New York Islanders‘ forward Jordan Eberle has disappeared in the playoffs as of late. Well, he does more for the opposing teams than he does for the Isles. Once again, Jordan Eberle will most likely be traded due to his playoff play, or lack thereof. There’s a slight problem, Eberle does have a no-trade clause in his contract. But, this ends next year, and then he only has a 16 team no-trade list clause. Eberle might not have the best trade value due to his contract, but there’s a place for everyone. There is one destination I believe that would trade for Jordan Eberle.
Seattle Kraken
The Islanders roster is going to take a hit with another expansion team joining the fray. But, that doesn’t mean the Isles can’t fleece the situation as they did with Vegas. I believe the Islanders will protect seven forwards, three defensemen, and one goalie. The Islanders must protect Mat Barzal, Anthony Beauvillier, Anders Lee, Brock Nelson, J.G. Pageau. I also believe the Islanders will choose to protect Josh Bailey and Casey Cizikas. On defense, they will protect Ryan Pulock, Adam Pelech, and Devon Toews. And the Isles will protect Ilya Sorokin. This means players like Kieffer Bellows, Scott Mayfield, and Semyon Varlamov will be unprotected. The Islanders could trade Eberle to sway the Kraken into choosing a less valuable player. The trade could be Eberle and a 4th round pick, so the Kraken chooses someone like Grant Hutton.
Replacements
The Islanders can’t make this move without knowing they have someone who can step into the first-line forward spot. I believe Anthony Beauvillier will be on the first line by then with Barzal and Lee. I also believe Kieffer Bellows or Oliver Wahlstrom will play their line onto the second line. So the Islanders need a good third-line forward. Using the cap space freed up by Jordan Eberle, the Islanders can find themselves a legit sniper. Tanner Pearson is the first name that comes to mind. Pearson recorded 21 goals and 24 assists this year. He can be the goal scorer the Islanders have needed all along.
Conclusion
The Islanders roster works itself out with this one move. With the coaching of Barry Trotz and Lane Lambert, the internal players will continue to grow. While the trade opens up more cap space to get a better goal scorer. The Islanders should make this move.