Islanders News: Give your ID card to the border guard. Yeah, your alias says you're Captain Jean-Luc Picard

Islanders links

• The RFAs are coming, possibly very soon. [LHH | Newsday with possible numbers on a Thomas Hickey's next contract]
• Free agency starts Wednesday and every player you want isn't coming. [LHH]
• However, the Islanders might have their eyes on some under-the-radar guys, mostly of the goalie and defense variety. [Newsday]
• Garik  takes a deeper look at two of them, Mark Barbiero and Matt Hunwick. [Islander Analytics]
• See the Islanders of the future today, or, more specifically next week at prospect mini camp. The Blue and White Scrimmage roster includes new blood Mathew Barzal, Ryan Pilon and Misha Song. [LHH]
• Wait. The Islanders are moving? Who knew? Unbelievable. Some guy named Brett Yormark talks about the transition with the Wall Street Journal.
• Musical Michael Fornabaio pens a sad ballad for Matt Donovan. [Soundin' Off]
• I missed this in all the weekend hoopla, but Barzal sounds very, very excited to be an Islander. [NY Post]
• Podcasts: EJ Hradek stops by Hahn & Humpty. | Point Blank talks about the draft and Reinhart trade.

Other linkage

• This year's Hockey Hall of Fame class includes all of your 1990's favorites, unless you're from Hartford. [NHL.com]
• Corey Pronman chats about the draft and how teams prospect pools look afterward. [ESPN]
• And TSN's Scott Cullen breaks down all of the drafts trades.
• Color of Hockey looks at a draft that had a wide range of diverse cultures represented.
• Brooksie wants the Rangers to toughen up.
• So he must be a (or the only) fan of Bruins GM Don Sweeney, who traded a third round pick (THIRD ROUND PICK) for caveman Zac Rinaldo (ZAC RINALDO). Cup O' Chowder isn't taking it well.
• Still trying to wrap your brain around that Chris Pronger-Coyotes trade? Here, this should help. [Sportsnet]

Advanced studies

• I don't want to stalk Griffin Reinhart for the rest of his career, but the people of Edmonton are still trying to come to grips with his trade there and what it means, which makes for interesting reading. Oilers Nation says don't write him off just yet. | Today's Slapshot says the Oilers have made a huge mistake. | Praise for Garth Snow and questions for Peter Chiarelli. [Edm. Jour.] | An in-depth scouting report on a player without much to scout. [Edm. Jour.]
• Mike Richards and the Los Angeles Kings are in a world of shit. The Kings terminated his contract for "material breach," which sounds bad [Sportsnet] and involved all kinds of legalese. [McSorley's Stick]. But it gets worse. That breach may or may not have something to do with an incident at "the border," which I am absolutely not making up. [Deadspin]. Whatever that incident was, GM Dean Lombardi found out about it this weekend, and it forced him to cancel a couple of trades he had in the works with the Oilers and Flames. [Sportsnet]. All of this puts Katie Strang's recent profile of the Kings off-ice struggles into a new perspective. We await the next twist in what's become a hockey movie directed by Robert Rodriguez.

Here's one for you, Richie. Watch out for banditos.