Islanders: Josh Ho-Sang Was ‘Worth The Risk’ According To Garth Snow

Arthur Staple of The Athletic shared some memories from drafts of New York Islanders yesteryear, one of those moments was Snow’s thoughts on Josh Ho-Sang.

In the 2014 NHL Draft, the New York Islanders ended up with two selections in the first round. Michael Dal Colle was taken fifth overall while Josh Ho-Sang was taken 28th after the Isles moved picks 35 and 57 to go grab him.

To say those two picks flopped would be pretty accurate at this point six years later. For Dal Colle, he has just seven NHL goals over parts of three seasons. As a top-five pick who is on the verge of 24 years old that’s rather disappointing.

As for Ho-Sang, that’s a completely different beast. From day one, his story has been a unique one. From showing up late to training camp and being sent back to Juniors, to his “controversial” jersey number of 66. A lot has gone on with JHS.

Today, we found out what then GM, Garth Snow had to say about trading up for Ho-Sang after receiving some criticism. According to Arthur Staple of The Athletic, Snow believed Ho-Sang to be worth the risk citing his talent.

It was clear, in short stints, that Ho-Sang had talent. During his first call up in 2016-2017, he put up 10 points in 21 games with the Isles and nearly got the team into the playoffs after John Tavares went down and Thomas Hickey was forced to play on the wing.

The next season is when things got even weirder. He made the opening night roster but was a healthy scratch for opening night. This time, after 22 games and 12 points, Ho-Sang was shipped back down to the AHL and blamed for the team’s horrific defense.

In not-too-surprising fashion, the Islanders defense didn’t get much better after Ho-Sang was sent down. The following season saw Ho-Sang only have 10 NHL games with two points to his name.

The production wasn’t there, and in Barry Trotz’s system, it’s easy to see why he wasn’t able to adjust in a short time frame. He did, however, have a very productive AHL season putting up 43 points (8 goals, 35 assists) in 56 games.

After not making the team out of camp in 2019-2020, Ho-Sang asked for a trade. Lou Lamoriello told him not to report to Bridgeport but after months went by with no trade, Ho-Sang reached out to Chris Lamoriello, the GM of Bridgeport and asked if he could return.

He put up 10 points in 16 games and then he was loaned to the San Antonio Rampage where he would add three more points in six games. Clearly, the talent is there he just hasn’t gotten the chance at the NHL level.

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

Write for us!

Is some of it his fault? Of course, he hasn’t made it very easy on himself but at the same time the Isles, even under Garth Snow, haven’t made it very easy on this kid. I still think he has a shot to play at the next level, I just doubt it’s with the Islanders.