NY Islanders Could Reunite With Former First-Round Pick

Will the New York Islanders look to reunite with a former first-round pick?

Feb 26, 2026; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; View of a New York Islanders logo on a jersey worn by a member of the team during the third period at Bell Centre. / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With the offseason rolling on for the New York Islanders, whether or not the team will look to add more to their roster is yet to be determined. However, getting some depth in the AHL should still very much be a goal for the team. 

This summer, things have been mostly quiet for the Islanders. This was a team that wasn’t in the best cap situation coming into the offseason, and the goal is seemingly to let some bad contracts expire and have a lot more cap space for next summer. 

In terms of signings, the only notable one for the team was adding forward Matias Maccelli. This could be a great value addition for the Islanders, but the team did lose Anders Lee, which is a major blow. 

The hope is certainly that with some young players getting better and some key players being back from injury, the team will be improved from last year. While that might be the case, depth for the organization is never a bad thing, and they could reunite with a former first-round pick to help in that area. 

Stefen Rosner from the Elmonters recently wrote about a potential reunion with former first round pick Oliver Wahlstrom. 

Islanders Could Give Wahlstrom a Look

Feb 8, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins right wing Oliver Wahlstrom (71) during the third period against the Vegas Golden Knights at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-Imagn Images / IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 11th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft looked like he was going to be a solid player for New York early on. At 20 years old during the 2020-21 campaign, he played in 44 games after getting his feet wet the year before for nine games in the NHL. 

During the 2020-21 campaign, he totaled 21 points in 44 games with 12 goals and nine assists. He showcased an early ability to put the puck in the net and looked like he was going to be a key player for the team. 

However, in his second year there really wasn’t a jump in production like the Islanders would have liked to see. In 73 games, he only totaled 24 points with 13 goals and 11 assists. 

Since then, his playing time and production continued to decrease before being put on waivers by the Islanders and claimed by the Boston Bruins. Things didn’t improve for him there, and he was ultimately let go. 

Last year, he signed a PTO with the San Jose Sharks and played for their AHL affiliate. As the Islanders look to create some depth, this could be a route that they look to pursue with their former first-round pick.