The scope of New York hockey has changed once again. The New York Islanders, a team that is out of the playoff picture, have traded for the top player on the market. Vancouver Canucks captain Bo Horvat, in the middle of a career-season, is coming to the island. Fan favorite Anthony Beauvillier, top prospect Aatu Raty, and a first-round pick is the cost for GM Lou Lamoriello. 

Here’s a trade that truly came out of nowhere. The Islanders are 25-22-5, which is sixth in the Metropolitan Division. They are two points behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but Pittsburgh has played in three less games. An aging team already, making a push like this for the postseason isn’t just crazy, it seems reckless. 

Horvat is in the midst of his best season, as he has already scored 31 goals in 49 games this season. But he turns 28 in April and is a pending free agent. The Islanders would need to extend him to make this trade worth it. And that will cost them a lot. What he definitely does is improve a very weak Islanders’ power play, which is ranked 31st in the league. 

A former first-round pick, Beauvillier’s stock has collapsed since reaching a high point during the team’s deep playoff runs in 2020 and 2021. He will forever be known on Long Island for his overtime winner in Game 6 of the Conference Finals in the latter year to force a game seven, in which the Islanders fell flat because of a lack of goal scoring. With an incredibly shallow farm system, trading Raty and this year’s top pick (the pick is protected for one year if things go south) means that it won’t improve anytime soon. Raty is a center, and acquiring another center in Horvat would block him for the foreseeable future. 

As of now, an extension has not happened between the two sides. The trade deadline is March 3rd, so the Islanders have until then to find out if they can be a legitimate contender. If not, Horvat could be flipped again.