHL appearances could also attract some interest elsewhere.
Wild Activate Filip Gustavsson, Assign Jesper Wallstedt To AHL
The Wild will be welcoming back their starting goalie for tonight’s game against Minnesota as the team announced (Twitter link) that Filip Gustavsson has been activated off injured reserve. To make room for him on the roster, Jesper Wallstedt has been returned to AHL Iowa.
Gustavsson has been dealing with a lower-body injury that has kept him out of the lineup for the last two weeks. Before that, he had struggled somewhat relative to last year’s breakout performance. While his .903 SV% is above the league average, it’s a steep drop from the .931 mark he posted in 2022-23. With Marc-Andre Fleury also struggling as of late having only recorded a save percentage above .900 in one of his last six starts, Gustavsson will likely get a chance to play significant minutes fairly quickly as Minnesota looks to keep within striking distance of a Wild Card spot.
As for Wallstedt, Minnesota’s top goalie prospect got a rough introduction to the NHL earlier this week, allowing seven goals on 34 shots to Dallas on Wednesday. However, the 2021 first-rounder has fared quite well with Iowa this season, posting a 2.54 GAA and a .917 SV% in 20 games with them. With Fleury’s contract up at the end of the season, Wallstedt could become the full-time backup in Minnesota before long so getting him back in the minors to maximize his playing time is certainly ideal.
Canadiens Recall Joshua Roy
Following their AHL affiliate’s contest last night, the Canadiens announced that they’ve recalled winger Joshua Roy from Laval. The team had an open roster spot following Thursday’s demotion of Emil Heineman.
The 20-year-old fell to the fifth round in 2021, going 150th overall. However, since being drafted, he was quite a productive player at the major junior level, recording 97 goals and 121 assists in 121 games with QMJHL Sherbrooke in his final two years. Roy added 47 points in 25 playoff appearances over that same stretch. He also played for Canada in two World Junior tournaments, notching eight goals and 11 helpers in 14 contests in those events.
Roy has carried over that production to the AHL level in 2023-24, sitting second on Laval in scoring with 12 goals and 18 assists in 34 games. His 30 points put him third among all rookies in the AHL this season.
Montreal’s offense sits near the bottom of the pack in the NHL this season as they enter play tonight ranking 26th in that department. With the Canadiens down several key forwards including Kirby Dach, Alex Newhook, Christian Dvorak, and Tanner Pearson, Roy should get a chance to play an offensive role with them fairly quickly.
Jets Notes: Dillon, DeMelo, Ehlers, Kupari
Veteran blueliners Brenden Dillon and Dylan DeMelo are among the Jets players set to hit unrestricted free agency this summer. However, speaking with reporters yesterday including Murat Ates of The Athletic (subscription link), GM Kevin Cheveldayoff indicated that the team has had discussions with the agents for both players although he declined to say if those talks are currently ongoing.
Dillon is in his third season with the Jets after being acquired from San Jose, a move that has worked out well for the 33-year-old who has logged steady minutes on the second pairing while providing plenty of physicality and shot-blocking for several years now. With a $3.5MM cap hit, he’s likely to get an increase on that with a multi-year agreement.
As for DeMelo, the 30-year-old is in his fifth year with the team and is playing out the final season of a four-year, $12MM extension to avoid testing the open market back in 2020. He has seen his playing time jump to nearly 22 minutes a night this season which gives him some extra leverage, especially after putting up a career-high 27 points last year. Like Dillon, he’s in line for a raise and a multi-year deal as well. With both players being key pieces on the back end, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Cheveldayoff try to get a deal worked out with at least one of them before the trade deadline.
More from Winnipeg:
- Winger Nikolaj Ehlers left practice today with an upper-body injury, relays Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun (Twitter link). His early exit is believed to be precautionary. Ehlers has battled injury issues over the last couple of seasons but has been healthy and productive in the first half of this season, notching 15 goals and 18 assists in his first 41 games.
- The team announced (Twitter link) that center Rasmus Kupari has been recalled from his conditioning loan with AHL Manitoba. Winnipeg sent the 23-year-old down to the Moose back on Tuesday to get him some game action after missing more than six weeks with a shoulder injury. He only suited up once on assignment – one that could have lasted for two weeks – and was held off the scoresheet. Kupari came to the Jets as part of the Pierre-Luc Dubois trade but he struggled considerably offensively before being injured, notching just one assist in 15 games.
West Notes: Oettinger, Jones, Emberson, Saville
The Stars welcomed back a key player tonight with the team announcing (Twitter link) that Jake Oettinger was getting the start against Nashville. The 25-year-old missed the last four weeks with a lower-body injury, forcing Scott Wedgewood to take on the interim starting role in his absence, a role Wedgewood had some success in. Oettinger had a career year last season with a 2.37 GAA and a .919 SV%, earning him a top-five spot in Vezina Trophy voting but hasn’t had quite the same success this season with those numbers checking in at 2.93 and .901 respectively heading into Friday’s action. If he can get back to being a top netminder in the second half, that could give Dallas a big lift as they jockey for seeding in the Central Division.
More from the Western Conference:
- Blackhawks blueliner Seth Jones was a full participant in practice today for the first time since suffering a shoulder injury just over a month ago, notes Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago. The original diagnosis was that he’d miss two weeks but further testing doubled that timeline. Jones, who has 11 points – all assists – in 27 games this season, is hoping to be cleared to return to Chicago’s lineup tomorrow against Dallas.
- Sharks defenseman Ty Emberson has returned to San Jose for further evaluation, relays Sheng Peng of San Jose Hockey Now (Twitter link). The 23-year-old is dealing with an upper-body injury that has caused him to miss last night’s victory over Montreal, joining Matt Benning and Jacob MacDonald as blueliners currently out of the lineup. Emberson is currently considered as out week-to-week so he’ll likely land on injured reserve shortly, opening up a spot for Logan Couture whose return is getting closer.
- The Golden Knights announced (Twitter link) that they returned goaltender Isaiah Saville to AHL Henderson. The 23-year-old was recalled recently after Adin Hill was unable to dress for Thursday’s game due to an undisclosed injury. Saville has battled injuries himself this season and has been limited to seven games with the Silver Knights where he has a 2.52 GAA and a .914 SV%.
Pyotr Kochetkov In Concussion Protocol; Hurricanes Recall Yaniv Perets
The Hurricanes will be without another goalie for the foreseeable future as the team announced that Pyotr Kochetkov is in concussion protocol, meaning he is out indefinitely. In a subsequent move, the team announced the recall of Yaniv Perets from ECHL Norfolk.
Kochetkov suffered the concussion in last night’s game against Anaheim, leaving in the second period. The timing of it certainly isn’t ideal as the 24-year-old was in the midst of a nice run, posting a .924 SV% in his last ten games, giving Carolina some much-needed stability between the pipes. He joins Frederik Andersen (blood clots) as netminders who are out of the lineup.
This means that veteran Antti Raanta will take over the number one role for the time being. It has been a rough year for the 34-year-old as his early struggles eventually resulted in him passing through waivers unclaimed last month before being recalled after two AHL games. Raanta has a 3.27 GAA with a save percentage of just .862 in 17 games this season.
He’ll be joined by Perets, the only recallable option the Hurricanes have. The 23-year-old is in his first professional season after a stellar college career with Quinnipiac where he had a 1.34 GAA and a .935 SV% over three seasons with them. This season, he has played exclusively in the ECHL (since Carolina doesn’t have a direct AHL affiliate), posting a 2.62 GAA with a .906 SV% in 15 games.
The Hurricanes have been speculatively linked to a handful of goaltenders in recent weeks but with Kochetkov playing well lately, that speculation had started to cool off. However, if the young netminder is set to miss extended time, GM Don Waddell may have no choice but to seriously explore what options might be out there.