Pierre Engvall’s Plus Side Is Too Good to Pass Up for the NY Islanders

The New York Islanders Cannot Pass Up on Pierre Engvall’s Plus Side

PLUS

Questions emerged when the New York Islanders signed Pierre Engvall to a seven-year, $21 million contract extension in 2023.

In particular, questions emerged about signing Engvall to such a long contract given his apparent lack of production and results.

But there’s one thing many analysts don’t get about Engvall: His value doesn’t lie in scoring 40 goals a season. Engvall is one of the league’s best-rounded players. He doesn’t make silly mistakes, costly turnovers, or suffer from defensive lapses.

The reason why the New York Islanders traded for Engvall was because Lou Lamoriello drafted him during this tenure in Toronto. Lamoriello, savvy as he is, saw an opportunity to pluck a highly productive player from Toronto amid his old club’s cap crunch.

Engvall’s speed, hockey smarts, and overall work ethic make him the type of player that any team would love to have. Moreover, Engvall has the potential to become one of the league’s best defensive forwards. Under Patrick Roy, Engvall could become like Guy Carbonneau, an elite defensive forward Roy knows very well.

It’s also worth pointing out that Engvall still possesses the ability to score 20 goals. If he can do that, the Isles will be extremely lucky to have that sort of production from the bottom six.

Now, I wouldn’t rule out Engvall eventually getting another crack at the top six. In my estimation, Engvall could be a good complement to Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri, especially if Maxim Tsyplakov has trouble adjusting to the North American game.

On the whole, Engvall’s pluses are too good to pass up. It’s hard to overlook how much Engvall contributes to the club. His contributions go beyond putting the puck in the back of the net. Engvall’s value is based on his all-around game.