The New York Islanders have a golden opportunity to strike a deal with the Seattle Kraken and rid themselves of the disastrous Leo Komarov contract. Komarov has been a disappointment this season, and fans could look past his play if it were not for his cap hit of over three million spanning this season and next.

The former all-star signed his four-year $12-million contract in the summer of 2018. He was one of a few players Lou Lamoriello and the Islanders poached from a youthful Toronto Mapleleafs roster that summer. Komarov, along with fan-favorite Matt Martin, joined Lamoriello on Long Island, helping form the hard-nosed, gritty team fans watch today. Komarov is a locker room favorite, but his charisma cannot make up for his performance on the ice.

In 21 games this season, Komarov has four assists and has yet to score a goal. The lack of production does not bode well for fans as he has been getting top-six ice-time. Mathew Barzal and Jordan Eberle are also linemates with Komarov. With that offensive firepower, one would expect more than three points from him. This lack of production and abysmal play makes Komarov an easy choice to leave unprotected in the upcoming expansion draft.

Many teams will not be willing to make the same mistakes they did in 2017 when the Vegas Golden Knights had their expansion draft. Various teams such as Florida and Minnesota made trades to protect players while giving up valuable assets such as draft picks or prospects. For example, Minnesota traded Alex Tuch to Vegas to keep their defense core intact. Vegas made out like bandits, and in their first year as an organization, made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, losing to Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals in five games.

Giving up assets for practically nothing is never ideal. The Islanders should take advantage of the expansion draft and unload Leo Komarov’s contract, freeing up cap space to re-sign players and be players in free agency.

What would the Islanders give up for Seattle to select Komarov? The easy option is draft picks. The three-million-dollar cap-hit is a lot; but should not cost more than a third-round pick, a second at most. The Islanders own Colorado’s second-round pick, acquired in the Devon Toews trade. The Islanders also own all their draft picks this year aside from their second. A package of draft picks could entice Seattle, but what if the Kraken were looking to be competitive in their first year.

Asking a Stanley Cup hopeful to part ways with a roster player seems unreasonable, even if the Islanders are desperate. Instead, the Kraken looking to snag a prospect they view as NHL ready seems like the avenue they may take. The Islanders do not have an ample amount of tantalizing talent coming in their pipeline, but even a B-level prospect might be enough.

It will be up to Lou Lamoriello and his staff to decide if they want to sacrifice assets to rid themselves of the Komarov contract. Seattle will be looking to strike as many deals as possible with disparate teams, and it all comes down to whether the asking price to dump Komarov’s contract is too rich for the Islanders’ taste.

John Smark