NY Islanders Reach Agreement With 24-Year-Old Forward to Avoid Arbitration

The New York Islanders were able to reach an agreement with a young forward to avoid arbitration.

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

With the offseason still ongoing, the New York Islanders have been busy of late. 

Even though it has been mostly a quiet summer for the Islanders, that might not end up being a bad thing. This is a team that exceeded expectations last year and that undoubtedly threw a bit of a wrinkle in Mathieu Darche’s plan. 

Since New York was looking like a real playoff contender at the trade deadline, he surprisingly got a little bit aggressive at the trade deadline to try and improve. However, the Islanders faltered down the stretch and ultimately missed the playoffs. 

Furthermore, with just a few games left in the season, they made the shocking decision to fire Patrick Roy in favor of Peter DeBoer. Now, with Darche starting to get his plan in place going forward, he will be starting to look to clean things up a bit. 

For New York, while they are going to be trying to contend for a playoff spot next year, they didn’t do a ton to improve this summer. Most of their moves have been regarding depth for the franchise, and the team recently came to an agreement with forward Alex Jefferies to avoid arbitration. 

Jefferies and Islanders Reach Agreement 

The Islanders and Alex Jefferies avoid arbitration 

NHL: $850K
AHL: $100K
Guarantee: $130K

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) July 24, 2026

With arbitration coming up for both sides, it is good to see New York and Jefferies reach an agreement on a deal worth 850k in the NHL, 100k in the AHL, and a guarantee of 160k. 

The young forward has been with the franchise for several years now in the AHL, and he will likely remain a key part of the now-Hamilton Hammers. Last season with the Bridgeport Islanders, he totaled 29 points with nine goals and 20 assists. 

It was the second straight year with Bridgeport in which he totaled 29 points, and he has been a solid player. The 24-year-old has some excellent speed and is a good playmaker, as shown by his 20 assists last year. 

While the forward spot for the Islanders is a bit crowded right now, anything could happen, and Jefferies has some good experience with the franchise already. Depth is certainly an important thing in the NHL, and with the schedule getting a couple of games longer, that is becoming the case even more. 

For the Islanders, they have done a really nice job of developing talent, and players like Jefferies in the AHL are going to continue to improve.