A look at the 5 key unrestricted free agents for the NY Islanders this off-season

Soon after Paul Stastny's overtime goal lifted the Carolina Hurricanes to a Game 6 win over the New York Islanders at UBS Arena, fans were onto what went wrong for the team during the 2022-23 season and what changes were needed to the roster heading into next year.

The Islanders have five unrestricted free agents (excluding Parker Wotherspoon), and a compelling argument can be made for each to come back as we head into the summer. However, at the same time, it's hard to bring back the same group that was unable to advance past the first round of the playoffs and was consistently inconsistent throughout the 2022-23 season.

These were all significant contributors, and the Islanders will have to weigh bringing them back with the cost of finding their replacements in free agency or through trades. Another consideration will be whether the younger players in the organization are ready to take on added responsibility and assume one of the spots if any of these players left for elsewhere.

And with that, here are the 5 key free agents for the Islanders this off-season.