Ducks' Vatrano Linked To Interesting Team In The East

The Anaheim Ducks are far out of the playoff race this season and are going to be sellers at the trade deadline in just a short time. While this should include upcoming UFAs, the team also has a strong trade candidate in Frank Vatrano that teams are interested in. He has been linked to a few teams, but maybe the most intriguing is the New York Islanders, per The Fourth Period.

In the East, there are seven teams that sit between 58 and 67 points that are still in the playoff bubble. The Islanders have to make up five points with two games in hand on the Tampa Bay Lightning to squeak into eighth or seven points with one game in hand to catch up to the Philadelphia Flyers in third in the division. It is entirely possible and the Islanders have the ability to play well for periods of time, but they may need help. This is where a potential addition to their lineup would come into play.

Despite injuries all season to the defense, the forward group is the area that needs to be upgraded. The Islanders have lacked scoring for a long time and someone like Vatrano who has 26 goals on the season already and can produce on the power play as well would make a big difference. The Islanders play tight games and if they had a bit more scoring, it could be the difference between losses and wins on any given night.

The Islanders don't have any cap space, so they will have to figure that part out. It is likely that someone like Cal Clutterbuck or Matt Martin would be headed back to make the cap work while the Ducks retain half. Vatrano still has another year left on his deal at $3.65 million AAV, but he is the type of player the Islanders could use. They can't let a year like this slip away.