Islanders GM Admits to Making Mistakes When it Comes to Signing Some Players

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TJ Tucker
June 28, 2023 (10:14)

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New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello is lamenting the current position his team is in and insists things would have been different if not for stalled NHL revenues during the COVID-19 pandemic. In an interview, Lamoriello said the Islanders are cash-strapped and up against the cap because signings were made on the assumption that the salary cap would be going up much more than it did.

"We're in this position because of what happened with assumptions -- which, it's real bad word -- of where the cap would be. So some of the signings that we made three years ago...we would not have done because, in your planning, you also know what the progression will be and can be because of where the revenues are going."

Signing Kyle Palmieri to a four year deal worth $5 million per season is certainly one that Lamoriello would want a do-over on. Palmieri still has two years remaining on his deal, and a modified no-trade clause to deal with as well (Palmieri gets to list 16 teams he doesn't want to go to). Cal Clutterbuck is another. He has one year left on his contract at $1.75 million. Josh Bailey was paid $5 million last season for 8 goals and 25 points in 64 games.

While the cap is going up to $83.5 million for 2023-24, it was expected to be considerably higher than that by now. However, empty arenas during COVID hit many teams hard and severely hurt the league's overall revenue. Lamoriello certainly isn't the only GM that has to deal with this, but there have been a number of questionable signings for the Islanders. Lamoriello has his work cut out for him to ensure NYI can compete for a playoff spot.