Eyes On Isles
Fansided

New York Islanders Three Thoughts on Players Who Clear Waivers

By Michel Anderson

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 28: Brock McGinn #23 of the Carolina Hurricanes hits Thomas Hickey #4 of the New York Islanders into the boards during the third period in Game Two of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Barclays Center on April 28, 2019 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Hurricanes defeated the Islanders 2-1. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 28: Brock McGinn #23 of the Carolina Hurricanes hits Thomas Hickey #4 of the New York Islanders into the boards during the third period in Game Two of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Barclays Center on April 28, 2019 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Hurricanes defeated the Islanders 2-1. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The three players – Josh Ho-Sang, Thomas Hickey, and Tanner Fritz – that the New York Islanders placed on waivers Monday cleared to the AHL.

After a full 24 hours on the waiver wire, the three players that the New York Islanders placed on waivers have cleared. Forwards Tanner Fritz, Josh Ho-Sang, and defender Thomas Hickey are now AHL bound.

All were seen as surplus to what the Islanders needed to start the 2019-20 NHL season. All could very well be back in the lineup to cover for injuries when they inevitably occur.

Here’s some quick takeaways for each player as they clear waivers.

Josh Ho-Sang

1. Twenty-nine other teams in the NHL had a chance to take Ho-Sang off the Islanders roster for free. With a single year $874,000 contract there wasn’t a better time for a team looking to bring in a player with a ton of promise, for free. And not a single one of those teams did. It’s incredible how important attitude is when it comes to making the NHL.

2. I think a negative factor for Ho-Sang here was perhaps the ability of the Islanders top line to look so good in the preseason. It’s clear that the Islanders needed more “pop” upfront, and it seems that Mathew Barzal, Jordan Eberle, and Anders Lee can get back to their regular selves. The Isles didn’t need to go for a more offensive third line.

3. To be fair, Ho-Sang didn’t do enough to show the Islanders they couldn’t cut him from the roster. After five years with the team, he should be in the NHL by now. But in his five attempts to show it, he didn’t do enough. I hope he eventually makes it to the NHL and proves everyone wrong. If that’s with the Isles or not it doesn’t matter to me.

Thomas Hickey

1. It’s no surprise that Thomas Hickey was waived by the Islanders. He’ll be one heck of a leader for the kids in Bridgeport. Guys like Bode Wilde, Sebastian Aho, and Mitchell Vande Sompell, would do well to soak up every bit of knowledge that Thomas Hickey has to offer.

2. The second there’s an injury on the blue line you have to think that Hickey will be the first name called up. he’ll be back.

3. Now that teams have figured out who they’re keeping and who they don’t want to keep, they need to reduce the roster to 23 and their contract lists to 50. Eleven teams are currently above the 23 man limit. A trade could still happen for Hickey.

Want your voice heard? Join the Eyes On Isles team!

Write for us!

Tanner Fritz

1. I thought he’d get a chance at the NHL this years. Specifically because he signed a two-year deal with year one being a one-way contract. Obviously, that doesn’t guarantee anything (cause he’s now going to the AHL) but it looked like a hint at what the Islanders were thinking at the start of the offseason. That was a wrong reading of the tea leaves.

2. Signing Derick Brassard clearly changed things for Fritz’s immediate future with the Isles.

3. Just like Hickey, you have to think that Fritz will be called into action if someone in the Islanders bottom-six goes down with an injury.

Home/Editorials