The New York Islanders have signed J-G. Pageau to a six-year contract extension worth $30 million, the team announced Monday. The deal carries a $5 million annual cap hit. As Bob McKenzie would report, the deal comes with a full no-trade clause in the first two seasons and a partial no-trade clause in the final four.
The Islanders made one of the biggest splashes of the 2020 NHL Trade Deadline by trading a conditional first-round pick and second-round pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft as well as a conditional third-round pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft to acquire Pageau from the Ottawa Senators.
That’s a very significant return for any player and seemed like it could be an overpayment for a rental. The Islanders, however, were able to lock up Pageau for the long-term which makes the return easier to stomach for Islanders fans, though that doesn’t necessarily make it a good deal.
Time will tell if it was a worthwhile one for the Islanders.
In 60 games this season, Pageau has already set a career-high with 24 goals. He’s also on pace to crush his previous career-high of 43 points as he’s already scored 40 points this season.
One of the best penalty-killers in the NHL who has speed to burn, Pageau should fit right into this Islanders team that could use him up and down the lineup.
Pageau also has 35 games of postseason experience that could be valuable to add to an Islanders team that will benefit from an extra veteran presence in their locker room.
Islanders Keeping Up With Metropolitan Opponents
For the Islanders, the addition of Pageau helps them as they look to make a push for a Stanley Cup run this season and beyond. At the time of this deal, the Islanders hold a 35-20-6 record, good for 76 points and the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference. They also have a game-in-hand on the Philadelphia Flyers who are third in the Metropolitan Division.
With the Washington Capitals sitting in first place in the Metropolitan Division at 82 points, the Islanders are very much in contention to make a run for that top spot if they can go on a run. Unfortunately, the Flyers, Penguins, Capitals and even the Carolina Hurricanes have also all made moves to bolster their lineups.
While the Islanders gave a lot to get Pageau, as mentioned, it was almost a necessity given the moves made by the teams around them as well as how tight that divisional race has proven to be.
Senators Added to Already Loaded Asset Pool
For the Senators, this was just another move in what has already been a long-line of rebuild-natured deals. The Senators aren’t going to be competing for a Championship any time soon and that’s by design as the team has fully embraced their rebuild.
Related: 2020 NHL Trade Deadline: Deal Tracker
To their credit, the Senators have built one of the best prospect pools in the entire NHL and are looking to add to that with two potential top-five picks in the 2020 Draft before ever even factoring in the Islanders pick and their four second-round picks this year.
There are already a bevy of young players in Ottawa who are making a name for themselves, notably Brady Tkachuk, Colin White, Thomas Chabot and Anthony Duclair. This deal just allows them to continue building for the future in what should be a more realistic timeline.
