The New York Islanders and general manager Garth Snow have plans for captain John Tavares on the 2018 trade deadline.
TSN’s Pierre LeBrun gave a concrete answer to the question on New York Islanders fans mind: Will John Tavares get traded on February 26?
“It’s something that people around the league are going to start questioning if the Islanders fall out of the playoff race, I put that question right to Garth Snow, the Islanders General Manager on Thursday, and his answer, rather succinctly was ‘I am not trading John Tavares.’ Cannot be anymore clear than that.” – Pierre lebrun, TSN
So, there it is, front and center, something that has been on the minds of the hockey world as they have observed the Islanders ascension to a playoff spot in the early stages of the season, and to where they are right now — one point out of a playoff spot.
With the news on Belmont concrete and the interim future of the team having been decided as well, Islanders fans are wondering what’s taking the captain so long to sign on the dotted line.
One other variable that was noted was that evidently, the Tavares camp is waiting to see how the Islanders handle the situations with Josh Bailey, who is in the midst of another career season and is also slated to become a unrestricted free agent this coming offseason.
Tavares, however, has proven to be one of the most valuable players on this competitive Islanders squad. Tavares is tied for sixth in the league in points (57) with 26 goals to boot. The 27-year-old is just what the Islanders need so it would be a shame to see him go in free agency.
Now that the word is out on Tavares’ fate for the remainder of the season, the question shifts to: Can the Islanders do enough to convince him to stick around?
