NY Islanders GM Lamoriello has done a little bit of everything at the trade deadline

2021 - Bedeviled

The late start to the shortened 56-game regular season pushed the trade deadline into April 2021, and the Islanders were a virtual lock to be one of the four teams coming out of the "Eastern Division." Having lost captain Anders Lee to a torn ACL on Mar. 6, it was evident and obvious that they needed to find a way to replace his scoring and power forward presence.

For the second year in a row, Lamoriello went to his old stomping ground in New Jersey to find a match, acquiring 30-year-old Kyle Palmieri veteran center Travis Zajac for Bridgeport forwards AJ Greer, and Mason Jobst along with the team's first-round pick in the 2021 NHL draft and a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft.

"It's been a bit of a crazy week, starting with the scratch Sunday," said Palmieri, who was kept out of New Jersey's lineup while trades were being discussed. "When I heard the Islanders were an option, I couldn't have been more excited. Little bit of anxiety waiting for that call, but difficult to contain my excitement."

Palmieri struggled during the remainder of the regular season, scoring only two goals as the Islanders slipped to fourth place in the division by the season's end. However, he made a big impact during the playoffs, starting with his overtime winner in Game 1 of the first round against the Pittsburgh Penguins. He scored seven goals in 19 games as the Islanders pushed the defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning to seven games in the Stanley Cup semi-finals. Zajac entered the playoff rotation after Oliver Wahlstrom was injured versus the Penguins.

After falling one game short of the Stanley Cup Final, the Islanders lost forward Jordan Eberle to the expansion draft and resigned Palmieri to a five-year extension while Zajac retired.