Islanders News: Lehner reflects on departure from New York

No big Islanders news again during this August mid-week, but Robin Lehner had an interview that shed some light on the summer when he hoped to re-sign with the Islanders while the Islanders...kept stalling. The Isles ended up signing Semyon Varlamov to a long-term deal — twice the length that was apparently on the table for Lehner, it seems — and the way it went down always hinted that the Isles were working on an alternate path while Lehner was more of a fallback

The interview was revealing both for him going into how the negotiations — or lack of negotiations, really — went down with the Islanders after he took home silverware that offseason, as well as thoughts on compensation and player commitment, and the whole saga with Marc-Andre Fleury and his “backstabbing” meme-using agent. He also went into his own mental health and why he gets pissed at people who ignorantly or perhaps intentionally misunderstand mental health. [Cam and Strick podcast]

Also, Brock Nelson appeared on NHL Network to field questions about life as an Islander and the culture that Lou and Barry have developed. [NHL video]

Elsewhere

• Condolences to the Esposito family on the passing of Tony, a star and beloved goalie for the Hawks and Team Canada in his day. [NHL]
• The Rangers contract with Igor Shesterkin is official. [Post] There is some risk, and some potential reward for both sides. [Athletic]
• A cautionary tale: The 10 Worst Contacts include two former Norris winners who were absolutely on top of the game once upon a time. [Athletic]
• Jakub Vrana logged a point per game in 11 games after joining the Red Wings, so now Detroit will pay him at a rate the Capitals were afraid to. [NHL]
• Rick Bowness answers questions after a disappointing follow-up season to the Stars’ Cup finals run. [Defending Big D]
• The Hurricanes lost Dougie Hamilton and completely changed out their goalies, hoping for a deeper playoff run this time. [NHL]
• The NHL still isn’t sure if it will go to the Winter Olympics, so they have the announced schedule and also a backup schedule in case agreement can’t be reached with the IOC. [ESPN]
• Breaking this morning: Yet another player avoids arbitration, Neal Pionk with the Jets. It looks like players are using the threat of pre-pandemic comparables in arbitration to scare teams into moving up a bit and settling before a hearing.

LOL. The Amazon series on the Leafs is coming in October. “All or Nothing.” Don’t tell me which choice they made!