New York Islanders Decision on Parenteau Was Right

The New York Islanders head into Newark to tangle with the Devils for the first time. It’s the first time they see the Devils, the first time they encounter Taylor Hall on a frequent basis, and the first time they see former-former player Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau.

Remember just some seven months ago when the New York Islanders signed unrestricted free agent and former player Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau? And then the Islanders almost inexplicably waving him three short months later?

For a while, it looked like a terrible terrible decision as P.A. Parenteau couldn’t stop scoring for the Devils. In his first 12 games as a Devil, Parenteau put up five goals and an assist. The two other free-agents the Isles decided to keep were far from that pace.

Andrew Ladd and Jason Chimera took until November 7th to score their first goals. Parenteau got off the ground running with a goal in his first game. The juxtaposition couldn’t have been greater. The one that, what the Isles let go was the better of the three.

That Was Then, This is Now

Now, however, the tables seemed to have turned. Or they’ve at least started to turn.

Jason Chimera has three goals in his last three games and now sits 14 goals on the season, one more than Parenteau. Ladd, who scored two against the Rangers to secure a win, and the two points that came with it, also sits at 14 goals.

Parenteau has cooled off, with a single goal in his last 17. So has the talk of how bad waving him was. Mainly because the Isles sit just a point out of a playoff spot, while the Devils are five points back of the Maple Leafs.

Secondly, because the Islanders have started scoring. We all know about Anders Lee‘s ridiculous Sidney Crosby like scoring streak. And John Tavares has turned it up to another notch and is just shy of a point per game in the later stage.

So now it’s very much a case of: “Parenteau who?”

Next: Isles Top Line Is Underrated

The two remaining free-agents from the Isles 2016 free agency class have caught up to Parenteau and seem to be on pace to better the now-New Jersey Devil. And with the rest of the forwards also picking up their production then I think were good.