Fans have been calling for a trade for a month and a half. The offense leaves absolutely no room for error and on a night where all there was accounted for errors, the Isles were blown out, calling for, begging for at least a Kieffer Bellows call-up if not a true acquisition of offensive help.
It doesn’t seem like this will happen though. New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello seems content to stay pat with the roster that he has. This seemed well and good enough during the midst of the offensive slide. No team is likely to stay as hot as the Isles were at the beginning of the season.
But now the Islanders have produced absolutely diddly for the better part of two months. The Islanders offense against the Rangers produced a series of missed passes, shots blocked by their own players, and general buffoonery on Monday night. The only bright spots were Eberle’s fifth goal and Dobson’s improved play.
Give Bardreau Another Shot
With Casey Cizikas out it seems best to consider re-calling Cole Bardreau. His play was energetic and physical, akin to the leadership on the Islanders’ vaunted fourth line. Either Bellows or Koivula seemingly couldn’t impact the level of play negatively at this point.
But the real question is, why isn’t Lou doing anything? Is there really a benefit to giving reps to Dal Colle and Ross Johnston over the younger guys? Both, I believe get more grief than they deserve, but neither is trending towards a Jaromir Jagr anytime soon. What necessitates a change in the eyes of the Isles’ GM?
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In the meantime, the Islanders have a second chance against Detroit tonight. They need to slow the game down and play a more defensive-minded game. Who leads the team in that charge when Cizikas is out? They may need to find someone that soon, but looking for that additional leader through trade with Lou in the hot seat may be moot.