Islanders’ glaring roster flaw that must be fixed before 2026-27 NHL season

The New York Islanders fought tooth and nail to make the playoffs last season. New York bought at the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline, for instance. And with only a handful of games remaining, the Islanders made a coaching change. Patrick Roy was fired, and veteran bench boss Pete DeBoer was brought in to replace him.

Unfortunately, this did not work. The Islanders did not make the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2026. This marked the third time in five seasons they ended the year without postseason hockey. And it’s simply not the standard this franchise expects of itself.

There were certainly positive aspects for the Islanders to come away excited about. The biggest being Calder Trophy winner Matthew Schaefer. The rookie defenseman turned in one of the best debut campaigns for a defenseman in NHL history. He tied Brian Leetch’s record for goals by a rookie defenseman, for instance. And his impact on this team simply could not be overstated.

Another important part of this team’s success is their goaltender, Ilya Sorokin. The Islanders netminder is one of the best in the NHL. He played to a .906 save percentage in 2025-26. However, he was second in the NHL for Goals Saved Above Expected and WAR among all goaltenders, according to HockeyStats.com.

New York has some very intriguing pieces in place heading into 2026-27. In saying this, there is one crucial flaw with this roster that has yet to be addressed this offseason.

Islanders lack significant offensive firepower

The Islanders have their franchise goaltender and their franchise defenseman. They also have a very skilled group of forwards. Mathew Barzal, Bo Horvat, and Emil Heineman are some of the better players up front for New York.

At the same time, their offense leaves a lot to be desired. Heineman, for instance, scored 22 goals last year. But he showed little playmaking ability, providing just nine assists. He is far from a real issue on offense, but the lack of playmaking can be concerning.

Concerning also describes the team’s general inability to find the back of the net. They finished with the eighth-lowest Goals For Per Game, according to ESPN. Only the New Jersey Devils scored fewer goals per game than New York among Eastern Conference clubs.

In 2026-27, New York’s offense will be a concern once again. The Islanders lost captain Anders Lee in NHL Free Agency, watching him sign a three-year contract with the Utah Mammoth. In free agency, the team did little to replace his production.

In fact, New York made one notable forward signing on the open market. Matias Maccelli signed a one-year contract with the Islanders back in July. He spent one season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, struggling after a trade from the Mammoth last summer.

New York is banking on major internal improvements this year. And they are going to need a lot to go their way. Maccelli will need to bounce back, for instance. Schaefer will need to replicate and build on his historic 2025-26 form. Players such as Heineman, Calum Ritchie, and Simon Holmstrom will need to take a step as well.

The Islanders have a lot of faith in the players already on their roster. Whether that faith is repaid certainly remains to be seen. For New York’s sake, they definitely need to pray that it is as the 2026-27 season draws near.

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