3 times the NY Islanders traded a draft pick for a player's negotiating rights

G Jaroslav Halak - Washington Capitals

Snow faired better with goaltenders than he did with defenseman.

Needing to solidify the crease after a dismal 2013-14 season, Snow aggressively traded a 4th-round pick to the Washington Capitals on May 1st for the negotiating rights to Jaroslav Halak. This time, the maneuver worked as Halak signed a four-year, $18 million dollar contract with the team before the end of the month. “I think it’s a fair deal for Jaro, and it’s a fair deal for us,” Snow said after the signing. “He’s a terrific goaltender, his career stats are good, and we’re happy to have him on board.”

At the time, Halak owned a very solid .918 save percentage and 2.38 goals-against average for his career, which started in Montreal before a successful run in St. Louis. Halak was then traded from the Blues to the Buffalo Sabres in a deal that included G Ryan Miller and then was flipped to Washington for the remainder of the 2013-14 season.

Halak would go on to have an All-Star season in his first season on Long Island as the revitalized Islanders finished with 101 points and returned to the Stanley Cup playoffs. Injuries plagued him during his second season as Thomas Greiss served as the team's No. 1 goaltender during their 2016 playoff series against the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning. In 177 games with the Islanders, Halak had an 88-65-19 record with a 2.69 GAA.

Oh, and that fourth-round pick? It was the 118th and was originally owned by the Blackhawks. The Islanders acquired it, a deal that sent Peter Regin and Pierre-Marc Bouchard to Chicago. The Capitals ended up trading it to the New York Rangers to move up in the draft, and with that pick, they selected goaltender Igor Shesterkin.