Looks Like New York Islanders Prospect Ruslan Iskhakov Will Head to the KHL This Season

Looks Like New York Islanders Prospect Ruslan Iskhakov Will Head to the KHL This Season

rousan iskakov we hardly knew you looks like the Islanders Prospect is headed back to Russia this coming season we’ll talk about that and a lot more on today’s lock on Islanders podcast your locked on Islanders your daily podcast on the New York Islanders part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day welcome everybody to the Friday edition of the locked on Islanders podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day I want to thank everyone who makes lockon Islanders your first listen every day don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube or wherever you get your podcast so you can get new episodes as soon as they drop today’s episode is brought to you by Game Time download the game time app create an account and use code locked on NHL for $20 off your first purchase terms apply why we’ve got a lot to discuss on today’s show but first if there’s something Islanders related on your mind if you have a question a comment maybe a topic you’d like us to discuss on a future episode you could email us at lockon Islanders gmail.com and if you leave your first name and where you’re from we’re happy to mention you on the show when we discuss whatever it is that’s on your mind you can also follow the show on X lockon ises and you could follow me gil Martin on X at ice Wars nyr vsny we’ll keep you up to date on all things Islanders all year long during the off season that’s hirings firings trade rumors free agency the draft and uh if it’s happening to the New York Islanders we will have it covered for you here on the lockon Islanders podcast and look it’s always great to talk a little Islanders hockey with you game time or anytime so you figured yesterday was the 4th of July kind of a holiday here in the United States not going to be a lot of news well there was a little news and for a lot of Islander fans they’re going to be disappointed uh not confirmed just yet but a reliable hockey website Ting from Russia reports that Islanders rousan iskakov has signed a deal to return to Russia and will play in the KHL this coming season and uh well that means he will not be with the Islanders organization he is supposedly signing a deal with CSK Moscow for next season now the Islanders did offer a qualifying offer to ishkov but and we’ve been talking about this every day or no for quite some time uh ishkov more or less didn’t feel like he would get a good chance here with the New York Islanders to play in the NHL and look if I’m him I get it there’s no incentive right now for him to come back and spend another year in Bridgeport he’s got nothing left to prove in Bridgeport last two years he was an AHL Allstar clearly the best offensive player on a struggling Bridgeport team this past year in 69 games he had 18 goals and 50 assists he was a minus 18 plus minus but again that’s more of a team stat than an individual stat and he really at times put on a show especially during shootouts where iskakov could really make some Dynamic moves and some highlight real goals here’s the takeaway with this if I’m rousan iskakov I have nothing left to prove in Bridgeport so either I’m going to play for the New York island ERS demand a trade or I’m going back home to Russia he’s a native of Moscow he’s GNA go back home he’ll make more money I’m sure there than he would playing in the AHL I think he had discussions with Lou larell and probably did the math he and his agent and realized hey I am not guaranteed a spot on the NHL roster he is going to be 24 years old later this month he in two and a half weeks ishak off is 24 he’s not a prospect anymore he is in his prime and you sort of wonder if the Islanders feel he’s too small at 5’8 a buck 70 to play in the NHL why’ you draft him in the second round now okay maybe you thought his game would develop differently when you selected him in 2018 which is already Believe It or Not six years ago but you know they made him the qualifying offer he did the math ends up heading back his career numbers with the Islanders one game played that was the regular season finale this year a game that meant nothing in the standings he did have an assist and then one playoff game where he did not score I think he played maybe five or six minutes in those games and that’s it and I think I I I I look at it in two ways I don’t blame iskakov for wanting to go back to Russia given his options and given the way the Islanders handled his career if he’s at this point not gonna get a chance T you know with the big Club time to move on but from an Islander perspective here’s my problem how many guys have we seen this team struggle with as far as draft and develop Oliver walstrom comes to mind immediately w-e it I think it’s part of the way the Islanders approach things they get their draft picks to a certain point where you know they’ve done everything they can do in college or the AHL and then it’s really either you go to the n l or you don’t you know you you got to move on to somewhere when these guys do get a chance in the NHL so often we have seen players who if they make a mistake they sat on the bench and the frustrating thing about that is not that you don’t want accountability if anything we want more accountability in this organization but the point is Veterans who make the same mistakes or even more mistakes than the young guys seem to get chance after chance after chance and sometimes in hockey you got to let your guys learn from their mistakes and still go out there and play in the lineup in order to get them to reach their potential so yeah you know maybe it doesn’t go so well in game8 or 18 or 38 of the season but if you keep sending the guy out there and he develops and he learns and he grows as an NHL player down the road you’re in much better shape you’re in a better position the player matures and grows and learns and you know here’s an Islanders franchise how many players have we seen sort of get to a certain level and then not be able to finish I’ll go back as far as 2015 Parker wspoon played only a handful of games with the Islanders ends up being a a solid contributor for Boston this year after he leaves kefir Bellows first round pick never really Bloss you draft him you got to develop him you got to coach him you got to get him to the next level never really cracked the Islanders lineup consistently gone Robin Salo former second round pick played in 32 career NHL games not much else we’ve talked so many times about Oliver walstrom former first round pick never made it last year Samuel baluk right now he stalled he isn’t playing with confidence okay but now you’re in a situation with baluk you’re not sending him down to the AHL he’s got nothing to prove there he’s not going to get better as a player sitting in the Press Box and watching and look I’m not saying that the Islanders missed out on rousan iskakov that he is the next great goal scorer most Scouts don’t think that’s what he is but could he have gotten more than a one game look by this organization at the NHL level could there be a point where you just have to send some of your young guys out on the ice live with their mistakes and let them mature let them develop let them grow it wouldn’t bother me so much look every team when you’re drafting 18y olds and projecting what they’re going to be at 22 25 29 I get it it’s not an exact science you’re only going to hit on 40 50% and that’s considered pretty good but how many players have we seen this Islanders organization get to a certain point and then there’s like a a glass ceiling that they’re not able to get Beyond and whether it’s that they’re not drafting the right players or they’re not developing them properly or just not giving them a chance to take that next step it it’s very frustrating especially on a team like the Islanders who in recent years have had an older roster that needs a little bit more dynamism and a little bit more uh offensive juice and a little bit more Youth and speed it it it it it you can’t shoot yourself in the foot as an organization and we need to see a change in the way the Islanders handle things in order to make that better all right we have got more to get to on today’s show we’ve been talking a lot about the Islanders salary cap situation it doesn’t just deal with this year what about Brock Nelson he has one more year left on his deal will he sign an extension with the Islanders what’s the plan we’ll talk about that plus since uh yesterday was July 4th we’ll break down the top American Born Islanders in franchise history for our Islanders birthday of the day a Swedish forward who was a part of all of the Islanders four Stanley Cup winning teams let’s see if you can guess who that is we’ve got all of that and more coming up on today’s locked on Islanders podcast today’s episode is brought to you by your friends at eBay Motors passion drive and patience the formula for winning championships is also what keeps your ride or die alive eBay Motors has 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screaming locked on sports today brings you C Miss analysis opinions and news and we’re streaming 247 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire t channels app part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day so let’s talk a little Brock Nelson shall we uh we have been talking every dayers you know about the Islanders salary cap situation and it’s messy right now again the Islanders have a little more than $1 million worth of cap space and they only have 20 players on the active roster as of right now and you know they still haven’t resigned Simon Holstrom we know they’re probably going to trade Oliver walstrom but you know overall still need to fill in a couple of gaps and if you want to make this team better you need to free up cap space we also know that after this year you have just one more year left on the contracts of Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov Dobson’s earning $4 million this year cap hitwise Romanov two and a half both of those guys are going to need some kind of extension if they’re going to stay on the island and I could tell you right now noad doson salary will probably double at least from 4 million and romanovs will probably come close to doubling I expect it to be somewhere between 4 and A2 and 5 A5 million if he signs an extension among the forwards however you have Kyle palmary one year left on his deal and then you have Brock Nelson one year left on his deal Nelson earning $6 million this year uh at his cap hit and let let’s face it Brock Nelson unlike so many of the other players on this Islanders team Brock Nelson Has earned the money that he’s getting uh he has been your leading goal scorer in each of the last three years 37 goals 36 goals 34 goals those are the three most productive seasons of his career now Nelson is 32 he will turn 33 October 15th just after the new season starts so do you sign him to an extension at some point you got to figure the cap goes up a little bit more but you also got to figure that the New York Islanders if they want to make their team better still need to free up some cap space and bring in some younger talent to improve this roster obviously you want to keep Brock Nelson but at what price and to me it’s going to come down to this is Brock Nelson willing to take a little less money to be a career Islander and finish his career on the island or is he thinking to himself I’m 33 this is the age he’ll be next year I’m 33 almost 34 years old this is my last chance to provide for my family while I’m an NHL player at a high level I am going to go out and sign a deal for as much money as I can make before my opportunities to do that dry up if he takes the first tact instead of making 6 million maybe he goes down to 4 A5 million and he signs like say a three-year deal to stay on the island at four four and a half five million a year and he stays but if he wants to max out the one thing Lou larell cannot and should not do is sign Brock Nelson to anything longer than a three maybe four-year contract but if he wants that fourth year the per year number has to be lower okay do not sign a 33y old almost 34 year old guy to a five six 7year contract do not give him you know a no trade clause for the majority of that time do not go down that road that’s what got you into this salary cap mess and I’m not saying Brock Nelson doesn’t deserve to be paid I am not saying that you don’t want to bring him back because I think you do out of all the players he he’s like fine wine he’s getting better with age but of all the players uh that you have here look Steph Stam Co who won Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning who was their Captain who is a future Hall of Famer the Tampa Bay Lightning realized at this stage in his career it does not make sense monetarily to bring back their Captain their face of the franchise Steven Stam Coos and sign him to a bigger deal and stanos realized hey they’re not going to pay me what I want I’m moving on is that the most popular move in Tampa Bay no I’m sure there are a lot of fans that are unhappy but is it the right move for Tampa Bay probably yes look Brian tracher did not finish his NHL career with the New York Islanders Pat LaFontaine did not finish his NHL career John Taris the list goes on Hall of Fame players Gordy how didn’t finish his career with the Red Wings okay Phil Esposito did not finish his career with the Boston Bruins how many teams was you know Wayne Gretzky didn’t stay an Oiler his whole career it is always better to give up on a player or to move on from a player a year too soon than a year too late so if I’m L larell as much as I want Brock Nelson back it’s got to be on my terms it’s got to be a deal that the team can afford that fits in that takes into consideration that yes Brock Nelson has been a great Islander he is a future Islanders Hall of Famer not a Hockey Hall of Famer but an Islanders Hall of Famer and yes Brock Nelson we would love to have you stay but this is what we can afford this is what you’re worth to this team going forward I may give you a slight bonus or maybe I’ll guarantee you a front office job after you retire if you want to go that route but we are not going to break the bank for a player who’s most likely going to see declining productivity over the length of the contract if it’s going to hamper the team we have heard L larell say he’s not going to let loyalty get in the way of winning how he handles the negotiations with Brock Nelson in particular and Kyle palmary to a lesser extent sometime between now and next July is going to tell us a lot about whether or not Lula Melo just says that or if he actually does that we’ll see what happens with Brock I hope they find a way to keep him at the right price but again one step at a time all right we have got more to discuss on today’s show we have a look at the top American born players for the New York Islanders by games played we’ll talk about that plus our Islanders birthday of the day all that and more coming up on today’s locked on Islanders podcast lockon has launched the first ever National Sports 247 streaming Channel on YouTube and now it’s also available on Amazon Fire TV and the free Fire TV channels app locked on sports today is here for you 247 covering the top sports stories of the day with the local Experts of locked on plus our national shows covering every League find locked on sports today now available on the freef Fire TV channels app so the Islanders you know they’ve had a lot of Great American born players since they entered the league in 1972 and you got to remember for most of the 70s 95 or maybe even higher in the early 70s percent of hockey players in the NHL were Canadian born the wh kind of changed that you had some Europeans come over but overall you know originally it was Canada and maybe one or two Americans and finally by the mid-70s maybe you had a swed or a fin mixed in but over the years especially after the Miracle on Ice in 1980 you got your share of American born players who have really contributed to the success of the New York Islanders we’re basing this solely on games played and its games played in an islander’s uniform couple of honorable mentions with 468 games played Scott Mayfield and that number if he stays healthy will definitely rise how about Nick lety another honorable mention 518 games in an Islander uniform American born as for the top five number five he may be retiring he did just win a Stanley Cup former first round pick Kyle aoso 529 career games as an Islander and now a Stanley Cup champion and always uh a great guy on and off the ice in the number four spot the only Hockey Hall of Famer on this list talking of course about Pat LaFontaine 530 games as an Islander for La Fontaine should have been more ownership refused to pay him they had to trade him but boy what a dynamic player if you go from the mid 80s to the early 90s and you want to know who the best play player on the team was from let’s say 1984 to 1991 Pat LaFontaine is your answer I hope the Islanders will retire his jersey at some point at number three a guy whose career was cut short by injury but I don’t think any person in sports had a better time winning championships between 1980 and 1983 then Ken marrow who played 550 Gam games in an Islanders uniform won a gold medal at Lake plid in 1980 and then won four straight Stanley Cups with the Islanders he checks in at number three at number two the captain Andrew Lee 759 games as a New York Islander and Counting still has a couple of years left on the contract whether or not the Islanders make a move and move on from him we don’t know yet but Anders Lee number two in Islanders history of American born players with 759 games played and in the number one spot the guy we spoke about just in our second segment Brock Nelson 840 games as an Islander if he signs an extension he’s likely to reach that thousand game Mark I hope he does but uh if he stays healthy he’ll pass 900 games this coming season and uh two full healthy seasons and he gets to a thousand so those are your top five and two honorable mentions for most games played in an Islanders uniform by an American Born player now I did mention that by the mid to late 70s you had some swedes and fins coming over and then later when the Iron Curtain fell the Russians started to come but one of those players from Sweden is our Islanders birthday of the day today’s birthday of the and it’s it’s a day early Saturday is the 72nd birthday former Islanders Winger Anders caller caller a native of Luda Sweden 510 190 pounds signed with the Islanders for the 7980 season scored 22 goals that year and 52 points missed the playoffs due to injury but wasn’t did play 76 games for the Islanders in that first cup season and then the next three years he was a big part of the team’s success his career year in the NHL 8081 36 goals 64 points and 78 games his best playoff season 8283 15 points in 20 games fifth uh 15 points 12 of those were assists caller kind of underrated and a little bit forgotten but boy was he fun to watch one of his better games as an Islander November 30th 1980 at laala in Quebec the Islanders visiting leor deque Chico R the goalie for the Islanders Michelle pla the goalie for Quebec the late great Michelle plas but in this game our Islanders birthday of the day Anders caller well he really had a great performance open the scoring Midway through the first with an unassisted goal then late in the first period with a minute 35 to go scores short handed Bob Bourne and Dennis po van with the assist that makes it two nothing and then with exactly one minute later 35 seconds left in the period caller sets up Bob Bourne and the Islanders have a three nothing lead and caller has three first period points then in the third period with the score four to2 caller sets up Butch Goring Bob Bourne the other assist that made it five to2 Islanders and then at the 549 Mark of the third caller completes his only NHL hattrick his 15th goal of the Year third of the game Butch Goring the only assist final score Islanders seven leor deque three for Anders caller a fivepoint night three goals two assists he was a plus six in this game had five shots on goal one of the goals short-handed and what a great game for Anders caller Anders caller part of all four Stanley Cup winning teams for the New York Islanders he is our Islanders birthday of the day I want to thank everyone who makes locked on Islanders your first listen every day we’ll be back on Monday talking about all the latest news notes and happenings and yes we will soon begin our look at some of the Islanders draft pick so make sure you join us throughout the offseason as we update some deep dives into their skill sets their Tim taes and how they’ll fit into the Islanders organization have a great weekend everybody stay safe and of course let’s go Islanders

The New York Islanders will lose forward Ruslan Iskhakov to the KHL according to a Russian hockey source. Iskhakov played one regular season game and one playoff game with the Isles but was a two-time AHL All Star. We discuss Iskhakov’s departure and the Isles difficulty in developing the players they have drafted in recent years.

Plus, what will the Isles do about Brock Nelson’s contract? Their top goal scorer has one-year left on his deal, but can the Isles afford to bring him back and still re-sign Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov and still improve the team?

And, in honor of Independence Day in the US, we look at the top American-born Islanders in team history based on games played.

All this and more on today’s Locked On Islanders Podcast with Gil Martin.

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