Islanders top trade made in November in franchise history

Starved for content? Here’s are some of the best New York Islanders trades in November ever.

November isn’t usually a big month for trades for the New York Islanders. Over their 48 year history, the Islanders have made 12 trades in November. Which makes sense when you think about it. November is usually the second month of the regular season and teams usually don’t quite know where they’ll be at the end of the season.

Sure, American Thanksgiving is a soft line in the sand. Teams that are in a playoff spot by Thanksgiving are likely to be in a playoff spot at the end of the season. But that is a recent line.

So as we wait for something to happen in the Islanders offseason (like signing Mathew Barzal and Ryan Pulock), let’s take a look at some of the best trades made in November in Islanders history.

Ray Ferraro

On November 13, 1990, the Islanders moved defenseman Doug Crossman to Hartford for center Ray Ferraro. Crossman, who was sent to the Isles as a fulfillment of the ‘future considerations’ of the Kelly Hrudey trade, was a good player putting up 59 points on the back end in 1989-90. But he never hit those heights after the trade.

Ferraro was a good player before getting traded, hitting 30 goals in 85-86 and 41 goals in 88-89. In 316 career games with the Islanders Ferraro hit 116 goals, including a 40 goal (and 80 points) season in 91-92.

His greatest contributions came in the 1993 playoff run that saw the Islanders get to the Eastern Conference Finals. Ferraro scored 13 goals and 20 points as he powered his team to a surprising run in the East.

Clearly a great trade by the Islanders. They gave up a good player in Crossman, but they got the better player back in the deal.

Mikko Makela

A year before the Ferraro trade, the Islanders shipped Finnish winger Mikko Makela to the Los Angeles Kings for two players: Ken Baumgartner (LW) and Hubie McDonough (C). A two-for-one trade already sounds like a good deal, but Makela was a great player for the Isles.

In 307 games the former product from Finnish side Ilves scored 219 points including a 36 goal and 76 point season in 87-88. That was only his 22-year-old season. He still had time to grow and become an even better player. Or so the LA Kings thought when they got him in 1989.

The Kings would end up moving him after the 1989-90 season to the Buffalo Sabers with a rough 21 points (seven goals) in 45 games.

For the Islanders, McDonough would score 18 goals and 29 points in his first year with the club. In three years while wearing blue and orange, McDonough would put up 31 goals and 50 points in 139 games. Remember, Makela only put up 21 points with the Kings. Makela would only put up 46 points over the remainder of his NHL career. So just comparing McDonough to Makela and the Isles got a better return.

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Baumgartner was moved to the Maple Leafs after 44 games with the Islanders.

Maybe if Makela would have stayed on the island he could have had a longer and more productive NHL career. But considering how things went. The Islanders got the better return