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It came like the slow ripping of a Band-Aid, and now the wound will bleed out all over Islanders fans for years to come. A dark day in Islanders history arrived Sunday when captain John Tavares decided to become a free agent and then sign a sentimental deal with his hometown Maple Leafs. The seven-year, […]

Scott Malkin takes the hit for the franchise’s latest debacle. For it was the principal owner who allowed John Tavares to hold the Islanders hostage throughout a season in which No. 91 refused to commit to an extension even while the clock mercilessly ticked off the final year of his contract. Whether a representation of […]

The roster features a decent amount of skill but a striking absence of jam. That is the imbalance general manager Jeff Gorton must address as the Rangers move forward into this rebuild 2018-19. Signing Day came and went without the Blueshirts making more than the teeniest ripple on the free-agent market. Defenseman Fredrik Claesson, late […]

see also Devils have the money to keep momentum going in free agency The rebuilding process for the Devils was accelerated a little… Like most teams not in Toronto, the Devils didn’t make much of a splash once free agency opened at noon Sunday. Their biggest signing was veteran defenseman Eric Gryba, who inked a […]

John Tavares deciding on Sunday to sign with the Maple Leafs leaves a void in the Islanders roster that is impossible to fill. But now, they have to try to do something to stay competitive, made more difficult by being late to the free-agent party. At this point, team president Lou Lamoriello has to be […]

One look at the cost of doing business Sunday reveals this truth as self-evident: If Kevin Hayes reaches the open market next July, the recently turned, 26-year-old center can expect a payday of around $30 million over five years, if not more. So the choice confronting the Rangers and general manager Jeff Gorton over the […]

Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella went ballistic after hearing the comments made by his recently departed defenseman, Jack Johnson, and Penguins GM Jim Rutherford at Johnson’s introductory news conference in Pittsburgh. “I’ve been looking to be in a winning culture,” said Johnson, who inked a five-year, $16.25 million deal with the Penguins on Sunday. Johnson […]

Slava Voynov’s controversial path back to the NHL is being paved. The former Kings defenseman’s petition to have his record dismissed was granted Sunday, as the LA Times first reported, after Voynov pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of corporal injury to a spouse. Voynov, 28, was arrested at his Redonado Beach, Calif., home in October […]

Now Lou Lamoriello might have the hardest task of his legendary career as a NHL executive. No longer is it just about making personnel decisions, but Lamoriello is suddenly strapped with the job of trying to accelerate the Islanders through the stages of grief. First, there was probably at least a mild bit of shock […]

It must be the new exchange rate at the Canadian border. John Tavares to Toronto, Leo Komarov and Matt Martin to Long Island. The Islanders, who (in)famously lost their captain to the Maple Leafs via free agency on Sunday, reacquired popular hitman Martin from that same team on Wednesday in exchange for minor league goaltender […]