Islanders deal Leddy to Detroit:
The night before the roster freeze Lou decides to make a big move by dealing expensive defenseman Nick Leddy to the struggling Detroit Red Wings. This was an amazing trade made by Lamoriello, who received Richard Panik (50% salary retained by DET) as well as 2021 2nd round pick (52nd overall). With this move, Lou clears Nick Leddy’s hefty salary of $5,500,000 AAV.
With Leddy off to motor city, he will join former Islander Thomas Greiss and his departure also marks the end of the Nick Leddy / Johnny Boychuk era on Long Island. On October 4, 2014, the Islanders acquired both defensemen and it was the turn-around move for the Islanders and since then the Isles have been much better with lots of playoff success.
While I won’t miss Leddy’s cap hit, he was an incredible asset for the Islanders for almost 7 years and for that we say thank you. Best of luck in Detroit, Nick! We appreciate everything you’ve done for this team.
Islanders deal Ladd to Arizona:
Today at 3:00pm EST the rosters froze for the Seattle Kraken expansion draft and the Islanders were absolutely silent ahead of 3pm and and for the hour after. Many Isles fans anxiously await what news GM Lou Lamoriello has in store.
In usual Lamoriello fashion, the moves were announced almost an hour and a half after the 3pm deadline. The Islanders dealt forward Andrew Ladd to the Arizona Coyotes as well as 2021 2nd-round pick, 2022 2nd-round pick, and a 2023 3rd-round pick (conditional) to the Arizona Coyotes. The 2023 3rd-round pick is transferred to Arizona if Ladd plays in at least 1 game in 2022-23. The Islanders receive nothing in this trade, but the freeing cap space from Ladd’s contract is enough to make any Isles fan absolutely thrilled.
Garth Snow signed Andrew Ladd to a 7-year, $38,500,000 deal in 2016 and ever since Ladd hasn’t done much and took up a lot of cap space each year. Since coming to the Island he has struggled a lot with injuries and had several stints in the AHL. Ladd is now 35 and would’ve been 37 at the end of his 7-year deal. Ladd played 181 games for the Islanders across 4 seasons, from 2016-2020. It is a huge relief to have his contract freed from the Islanders, especially now because the Isles may be looking to sign a big name this off-season and need every penny of cap space that they can get.
Lou Lamoriello is an absolute god for the Ladd trade. He was somehow able to deal an aging, injury prone winger who hasn’t played an NHL game in a year… without sacrificing a 1st round pick. Lamoriello showed even more that he is definitely the best GM in the league and that his back-to-back Jim Gregory awards were 100%$ deserved.
Isles re-sign veteran defenseman, Andy Greene
Long after the 3:00pm deadline, the Islanders finally announce that they’ve re-signed verteran defenseman Andy Greene. This was a move that had to happen because without Greene being signed, either Pelech or Mayfield would’ve been forced to be left exposed in the Seattle expansion draft. We expected a league minimum deal (750K), and that is exactly what we got. Greene can also make up to 250K in bonuses with this deal.
Greene was solid for the Islanders since being acquired from the Devils in February 2020. This past season played 55 games last season with 48 at LD and 7 at RD. He helped provide a veteran presence on the blue line, paving the way for youngster Noah Dobson. Overall, this is a great signing for the team and also avoids disaster at the Seattle expansion draft.
What a span of 24 hours for Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello. Incredible work, as always.