New York Islanders recent winning streak could alter trade deadline plans

The New York Islanders are the NHL’s hottest team at the moment. The club is riding a six-game winning streak and has seemingly resurrected from the dead.

Back on January 23, I wrote about how the Islanders should be sellers at the trade deadline. However, that was before the Isles flipped a switch and turned up the heat.

Like last season, the Islanders are now making a playoff run in the second half of the season. With the Eastern Conference playoff picture far from decided, the Islanders could very well squeak into the playoffs again this season.

If that’s the case, the Isles’ plans at the trade deadline could radically change. The Islanders could pivot from sellers to buyers. In fact, they already have.

The loss of Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock forced Islanders’ GM Lou Lamoriello to go bargain hunting, signing Tony DeAngelo and trading for Scott Perunovich. Thus far, the two moves look like savvy ones. Perunovich looks like Mike Rielly last season, while DeAngelo, well, he’s DeAngelo.

With the Isles turning this around, it could signal that the team is not going to move Brock Nelson. Unless a mind-boggling deal becomes available, the Isles had better hold on to Nelson. The same goes for Kyle Palmieri.

If the club truly believes in this roster and Patrick Roy behind the bench, management needs to round out the roster with solid depth pieces to help the club bolster its chances of making a solid playoff run.

Depth scoring must be atop the New York Islanders' priority list

The top priority on the New York Islanders’ trade deadline list should be depth scoring. While it would be nice to add someone like Elias Pettersson or perhaps Dylan Cozens, the fact is that the Islanders must be wary of making a deal for the sake of making one.

Now, we know that Lamoriello is hardly the type of GM that will dive in head-first into a regrettable trade. As such, Lamoriello should look into cheaper, but not less effective players like the San Jose Sharks Mikael Granlund or the Utah Hockey Club’s Nick Bjugstad.

These sorts of players aren’t going to light up the scoreboard on fire, but they will provide solid depth without costing an arm and a leg.

On the whole, the Isles cannot sit on their hands now that the club has finally turned a corner. We have been waiting all season to see the Islanders unleash their full potential. It seems that’s the case now. With a tough test coming up next week, the Islanders will hopefully prove they are truly a playoff team this season.