Tony Stabile | Oct 05, 2010 | Comments 1
Last season the Islanders grabbed talented forward Rob Schremp off waivers right before the start of the season. Today they grabbed an even more talented player off waivers.
The Islanders have claimed RW Michael Grabner off waivers from the Florida Panthers. Grabner could be a steal as he is a highly regarded prospect who was part of the Keith Ballard deal at the Draft in June.
www.hockeysfuture.com listed Grabner as Florida’s 4th best prospect and had his potential listed as a 1st or 2nd line player with excellent skating and scoring ability.
The acquisition should ease the loss of Kyle Okposo for the Islanders and wont force the team to keep 1st round selection Nino Niederreiter if he isn’t ready. In a corresponding move the team has placed Andy Hilbert on waivers.
Here is a link to his prospect file at the aforementioned hockeysfuture.com
More to follow…
Filed Under: Eastern Conference • New York Islanders • NHL • NHL Teams
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This is a potential steal for the Isles Tony! Great breaking news for you!
If you look at Grabner’s numbers he is similar in production to Schremp in that both players seem to be in the 1/2 point per game zone — granted both players have less then a season under their proverbial belts.
Nonetheless, in a skating and forecheck system that the Isles run, Grabner could prove to be able to reach his potential.
This may also creates more depth and more then likely will give the Isles a more rounded offense. Certainly it eases some of the burden of losing Okposo.
Incidently, the Isles are now boasting an interesting mix of first round youth. Tavares, Bailey, Grabner, Schremp, Okposo, Nino, De Haan, and DiPietro are all former 1st rounders. It should be interesting to see how these players take the next step.
I read the entry today from Scott Burnside — who not surprisingly roasted the Islanders and has them finishing 14th in the conference (5th in the division)