Who Will Be The Islanders' Sixth Defenseman Come Opening Night?

We're now well into day five of NHL free agency and the New York Islanders have yet to announce a single signing. As Lou Lamoriello has proven, this does not mean he has not reached any agreements. It wasn't until September 1st last year that the team announced the expected signing of Kyle Palmieri. With an increasingly frustrated fan base wondering if the team will sign a forward to play alongside Mathew Barzal, the team also needs to round out their defensive corps with another left-shot defenseman.

It is likely that we have seen the last of Zdeno Chara and Andy Greene in the blue and orange as both contemplate retirement. Both have played an integral role in the development of Noah Dobson, as he continues to improve and shows the potential of being that number one defenseman the Islanders have been clamoring for, for the good part of a decade.

Though both Chara and Greene have shown their value to the franchise, it is time for the organization to move on to a younger more fleet-of-foot option to round out their bottom pairing. In the inaugural season of the Lane Lambert regime, the Islanders will look to open up a bit more on offense. It's likely we will see the return of the Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock pairing that has had such success over the past few seasons and now the likely new pairing of Dobson and Alexander Romanov. So that leaves Scott Mayfield without a dance partner, and with the free agent pool dwindling, Lamoriello is running out of options for his newly appointed head coach.