The thing is, how is one supposed to respond to the question? I guess I could throw out a random name...Hjalmarsson. Is he really available? Who the heck knows? Most of the time, the guys that end up getting traded are the ones you never even hear about. A GM is hopefully in a better position to make inquiries and figure out if someone's out there, because your average fan certainly wouldn't know. Before the draft, I'm sure folks would have snickered here if I said, "I think we should trade a second rounder for Visnovsky." There are some teams that have a surplus of D. Buffalo for one. Which of their d-men would be up for grabs though? I have no clue. But it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to get on the phone and see before settling for a guy like Redden.
- UIF

true.. everyone is available...but instead of throwing out blanket statement like "garth should bring in a top 6 or top 4 dman for a prospect and 2 picks" lets hear some actual suggestions and names....at least get the brain juices flowing a little bit.

anyone can say we need a top 6 or 4 player...throw out an offer, it makes it a little more of a discussion.

true.. everyone is available...but instead of throwing out blanket statement like "garth should bring in a top 6 or top 4 dman for a prospect and 2 picks" lets hear some actual suggestions and names....at least get the brain juices flowing a little bit.

anyone can say we need a top 6 or 4 player...throw out an offer, it makes it a little more of a discussion.
- LetsGoIsles

Gotcha. On that note then, since I brought up Buffalo, how much would they want for a player like Leopold as a stopgap for us this year? I've always thought he was a steady, if unspectacular d-man, they have too many defensemen as is, and he's only signed to the end of this season, so I can't imagine he'd cost a whole lot. I'd say offer a second if we didn't already burn ours on Vis. Maybe a third and a low-end prospect?

Edit -- if we were thinking bigger, I'd love to know if they'd make McNabb available as part of a bigger deal, but I don't think they'd trade a 6'4 physical defense prospect. I've wanted him here ever since he laid out Nielsen with a devastating open-ice hit in a game against the Isles last season.

true.. everyone is available...but instead of throwing out blanket statement like "garth should bring in a top 6 or top 4 dman for a prospect and 2 picks" lets hear some actual suggestions and names....at least get the brain juices flowing a little bit.

anyone can say we need a top 6 or 4 player...throw out an offer, it makes it a little more of a discussion.
- LetsGoIsles

Here's a few:

1. Call Anaheim up and see what they want for Bobby Ryan. Any young player except for Strome should be on the table. You might have to give up Reinhardt in the package to get him.He would be a great fit with JT.

2. Call Chicago and offer Nabakov and maybe Bailey and get either d-men- Leddy or Hjalmarsson and maybe Bickell.

3. Call San Jose and see what they want for Clowe. Another big body but he is a free agent in the summer so he might come cheap. Maybe a 3rd rounder and a mid level prospect.

Have fun "beating me up"...

You're right about what it says about our roster and about my assessment of Redden, but I'm also assuming that Redden is better than the candidates for the sixth and seventh spots on our "D" based on his career track record. At one point, Redden was a great D-man. The Ranger "D" is very solid, in much better shape than the Isles "D". Its no surprise that he would be able to be a sixth or seventh "D" man on the Isles and not be able to crack the Ranger "D". And that's a worst-case scenario. He might even be better than some of the guys one through five on the Isles' "D" now. My point is, I'd rather have Redden for two years than rush Reinhart or any other prospect to fill in those last two roster spots on the Isles' "D".
- Jethro09

Bingo!

XxNYIxX

You're putting words in my mouth, and instead of taking what im saying as a dig at your thought........read what someone else who watched him play in the AHL for 2 seasons had to say. He was coasting and not among the better dman on the team.

Stop reading the name Wade Redden and assuming he is a 6.5 million dollar dman. The same kind of contract went to Scott Gomez........you want him too? The guy isnt even worth 3 million, and yet you want him on an NHL roster, after not playing in the NHL for 3 seasons?

Sidenote : Like Torts or not, he gets the most out of his players, and he's a proven winner.
- kindlyrick

Ok, i see the problem... You keep looking at the salary.. forget what these guys are making, it doesn't affect you or this team in the short term.

Listen if i were crapped on like the Rags crapped on him, I would be coasting in the AHL as well.

Id take Gomez and his 2 year contract in a heartbeat (as long as the deal was for a 4th round pick or something) 2 years as our second line center, giving Strome & Nelson time to grow in the minors.. HELL YES.

I like Torts, I just don't see him as the gold standard. Just because he's not his type of player, doesn't make the player bad.

XxNYIxX

Again you're assuming.........which falls in line with me being tired of "what ifs" on this team. Rushing Reinhart isnt even part of my equation. He should and most likely will end up back in juniors. The isles D we all agree is a weak spot. SO rather than bring in an overpriced washed up Redden who "could still play" at the NHL level. I'd rather trade for a guy who has been playing well in the NHL the past few years.......not one who's been buried in the minors.

Sidenote: I can see your point with Redden if he was making 2 or 3 million. But you're suggesting bringing in a guy who would be the highest paid player on the isles and he hasnt played in the NHL in 3 years? Doesnt make sense to me. There are better options than Wade Redden.
- kindlyrick

I ALSO would rather a trade for an experienced younger D-men... Of course. But if that cant happen... Redden is a good short term, low risk/high reward option.

XxNYIxX

so youre going to cop out and say you dont have any specific names....
- LetsGoIsles

To answer your question, " who would I bring in thats available"?

Well thats impossible for me to answer. It's a baited question and you know that.

Thats what you do. You disagree and try to trap with a question that cant possibly be answered by anyone who doesn't have inside knowledge of the coming and going of an NHL Organization.

But I'll play your game.

I've seen Gretzky, Messier, Staal, Pronger, Robinson, Esposito, Jagr and a host of other Stars who would seem to be untouchable TRADED.

So NO ONE is untouchable in my opinion and everyone is available for the right price. But that doesnt mean we have the pieces to meet everyone's price and even if we did. It doesnt mean that it would be a good deal for us if we did.

So having said that. There are a few players out there that I would love to have on the Isles that would improve us and tell the team, fans and the players of the NHL that the Isles mean business.

Are they available? I can't say. You cant say. Hell I dont think the GM's of the involved teams could say unless an acceptable deal were put on the table.

But here are a few players that I think would make a decent addition to our 1st line: Long term taking us well into Brooklyn and yrs after.

Bobby Ryan- we've discussed this to death. I'd love for us to make a play for him.

Evander Kane- would have to play off wing with JT but I dont think it would be a problem. He can score. Hes young and hes tough. The only thing that would break up this line is MM retiring.

Jason Pominville- The guy scores goals. Only 30 yrs old. I could see MM, JT and JP scoring 120 goals playing together for the next 3-5 yrs.

If we were to go a shorter term FIX. Not preferable but better than what we have been doing and at a lesser cost and shorter term than above:

Eric Cole- Can score and provide Veteran leadership.

Marty St Louis- Yes he's getting old but he's still productive and I believe has at least two good yrs left. Great work ethic and a skilled vet.

Jerome Iginla- He doenst seem to be slowing down all that much. Great guy to teach JT and others the ropes while still playing some good hockey.

Im sorry but i cannot resist this. What are you basing the fact that he IS a good dman? Was he once a good dman? Yes he was. But hes being paid 6.5 million to NOT play. He was put through waivers and NOT ONE SINGLE TEAM picked him up. I guess they thought he WASNT GOOD ENOUGH. But, you think he's a good player........well i guess all 30 NHL teams were wrong and you are right!
- kindlyrick

No.. 30 teams through he wasn't worth picking up 6.5 million for 3-4 years.

None of those 30 teams were starting out their season with 3 NHL D-men ready to go.

XxNYIxX

Here's a few:

1. Call Anaheim up and see what they want for Bobby Ryan. Any young player except for Strome should be on the table. You might have to give up Reinhardt in the package to get him.He would be a great fit with JT.

2. Call Chicago and offer Nabakov and maybe Bailey and get either d-men- Leddy or Hjalmarsson and maybe Bickell.

3. Call San Jose and see what they want for Clowe. Another big body but he is a free agent in the summer so he might come cheap. Maybe a 3rd rounder and a mid level prospect.

Have fun "beating me up"...
- kear20

Had him on my list to. He could fit very nicely alongside JT.

Wade Redden hasnt even been playing hockey in the AHL this year. The Rangers opted not to transfer his contract to the minors so they wouldnt have to pay his 6.5 million in salary during the lockout.
- kindlyrick

NOT because he cant play.. they didn't want to pay.. big difference

XxNYIxX

AND the younger guys had another year of development and another year to get stronger...that shouldnt be forgotten.
- LetsGoIsles

Not to be disrespectful but so have all the younger guys on every other team.

Wade Redden hasnt even been playing hockey in the AHL this year. The Rangers opted not to transfer his contract to the minors so they wouldnt have to pay his 6.5 million in salary during the lockout.
- kindlyrick

I don't think that is quite true.

Redden could not be returned to the minor leagues the last few seasons until AFTER training camp. I beleive he still has to pass thru waivers to be sent down.
(Who would pick him up at salary of 5 million and a cap hit of 6.5 million?)

The other guys in a similar position, Rotislav Olesz of Chicago being one of them (3.125 million cap hit) are not in minors either.

Fornabaio says Hamonic looks like he'll be in BPort's lineup for Friday's game. Not sure if that's a great idea...hold him out. Last thing the Isles need is for him to get hurt again right before camp starts. Heck, hold Donovan out too. Good news though is it looks like Nelson's about ready for action again.

Here's a few:

1. Call Anaheim up and see what they want for Bobby Ryan. Any young player except for Strome should be on the table. You might have to give up Reinhardt in the package to get him.He would be a great fit with JT.

2. Call Chicago and offer Nabakov and maybe Bailey and get either d-men- Leddy or Hjalmarsson and maybe Bickell.

3. Call San Jose and see what they want for Clowe. Another big body but he is a free agent in the summer so he might come cheap. Maybe a 3rd rounder and a mid level prospect.

Have fun "beating me up"...
- kear20

chicago could be a good dance partner considering they are overstocked on the blueline, although not sure i want to trade nabakov...that would be punting the season before it starts...(trading bailey, although not my first option, works for me in the right deal)


i like the clowe idea a lot...i dont think youre giving back enough. i think it would cost at least bailey and a pick.

Ok, i see the problem... You keep looking at the salary.. forget what these guys are making, it doesn't affect you or this team in the short term.

Listen if i were crapped on like the Rags crapped on him, I would be coasting in the AHL as well.

Id take Gomez and his 2 year contract in a heartbeat (as long as the deal was for a 4th round pick or something) 2 years as our second line center, giving Strome & Nelson time to grow in the minors.. HELL YES.

I like Torts, I just don't see him as the gold standard. Just because he's not his type of player, doesn't make the player bad.

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

but wouldnt you prefer to take that 6 million that wang is "allowing" for this "redden deal", break it up and spread it amongst a few players who at least have upside as opposed to an aging vet who wont be that useful once the isles are ready to compete?

To answer your question, " who would I bring in thats available"?

Well thats impossible for me to answer. It's a baited question and you know that.

Thats what you do. You disagree and try to trap with a question that cant possibly be answered by anyone who doesn't have inside knowledge of the coming and going of an NHL Organization.

But I'll play your game.

I've seen Gretzky, Messier, Staal, Pronger, Robinson, Esposito, Jagr and a host of other Stars who would seem to be untouchable TRADED.

So NO ONE is untouchable in my opinion and everyone is available for the right price. But that doesnt mean we have the pieces to meet everyone's price and even if we did. It doesnt mean that it would be a good deal for us if we did.

So having said that. There are a few players out there that I would love to have on the Isles that would improve us and tell the team, fans and the players of the NHL that the Isles mean business.

Are they available? I can't say. You cant say. Hell I dont think the GM's of the involved teams could say unless an acceptable deal were put on the table.

But here are a few players that I think would make a decent addition to our 1st line: Long term taking us well into Brooklyn and yrs after.

Bobby Ryan- we've discussed this to death. I'd love for us to make a play for him.

Evander Kane- would have to play off wing with JT but I dont think it would be a problem. He can score. Hes young and hes tough. The only thing that would break up this line is MM retiring.

Jason Pominville- The guy scores goals. Only 30 yrs old. I could see MM, JT and JP scoring 120 goals playing together for the next 3-5 yrs.

If we were to go a shorter term FIX. Not preferable but better than what we have been doing and at a lesser cost and shorter term than above:

Eric Cole- Can score and provide Veteran leadership.

Marty St Louis- Yes he's getting old but he's still productive and I believe has at least two good yrs left. Great work ethic and a skilled vet.

Jerome Iginla- He doenst seem to be slowing down all that much. Great guy to teach JT and others the ropes while still playing some good hockey.





- SCLI

dont be so concerned about how you think im going to turn this ACTUAL conversation into an argument...

the facts are, im bored of hearing the same constant, routine, cliche complaints...im trying to further a DISCUSSION...we dont have to agree on everything...i say how i feel, you say how you feel. nothing personal.

To answer your question, " who would I bring in thats available"?

Well thats impossible for me to answer. It's a baited question and you know that.

Thats what you do. You disagree and try to trap with a question that cant possibly be answered by anyone who doesn't have inside knowledge of the coming and going of an NHL Organization.

But I'll play your game.

I've seen Gretzky, Messier, Staal, Pronger, Robinson, Esposito, Jagr and a host of other Stars who would seem to be untouchable TRADED.

So NO ONE is untouchable in my opinion and everyone is available for the right price. But that doesnt mean we have the pieces to meet everyone's price and even if we did. It doesnt mean that it would be a good deal for us if we did.

So having said that. There are a few players out there that I would love to have on the Isles that would improve us and tell the team, fans and the players of the NHL that the Isles mean business.

Are they available? I can't say. You cant say. Hell I dont think the GM's of the involved teams could say unless an acceptable deal were put on the table.

But here are a few players that I think would make a decent addition to our 1st line: Long term taking us well into Brooklyn and yrs after.

Bobby Ryan- we've discussed this to death. I'd love for us to make a play for him.

Evander Kane- would have to play off wing with JT but I dont think it would be a problem. He can score. Hes young and hes tough. The only thing that would break up this line is MM retiring.

Jason Pominville- The guy scores goals. Only 30 yrs old. I could see MM, JT and JP scoring 120 goals playing together for the next 3-5 yrs.

If we were to go a shorter term FIX. Not preferable but better than what we have been doing and at a lesser cost and shorter term than above:

Eric Cole- Can score and provide Veteran leadership.

Marty St Louis- Yes he's getting old but he's still productive and I believe has at least two good yrs left. Great work ethic and a skilled vet.

Jerome Iginla- He doenst seem to be slowing down all that much. Great guy to teach JT and others the ropes while still playing some good hockey.





- SCLI

I like a lot of your suggestions. On D I think Leddy would be a good fit for us and wouldn't cost a ton, although if Chicago does want to go for the cup this year they won't be looking for prospects. (this is also a response to another poster here, I know you were talking forwards)

Personally, if we're looking for someone with drive and some offense up front to play with JT who wouldn't cost a fortune, I'd be interested in andrew ladd. Maybe Chris Stewart although the price could be higher

so youre going to cop out and say you dont have any specific names....
- LetsGoIsles

Kris Letang, Filip Kuba, Kevin Shattenkirk, Brayden Coburn, Josh Gorges, Andrew Ference.........pick one, and see what the asking price is.

chicago could be a good dance partner considering they are overstocked on the blueline, although not sure i want to trade nabakov...that would be punting the season before it starts...(trading bailey, although not my first option, works for me in the right deal)


i like the clowe idea a lot...i dont think youre giving back enough. i think it would cost at least bailey and a pick.
- LetsGoIsles

I'll give San Jose a call and see what they want for Clowe....

Not to be disrespectful but so have all the younger guys on every other team.
- Downeaster

agreed, needless to say...but in the specific case of the islanders, who are a team centered around rebuilding and youth, getting that extra year of training and growing (physically and hockey sense) is a lot more essential than a team like the rangers who are made up of players where you know what you got.

henrik, callahan, richards, stall, nash, gaborik, girardi are all good players and you have a pretty good idea what youre going to get from them...for the most part they arent going to get exponentially better than what they are now.

pretty much for the rangers, what you see is what you get....which should be pretty damn good.

for the islanders, there is that sense of the unknown, bc they are a younger and not totally developed team.

make sense?

I like a lot of your suggestions. On D I think Leddy would be a good fit for us and wouldn't cost a ton, although if Chicago does want to go for the cup this year they won't be looking for prospects. (this is also a response to another poster here, I know you were talking forwards)

Personally, if we're looking for someone with drive and some offense up front to play with JT who wouldn't cost a fortune, I'd be interested in andrew ladd. Maybe Chris Stewart although the price could be higher
- Isles_since_6

I like Ladd and he could have been had when the Black Hawks were purging their roster. I think Ladd is a fan favorite and Winnipeg really likes him, so he'll be tough one to get...

NOT because he cant play.. they didn't want to pay.. big difference

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE ISLANDERS.........the same team that got rid of the radio broadcast to save money. Do you really think they're gonna take on a washed up Wade Redden making him the highest paid player on the team?? Stop arguing just to argue......IT DOESNT MAKE SENSE

I don't think that is quite true.

Redden could not be returned to the minor leagues the last few seasons until AFTER training camp. I beleive he still has to pass thru waivers to be sent down.
(Who would pick him up at salary of 5 million and a cap hit of 6.5 million?)

The other guys in a similar position, Rotislav Olesz of Chicago being one of them (3.125 million cap hit) are not in minors either.
- Downeaster

Im confused as to your argument.........cause i dont disagree with anything you just wrote.

Im confused as to your argument.........cause i dont disagree with anything you just wrote.
- kindlyrick

I was replying to what you said which was:

"Wade Redden hasnt even been playing hockey in the AHL this year. The Rangers opted not to transfer his contract to the minors so they wouldnt have to pay his 6.5 million in salary during the lockout".

Like I said (and you agreed with) they can't send him to the minors until after training camp and he passes thru waivers.

So, what you originally said about them not sending him to the minors so they wouldn't have to pay his salary was not quite accurate.....

I was replying to what you said which was:

"Wade Redden hasnt even been playing hockey in the AHL this year. The Rangers opted not to transfer his contract to the minors so they wouldnt have to pay his 6.5 million in salary during the lockout".

Like I said (and you agreed with) they can't send him to the minors until after training camp and he passes thru waivers.

So, what you originally said about them not sending him to the minors so they wouldn't have to pay his salary was not quite accurate.....
- Downeaster

I was referring to this past year........the lockout year. The years prior to this lockout year, yes he passed thru waivers and noone claimed him so they buried him in the minors and ate his contract. This past year they would have had to pay him 6.5 million to play in the minors but opted not to transfer his contract.

From wikipedia "At the time of the NHL 2012 lockout, the Rangers decided not to transfer Redden to the AHL roster, thereby not having to pay his salary during the dispute."
So again i ask, what are you saying?