Grading Islanders’ Forwards 25-26' Season

It has been no secret that the Islanders have struggled to score goals for years. The 2025-26 season was no different. The Islanders wrapped up the season ranked 25/32 possible teamsaveraging 2.79 goals per game. 

Now that is not entirely on the forward group but considering Matthew Schaefer potted 23 goals of his own which was good for 2nd in Islanders scoring behind only Bo Horvat's 31 red lights, that is a problem. 

The Islanders only had two forwards score 20+ goals this season. Emil Heineman, also in his inaugural Islander season, scored one shy of Schaefer’s mark with 22 goals. For reference, a season ago the Islanders had five 20 goal scorers, all being forwards. This season didn’t see the bunch scoring from a year prior. A season ending injury to Kyle Palmieri certainly did not help but undoubtedly the Islanders need some more firepower in their forward group. 

But how did each forward respectively fair this season?

I graded them each A-D.  

Let’s start with the A’s and there aren’t many: 

Bo Horvat: Bo had another massive season with the Islanders which earned him his Olympic debut in Milan. He scored 31 goals in 68 games and dominated the middle of the ice for the Islanders top line. He continues his two-way dominance, and you would think he is the next captain if Anders Lee walks this summer.

Mat Barzal: had a really important season as a professional. He was scratched and publicly outed by Patrick Roy early in the season. Coming off a knee injury, he bounced back and led the team with 71 points. They are a much better team when he is on the ice and conintued to dvelop chemsitry with Schaefer as the season went along. One complaint, the turnover issue is still a glaring problem. Too many game breaking mistakes.

The B’s:

Anders Lee: In a contract year,the Islanders captain did what the Islanders captain has done for a decade and that is get to thefront of the net and score. He played in all 82 games and tallied 42 points in a 3rd line role. Dependable but losing speed with age. Will Lee return to the Islanders in his age 36 season is the next question? He will need to take a paycheck on his regressing game.

Simon Holmstrom: had another solid two-wayseason and scored on the same pace as he did a season prior in his breakout year, which was slightly underwhelming. He should be in line for a full time top six role next season, and there is definitely more to his game. He is going to be an important player for the Islanders.

JG Pageau: in a season that earned himself a new three-year contract extension, Pageau saw his ice-time decrease but his shooting percentage reach a career high 21%. Pageau has been an incredible professional for the Isles and had a deserving season but with a log jammed center group it is hard to imagine Pageau following this up.

Cal Ritchie: In his first season as an Islander and first full seasonas apro, Cal Ritchie excelled scoring 13 goals and adding 17 helpers in 65 games in just his age 20/21 season. He contributed on the power play and earned more ice time each night. His two-way game still needs work as he struggled in the +/-category, but Cal is a confident youngster with a lot of game in him. It is hard to imagine he won't be playing with Horvat or Barzal next year.

C’s:

Casey Cizikas: In his 14th season on Long Island and first season away from Matt Martin, Casey struggled to find a groove with his revolving door of 4th line wingers. He scored 10 goals and had another solid two-way year. He has lost a step in his stride though during his age 35 season. He is scheduled to be back on the 4th line next season. 

Emil Heineman: Some thought Emil Heineman was just a throw in during the Noah Dobson deal this past summer. But Heineman erupted with 22 goals in his first season as an Islander. He also was 11th in the league in hits. Heineman showed himself to be a streaky player with upside but still needs a lot of fine tuning. He is a high energy middle-six player who needs to continue to grow in all three zones to be a serious impact player. 

Brayden Schenn: The Islanders brought in Brayden Schenn to help on the power play and be a mentor to the young Islanders. He scored six goals in 19 games and helped bring more out of Cal Ritchie. Unfortunately, Schenn was one of the worst defensive forwards in hockey this season. That continued on Long Island. There is still plenty of fight in him but the best is in the past and you'd have to imagine him in the middle six. He has two years left on his deal and will play wing next season for the Islanders.

Anthony Duclair: It may be unfair to the Duke for him to be given a C. He scored some big goals for the Islanders in the wintertime but was not sustainably in the lineup under Patrick Roy. It doesn’t appear that will change underDeBoer ,and while it may not be all his fault, I wouldn’tbe shocked to see Duclair moved this summer.

Max Shabanov: In his first season in North America, the 25-year-old Russian showed some flashes offensively but sat the majority of the season in the press box. Pete DeBoer hinted at liking Shabanov’s stuff. His five goals and 13 assists in limited time can be built on next year if he is deployed properly, if not no reason to think this wouldn't go the Maxim Tsyplakov route.

The D’s: 

Ondrej Palat: Mathieu Darche tried to revive the career of his old Tampa Bay pal just before the Olympic break. Palat scored in his first game as an Islander. He didn’t score in the next 28 games after that. He is a serious buy-out/trade candidate as his contract holds another year. There is no room for him on this Islander team.

Marc Gatcomb: Marc Gatcomb is a 4thline winger that delivers a lot of hits and blocks shots. He doesn’t bring much to the table offensively and isn’t the best defender either. No guarantee he is an Islander next year.

Kyle Maclean: When the Islanders fired John Maclean last May, some thought his son Kyle could be caught in the crossfire .Similar to Gatcomb, Kyle is a 4th liner thatspends a lot of time in the penalty box, often at the wrong times, and doesn’t add much of anything to the scoresheet.

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