Are The Isles To Part Ways With Sutton And Roloson?

#30 Dwayne Roloson and #25 Andy Sutton (Shane Henderson/Flickr)

Today is Friday. And since I do not have to commute, park and stay awake through my Grad classes today, I am forced by the man to work instead. Therefore, I was unable to sit with my finger tips glued to my lap top and BlackBerry to search all the possible outlets for any news regarding today’s trade freeze that started at 3PM. But you can bet that I hit up Twitter and some of my other sources when I had the chance.

Before I even get to the Islanders that are on the trading block, one rumor came across my phone that I had to laugh at. Keith Tkachuk to wear orange and blue? The Isles in a bidding war over him with the Boston Bruins? This was found at HockeyBuzz, and although some of my blogs that are posted at The Checking Line get posted on the My HockeyBuzz thread as well, I take every rumor on that site with a grain of salt. That is definitely one of those rumors I couldn’t take seriously. It just doesn’t make sense. For those of you who read it and got worried that Snow would make a bonehead move to acquire an old-school veteran who is way passed his prime, don’t hold your breath. I doubt it to happen. But hey, you never know if Snow is planning on reuniting Tkachuk, Guerin and Weight. (Just kidding).

Two names that are being tossed around are Andy Sutton and Dwayne Roloson. Sutton is an impending UFA and is playing the best hockey of his career. He hasn’t been an offensive blue-liner, but he continues to deliver punishing body checks to his opponents, whether they be open ice or along the boards. Plus he is not afraid to block shots by any means. He has been quoted saying that he likes the direction this team is heading and that he would like to remain an Islander. But according to Chris Botta at Islanders Point Blank, there have not been any talks thus far for an extension.

Andy Sutton (FrenchKheldar/Flickr)

So what would Andy be worth to a contending team looking for an impact defenseman to play top-four minutes? My guess is at least a second round pick. You may even see a prospect get thrown in. Many teams have been scouting his play for some time now. After seeing that Niclas Wallin and a 5th round pick from Carolina brought in a second round pick from San Jose, Sutton should be able to bring in just about the same if not better. Snow needs to consider the offers he received today and bet on whether they will improve by the March 3rd deadline or assume that what he heard is what he will hear again. Should Snow part with one of his more reliable defenseman on a team that has been thin on the blueline with the absence of Martinek and Hillen?

My personal opinion is that if the Islanders get an offer somewhere around the level of a second round pick and/or a valuable prospect, they should take the offer and then look to re-sign Sutton in the off-season. This team will lack his physical presence, as the only other Islander who seems to be dishing out body-checks is Matt Martin and he has only played two NHL games. If they lose Sutton this summer, their defense will be Martinek, Streit, Gervais, Hillen, MacDonald and Witt/Kohn. Witt is likely on his way out sooner rather than later, making that a very young and fragile defense. Sutton’s size and grit will be missed even if Snow pursues another free-agent D-man this off-season.

Dwayne Roloson can be looked upon as the lone all-star on this squad. He has single handily won several games on his own efforts with a 19-12-6 record and has been fun to watch, even at the ripe old age of 40. He is signed on for one more year as a solid 1A goalie behind Rick DiPietro. Many expected Martin Biron to be the goalie on his way out of Long Island, especially since he is a UFA this summer unlike Roloson, who is signed on for one more season. But Biron has a dismal season record of 3-11-2, and has let in several soft goals throughout the year which cost the Islanders crucial games. Roly will be an attractive player for teams looking for goaltending depth heading into the playoffs and would require a much more lucrative offer for Garth Snow to part ways with instead of Biron.

Biron would likely net a 3rd or maybe even just a 4th round pick. His experience between the pipes and the league-wide knowledge of what he is capable of may be enough to bring the offer to a 3rd rounder, but do not expect much more than that.

Parting with Roloson will have to come down to Garth Snow’s opinion of his playoff chances. If he thinks the team has a chance to squeeze their way in, I expect him to keep Roloson. Given that the Isles have lost 8 out of their past 9, I don’t see him thinking that way. But then do the Isles part with Roloson via trade, lose Biron to free agency this summer, and start the hunt for a back-up goaltender all over again? That is unless they think Biron would stay with the Islanders since his numbers are not that great. But is Biron fine with being a back-up goalie? Does he even want to stay? Or better yet, does anyone else want him to stay? He would not be the same type of 1A back-up as Roloson.

Dwayne Roloson (560XLS/Flickr)

But then again, Roloson would only be here for one more year with the Isles likely to part with him after his contract expires with the possibility of retirement looming in the distance as well. Their top goaltending prospect Mikko Koskinen may earn his way up the NHL ranks by then or the Isles may have to search for a back-up goalie anyway. There are many tangibles that start up right away and the options that will arise depend on which goalie is traded. If Roloson brings in someone that can help this team, or possibly another late first-round pick that allows Snow to mobilize himself upwards like he did last year, then trading Roloson might be worth it. It really comes down to the right deal.

I definitely do not want to see another ‘Chris Osgood traded for Justin Papineau’ deal again. Pap-a-who? Yeah, remember that one? I sure do. And it stunk. But this is Garth Snow and not Mike Milbury and I have a ton of more faith in our current GM to get the job done than I have in the past decade.

So what do you think, should the Islanders trade Andy Sutton and Dwayne Roloson? Or is the best offer the one they have sitting in front of them in keeping their best assets?

Posted by Rob McGowan on Feb 12 2010. Filed under Atlantic, Eastern Conference, New York Islanders. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.