New York Islanders Tavares Waiting Game No Good

We all found out yesterday that New York Islanders captain John Tavares is willing to wait to sign a new deal with the Islanders, is that such a good thing?

John Tavares has a year left on his contract with the New York Islanders. A new deal can’t be negotiated until July 1st, and it seems that Tavares is ok if it doesn’t get done on day one.

The immediate is “phew” the Isles have some time to work out all the details. As in a full-year to work it out.

But is that such a good thing for the Islanders? It’s nice that he, Tavares, doesn’t feel like he has anything to worry about.

Our man Matt O’Leary put it nicely:

"Supposedly Tavares and his agent are comfortable with both the Islanders future as a contender and also the future of the arena situation. Both are huge factors in his decision-making process."

That in-and-of-itself is worth something. But the longer these negotiations the more likely that those comfort waivers and any trade value depreciate.

Short Window

The Islanders have about three months in the summer to negotiate a deal before the season starts. A line in the sand that most players draw when it comes to contract negotiations. They just don’t like the distraction of contract negotiations added to the pressures of playing an 82 game season.

Then, depending on how successful the Islanders are during the regular season, they’ll have between one to three months to open negotiations up again. For a total of four to six months of negotiations with the face of the franchise.

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What’s so bad about that? Tampa went through the same thing with Steven Stamkos last season. And he signed a deal on the last possible day. Why can’t that happen with the Islanders?

The Tampa Bay Lightning are in a very different position than the New York Islanders. They have a Stanley Cup Finals and a Conference Finals appearance in the last three seasons to hang their hat on. And the core of those teams is very much still intact.

The Isles have two playoff appearances and a single series win in the same span. And that core the Lightning have is non-existent for the Isles. It’s Tavares and… Anders Lee? Josh Bailey? Andrew Ladd?

The Isles also don’t have that institutional stability that Tampa has. Where do the Isles play? Can they fill that stadium? Because so far they’re having issues. Is management going to change next season? You’d have to assume Garth is on thin ice after last season.

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Loyalty Gets Him to the Table

By all accounts, Tavares is an incredibly loyal guy. He just wants to win and do it in an Islanders sweater. He feels he owes them for taking him first overall in 2009 and trusting him with the team.

But let’s be honest. That loyalty gets Tavares to the table and likely keeps him there for a while. But come May/June and no deal is done Tavares has to do his due diligence and look what’s out there for him.

And by then his trade value is next to nothing. Because all the Isles are selling is his negotiating rights.

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The Islanders can’t approach these negotiations as a long process. This needs to be done as quickly as possible. The longer it takes to get Tavares extended the worse it looks and the worse it gets for the team.