Five of the best late-round draft picks in NY Islanders history

Stefan Persson

Selected in the 14th round at pick 214 of the 1974 Draft, Stefan Persson was incredibly productive for the Islanders. He was a staple on the blue line during the Islanders four cup dynasty, Persson had a wonderful nine year career, spending all nine of his years on the Island. Persson played in over 600 games registering 52 goals and 369 goals, along with over 100 playoff games that brought the Islanders four consecutive Stanley Cups.

Persson will never be recognized by the casual fan, but die hard Islanders fans who were there for the dynasty years will tell you all about him. He was as steady as can be, and provided a sense of stability along with Denis Potvin on the power play. To this day, he holds an NHL record for rookie defensemen with 50 assists, and an Islanders franchise point record for rookie d-men with 56 points. Eventually, he was traded to the Winnipeg Jets towards the end of the 85-86 season. However, he refused to report to Winnipeg, retiring from the NHL and finishing his playing career in Sweden. Nowadays, Persson serves as the general manager for Borås HC of HockeyEttan.