New York Islanders 2016-2017 Player Grades: Thomas Hickey

The New York Islanders struggled at times defensively during the 2016-2017. Unfortunately, Thomas Hickey was at the forefront of these struggles.

On paper, it looked like an average year for Thomas Hickey. The New York Islanders defenseman put up similar numbers to his career average, but we’re going to have to go a bit deeper than just that.

His four goals and 16 assists (20 points) on the season was just under his average point total. His career point total through four full seasons is 20.5 points a season. His goal total dropped by two goals but by an overall comparison, it was a pretty typical offensive performance for Hickey.

The issue wasn’t with his offense, it was defensive lapses that made Hickey a household name in 2016-2017. He took a step back in the defensive zone for sure.

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His plus minus took a dive for one thing. In 2015-2016 he was plus nine while this past year he dropped to minus one. He saw his penalty minutes go up as well during the year.

He just wasn’t the same player that we’ve grown accustomed to. Too many turnovers and defensive mistakes from Hickey led to goals from the opposition, which then resulted in Isles Twitter putting him on their Most Hated List.

If we’re being fair he wasn’t the only defenseman to take a step back in 2017 (looking at you Travis Hamonic). But nonetheless, it was an odd year for Hickey.

He even spent some time playing forward at the end of the year when the Isles were decimated by injuries. It was cool to see his versatility yet also sad at the same time that Thomas hickey was a top-six forward on a team that had playoff aspirations.

Mr Overtime himself even came out to show his face again this year.

Next: Finding Value In The Mid-First Round

Unfortunately for me, Hickey didn’t do enough for me to yield a good grade. My expectations were higher for him and he was a liability at too many times this year. He’s a prime candidate for the Las Vegas Golden Knights

Final Grade: C-