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New York Islanders: 5 Players Who Shouldn’t Be On the Team Next Season

By Nick Ziegler

Apr 30, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Islanders left wing Nikolay Kulemin (86) is congratulated after he scored a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period of game two of the second round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 30, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Islanders left wing Nikolay Kulemin (86) is congratulated after he scored a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period of game two of the second round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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New York Islanders
Mar 8, 2016; Brooklyn, NY, USA; New York Islanders goaltender Jaroslav Halak (41) defends his net against the Pittsburgh Penguins at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports /

Jaroslav Halak

On the Islanders’ great run in the playoffs, we saw the emergence of Thomas Greiss, who followed up his strong regular season with an even better postseason for the most part. The nasty groin injury to Jaroslav Halak ended up ending his season, and it may have cost him his starting job with the Islanders.

Going into the playoffs, there was a lot of uncertainty about how Greiss would handle the playoffs with essentially no experience. Greiss answered those questions with some of the best performances by a goalie in the history of the franchise, as he made some miraculous saves on the way to advancing to the second round. The Islanders may have the confidence in Greiss moving forward next season and that can lead them to explore a possible trade of Halak.

Halak’s contract will be paying him $4.5 million for the next two seasons, which can be a lot of money that the Islanders will need to keep guys like Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen. Greiss, on the other hand, is only making $1.5 million next season, and if they think he can be close to as productive as Halak, moving Halak becomes a no-brainer to save the team some money.

Next: Send away the Rocket

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