Islanders 2020 trade deadline buyer profile: Isles still need scoring

What are they after?

Top-Six Winger

The Isles need scoring, badly. For the last year and a half they’ve ranked in the bottom half of the NHL in terms of goals-for. This year, they rank 21st in the league with 163 goals for.

It’s just not enough for a team with championship aspirations. The Islanders need to bring in a player that can put up 20-30 goals to add to the top-six to give them that cutting edge.

Possible targets: Mike Hoffman, Andreas Athanasiou, Tyler Toffoli

Depth Defenseman

Adam Pelech isn’t coming back anytime soon. That’s a big miss for the Islanders. Noah Dobson has stepped into the lineup and is playing every night. But with ice time wavering between eight and 15 minutes, it’s clear that Barry doesn’t have complete faith in the rookie yet.

Getting a veteran blueliner who can play on the PK and share the load by playing closer to 20 minutes would do some good.

With Thomas Hickey likely getting back on the ice this weekend in the AHL, they may already have a depth defenseman they can bring in for free.

Possible targets: Ron Hainsey, Brenden Dillon, Andy Greene

Center?

With Casey Cizkias out now 3-4 weeks with a leg laceration, the Islanders center depth is significantly weakened. Derick Brassard has his good days down the middle for the Isles on the third line, but he also has days where he’s completely anonymous out there. Unfortunately, the latter is more common than the former.

Playing Brassard has brought out the best in him. If the Islanders can bring in a true third line center they could more Brassard up to the wing with Anthony Beauvillier and Brock Nelson, where he’s more impactful.

Possible targets: Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Chris Tierney, Kyle Turris