The Islanders are making a push for a run at the Stanley Cup.
Bolstering an injury-riddled group of forwards, the Islanders acquired veteran center Jean-Gabriel Pageau from the Senators in exchange for a conditional first-round pick in 2020 and second-round pick in 2020 as well as a conditional third-rounder in 2022, the team announced Monday. The Islanders then signed Pageau to a six-year contract extension which reportedly carries a $5 million annual salary-cap hit.
Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello will only send Ottawa that third-round pick if his team wins the Stanley Cup this season.
The first-rounder is top-three protected, so if the Islanders end up with a top-three pick, the Senators will instead receive the Isles’ 2021 first-rounder.
Pageau comes to New York after nearly eight seasons with the Senators, who drafted him 96th overall in 2011. The 27-year-old is in the midst of his best season since 2015, when he recorded a career-high 43 points.
He currently sits with 40 points (24 goals, 16 assists) through 60 games.
Pageau is in the final season of a three-year contract that carries a $3.1 million cap hit.
After losing winger Cal Clutterbuck to wrist surgery and fourth-line center Casey Cizikas to a leg laceration, which has been a lengthier absence than expected, the Islanders needed reinforcements up front.
On Feb. 16, Lamoriello did the same for the Islanders’ defensive unit, which has been without top defenseman Adam Pelech since early January due to season-ending Achilles surgery. He acquired veteran defenseman Andy Greene from the Devils, sending them a 2021 second-round pick and defenseman prospect David Quenneville.
Pageau, who collected 182 career points in 428 games with the Senators, was playing on the first line for Ottawa this season. He’ll likely slot in to the Islanders’ bottom six to restore the depth they’ve lost due to injury.
Every game going forward holds weight for the Islanders, who currently sit with 76 points and occupy the first wild-card spot. They’re one point behind the Flyers for third place in the Metropolitan Division, but just two points ahead of the Blue Jackets, who are the first team outside of the playoff line in the Eastern Conference.
But the Islanders are now seemingly all patched up from the blows they took during the regular season.