Time to have that conversation about New York Islanders season

It’s time we had that conversation about the New York Islanders season. The Isles lost a tough 2-1 game in overtime against the Edmonton Oilers on Friday night despite the valiant effort from Adam Pelech and Simon Holmstrom against Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid during a grueling sequence.

While the Isles picked up a loser point, they remain five points out of a playoff spot. The gap is by no means insurmountable, but the situation is getting to the point where the Isles running out of time.

Unless the teams ahead of the Isles suddenly get cold, and the Isles pick up steam, it will be tough for the Islanders to squeak into the playoffs. So, fans need to start getting used to the idea of the Isles missing the postseason this year.

All things considered, the writing was on the wall. The disastrous barrage of injuries at the start of the season. Then, the awful inconsistency highlighted by the unusually high number of blown third-period leads played a significant factor in this debacle.

To top things off, the trade deadline fiasco signaled how team management had tacitly given up on the season.

So, where do we go from here? What happens if the Isles end up missing the postseason? Well, aside from possibly cheering for another team, Islanders fans will have the draft to look forward to. If anything, missing the playoffs provides the Isles with a decent first-round draft pick this year.

New York Islanders stand to pick in the top 10 at NHL Draft

According to Tankathon, the New York Islanders stand to pick 10th in this year’s NHL Draft. The 10th pick carries a 3.5% chance of winning the first overall selection in the lottery. If we’re cautiously optimistic, the Isles could move up a couple of spots.

Sure, missing the playoffs stings, but getting a top-10 pick out of it isn’t the worst thing in the world. The Isles can use that pick to continue stocking the cupboard with a highly-skilled player, or potentially trade it for more picks.

Whatever the Isles choose to do with the pick, the approach would be to select the best available player. The Isles could use an upgrade at all positions. So, why not pick the best available player at, say, number eight or ten, regardless of their position?

That approach could help the Isles salvage something from an otherwise regrettable season. Sure, anything can happen from now till the final game of the season. But if we’re already getting set to write the obituary for this season, we might as well think about the possibility of a high first-round pick.

The mission here would be to get a solid player. Missing this pick could have awful consequences for the Islanders down the road.