Islanders Room: Full of Emotions & Uncertainty

ELMONT, N.Y. — The New York Islanders won a hockey game tonight. You’d never know it based on the emotions and feelings inside UBS Arena’s locker room tonight. The room felt quiet as if it had actually been another loss.

Instead, with less than three full days until the NHL Trade Deadline, the Islanders played host to the NHL’s 1st-placed Winnipeg Jets. It would’ve been extremely easy to pack it in and let the Jets collect two more points as they steamroll through the NHL. Heck, 10 minutes into the game, Winnipeg outshot the Islanders by 10-2.

Instead, the Islanders dug deep. It didn’t matter that they’d played last night. They outshot the Jets 27-18 the rest of the way. Ilya Sorokin dazzled. Ryan Pulock scored his fourth of the year.

But that’s not the story. The story centers on two players: Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri.

Farewell to Nelson?

Nelson scored and recorded a primary assist in the win. Who was the assist to? None other than Palmieri. On a night full of swirling emotions, Nelson registered two points and played a key role in the victory.

After the game, the arena introduced Palmieri as the #2 star, where he received a loud applause. Then, Brock Nelson was announced as the #1 star of the night. The crowd erupted, serenading the 2010 first-round draft pick. Asked about what it’s meant to wear the Islanders crest his entire career, Nelson broke down:

https://x.com/IslesMSGN/status/1897126388458774590

Afterward, Nelson held back his emotions in the room, but they were written on his face. He even admitted there’d be emotions all night for him. Then, asked about his future and what he knows or doesn’t know, he said:

“I’ve had conversations with Lou. I’ve been honest. I really truly have just been worried about here and playing. Doing everything we can here to win.”

If this is it for Nelson, he hit multiple milestones tonight. He scored his 20th of the season. What’s more, the goal comes in his 901st with the franchise, passing Bobby Nystrom for the fourth-most in franchise history (Bailey, Potvin, Trottier). Brock Nelson now has nine 20-goal seasons, making him the seventh player in franchise history to have nine or more 20-goal seasons (Trottier, B. Sutter, Bossy, Tavares, Potvin, Lee). 

Nelson’s been here for this generation of Islanders hockey, from making his NHL debut in game six of the 2013 series against the Pittsburgh Penguins to eliminating those same Penguins in 2021.

Palmieri, too?

The night had some weight for Palmieri, too. The Islanders acquired him ahead of the 2021 Trade Deadline. Then, he played a key role in bringing the Islanders within one game of their first Stanley Cup Final since 1984.

He’s been a consistent producer throughout his five seasons with the Islanders. It’s only natural it could become emotional if this is it. But as he said when asked about the emotions, he kept it simple:

“It’s out of my control. It’s part of the business. I’ve been around long enough to be traded, had friends get traded. It’s not something you can focus on. Until someone says otherwise, I love fighting for a playoff spot with this group.”

He’s far more stoic, which is to be expected when he’s been traded twice.

Roy, Lee & Pulock Speak:

As for their head coach, Patrick Roy, even he admitted emotions played a big role in this game. He attributed their slow start to a hangover from last night’s brutal loss to the New York Rangers. After that, he felt this showed the potential of this team when they lived up to it.

Even so, he knows how uncertain things are:

“I have no idea what’s gonna happen at this moment. It’s been a little roller coaster. So we win some, we lose some. There’s days you want to buy, there’s days you want to sell. But it’s up to Lou to decide.”

When asked to elaborate further on those roller coaster moments, Roy declined. He’s leaving it all up to Lou. Roy praised Nelson’s professionalism throughout this entire saga. When asked about what he could say about Nelson, Roy said “There’s not enough I can say.”

Veterans Anders Lee and Ryan Pulock felt the emotions, too. Lee talked about being there as a person for Nelson and mentioned how much he loves this group.

Pulock took that a step further and laid a plea at Lamoriello’s feet:

“The belief in this locker room is we can still get on a roll and find ourselves in the playoffs. If we get healthy and get into the playoffs, I love our team.”

Unfortunately for the Islanders, health has not come this year. With 61 games down, all eyes are firmly on Lamoriello and his decisions ahead of Friday’s deadline.