Subscribe
Follow Us
The New York Islanders recently won seven straight games to launch back into the Eastern Conference playoff race. They are still out of the playoffs heading into the 4 Nations Face-Off break but could swing a big deal before the trade deadline. The Islanders' have a valuable asset in 25-year-defenseman Noah Dobson and should trade him at this deadline.
The Islanders still need scoring despite concerted efforts to improve their forward core in recent years. JG Pageau, Bo Horvat, and Kyle Palmieri all cost first-round picks and Anthony Duclair came over as a free agent. But they still are 26th in goals-per-game this season and their lack of scoring has cost them in games. Dobson was marketed as an offensive defenseman, buoyed by his 60-assist season in 2023-24, but that has not been true this year.
Dobson is a restricted free agent after this season and could be a solid second-pair defenseman on a contending team. But he has not proven to be the top defenseman during his time with the Islanders. If they can capitalize on his solid stats and young age, they can still get value out of a guy they have tried to replace mid-season.
The Islanders are one of many teams who have checked in on Canucks star Elias Pettersson. After a locker-room rift between Pettersson and JT Miller set Vancouver ablaze, they traded Miller and could deal the Swede. He has scored 30 goals in three consecutive seasons but has had a down year while dealing with an injury.
If the Islanders can deal Dobson as part of a package for Pettersson, they will be much better off for it. But it would put significant pressure on their development system to produce solid defensemen to keep the team competitive.
The Islanders must improve development system if they trade Dobson
Article Continues Below
Among the six defensemen currently playing for the Islanders, only Adam Pelech was drafted by the Islanders. That is largely because Dobson and Ryan Pulock are both hurt, but their inability to produce stars has hurt them. They traded a first-round pick for defenseman Alexander Romanov, who has been solid in his time in New York. But they do not have defensive prospects to replace Dobson on the current roster.
That is proven by their current deployment of Dennis Cholowski, who played less than 10 minutes total in their final two games before the break. In contrast, Romanov played over 27 minutes in just Saturday's game. Trading Dobson would put more stress on players like Cholowski but also would give Scott Perunovich and Tony DeAngelo more room to run.
With an incredible amount of injuries on their blue line, GM Lou Lamoriello added three defensemen for a total price of a fifth-round pick. Perunovich came from the Blues in a trade, DeAngelo was a free agent, and Adam Boqvist was a waiver claim. Those additions give them enough breathing room to survive this season while setting their sights on the offseason.
Getting quality prospects in the system is important for the long-term health of the Islanders. Whether that is through trades of Brock Nelson and Dobson or the draft, they need to replenish their AHL squad. The Bridgeport Islanders are in last place in the AHL with an 11-31-2-2 record.
Wherever the Islanders go, they should do it without Noah Dobson. Locking in a flawed defenseman for top-defenseman money is a move that will be detrimental to the team moving forward. They can trade him while he still has value and potentially get a star in Pettersson. Even if they can't land him, picks and prospects would help the team as well.
