Could the Islanders Join the August Fun By Trading Wahlstrom?

It’s August 23, so ordinarily, the biggest NHL news that would’ve broken in the last four weeks would have something to do with a random PTO. Not this year, no, sir. Seemingly, every day recently, some bigger news has been brought to the front of the line. Trades have flown by, and this past week saw three major ones: Patrik Laine, Rutger McGroarty, and Yaroslav Askarov all finally got dealt.

All three players had seemingly been dangling in the wind, awaiting a trade for the entire summer. Now, they’ve all got fresh starts. All those trades kicking around don’t seem to leave much business in the summer, but perhaps the New York Islanders could make a trade ahead of training camp.

The Islanders made Oliver Wahlstrom available as soon as the season ended. Yet, months later and with a new contract signed, Wahlstrom remains a player on the Islanders. This is despite the fact he has now fallen out of favor with three successive coaches and has struggled to gain any confidence since his ACL injury occurred.

A fresh start seemed inevitable, but Wahlstrom couldn’t have held a lot of value. Team President and General Manager Lou Lamoriello told reporters at the draft that the team would qualify Wahlstrom and help him seek a fresh start but noted that the team would not give him away for free.

Two months later, both parts held true. Yet, with the Islanders in a cap bind, and if all goes well during camp, the team needs space to keep summer acquisition Maxim Tsyplakov on the roster beyond October 4.

Bearing all that in mind, is it still possible for the team to move on from Wahlstrom? If so, who could be interested?

I’ll lay out a pair of options that make the most sense.

Option 1. Anaheim Ducks

The Anaheim Ducks are a rebuilding team. According to PuckPedia, they currently only have two natural right-wingers (Troy Terry and Brett Leason). The Ducks also own a lot of draft picks, especially mid-round picks, which is, frankly, the ceiling of Wahlstrom’s value.

Wahlstrom fits into Anaheim’s current model of players as he’s young and does have to improve, all while holding a low cap hit. It’s possible to see a deal where Anaheim offers up one of their fourth or fifth-round picks (owning two in each round in 2025) for Wahlstrom.

Anaheim could turn Wahlstrom into a trade chip of their own if he turns a corner in his development, as his one-year deal is not a long-term deal by any means. Or, if he is successful, Anaheim could just as well keep him. He will still be an RFA next summer, so there’s no need to rush into a decision.

Sending Wahlstrom away for a low draft pick for the Islanders would mean only one thing: Tsyplakov is ready, and they need the money. The best way to do it is to move Wahlstrom out of the way by any means.

Option 2: Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins would be one of the more intriguing options for a trade for Wahlstrom. Bruins GM Don Sweeney has been open about his team’s desire for increased scoring on the wings, yet Jake DeBrusk and Danton Heinen walked out the door on July 1.

Wahlstrom, a Massachusetts native, could enter Boston’s camp and immediately begin competing for a role in the lineup against players like Max Jones or Justin Brazeau. He’d also have a clean look at the Bruins’ second power play unit, which could desperately use a lethal shot. Behind David Pastrnak, there are no pure snipers in the B’s system.

Where this trade veers off course from the deal with Anaheim is I could envision a player swap. That player could be Ian Mitchell, a depth defenseman the Bruins played sparingly. He’s 25 and on a two-way deal. He spent most of last year in Providence with the Baby Bruins, and with seven defensemen clearly ahead of him in Beantown, a fresh start with a team like the Islanders could make sense.

It makes more sense to target Mitchell when you factor in the dearth of defensive depth, especially on the right side of the Islanders organization. Mitchell would immediately become the Islanders’ first call-up for any injuries to a defenseman on the right side.