Islanders News: NHL Draft day, and a very long road trip to start 2021-22

The first round of the NHL Entry Draft takes place tonight, with all the drawn-out fanfare and televising that entails. As it stands, the Islanders do not have a pick to make tonight, though that could always change — they’ve been in a salary-shedding mood — and in any case, the draft is frequently an occasion to consummate other trades.

So be watchful tonight and through the weekend, as the Islanders are reported to have their hand in all sorts of things, free agency and otherwise. They’ve been connected to Zach Parise and rumored to be interested in Ryan Suter, Gabriel Landeskog, Vladimir Tarasenko, and every other Decent Guy Who Might Fit.

Round 1 of the draft begins at 8 p.m. EDT, broadcast by your major North American rights holders. Round 2 begins tomorrow at 11 a.m. and will proceed much more quickly.

Islanders Selections (as of Friday morning)

Here are the picks the Isles have, all set for Saturday:

• 2nd Round - 52nd overall (from DET via EDM)
• 3rd Round - 93rd overall
• 4th Round - 125th overall
• 5th Round - 157th overall
• 6th Round - 189th overall
• 7th Round - 221st overall

Islanders News and 2021-22 Schedule

• Schedule Released: The NHL announced the whole schedule yesterday, and here’s a look at the Islanders’, which will begin with an epic 13-game road trip — two Florida visits, and a Midwest tour — while awaiting for the new arena to be ready for the home opener on Nov. 20. [Isles | Newsday]
• Deeper schedule breakdown at the official site here.
• Steve took a look at the pain points, the resting points and other pieces of note from the schedule. [LHH]
• What we know about [bank of some sort] Arena at Belmont thus far. [Newsday]
• A proper farewell to Eberle, Leddy and Ladd: Dan perfectly summarizes what these three players meant and how their tenures as Islanders went. [LHH]
• Since it fits the day, here’s Anders Lee recalling his draft day. Turns out the Isles were interested in him the year prior but were scared off by him playing football again. [Isles]
• bYes, Lou is evidently kicking the Parise and Suter tires. [AM NY]
• But he’s in no rush to extinguish his cap space quickly. [Newsday]

Elsewhere

• With such limited exposure to prospects this season, the draft could have lots of intrigue (though not for the Isles). [NHL]
• Well well well, with no one making significant offers for Tarasenko, the Blues GM says it’s possible he remains with the club. Hmmm... [NHL]
• A model for what’s in store for Casey Cizikas? Barclay Goodrow signed a big ol’ honkin’ six-year deal ($3.6 million cap hit) with the Rangers. [Post | NHL | Blueshirt Banter]
• It was not just an Expansion Draft ploy: Shea Weber will miss all of next season and his career may be over. [NHL]
• The Red Wings have found a new partner for Thomas Greiss by trading for Alex Nedeljkovic from the Hurricanes, for pennies. [Winging It In Motown]
• Shayne Gostisbe-gone: Flyers defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere becomes the second player to go to the Coyotes for nothing in return, the Flyers spending a 2nd and a 7th just to be rid of him. [Broad Street Hockey | NHL]
• The Kraken depth chart is incomplete, but they have tons of cap space and intend to “weaponize” it to improve their lot. [Athletic]
• Here’s a side-by-side comparison of the Knights’ and Kraken’s initial expansion draft hauls. [Athletic]
• The Kraken have already changed that, dumping Coyote expansion claim Tyler Pitlick to Calgary for a fourth-round pick. [NHL]
• This was very much expected and is good to hear, but the kid who never won the Calder is cleared and will be ready for the start of Leafs training camp. [NHL]