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Islanders Star Pageau In For A Bigger Season Than Expected

By Scott Mitchell

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 22: Jean-Gabriel Pageau #44 of the New York Islanders (c) celebrates his game-winning power-play goal at 15:08 of the third period against the Buffalo Sabres at the Nassau Coliseum on February 22, 2021 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 22: Jean-Gabriel Pageau #44 of the New York Islanders (c) celebrates his game-winning power-play goal at 15:08 of the third period against the Buffalo Sabres at the Nassau Coliseum on February 22, 2021 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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The trade last year between the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators that landed Jean-Gabriel Pageau in New York seems like ancient history. However, things have worked out very well for the New York Islanders and arguably one of the best third-line centers in the league.

This season, Pageau has been on a hot streak. He has arguably been one of the best goal scorers for the Islanders and has made the most out of all his minutes. On the season, Pageau already has a total of 11 points off of seven goals and four assists.

Expectations for New York Islanders center Jean-Gabriel Pageau

This season has truly been unlike any other. With a lot of uncertainty, in an already shortened season, nobody knew how things would play out. With Pageau being still fairly new to the Islanders organization fans weren’t sure how he would fit in and how well he would be playing.

The expectations going into this season were pretty light due to the shortened 19-20 season. My expectation was for Pageau to roughly have 10-12 goals and 12-15 assists on the season. Pageau can get more than that, however, due to the short season, this seemed like an accurate estimate.

He has been showing he could go above that number.

Reality

In reality, it is looking like the expectations for Pageau this season were lower than any of us thought. Over the course of the first 18 games of the season, he already has 11 points. He has scored three goals and one assist in his past five games. He is on a hot streak right now and can be a very tough player to play against.

It’s quite possible that Pageau could exceed what was initially thought by the end of the season. We could potentially be looking at him to have a 21 goal year and pick up 12 assists over that time. This could make him a 30-point player.

What’s Next?

In a season that is truly unlike any other, a lot can happen. A lot can happen that we prepared for, and a lot can happen that nobody thought would. Pageau seems to be playing one of his best seasons and it should be interesting to see how the rest of the season plays out.

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