New York Islanders Top-10 players under 24

8. Jakub Skarek (19), Goaltender, 2018 3rd round, 72nd overall

What an intriguing prospect Jakub Skarek is. The young Czech goaltender has a great future ahead of him. He’s already had quite a bit of experience at the international level in various tournaments including the WJC. Last year Skarek turned pro. He played for the Lahti Pelicans in Finland’s top professional league. By all accounts, Skarek did well as he won 25 games with a 2.45 goals-against average (GAA) and .906 save percentage (SV%). Now he’s on his way to North America.

The 19-year-old plays the butterfly style in net. He has an NHL frame at 6-3, 195 pounds and will only get more solid as his body develops. Skarek isn’t just big, he’s a good athlete on top of it, moving very well through the crease. At times he can be inconsistent, but when the young man is on, he is very hard to beat. When Skarek’s mental game catches up to his physical attributes, the New York Islanders have themselves a top goalie.

7. Ruslan Iskhakov (19), Right Wing, 2018 2nd round, 43rd overall

The mighty mite of this list at a minuscule 5-8, 155 pounds. If he was two inches taller, Iskhakov would have been a first-round pick because he is extremely talented. He made an almost seamless transition from the Russian juniors to the NCAA as a freshman at UConn last season. The diminutive wing had five goals and 21 points for the Huskies.

While doing research for this list, words like magician came up. Iskhakov’s skill on his skates and handling the puck are nothing short of magical. It’s not enough, again size is a big factor as to his ability to become an NHL player. Last November Iskhakov was knocked out of a few games due to a crushing hit. The word then got out on him and he had to fend off big checks.