Confirmed Signing with Link: [NYI] Ryan Pulock signs extension with the Islanders (8 years, $6.15M AAV)

[Gurglesons]

more term for lower aav. common practice.

Common practice that becomes a big issue down the line which is what I'm alluding too.

 

[Thrasymachus]

Common practice for Lou to not really go out of his way to report his contracts. Not surprising the details of this contract are slow to trickle to the media.

 

[Foppberg]

Common practice that becomes a big issue down the line which is what I'm alluding too.

You're getting way ahead of yourself and looking for reasons to not be happy with the contract. Who knows what happens 5+ years from now, just enjoy the ride.

 

[Gurglesons]

You're getting way ahead of yourself and looking for reasons to not be happy with the contract. Who knows what happens 5+ years from now, just enjoy the ride.

My original comment said this contract was a home run. I just said I'd be concerned about Lou following the New Jersey path and gorging the team on high term deals.

 

[Wanderson]

My original comment said this contract was a home run. I just said I'd be concerned about Lou following the New Jersey path and gorging the team on high term deals.

Lou has managed to unite all Isles fans, we like his deals. There is no question about that.

Feel free to worry about something else.

 

[TGWL]

I don't like 8 year deals but hard to be upset when you get that kind of value. Great deal for Islanders.

 

[BonMorrison]

Can't wait to get the financial details in 2025.

 

[Beacon Isles]

The plus is that those contracts are staggered. Bailey and Beau are up after 3 years. At that time, Bailey will be done and they can make a decision of Beau. The following year. Palmieri and Nelson are up. Palmieri will retire and Nelson maybe also. Year 5 will be Lee and Pageau.

So really, the issue is making room to pay Barzal in 2 years and younger guys like Dobson and Wahlstrom while still maybe adding a piece here or there. Not really as drastic as you are making it out to be. They have other smaller contracts which will come off which will help like clutter, leo and hickey.

Well said.. the contracts are staggered, and no one is signed past 34/35 basically, other than the 1 yr 35+ deals to Parise, Chara and Greene/

Even with this new contract for Pulock, the Islanders are still in the bottom 5 in team payroll going towards defense.

The amazing part of this deal is that its only around a $1.x M a year raise for Pulock, who was already making $5M AAV. So its not like this is a huge impact to their salary structure.

Ideally young guys like Salo and Bolduc develop to replace the Greenes and Charas on defense at a similar cost initially...right now defensemen 5-7 make $750,000 or less each, and Salo and Bolduc dont make much more than that. Assuming they keep Mayfield at a reasonable bump in 2 years and Dobson earns a raise, rounding out the top 6 with Salo and Bolduc will make for a very reasonably priced defense corps.

And Varly comes off the books in 2 years, when Sorokin is hopefully ready to take the reigns as the #1.

Point being, they can afford to spend a little more in AAV on their forwards... and term is overrated - time and time again teams find ways to dump or bury players. That's not being cocky, its just what happens. Hell, someone took Andrew Ladd!

 

[Beacon Isles]

As a point of comparison, when Lou took over, they had Boychuk and Leddy as their main defensive pair making $11.5M AAV. Fast forward 6 years, they have Pelech and Pulock in those roles making... roughly $11.5M AAV

Mayfield is still Mayfield and he was a stud in the playoffs this past season, Dobson will hopefully keep developing and take that Toews "role", and ideally Chara and Green are keeping seats warm for Salo and Bolduc in the next year or two.

For a team lacking in 1st round draft picks the past few years, thats not all that bad. And they have like $8M in bottom six forwards and 3rd pair D coming off the books next year, and Dobson is the only RFA looking at a decent raise. They could certainly look to add another defenseman from outside the org if they so chose.

 

[Gurglesons]

Well said.. the contracts are staggered, and no one is signed past 34/35 basically, other than the 1 yr 35+ deals to Parise, Chara and Greene/

Even with this new contract for Pulock, the Islanders are still in the bottom 5 in team payroll going towards defense.

The amazing part of this deal is that its only around a $1.x M a year raise for Pulock, who was already making $5M AAV. So its not like this is a huge impact to their salary structure.

Ideally young guys like Salo and Bolduc develop to replace the Greenes and Charas on defense at a similar cost initially...right now defensemen 5-7 make $750,000 or less each, and Salo and Bolduc dont make much more than that. Assuming they keep Mayfield at a reasonable bump in 2 years and Dobson earns a raise, rounding out the top 6 with Salo and Bolduc will make for a very reasonably priced defense corps.

And Varly comes off the books in 2 years, when Sorokin is hopefully ready to take the reigns as the #1.

Point being, they can afford to spend a little more in AAV on their forwards... and term is overrated - time and time again teams find ways to dump or bury players. That's not being cocky, its just what happens. Hell, someone took Andrew Ladd!

Yes. Someone took Andrew Ladd for potentially two 2nds and a 3rd. You basically moved Toews to move Ladd.

Which is all my point was. These long term deals will end up costing the Islanders in the long run. And sometimes they end up costing in the short run.

 

[SI90]

Yes. Someone took Andrew Ladd for potentially two 2nds and a 3rd. You basically moved Toews to move Ladd.

Which is all my point was. These long term deals will end up costing the Islanders in the long run. And sometimes they end up costing in the short run.

No. We basically moved Toews to sign Barzal and Pelech and then set up this offseason with Palmieri Sorokin Cizikas and Pulock. Lou plays 4D chess.

Ladd was Snows signing and he was a 30 year old UFA. If it wasn’t him it would have been Okposo or Neilsen. All deals sucked. Pulock is 27. This is like singing a top pair defenseman who’s 29-30 to a 5-6 year deal.

You have to make tough decisions. Toews is awesome but the left side is an organizational strength. Remember the name Robin Salo. Then you have Samuel Bolduc. But Salo will be an NHL defenseman for us.

 

[SI90]

It’s real!!!

 

[PWJunior]

No. We basically moved Toews to sign Barzal and Pelech and then set up this offseason with Palmieri Sorokin Cizikas and Pulock. Lou plays 4D chess.

Ladd was Snows signing and he was a 30 year old UFA. If it wasn’t him it would have been Okposo or Neilsen. All deals sucked. Pulock is 27. This is like singing a top pair defenseman who’s 29-30 to a 5-6 year deal.

You have to make tough decisions. Toews is awesome but the left side is an organizational strength. Remember the name Robin Salo. Then you have Samuel Bolduc. But Salo will be an NHL defenseman for us.

This Isles team is doomed in 5 years, you dingis. Just accept it and move on. Wah wah.

So I guess we wait until June 30, 2022 for the official details come out for this? It would be very Lou-ish to stash it in his desk until then.

 

[Beacon Isles]

Yes. Someone took Andrew Ladd for potentially two 2nds and a 3rd. You basically moved Toews to move Ladd.

Which is all my point was. These long term deals will end up costing the Islanders in the long run. And sometimes they end up costing in the short run.

Moving Toews to move Ladd (which is really oversimplifying the equation) was collateral damage for Lou fixing someone else's bad decision to sign Ladd in the free agent frenzy of 2016. That whole UFA class was a colossal disaster league wide.

Anyone with an axe to grind with Lou can't really blame him for Ladd, or doing what he had to do to clean that up.

We kept hearing about how Lou's deals like the Hickey extension and signing Komorov (both off the books next season and at least one of the two buried in part at the moment) and Martin would kill the Isles in the short and long term over the past few years, and here they are. Not dead yet. The rumors of their demise are greatly exaggerated. Couple years from now, they can bury Martin and Cizikas if they have to. Casey's $2.5M basically gets cut in half down the road if they send him to the AHL.

 

[BertCorbeau]

Lou’s done a good job keeping his blue line cost effective of offset the depth he’s paid for. And because the blue line depth is set for cheap over the long term, it helps provide stability.

 

[Beacon Isles]

It’s real!!!

Great... now Lou will disappear him for sharing that info

 

[saintunspecified]

Wow. NYI will have only *one* contract to sort out the next offseason (Dobson), and get started on getting Barzal sorted early.

 

[Kvashinator12]

I really wish Dubas or Drury was our gm!!

 

[SI90]

Lou’s done a good job keeping his blue line cost effective of offset the depth he’s paid for. And because the blue line depth is set for cheap over the long term, it helps provide stability.

the right side is set with Pulock Dobson and Mayfield. The left side is Pelech and then 2 spots that can be had in the coming years

 

[SI90]

This post really puts into perspective how great the Pelech and Pulock deals are.

Still amazed at this deal.

Basically 6 years ago we had Boychuk and Leddy at $11.5m AAV.

And now we have Pelech and Pulock at basically the same cap hit 6 years later.

 

[saintunspecified]

the right side is set with Pulock Dobson and Mayfield. The left side is Pelech and then 2 spots that can be had in the coming years

Really wish we had gotten to see Bolduc during camp. He's an athletic freak, and probably would benefit a lot learning from Chara (more than Dobson, who I think will be a completely different kind of defender).

 

[SI90]

 

[CupHolders]

the right side is set with Pulock Dobson and Mayfield. The left side is Pelech and then 2 spots that can be had in the coming years

Incidentally (as you know, but non-Isles fans may not) the Isles top two best NHL ready prospects are LHD. Well planned roster building by the Isles.

Additionally @Gurglesons, I get your point and it’s a valid concern in principle. But it feels a little overstated and slightly off the mark for the Isles specifically.

No one is complaining about the production of 34-36 year old Bergeron, Crosby, Malkin etc…

All of the Isles long-term contracts are staggered and set to end at 35 years of age or younger. Only Anders Lee deal ends past the age of 35… He’ll be 36.

 

[Gurglesons]

Incidentally the Isles top two best NHL ready prospects are LHD.

Additionally @Gurglesons, I get your point and it’s a valid concern in principle. But it feels a little overstated and slightly off the mark for the Isles specifically.

No one is complaining about the production of 34-36 year old Bergeron, Crosby, Malkin etc…

All of the Isles long-term contracts are staggered and set to end at 35 years of age or younger. Only Anders Lee deal ends past the age of 35… He’ll be 36.

I see a very similar path by Lou as Lombardi in LA, Rutherford in PIT, and Bowman in CHI. The obsession with a successful roster and extension of what has happened versus what will moving forward.

Boston seems to be one of the few franchises that is cutthroat when it comes to that stuff. Lou used to be in the 90s. But as I alluded to he did some weird stuff since the 2012 Devils run.

 

[Zahra Starker]

Wtf pulock. How the hell are Canadian markets supposed to compete with this shit.