With Training camp a little over a month away I thought we take a look at the three Islanders who will be vital to the team’s success not only in the upcoming season but long term as well. Over the course of the next week I will feature a new article on each of the three. Today we start up front with Islanders’ forward Matt Moulson.

Matt Moulson has truly been a diamond in the rough for this team. After years of toiling in the minors he was given a chance to flourish with center John Tavares and he has developed into a prolific goal scorer. Playing the role of Robin to Tavares’ leading role of Batman has led to 112 goals in his four seasons with the Isles. However despite this offensive success Moulson does not bring much else to the table. He is not creative in the attack zone, his skating is average, his defense has suffered and at times he seems allergic to finishing his checks. The last part of the game seems the most puzzling. In his first season as an Islander in 2009 he had a very respectable 113 hits in a full season. In this past lockout shortened season he managed only 24 hits in 47 games.

While Moulson did score 15 goals in half a season he was quite streaky. In fact, he managed only 4 goals in his final 26 games. This gets back to his deficiencies as a player. If you aren’t scoring you have to bring more to the table. While this team can score goals they are by no means the 1984 Oilers. Everyone in the forward position has to finish their checks and take the body. The Islanders cannot afford a player to be on the ice just for their offense. They need a complete game from all 12 forwards.

Many have speculated that Matt played through injuries and I hope that is true because despite what I have written I do feel Moulson can be a valuable asset to this team. To be frank there aren’t many 30 goal scorers in this league and the ones who can light the net with such regularity are paid heavily to do so.

This bring us to the puzzle that is Matt Moulson. What do the Islanders do with him long term. Moulson is entering the final year of his contract and with his offensive resume can demand a step raise over his current salary of 3 million dollars a year. If you are Islanders General Manager Garth Snow what do you do with a talented offensive player who has major flaws in his game?

Now if Moulson returns to form this year all will be fine in Nassau County, but to be blunt after the erosion of Matt’s play over the past season I would be terrified to sign him to a 5 to 6 year deal which would command anywhere from 5 to 6 million dollars a year. After the contracts given out this summer to the likes of David Clarkson, Valtteri Filppula and Nathan Horton; all who received over 5 million dollars a year; Moulson will get that on the free agent market.

The best move for the Islanders is to see how the first half of the season plays out. When they reach the trade deadline Garth Snow must decide if Moulson is part of this core of players moving forward. I’m glad I am not in Snow’s shoes as this is clearly not a black and white answer because what Moulson brings to the table is hard to replace. This is why Moulson’s game will be under such scrutiny moving forward.

It will be interesting to see how this all plays out. On Thursday I will feature the Islander defenseman with the most to prove for the 2013-2014 season. As always I appreciate your feedback and for more on hockey please follow me on Twitter and Instagram at @DanDanNoodles78.

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