Palmieri comments on being traded to the Isles, Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald displays pure class

New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello appears to have pulled off an absolute heist on Wednesday when he acquired both Travis Zajac and high-profile deadline rental Kyle Palmieri with 50% of their salary retained by the New Jersey Devils for a pair of draft picks and two non-roster players.

Though the Isles did part with their 2021 first round pick and a conditional fourth-rounder in 2022, which will become a third if the Isles make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, it's hard to look at this deal and argue that the Devils made out like bandits. On the other hand, when you consider that the Isles filled two areas of need (top six winger and a 3rd line center) ahead of the postseason, where they already had a chance to do some damage, and all they needed to part with to do that was a late first round pick, a conditional 4th, Mason Jobst and A.J. Greer, it's an easier sell that Lou got the better of Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald in this one.

Despite arguably being fleeced by the much more seasoned Lamoriello, Fitzgerald told ESPN's Greg Wyshynski that he hopes that the first-rounder he acquired in the deal ends up being the last pick in the round, expanding on that by stating that he hopes the Isles walk away with hockey's greatest prize this season.

"I hope the pick we get is the 32nd pick," said Fitzgerald. "I hope both of these gentlemen can win a Cup."

The Isles and their fanbase should be thrilled with these additions, especially due to captain Anders Lee being sidelined for the season due to injury. Kyle Palmieri should be able to make up for some of that lost production in the top six fairly easily, given is track record, having scored 20-30 goals in each of his last 5 seasons.

Palmieri, 30, is admittedly excited by the opportunity to play closer to home (Smithtown, NY), but also to compete for the first Stanley Cup in his career.

"When I kinda heard that the Isles could be an option, I couldn't have been more excited. As the days wore on here, there was a little bit of anxiety in terms of waiting for that call. I got that call tonight and it was difficult to contain the excitement," Palmieri said following the announcement that he was Long Island-bound.

Lou may still have another move or two on the way, as he still has in excess of $3M in available deadline cap space.

The Islanders are currently tied with the Washington Capitals atop the East Division with an identical 25-10-4 record and 54 points through 39 games this season.

MUST READ

8 minutes ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Projected No. 1 pick just made a major mistake that could cost him

1 hour ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau New Leafs development is worse than expected

1 hour ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Last-minute Oilers update emerges just before puck drop

1 hour ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Jon Cooper calls out responsibility for the loss and issues strong warning

2 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Wild dealing with major injury-driven lineup shakeup before Game 6

3 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Canucks GM search takes unexpected turn as new names surface

3 hours ago  |  By Vincent Carbonneau Concerning update from Elliotte Friedman on key Ottawa Senators player

4 hours ago  |  By Skyler Walker Corey Perry calls out a star teammate and sends a blunt message to the locker room

MORE STORIES