Report: New York Islanders Looking To Trade Depth Players

The New York Islanders may have placed Richard Panik and Thomas Hickey on waivers yesterday, but even with that, they still have 26 players on the NHL roster. It will jump up to 27 if the team decides to sign Erik Gustafsson for the season. They will need to be at 23 players before the start of the season, which is why they are looking to trade a few of their depth players, according to Arthur Staple.

Trotz says Lamoriello "isn't quite finished assembling the roster." #Isles may be looking for landing spots in a trade for some of their extra guys. Rosters have to be set on Monday at 5 p.m.
— Arthur Staple (@StapeAthletic) October 9, 2021

Some potential candidates who come to mind are Sebastian Aho, Kieffer Bellows, Ross Johnston and Leo Komarov. If they decide to just send a few of those players to the AHL, there's at least one of them who could end up being claimed on waivers.

The Islanders have until October 11th at 5 P.M. ET to make some trades. If they decide to let a few players go through waivers, there's a good chance they could end up losing some depth without getting anything in return. Thus, if they can manage to make a trade or two, it may be the best decision for them.