Matheiu Darche Has Not Spent Money Wisely With NY Islanders

Money has not been spent productively by Matheiu Darche with the New York Islanders.

Nov 22, 2025; Elmont, New York, USA; New York Islanders General Manager Mathieu Darche speaks with fans at a pre-game event prior to the game against the St. Louis Blues at UBS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There is some buzz and excitement surrounding the New York Islanders and what the future holds for the franchise.

Defenseman Matthew Schaefer is one of the best building blocks in the NHL. There is a plethora of young talent making its way through the organizational pipeline, and new head coach Peter DeBoer has a knack for getting the most out of his rosters, resulting in a lot of wins.

While fans may be disappointed that the front office didn’t do as much this summer to upgrade the roster, big moves could be on the horizon. The Islanders are projected to have approximately $40 million in cap space to spend next offseason.

That is certainly a reason to be excited, but it is fair to have some reservations about how that money will be spent by general manager Mathieu Darche. And that is because his track record, to this point in New York, is far from sterling.

Mathieu Darche has not spent money wisely with Islanders

Nov 22, 2025; Elmont, New York, USA; New York Islanders General Manager Mathieu Darche speaks with fans at a pre-game event prior to the game against the St. Louis Blues at UBS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Over at The Athletic (subscription required), Dom Luszczyszyn put together rankings based on contract efficiency. Essentially, he ranked teams based on how wisely they are spending their money.

Darche, while still early in his tenure with the franchise, has done nothing to help their contract efficiency. They are currently No. 28 in the rankings, which is an incremental improvement after being No. 29 last year.

The only teams worse are the Calgary Flames, Chicago Blackhawks, Vancouver Canucks and San Jose Sharks. The Canucks, Blackhawks and Flames finished as the three of the four worst teams in the NHL; meanwhile, the Islanders had 91 points and battled for a playoff spot.

New York is in a much different spot from the peers they are sharing the bottom of the rankings with, which could be cause for concern for the fan base. How much better would they be if Darche wasn’t so inefficient at spending money since he took over, and what does that mean for the future?

Islanders have too many negative valued contracts

Jan 26, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Islanders center Jean-Gabriel Pageau (44) passes the puck against the Philadelphia Flyers in the first period at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It would be one thing if Darche inherited some of the bad contracts that are on the books. For example, Adam Pelech, Ryan Pulock and Scott Mayfield signed the deals that are now providing negative surplus value.

However, their impact on the overall efficiency of the team pales in comparison to the damage Darche has done by extending Alexander Romanov and Jean-Gabriel Pageau on long-term deals and acquiring Brayden Schenn and Ondrej Palat in trades.

The Islanders currently have an average positive value of only 40% and a total surplus of -$30 million. The aforementioned teams below New York in the rankings are the only ones with worse average positive value percentages. As for surplus totals, the Sharks and Canucks are the only teams with worse, and the Nashville Predators are tied with New York at -$30 million.

Darche will have the opportunity to turn these rankings around, but his track record isn’t positive thus far.