Islanders make first two draft picks of the Lou Lamoriello era

DALLAS — There already has been a bit of terrific timing for the Islanders, starting with their hiring of Lou Lamoriello as president, then going on to the hiring of Barry Trotz as the new coach.

That type of good luck continued in the first round of the draft Friday night, when an unpredictable first 10 picks left them with players most did not think would be available. So with the No. 11-overall selection, they took high-scoring winger Oliver Wahlstrom, then backed it up by taking defenseman Noah Dobson at No. 12, the pick they got from Calgary in the Travis Hamonic trade.

Many thought Lamoriello was going to try to package some of his picks and swing a trade for an NHL-ready player, but the way the draft broke, it was almost too good to be true.

“Let me put it this way — I don’t think you ever [don’t] make a trade if it’s going to make your team better,” Lamoriello said. “But obviously that didn’t happen. When you see a player like these players there, you feel very good because they’re outstanding prospects.”

Both Wahlstrom and Dobson were considered likely to go somewhere near the top five, but there were a couple of unexpected picks — like the coyotes taking Barrett Hayton at No. 5 and the Rangers taking Vitali Kravtsov at No. 9. So Lamoriello quickly pulled the trigger, first on Wahlstrom, an 18-year-old from Quincy, Mass., who had 40 goals and 83 points in 54 games with the U.S. under-18 team this past season. He is set to head off to Boston College this fall.

see also

Trotz is next step in Islanders revival — and a big Tavares lure

DALLAS — Boy, how things have fallen into place for…

“It’s a dream come true,” Wahlstrom said. “To be in New York, that city is awesome. The organization is a powerhouse organization throughout the years, so I couldn’t be more happy.”

Then with the next pick, Lamoriello chose the 18-year-old Dobson, an offensive defenseman who put up 17 goals and 52 assists in 67 games in the QMJHL. From Prince Edward Island, Dobson is hoping to make enough of an early impact to try to stick in the league rather than going back to juniors.

“I haven’t really set a timetable when I want to be in the NHL,” Dobson said. “The goal of the summer is to be able to get my body to a level and add some strength where going into NHL camp with the Islanders in September and be able to compete against men and make a decision tough on management to send me back to junior.”

The Islanders desperately need help keeping the puck out of their net, and they happened to miss out on goalie Philipp Grubauer, who was traded from the Capitals to the Avalanche just before the first round started. The thought was Lamoriello was going to be aggressive in trying to get Grubauer, who was the 1B option for Trotz as they won the Stanley Cup with Washington just weeks ago.

Now the hunt for a goalie will continue — and if it goes anything like the way the past few weeks has gone, one might just fall into their lap. At least that’s what happened on the first day of the draft.

“I don’t think we could be more delighted,” Lamoriello said. “When you get those people you’re able to get, where you have them on your list, it was extremely good. Both are exceptional players.”