New York Islanders Daily: Andrew Ladd Expects More Of Himself

It’s been a tough two years for Andrew Ladd with the New York Islanders. Even he admits that he needs to be better and he expects more out of himself this year.

Andrew Ladd has struggled his first two years playing with the New York Islanders. Last year he followed up a poor year of 31 points in 2016-2017 with 29, and he has five more years left on his deal.

The lack of success from Ladd has been puzzling. From his days in Winnipeg, he averaged 54 points the last three years with the Jets before joining the Islanders. He was brought in to play wing for John Tavares.

That plan took a swan dive when he was quickly demoted off the top line in 2016. Ever since the Islanders have been trying to get him healthy and productive. Andrew Ladd told NHL.com that he’s capable of more in 2018.

"“I think I always have a chip on my shoulder. I know what I’m capable of and I’ve also evaluated what I need to get better at. I don’t think I’ve ever been a guy that’s been happy with the status quo. I’ve always wanted to strive and do things to make sure that I’m constantly trying to get better and improve. I’ve tried to do that this summer and I’m looking forward to having a good year.”"

The Islanders are going to need Andrew Ladd to crank things up a little bit to help replace the loss of Tavares. Ladd will likely be playing on the third line, a line that struggled heavily in 2017-2018. If he can even eclipse the 40 point mark this year on the third line it’d be considered successful.

Yes, he isn’t worth the $5.5 million per year but if you can get roughly half a point per game production from Ladd on the third line you can almost make that contract bearable. The 32-year-old needs a clean bill of health for this to happen, something he hasn’t had since joining the Isles.

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