Making sense of Elias Pettersson trade rumors to New York Islanders

The New York Islanders have reportedly kicked the tires on Vancouver Canucks disgruntled forward Elias Pettersson. According to The Hockey News, Pettersson is high on the Isles’ radar, particularly since insider Elliotte Friedman went public with news regarding the ongoing feud between Pettersson and teammate J.T. Miller.

If rumors be true, the Canucks are listening on both Pettersson and Miller. But it seems Lou Lamoriello and company have a keener interest on Pettersson. According to SNY, the Islanders are one of the teams showing interest in Pettersson.

That’s fine. Pettersson could be a great addition to the Islanders, considering the lack of high-end scoring talent on the team. Beyond Bo Horvat, Anders Lee, Anthony Duclair, and Mathew Barzal, the cupboard is relatively bare.

Maxim Tsyplakov hasn’t quite turned out as good as the team had hoped. Meanwhile, Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri have been off and on this season. Nelson, specifically, has had a hard time finding the back of the net this season. Palmieri started off well but has gradually fizzled out.

So, that leaves the Isles looking to generate more scoring. The Islanders are currently 26th in the league, scoring 2.68 goals per game. The club is also dead last with a 10.9% power play rating. With those numbers, something has to change.

Pettersson would certainly help aid the Islanders in boosting the team’s offense. But it wouldn’t be quite so simple to pry Pettersson away from Vancouver. The cost to land the top-line center could prove too rich for the Islanders’ blood.