Does it make sense for the NY Islanders to trade for Patrik Laine?

NHL training camp is less than two months away and the NY Islanders have made only two additions to their roster this off-season.

Needing to address the team's goal-scoring scoring woes over the past few seasons, Lou Lamoriello first went out and signed the top European free agent, Maxim Tsyplakov. The 25-year-old Russian spurned about a dozen other organizations, electing to sign with the Islanders for his first foray into the NHL. A 6'3" power forward, Tsyplakov's skillset should transition well to the North American game, but it's never easy to predict with European free agents.

The Islanders also signed Anthony Duclair to a 4-year deal, as he's expected to bring another element of speed and scoring to the Islanders' top-6.

However, the Islanders are still looking for that top-line, scoring winger to play alongside Mat Barzal and Bo Horvat.

Nikolaj Ehlers was a name often mentioned as a player Lamoriello could look to acquire, but all has been quiet on that front recently.

Another name that has come to the forefront over the past few weeks is Patrick Laine of the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Last week, Laine was released from the NHL/NLHPA Player Assistance Program after entering in January. While in the program, he was unable to speak with Blue Jackets or other organizations regarding a trade - something he's made known he's interested in.

There have been numerous teams reportedly interested in acquiring Laine, with the Montreal Canadiens seemingly at the head of the rumor mill.

“Patrik’s made it clear that, even before all the changes this summer, he would like a fresh start someplace,” Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell told First Up on TSN 1050 last Thursday. “We will look at it when the time comes – which hopefully is very soon – all the options. Now, I can’t rule out any options, even returning here because it takes two teams to make a trade and if there’s not a trade that makes any sense to us, then we have to just deal with what reality is.”

What the Islanders would be getting from Laine

Laine is one of the purest goal-scorers in the game today. He eclipsed the 30-goal plateau in each of his first three seasons in the NHL, but injuries have kept him off the ice since being acquired by Columbus before the 2020-21 season, missing 154 games over that period.

In 2021-22, Laine played 56 games, averaging a point per game, scoring 26 goals. The following year, he finished just below a point-per-game, finishing with 52 in 55 games, including 22 goals.

When healthy, Laine is exactly what the Islanders want and need in a top-line winger. He's often lackadaisical in the defensive end, but that's something teams learn to live with regarding players who can put up 40 goals.

With Barzal's ability to find shooters through the narrowest of seems, and Horvat willing to get his nose dirty and work around the front of the net, this threesome has the potential to be one of the best lines in the NHL.

In addition to working on the top line, Laine does his best work from the circle on the power play, ripping one-times past the goaltender - an area the Islanders have struggled with over the last few seasons.

But the price and risk may be too steep for the Islanders. Though he's coming off a down season, Pageau would leave a whole at 3C for the Islanders, leaving them to move Casey Cizikas or Kyle MacLean into that role- something they likely aren't comfortable with. Or, the Blue Jackets may not want a piece like Pageau and want prospects instead - something the Islanders don't have many of

Additionally, Laine's injury-plagued past may be the biggest stepping stone. On paper, the transaction makes perfect sense, but the best ability is availability, and that's something Laine hasn't been in the recent past.

The search for a scoring winger will likely continue.