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New York Islanders: Assessing The 5 Youngest Players On The Roster

By Ryan Grosso
UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 14: Oliver Wahlstrom #26 of the New York Islanders skates in his first NHL game against the St. Louis Blues at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on October 14, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 14: Oliver Wahlstrom #26 of the New York Islanders skates in his first NHL game against the St. Louis Blues at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on October 14, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – DECEMBER 29: Michael Dal Colle #28 of the New York Islanders skates against the Toronto Maple Leafs during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on December 29, 2018 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Islanders defeated the Maple Leafs 4-0.(Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /

Michael Dal Colle

Age: 23 years, 118 days

Rounding out the five youngest players on this New York Islanders roster is Michael Dal Colle. Dal Colle, though never having played a full NHL season, is not technically a rookie due to his playing 28 games with the big team last season, and 4 games in 2017-18.

A former 1st round pick, (5th overall, 2014) Dal Colle is a big body at 6’3″, 204 lbs who is not afraid to roll up his sleeves and work hard for his place in the lineup. He doesn’t really fit the mold of a modern 20-something NHL’er.

Where Dal Colle will have to carve out his place on this roster is in the defensive zone, the corners, and around the net. Luckily, his physical build is pretty well-suited to this type of play.

I don’t think I’m being too critical by saying he’s not been the most visible player on the ice through the first 6 games though. The advanced metrics have not looked too kindly on him thus far either.

I would like to see Dal Colle work a little Anders Lee into his game. The Islanders captain is by no means the flashiest player on the ice, but he’s also a former 40 goal scorer. Dal Colle would surely have to add some muscle for this to be a feasible option for him.

But given their similar builds and shared propensity for doing work in the dirty areas of the ice, I don’t see why Dal Colle couldn’t add some net-front presence to his game. It would certainly make him a more valuable asset in the New York Islanders forward corps.

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That’s it. That’s my sorta, kinda deeper look at the five youngest skaters on the New York Islanders active roster. Given that last season ~5% of NHL skaters were age 34 or older, these five players will need to make large impacts for the Islanders in the near future, and some already have. Enjoy the game tonight, everybody.

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