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New York Islanders Best All-Decade Starting Lineup

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - APRIL 10: The New York Islanders celebrate their victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on April 10, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. The Islanders defeated the Penguins 4-3 in overtime.(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - APRIL 10: The New York Islanders celebrate their victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game One of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on April 10, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. The Islanders defeated the Penguins 4-3 in overtime.(Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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New York Islanders
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 08: Anders Lee #27 of the New York Islanders scores a powerplay goal at 14:34 of the second period against the San Jose Sharks at the Barclays Center on October 08, 2018 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Left-Wing | Anders Lee

Anders Lee is one of the best power forwards in the NHL. His strength, determination, and hand-eye coordination make him an incredible goal-scoring threat.

His goal scoring form took a dip this year. Going from 40 goals in 2017-18 to 28 in 2018-19. But to be fair, last year’s New York Islanders weren’t goal machines. With that in mind, over the last 13 years, Anders Lee has 102 goals, ranking him 13th in the NHL. Even with a 12 goal dip, he’s one of the better goal scorers in the game.

A former sixth-round pick in 2009, Lee has had to work hard to get where he is. The team captain ranks fifth in scoring for the Islanders over the last ten years with his 258 points.

Lee’s 0.61 points per game fall bellow Matt Moulson‘s 0.73 points-per-game and well below Thomas Vanek’s 0.94. Vanek was only around for 47 games. Like Anders Lee, loyalty is a worthy quality. Vanek didn’t want to stick around.

Matt Moulson is a fair shout for the position. Specifically for his play with Tavares between 2009-2010 to 2011-2012 where he scored 97 goals. But Lee has him beat with 102 goals. Including that 28 goal season when Tavares wasn’t around. Moulson didn’t crack 20 in a season he didn’t play with Tavares.

You can make the case for Matt Moulson or even Thomas Vanek to be the guy on this all-decade Islanders team. But you’d be wrong. The right answer is Anders Lee.

Honorable Mention: Thomas Vanek, Matt Moulson

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