A little more than a week into this offseason, the Islanders already can claim with some credibility that it is their best offseason since 2018 and maybe even their best under Lou Lamoriello, period.
After all, 2018 looks a lot better in retrospect than it did at the time, when John Tavares spurned the Islanders to sign for seven years and $77 million with the Maple Leafs. With the benefit of hindsight, Lamoriello handled that departure about as well as possible, building a roster that quickly transitioned into a competitor in the Eastern Conference by signing Robin Lehner and trading for Matt Martin, hiring a future Jack Adams winner in Barry Trotz and drafting Noah Dobson, among other moves.
Tavares, meanwhile, has produced at a high level, but has won just a single playoff series with the Leafs. Perhaps staying with the Islanders would have raised the club’s ceiling that little bit higher between 2018-21, but it’s difficult to view the way things have gone for him in Toronto as a success.
With the benefit of hindsight, 2018 looks like the best offseason of Lamoriello’s tenure, and the general trend is that it’s gotten worse as time has gone on.
