Put a Zid on it: Islanders sign Marek Zidlicky to one-year $1.5 million deal

The talks between the Islanders and veteran defenseman Marek Zidlicky were first disclosed about a month ago. Things went quiet for a while and it appeared that a deal wouldn't be happening.

Surprise! The Islanders have signed Zidlicky to a one-year deal worth $1.5 million plus bonuses.

#Isles have signed D Marek Zidlicky to a one-year, $1.5 million deal. Will be in camp tomorrow.

— Arthur Staple (@StapeNewsday) September 19, 2015

Zidlicky base $1.5M. Bonuses for GP, PTS and playoff rounds won.

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) September 19, 2015

Offensively, the 38-year old can still hold his own for the most part, especially on the power play. Defensively, we might be in for a wild ride.

Zidlicky will probably occupy the spot vacated by Lubomir Visnovsky, who's currently on a PTO with the Blackhawks. Why Zidlicky over Visnovsky? Could be money, term or health, with the Islanders concerned about Visnovsky's recent concussions. For his faults, Zidlicky played in 90 games last year, 84 in the regular season (yup) and six in the playoffs for Detroit following his trade from New Jersey. He also played in 81 games the year before.

Zidlicky did leave the Red Wings playoff series against Tampa Bay with a concussion, ending his season.

The actual retail price is good. If Zidlicky can help the power play and help keep Brian Strait out of the line-up, he'll be worth every penny of his bonuses, too.

UPDATE:

General Fanager has a breakdown of the bonus structure for Zidlicky's contract: he can receive a total of $1,339,990 for his efforts, with markers for games played ($8,096 per game after 40 GP), points ($200K for 35) and playoff rounds won by the Islanders ($200K per)