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Kyle Palmieri

Islanders Sign Kyle Palmieri, Adam Boqvist To Extensions

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The Islanders announced they signed pending UFA winger Kyle Palmieri and RFA defenseman Adam Boqvist to two-year and one-year contract extensions, respectively. Boqvist’s deal carries a cap hit of $850K, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. Palmieri’s is worth $4.75MM per season for a total value of $9.5MM, Friedman adds. His deal also includes a full no-trade clause in 2025-26 and a 16-team no-trade list in 2026-27, according to PuckPedia.

The two signings are the first of general manager Mathieu Darche’s tenure after they made his hiring official one week ago, succeeding Lou Lamoriello. Lamoriello had held extension talks with both players before the Islanders announced he’d been let go. They hit pause while the organization conducted its GM search, but it appears they were high on Darche’s list to get across the finish line in his first several days on the job.

Palmieri, 34, has spent parts of five seasons on Long Island and will look to extend that number to seven with this new deal. Initially acquired from the Devils at the 2021 trade deadline, he spent about a month testing free agency the following summer before returning to New York on a four-year, $20MM contract.

It was an eye-raising commitment at the time, especially for a player who finished the regular season with just four points in 17 games after his acquisition. It largely worked out in the end, though. Palmieri returned to his ways as a consistent 20-goal winger, putting himself on pace for the mark in his last three seasons with the Isles. He hasn’t missed a game since the 2022-23 campaign and even tied his career-high 30 goals one year ago. He followed that up with a 24-goal, 48-point showing this season, placing him third on the Islanders in scoring and 14th among pending unrestricted free agents.

That makes his price tag a smart one for his relatively projectable goal-scoring touch, although the Islanders would presumably like to decrease his deployment from the 18:31 per game he hit last season, a career high. While a known commodity offensively, he’s never been particularly adept away from the puck, and those concerns perhaps overshadowed his decent production in 2024-25. His -17 rating was a team-low and a career-low. The Islanders also allowed 30.24 shots per 60 minutes with Palmieri on the ice at 5-on-5, the worst figure of any New York skater with at least 200 minutes played, per Natural Stat Trick.

Palmieri should still be able to hover around the 20-goal mark in slightly decreased usage to limit his defensive drawbacks, particularly if Darche’s roster retooling gives him a two-way, playmaking center to partner with lower in the lineup. The new deal is a slight pay cut from his previous $5MM cap hit, a notable factor in the Islanders’ ability to spend this offseason amid the largest year-to-year salary cap jump in history.

As for Boqvist, he lands some stability after a tumultuous 2024-25 campaign. The 2018 eighth overall pick’s offseason began on a sour note when he was bought out by the Blue Jackets with one year remaining on a three-year, $7.8MM contract. He landed with the Panthers on a league-minimum contract to play with his brother, Jesper Boqvist, but managed only 18 appearances in the first four months of the campaign before ending up on waivers.

The Islanders, in need of puck-movers on the back end with injuries to Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock, took a flyer on the 24-year-old Swede. He was a serviceable depth piece down the stretch, even rotating into the lineup at center at times, recording eight points and a minus-five rating in 17 games. The 6’0″ righty averaged 15:22 per game after the claim.

It remains to be seen whether Boqvist is in the opening night lineup next fall, but he’s likely done enough to at least earn a roster spot and stick around as a healthy extra if the Isles need more scoring punch on the power play. Like Palmieri, Boqvist’s defensive game has been his biggest wart at the NHL level. He’s never been particularly physical, and his play style doesn’t warrant being a good shot suppressor through pure puck possession, but he did have some decent 5-on-5 defense numbers in New York. His 25.99 shots against per 60 minutes ranked ninth on the club out of 26 skaters to play at least 200 minutes, and his 2.40 expected goals against per 60 ranked 10th.

Boqvist will be an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent next summer. The Islanders still have nearly $21MM in cap space after today’s extensions, per PuckPedia.

Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.

Metropolitan Notes: Karlsson, Islanders, Ashton

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Erik Karlsson’s tenure with Pittsburgh has been a bit underwhelming, to say the least.  While he has eclipsed 50 points in each of his first two years, his totals pale in comparison to the 101 he had in 2022-23 with San Jose.  In a recent 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link), Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman mused that once Karlsson’s signing bonus gets paid (July 1st is the payment date for most but not all), the 34-year-old will be more of a realistic trade target.  At that point, he’ll be down to just $11.5MM in cash owed over the final two years of the contract, a chunk of which the Sharks will be picking up.  If the Penguins are willing to retain further, they might find a relatively decent trade market for his services, especially among some of the lower-spending teams who might find extra value in having an AAV higher than cash owed.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Ethan Sears of the New York Post provides (subscription link) an overview of some questions the Islanders now face in the wake of Lou Lamoriello not getting his contract renewed. Chief among them is the fate of contract extension talks between the club and pending UFA winger Kyle Palmieri.  It looked as if a new deal was a matter of when, not if, but if the new GM wants to go a different direction, that could now be off the table.  Sears also flags the handling of Noah Dobson’s next contract as a key question.  While Lamoriello didn’t seem to view the pending RFA as a number one defender, his numbers suggest he’s about to be paid like one.  Does the new GM want to hand out a max-term contract or look for something shorter-term that might come in a little cheaper?
  • Blue Jackets prospect Luke Ashton has transferred to Cornell for next season, relays Brad Elliott Schlossmann of the Grand Forks Herald (Twitter link). The 20-year-old blueliner was a sixth-round pick last year after a strong offensive season with BCHL Langley that saw him tally 18 goals.  However, he only managed five goals along with eight assists with Minnesota State (Mankato), resulting in Ashton deciding to look for a change of scenery.  He is now one of three NHL-drafted blueliners on the Big Red.

Adam Boqvist, Kyle Palmieri Nearing Extension With Islanders

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The New York Islanders are looking to stay busy as their season comes to an end. The team is closing in on extensions for winger Kyle Palmieri and defenseman Adam Boqvist, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts Podcast. The pair of moves would go a long way towards solidifying New York’s early look for next season, by holding onto longtime lineup pillars and bringing back new additions.

Boqvist and Palmieri are two of 12 pending free agents on the Islanders’ roster. Palmieri joins the camp of five unrestricted free-agents, while Boqvist is one of seven restricted-free agents with arbitration eligibility. That standing will likely earn the former a hardier payday.

Palmieri is coming off of a four-year, $20MM contract signed ahead of the 2021-22 campaign. That deal guaranteed his long-standing with the Islanders organization, after he joined the team via a mid-season trade from the New Jersey Devils in the shortened 2020-21 season. Palmieri was a routine 25-goal, 50-point scorer in the Devils lineup, but struggled to carry that momentum over to the Islanders. He scored 33 points in each of his first two seasons on the Island, through 69 and 55 games respectively. But New York was soon rewarded for hanging onto the aging winger, as Palmieri sprung back to form with 30 goals and 54 points last season. He kept it up with 24 goals and 48 points this season – made better by the fact that Palmieri hasn’t missed a game since January of 2023.

Palmieri has performed well enough to maintain a high price tag on his next deal, but he’s not likely to get much of a raise. At 33 years old, any multi-year extension will very likely carry Palmieri into retirement. Even better, Palmieri is only 100 games off of his 1,000th appearance in the NHL. The right term could make sure he enters both of those gates as a member of the Islanders, though New York will hope he doesn’t face the same scoring slump he went through after signing his last contract.

News of Boqvist’s extension is a bit more encouraging. The 24-year-old defenseman landed with the Islanders via waivers from the Florida Panthers in January of this season. He had previously signed a one-year, one-way, league-minimum contract with Florida this summer, and scored six points in 18 games with the club. Boqvist boosted those numbers to eight points in 17 games in a second-half run with the Islanders. He found strong footing on New York’s bottom pairing and became the choice pick over fellow new addition Scott Perunovich.

A new contract will be a bode of confidence in the young Boqvist. He was a top-10 selection in the 2018 NHL Draft, but has since played for four different clubs. Boqvist has only ever signed one extension with a club – in 2022, when he inked a three-year re-up with the Columbus Blue Jackets before being bought out two years later. A new deal with the Islanders will be a rare chance for the young defender to find his footing in an everyday lineup role behind the heavy-hitters of New York’s top-four.

Islanders Notes: Dobson, Reilly, Palmieri, DeAngelo, Varlamov

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Islanders defenseman Noah Dobson is slated to become a restricted free agent this summer and is in line for a substantial raise on the $4MM he made on his bridge deal.  Speaking to reporters including Ethan Sears of the New York Post, the 25-year-old declined to provide a preference between signing a short-term deal that could allow him to hit the open market in his prime or a long-term agreement that could make him the highest-paid player in team history.  Dobson had a quieter year this season with 10 goals and 29 assists in 71 games but he’s only a year removed from a 70-point effort that saw him land in the top ten in Norris Trophy voting which will play a significant role in negotiations.  Dobson has just this one year of RFA eligibility remaining and he is arbitration-eligible.

More from the Isles:

  • After missing more than four months following being diagnosed with a heart condition, defenseman Mike Reilly told reporters including Stefan Rosner of The Hockey News he intends to play next season. The 31-year-old was limited to just 18 appearances this season between the heart issue and being scratched with some frequency and while he noted he’d like to stay with the Isles, the limited usage could suggest that he’s unlikely to be brought back.  Reilly had just two assists in those 18 outings while his 15:10 ATOI was the second lowest of his career.
  • Winger Kyle Palmieri wasn’t moved at the trade deadline with the belief that the two sides were close on a new deal. That hasn’t happened yet but the veteran indicated to Newsday’s Andrew Gross and other reporters that he’s hopeful a new contract can be reached.  A pending UFA, the 34-year-old had 24 goals and 24 assists in 82 games this season which should put him in line for another contract close to the $5MM he received for each of the last four years.
  • Pending UFA defenseman Tony DeAngelo told reporters including Gross that his intention is to remain in the NHL next season with his preferred outcome being remaining with the Isles. Signed midseason after having his KHL deal terminated, DeAngelo played a bigger role than expected, averaging over 23 minutes a night of playing time while chipping in with 19 points in 35 games.  With that type of production, DeAngelo’s market might be better this time around after not getting a firm offer last summer while playing for the prorated league minimum when he joined New York.
  • Goaltender Semyon Varlamov is hoping to start skating in June as he continues his recovery from a lower-body injury that kept him out of the lineup since late November, Gross relays. The 36-year-old posted a 2.89 GAA with a .889 SV% in just ten starts this season and still has two years left on his contract that carries a $2.75MM cap charge.

Metropolitan Notes: Palmieri, Svechnikov, Flyers, Imama

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The Islanders elected not to move pending UFA winger Kyle Palmieri by last Friday’s trade deadline after having some discussions about a possible contract extension.  Pierre LeBrun recently reported in a piece for The Athletic (subscription link) that those talks have progressed since then with more progress being made.  At this point, the two sides are believed to be quibbling over term.  The 34-year-old speculatively would want more of a medium-term agreement while New York’s likely preference is something that doesn’t run quite as long.  Palmieri has 20 goals and 21 assists through 65 games this season and should be able to command a price tag that’s somewhat close to the $5MM he’s making now.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov has missed the last week with an upper-body injury and won’t suit up against Philadelphia tonight. Team reporter Walt Ruff relays that the team is hopeful that the 24-year-old will be able to return to the lineup at some point next week.  It has been a bit of a down year for Svechnikov who has 18 goals and 25 assists through 63 games, his lowest point-per-game average since his rookie year back in 2018-19.
  • The Flyers will once again be without defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen and winger Garnet Hathaway for their game against Carolina tonight, relays Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia (Twitter link). Ristolainen is dealing with an upper-body injury that caused him to miss Thursday’s game versus Tampa Bay while Hathaway, who has resumed skating, has missed the last two weeks with an upper-body injury of his own.
  • Penguins winger Bokondji Imama has played in a career-high 11 NHL games this season after being recalled in late January. A pending unrestricted free agent, he recently told reporters including Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that he’s hoping to remain with the organization for next season.  At this point, a one-way contract likely remains out of reach but a two-way pact with a guarantee higher than the $400K he’s getting this season could be doable, especially if he plays somewhat of a regular role with Pittsburgh down the stretch.

Islanders’ Semyon Varlamov Likely Out For Season, Offseason Priorities Forming

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New York Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello sat down with media for an in-depth look at the team’s current state after the Trade Deadline and where he plans to head this summer. Among the biggest news was that top backup goaltender Semyon Varlamov will likely miss the remainder of the 2024-25 season with his lower-body injury, captured by Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News.

Varlamov has been out of the lineup since late November, but the root of his injury wasn’t entirely clear. He played through a full 61 minutes of action in what could be his last game of the season – an 5-4 overtime loss to the Washington Capitals on November 29th. He’s been on the shelf ever since, while the Islanders have turned towards Marcus Hogberg and Jakub Skarek to fill backup minutes behind star starter Ilya Sorokin.

Lamoriello went on to speak in depth about the team’s plans for veterans Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri, sharing that their goal was to sign both to extensions beyond this season. That plan went awry with Nelson, who was ultimately flipped to the Colorado Avalanche for top prospect Calum Ritchie and draft capital – but Lamoriello emphasized that the team still hopes to bring Palmieri back into the fold, per Newsday’s Andrew Gross. In the same breath, Lamoriello also pointed out that the Islanders need to get younger. They currently carry the 10th-oldest lineup in the NHL, with an average age of 28.96. Of the nine teams older than them, the Pittsburgh Penguins are the only team in shakier playoff standing than the Wild Card-bound Islanders.

The effort to get younger will mean plenty of change this summer, Lamoriello added. He told Gross that the term “retool” is a relatively new juxtaposition to the long-term idea of a “rebuild”. The Islanders will attempt to stick in the former camp this summer, refreshing the lineup with top prospects and new faces while trimming down on their veteran presence. That could be a challenge if keeping players like Palmieri – a 34-year-old with 20 goals and 41 points in 62 games this season – is at the top of the docket. New York likely won’t want to part with franchise cornerstone Anders Lee, or productive veterans like Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal – which could make top defenders like Noah Dobson, Ryan Pulock, and Adam Pelech the focus of any large-scale moves.

The Boston Bruins received top prospect Fraser Minten and a first-round draft pick, among other assets, for top-pair defensive defenseman Brandon Carlo at the Deadline. That price was likely hiked up in a seller’s market, but finding a comparable deal could be the start of New York’s efforts to retool. The Islanders will also have to make sure they’re elevating newly-acquired top prospects to important roles as soon as they can with the youth-movement in mind – an effort they’re already headed towards by clearing Nelson’s role for Ritchie in their recent swap.

New York finds themselves three points behind the Eastern Conference’s second Wild Card spot with 20 games left in their season. It’s a hotly contested race, with at least six teams within striking distance of a playoff spot. Moving out Nelson, who was previously tied for the team lead in scoring with 43 points, will make achieving that postseason berth a tough feat. So will losing Varlamov, who had a career-low .889 save percentage this season but posted a far more impressive .917 in his last four seasons with the Islanders. Those absences will require improved performances from the likes of Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Hogberg to keep New York competitive.

The Islanders will have six unrestricted free agents and seven restricted free agents to re-sign when their season ends. Among the pending free agents is top-performing rookie Maxim Tsyplakov, top defenders Dobson and Alexander Romanov, and recent acquisitions Tony DeAngelo, Scott Perunovich, and Adam Boqvist. With only three contracts north of $7MM on their books, the Islanders should have plenty of money to work with this summer – a technical $28.9MM per PuckPedia. With his recent comments, it seems veteran GM Lamoriello is set to use that money to its fullest this summer – in an attempt to rejuvenate an Islanders lineup that’s fallen behind the playoff wave this season.

Islanders Have Offered Extension To Kyle Palmieri

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10:39 a.m.: The Islanders have informed Palmieri he won’t be traded today, per Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic. They’ll continue working on a deal, and although it may not be done before the deadline, they’re close enough to rule out a move. It’s likely to be a two-year or three-year deal worth less than his current $5MM AAV annually, Andrew Gross of Newsday reports.

9:37 a.m.: While the Islanders moved their top pending UFA late on Thursday when they dealt Brock Nelson to Colorado, it doesn’t mean the same fate is coming for their other veteran in the same situation.  David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports (Twitter link) that they’ve offered a two-year contract extension to winger Kyle Palmieri.  If an agreement can’t be reached, then the veteran is expected to be moved before today’s 2 PM CT deadline.

The 34-year-old is in the final season of a contract that carries a $5MM cap charge.  If he winds up being dealt, it’s quite likely that New York will need to retain the maximum of 50% to help facilitate a move, similar to what they did with Nelson.

After a couple of underwhelming seasons to start his tenure with the Isles, Palmieri has rebounded nicely over the last couple of years.  Last season, he bounced back with a 30-goal effort, matching his career high from back in 2015-16 while coming three points shy of matching his benchmark in points, also from the 2015-16 campaign.

While Palmieri isn’t producing at quite the same level this year, he still has 20 goals and 21 assists in 61 games, giving him a shot at another 50-point season.  He’s the type of player who would fit in well on the second line of a lot of contending teams so even if he’s swapped, he still should have a chance at logging close to the 18:13 of ice time he’s getting with New York.

With the pending increase to the salary cap and his production over the last couple of years, Palmieri should be in line for a raise on his current price tag.  But a two-year offer might not be long enough to his liking as it’s quite possible that he could get a longer offer if he goes to the open market in July.  We’ll soon see if New York’s offer is good enough to get something done or if he’ll be on the move over the next few hours.  If they pivot toward moving him, Palmieri does have a 16-team no-trade clause that could come into play.

Evening Notes: Palmieri, Vejmelka, Blue Jackets

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A few weeks ago, on 32 Thoughts with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the analyst shared that the Los Angeles Kings would prioritize a right-handed scorer at the trade deadline. We opined that New York Islanders’ winger Kyle Palmieri would be the best fit for Los Angeles, given that he’s one year removed from a 30-goal campaign.

It appears the Kings are thinking similarly, as Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News mentioned earlier that Los Angeles had checked in on Palmieri’s availability. Still, there’s some speculation the Islanders will keep Palmieri through the deadline, given they’re only five points back of the final wild-card position in the Eastern Conference.

Fortunately for the Kings and other interested teams, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reported that the Islanders’ reality has settled in, and the team is now engaged in trade negotiations for Palmieri and center Brock Nelson. Palmieri has 19 goals and 40 points through 60 games this year and should command plenty of interest at the deadline, especially if New York is willing to retain some money from his $5MM cap hit.

Additional notes from this evening:

  • Exactly 10 days ago, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported that the Utah Hockey Club was engaged in extension negotiations with netminder Karel Vejmelka. There weren’t any meaningful updates regarding an extension until today, when Belle Fraser of The Salt Lake Tribune quoted Vejmelka saying, “For sure. I don’t have reasons to change anything. It’s the first thing on my mind to be part of the team…we’re like a big family.” There’s no questioning Utah’s interest as Vejmelka sits 10th in the league with 14.3 goals saved above expected, according to MoneyPuck.
  • As the top wild-card team in the Eastern Conference, the Columbus Blue Jackets could be sneakily active leading up to the trade deadline. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period asserts the team is targeting a middle-six forward, albeit without specific names. Pagnotta mentioned the Blue Jackets were interested in Gustav Nyquist before he was traded to the Minnesota Wild on Saturday. Assuming Nyquist’s archetype is a reasonable mold to work from, Columbus is likely involved in several wingers on the rental market.

Snapshots: Islanders, Marchment, Kaprizov, Roest

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There has been plenty of speculation in recent weeks about whether the Islanders might consider moving veterans Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri by the March 7th trade deadline.  However, speaking with reporters today including Newsday’s Andrew Gross, GM Lou Lamoriello indicated that the concept is “not even a thought in my mind right now”.  Both players are pending unrestricted free agents and New York went into today’s action in last in the Metropolitan Division, only two points up on Buffalo who sat last in the Eastern Conference coming into tonight.  That said, the second Wild Card spot is still within striking distance so don’t expect Lamoriello to even consider selling for a while yet.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • In a recent appearance on The Ticket (audio link), Stars head coach Peter DeBoer indicated that winger Mason Marchment is still at least a couple of weeks away from returning to the lineup. He’s working his way back from a head injury that DeBoer specified were fractures in his nose and facial area.  The 29-year-old was off to a solid start before getting injured, tallying 12 goals and 15 assists along with 44 hits in his first 33 games.
  • While the Wild were once again without top winger Kirill Kaprizov tonight, a return could be on the horizon. Michael Russo of The Athletic relays (Twitter link) that Kaprizov has skated for the last two days and that there’s a chance he will travel with the team for their upcoming two-game road trip if there’s a possibility he can play in one of the games.  The 27-year-old was off to a flying start before sustaining a lower-body injury that has kept him out since the holiday break.  Kaprizov has 23 goals and 27 assists in 34 games so far, good for ninth in league scoring despite being out for more than two weeks now.
  • While Predators prospect Austin Roest is eligible to play in the minors this season, WHL Everett announced that Nashville has informed them that they will return him to junior once he recovers from his injury sustained back in training camp. The 20-year-old was a sixth-round pick in 2023 and has already signed his entry-level deal.  Roest has surpassed the 70-point mark in the last two seasons with the Silvertips and will get a final few months with them before turning pro next season.

Metropolitan Notes: Unger Sörum, Palmieri, Fasching

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As training camp draws to a close, the Carolina Hurricanes were among the teams making significant roster cuts today. Notably, 2023 second-round selection Felix Unger Sörum was not among them – he remains on the team’s camp roster for now. The Norwegian-born Swede turned 18 just a few weeks ago, but head coach Rod Brind’Amour acknowledged his impressive camp today and didn’t rule out Unger Sörum remaining on the team’s roster through the first few games of the season.

That would be one of the most improbable developments of camp. It’s rare players selected outside the top ten choices make an immediate jump to the NHL – let alone players who were selected in later rounds altogether. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound winger posted 10 goals and 46 points in 42 games in Swedish junior play with Leksand last season, and he’ll get loaned back to the organization when his time with Carolina is over this season. His stint on the Hurricanes’ opening night roster will likely be tied to the health of star winger Andrei Svechnikov, who is expected to be ready for the team’s regular season opener after undergoing knee surgery in March. If that’s not the case, however, Brind’Amour says the young Swede may stick around for a nine-game trial to avoid burning the first season of his entry-level contract.

Elsewhere in the Metropolitan Division tonight:

  • The New York Islanders announced pre-game that winger Kyle Palmieri will play in Friday’s preseason tilt against the New Jersey Devils, meaning the veteran winger will likely be available for the team’s first game of the regular season next weekend. Palmieri, 32, notched 33 points in 55 games last season and is expected to form the team’s second forward line along with Brock Nelson and Pierre Engvall. He returned to full practice with the team two days ago after head coach Lane Lambert would not confirm Palmieri’s availability for opening night.
  • Sticking with the Islanders, one player who is not in tonight’s game is winger Hudson Fasching, who Newsday’s Andrew Gross reports is day-to-day with a minor injury and has now missed his third straight preseason game. Fasching is likely to be healthy for the start of the season, but whether he can keep his role in the lineup from last season remains to be seen. The AHL mainstay forced his way into a career-high 49 NHL games with the Isles last season, posting ten goals and nine assists for 19 points. His main competition for a spot in the lineup is 25-year-old Julien Gauthier, an offseason free agent signing who’s gotten recent looks higher up in the lineup during camp.

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