One dream, one realistic, and one bargain player for the NY Islanders in free agency

Realistic Free Agent: Jack Roslovic, New York Rangers

One of the more underrated players in the league that the New York Rangers acquired from the Columbus Blue Jackets at the trade deadline, Jack Roslovic’s inclusion on this list could nonetheless raise some eyebrows. He’s not much of a points producer who will likely put up about 45 points maximum, which was a career-high in 2021-22. Roslovic also isn’t the most physical player, having landed just 274 body checks in 445 career games. 

The Isles need at least another scorer and they also need to replace some of their heavy hitters like Cal Clutterbuck and Matt Martin, assuming the duo won’t re-sign for the 2024-25 season. But the reason he’s on this list has a lot to do with the way he picked up his game in the playoffs, and it’s something Roslovic can build on for the following season. 

And to be honest, you can argue he was catching on before the playoffs, with eight points and three goals in 19 regular season games with the Blueshirts. That may not be impressive in the eyes of some, but adjust those numbers to 82 games, and he’s giving you between 34 and 35 points and 13 goals. 

Again, not the most impressive, but not bad when you realize he averaged just 13:27 of ice time per game with the Rangers. He also showed a lot of compete down the stretch and in the playoffs, so even if he’s not one to land a ton of body checks that Isles fans may be used to seeing, Roslovic can still play with reckless abandon in other ways.