The New York Islanders decided to upgrade their defense on Sunday afternoon, as they dealt a future second-round pick (2021), and prospect David Quenneville to the Devils in exchange for their 37-year old captain Andy Greene. Currently at 72 points in 58 games played, the Islanders sit in 3^rd in the Metropolitan Division and are 7pts back of the 1^st place Capitals despite playing one more game than them.

Greene will certainly help this defensive group, as he has 50 games of playoff experience under his belt. This season, Greene had 11 points in 53 games played with the Devils, and in his one game on the Island, he registered an assist. Greene has appeared to benefit from playing a minute and twenty-seven seconds less than his career average ice time, as his penalty taken drawn is an impressive 6:4, and his GA/TA ratio is somewhat low for a defenseman at 32:12. He also had among the higher +/- numbers on the Devils at +1, which is impressive considering he plays 20+ minutes a night. He has a respectable -0.75 career AB score in a 12-year sample; however, he is coming off three negative seasons in a row. None of Greene’s $5 million salary will be retained by New Jersey in this trade, but he is set to hit unrestricted free agency on July 1^st, meaning his salary will be off the Islanders’ books. GM Lou Lamoriello needs as much money as he can to sign young stars Matt Barzal and Ryan Pulock due to the expiration of their entry-level contracts. Speaking of Pulock, he offered his new defense partner Greene his #6 jersey; however, Greene declined and will wear the number 4 for the Islanders for the rest of this season.

David Quenneville has spent time in both the ECHL and AHL this season. Drafted in the 7^th round by the Islanders in 2016, Quenneville has 8 pts in 36 games played this year in the AHL/ECHL. The Islanders still have all of their draft picks over the next three seasons, minus the 2021 2^nd they dealt in this trade. This is certainly not the only move the Islanders will make this deadline season, as they are still linked to Jean-Gabriel Pageau in Ottawa. They have $4 million in cap space, and it will be interesting to see what Lou Lamoriello does before next Monday’s trade deadline. The Islanders will look to redeem themselves after getting swept by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2^nd round of the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs and try to help the 37-year old Andy Greene capture his 1^st career Stanley Cup. More to come.