Roster/Rumors/Speculation/Trade Talk - 2023-24: Hotel California

[MJF]

Hell yeah, the Ron's from Ronkonkama are mad!

He’s not wrong.

 

[leeroggy]

It’s really a shame for both of us because there’s some great ideas that have been lost forever and can’t be shared with the rest of the board.

Maybe even a cure for cancer?

Or how to block Pharma ads on TV

 

[Osakahaus]

He’s not wrong.

i know he isn't

that's when you know there's a problem with the team.

 

[Top Corner]

Wahlstrom being in over Gauthier AND on the first line is quite the headscratcher. He’s not really an NHL player…

Iskhakov (if Barzal is going to play center) or MacLean (if he isn’t) make sense as call ups if they place Cizikas on IR.

Don’t get what this organization is doing with Wahlstrom ! I’m no expert but he can’t play at this level now , he’s probably 1/2 of the rookie player that came up . Time to send him down to see if he can play at a lower level . I doubt he’s claimed and if he is, his skill set as it stands right now can be improved upon easily.

 

[Top Corner]

Wahlstrom is now the new MDC, time to send him down to play larger minutes in AHL and to see if he can do anything to rectify his career that is fading fast.
He will be the player remembered as the guy drafted before Dobson

 

[leeroggy]

Don’t get what this organization is doing with Wahlstrom ! I’m no expert but he can’t play at this level now , he’s probably 1/2 of the rookie player that came up . Time to send him down to see if he can play at a lower level . I doubt he’s claimed and if he is, his skill set as it stands right now can be improved upon easily.

There is no chance in hell he clears waivers at his NHL contract

 

[Top Corner]

There is no chance in hell he clears waivers at his NHL contract

whether he does or doesn’t, what form of development is he getting? He’s lost and tentative with skating being even worse then pre-injury

 

[leeroggy]

whether he does or doesn’t, what form of development is he getting? He’s lost and tentative with skating being even worse then pre-injury

He gets this entire season to grow; that injury takes a lot of time to get over, both physically and mentally. The mental part is trusting the knee to hold up and that does not go away in a few months.

He's still only 23, there's time.

 

[WangMustGo]

whether he does or doesn’t, what form of development is he getting? He’s lost and tentative with skating being even worse then pre-injury

I agree with you. I think his time here is done. He needs to be moved to a team like Chicago or Ottawa where he can play top 6 minutes without pressure to perform. He will never make it here.

Go after Tarasenko and put Wahlstrom in as a throw in.

 

[Top Corner]

He gets this entire season to grow; that injury takes a lot of time to get over, both physically and mentally. The mental part is trusting the knee to hold up and that does not go away in a few months.

He's still only 23, there's time.

Skating a side, I just don't see the IQ/skillset to be more than MDC 2.0. Had hopes
when he first came up but each year he seemed to regress

 

[dlawong]

Wally needs to call up Nichushkin and ask him how to persevere and pursue his dream of playing in the NHL. I also think he needs to work hard on his diet/conditioning to start with practicing as hard as he can each day, watching tons of videos on how to get open, and hoping for breaks. Likely he will not clear the waiver if sent down but you will never know.

​

 

[dlawong]

If Isles wants to make the playoffs, they need to scout hard for a PK specialist who that maybe available. Clutter is too old to PK effectively anymore. 5 on 5 he can still contribute but I prefer someone else younger PK.

 

[BelovedIsles]

This is what I imagine every poster here looks and sounds like.

That was actually pretty funny (the clip + the wit). I know that verbiage, and that look; and no, it's definitely not mine.

 

[Throttle]

Wally needs to call up Nichushkin and ask him how to persevere and pursue his dream of playing in the NHL. I also think he needs to work hard on his diet/conditioning to start with practicing as hard as he can each day, watching tons of videos on how to get open, and hoping for breaks. Likely he will not clear the waiver if sent down but you will never know.

​

One can make an argument that Nich’s emergence as a player is directly related to how the game is now played. He was a big body expected to play a heavy game during a time the game was heavy.

Now? He’s a big body in a league that doesn’t really play heavy. He gets room and there’s no big body to big body style of play.

Wally is absolutely clueless on where to go on the ice to get open to use his shot - that’s not a skating problem. That’s a hockey sense problem.

 

[Osakahaus]

If Isles wants to make the playoffs, they need to scout hard for a PK specialist who that maybe available. Clutter is too old to PK effectively anymore. 5 on 5 he can still contribute but I prefer someone else younger PK.

i'd honestly start to look at the Wild for Duhaime and a few other guys. They should be a target for the isles this trade deadline. Same with the Wings and Flames.

 

[LeapOnOver]

Again, I disagree. I guess we are watching two different games. Sorokin has not been at the level of the past two seasons. He is being paid to be a top 5 goalie in the league. If you do not want to take my word for it, do I have to waste my time finding all of the articles from just the past few weeks alone showing the numbers that indicate how average he has been or all the tweets from our beat writers about a shot he would "like to have back" multiple times almost every game?

I don't think you are watching two different games, i think you are just a negative Nancy who can't watch games without that attitude skewing your perception. Sorokin is definitely making a ton of saves on high danger chances. The only reason he looks pedestrian this season is the sheer quantity of wonderful opportunities the opposing team is getting.

 

[IslesNorway]

Sorokin may not have looked the world beater of the past two years, but he is also facing more shots than any goalie in the league. That is bound to result in more goals against. He is not superhuman.

 

[BrockLobster]

This is what I imagine every poster here looks and sounds like.

Close. But im alot more handsome

 

[MJF]

Sorokin may not have looked the world beater of the past two years, but he is also facing more shots than any goalie in the league. That is bound to result in more goals against. He is not superhuman.

Last regular season Sorokin was magnificent. Then the playoffs came and he looked pedestrian at that point and since then.

The trouble last year was overuse of Sorokin and it's happening again this year. Add in the fact that against the Canes in the playoffs, and practically all of this year he is getting peppered with shots from everywhere, and the result has been a few too many "goals he'd like to have back."

 

[Skip To My Lou]

Sorokin may not have looked the world beater of the past two years, but he is also facing more shots than any goalie in the league. That is bound to result in more goals against. He is not superhuman.

I mean, defensively, this team is a disaster. Can't expect the guy to carry the load when they continue to let their goaltenders out to dry.

 

[beach]

Sorokin may not have looked the world beater of the past two years, but he is also facing more shots than any goalie in the league. That is bound to result in more goals against. He is not superhuman.

Ilya is definitely not playing up to expectation statistically, but it very well may be due to the sheer volume of shots he is facing.
Last season, his goals saved above average was huge:

This year, while positive, it's nowhere near what is was last year (the current number times 2 still brings him nowhere near last year's final number):

Additionally, his save % is way down. Before Varly got hurt, I thought Lambert should have gone to him for a while to give Ilya a reset. I also think there's a big issue with the Isles' D set up, allowing way too many cross slot passes that lead to goals. The number of times that Ilya has had to slide all the way across the crease arriving a hair too late is astounding.

 

[The Real JT]

This is a bubble team, plain and simple. They got our hopes up for a while thinking they’d comfortably settle into the third spot in the division or WC#1.

Sure that’s still possible but it’s more likely they’ll be fighting tooth and nail till the last game or two to make the last WC spot. From there, I’m just not optimistic.

Strange year so far. Dobson has been a revelation. Horvat and Barzal have gelled and exceeded expectations. Aside from that, there ain’t much. The long term, low AAV strategy is a failure and with each passing year productivity expectations will fall.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the added bonus of NMC and NTC provisions in nearly all of Lou’s deals. I know the devil’s advocate will say that’s what’s necessary to retain UFAs but signing them long term and adding the no trade provisions was foolish.

 

[Nassau Revisited]

While we remain in the “race” we have games in hand on the teams behind us and if they win those games we are 7th in the division.

Change needs to happen, the easy change is to fire Lane. The hard change is dealing Nelson and admitting the season is over. Nelson is a player we can not lose for nothing but should not sign as a UFA at that age.

 

[Tahoeblue]

While we remain in the “race” we have games in hand on the teams behind us and if they win those games we are 7th in the division.

Change needs to happen, the easy change is to fire Lane. The hard change is dealing Nelson and admitting the season is over. Nelson is a player we can not lose for nothing but should not sign as a UFA at that age.

Totally agree. For shits and giggles I wonder what a line of Nelson- Horvat- Barzal would be like? Pipe dream would be a Shane Pinto as the 2C or hell at this point maybe even Ishakov and get him out of that S-Show at the Bridge. I know he is soft, but I think Engvall has played C and has decent vision. This team's LW depth is not it's strong suit and Lou has some difficult decisions to make in the 6 weeks or so.

Injuries have been rough but this teams d coverage even with the Isles top 6 early was suspect and now it is evident that they are giving up a tons of shots and high danger chances between the dots. This needs to be fixed ASAP and there are no easy answers. Coaching change, roster changes, system change........

 

[Richie Daggers Crime]

This is a bubble team, plain and simple.

So is like 3/4 of the league.