The New York Islanders and general manager Mathieu Darche have been active in the trade market in recent days. They added Carson Soucy from the New York Rangers and swapped Maxim Tsyplakov for Ondrej Palat in a deal with the New Jersey Devils. That sets the Islanders up to make a massive trade before the Olympic break, specifically for St Louis Blues forward Robert Thomas.
The Blues are spiraling toward the bottom of the Western Conference standings with a rebuild coming soon. They are looking to move some of their bigger contracts before next season to kick the rebuild off. And with two first-round picks in the upcoming draft, the Islanders are a perfect trade candidate for St Louis. Thomas is currently on the shelf with an injury, but is expected to return after the break.
The Islanders have a lot of wingers, so moving a player in this deal would be a necessity. Thomas is due $8.125 million per year, and the Isles have just over $6 million in space to work with. That leaves two forwards as prime candidates to head back to the Blues in the deal.
Jonathan Drouin just joined the Islanders in the offseason, but it has not been a great marriage. In 48 games, he has just three goals and 17 assists, with just four powerplay points. With a modified no-trade clause, Darche can get out from under the brutal contract.
The other option is JG Pageau, who will be a free agent at the end of the season. The Islanders won't be sellers at the deadline, so moving on from Pageau for Thomas is a solid use of the asset. It would hurt their penalty killing, which has been a bright spot for Pageau, but would improve their offense dramatically.
The time is now for the Islanders to make a big splash
Darche landed the Islanders' general manager job after they won the NHL Draft Lottery. But his work at the draft, first trading Noah Dobson and then taking Matthew Schaefer, has put the Isles in a great spot for this season. Ilya Sorokin's brilliance in the net has helped, as well. But Darche has a stockpile of picks and prospects, so trading for Thomas does not hamper their future.
The stockpile starts with Lou Lamoriello's trade of Brock Nelson to the Colorado Avalanche at the 2025 trade deadline. That landed them Calum Ritchie, who has been a solid bottom-six player this season, and a 2026 first-round pick. That pick is on the move in this mock Robert Thomas trade.
In the swaps with the tri-state rivals in January, Darche increased his draft capital. The Devils gave the Islanders a third-round pick and a sixth-round pick to take on Palat's contract. That replaced the third-rounder they sent to the Rangers for Soucy. So they can include any number of mid-round picks the Blues desire in addition to the Avalanche pick. The only pick they do not have is a 2026 second-rounder.
The last hurdle for the Islanders-Blues trade is Robert Thomas' full no-trade clause. If he does not want to move to New York, he can deny the trade, and the other details will be meaningless. But considering the Blues are headed for a rebuild, and the Islanders are putting together a playoff push, the chances are in New York's favor.
The final trade has the Islanders acquiring Robert Thomas ($8.125 million through 2031) in exchange for JG Pageau ($5 million expiring), Colorado's 2026 first-round pick, NYI's 2026 fourth-round pick, and NYI's 2027 second-round pick. It is a high price to pay, but Thomas completes the Islanders' core and can play the important center minutes that Pageau would be vacating.
