Eyes On Isles
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Islanders: former prospect traded away scores hat-trick in NHL

By Michel Anderson

MONTREAL, QC - JANUARY 02: Carter Verhaeghe #23 of the Tampa Bay Lightning skates against the Montreal Canadiens during the first period at the Bell Centre on January 2, 2020 in Montreal, Canada. The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC - JANUARY 02: Carter Verhaeghe #23 of the Tampa Bay Lightning skates against the Montreal Canadiens during the first period at the Bell Centre on January 2, 2020 in Montreal, Canada. The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /
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Former New York Islanders prospect Carter Verhaeghe scored a hat-trick for the Tampa Bay Lightning. The guy we got for him is now playing in the German league.

Remember goalie Kristers Gudlevskis? Remember how former New York Islanders GM Garth Snow traded for the Latvian goalie back in July of 2017? Do you remember that Snow sent Carter Verhaeghe to the Lightning for Gudlevskis?

On Tuesday night, as part of a 9-2 route of the Vancouver Canucks, Carter Verhaeghe picked up his first career NHL hat-trick.

Verhaeghe has played 29 games for the Lightning this season, scoring nine points. Five of those points have come over the last three games. Meanwhile, Gudlevskis is playing out in Germany for the Fischtown Pinguins.

Lost the Trade

Verhaeghe was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the third round of the 2013 draft. The Islanders acquired him, along with a crop of prospects including current Bridgeport goalie Christopher Gibson, from the Leafs in the Michael Grabner trade.

Spending two seasons in the Islanders organization, Verhaeghe split time between the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL and Kansas City Mavericks of the ECHL across both seasons.

Between 2015-16 and 2016-17 Verhaeghe played 36 ECHL games scoring 57 points. In that same span, he played 75 AHL games, scoring 44 points.

Once he arrived in the Tampa system Verhaeghe exploded. He put up 48 points in his first season with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch and then 82 points just last year. That was enough for the Lightning to promote him to the NHL full-time.

Now in the NHL Verhaeghe is putting up points like Tuesday’s hat-trick for a Tampa team looking to avenge their first-round sweep in the playoffs. Along with the hat-trick, Verhaeghe has two helpers over his previous two games.

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Gudlevskis played 37 games for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in 2017-18 averaging a 2.83GAA and 0.897SV%. Clearly, the Islanders gave up the better player in the trade.

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