According to a few reports, including one by Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News , Jordan Eberle is the player the Seattle Kraken will be taking from the New York Islanders organization. Eberle, 31, is signed through the 2023-24 season at a cap hit of $5.5 million and should be a big part of the Kraken’s offense moving forward.
Eberle had 16 goals and 33 points in 55 games this season, adding four goals and 11 points in 19 postseason games. He’s a regular 20-goal player in the NHL and he’s be consistently strong at driving scoring chances, while rounding out his defensive game as part of the Islanders system under coach Barry Trotz. He’ll represent a smart pickup for the Kraken with contract cost certainty.
By most accounts, it was Eberle or forward Josh Bailey.
Eberle has never quite reached the same level of offensive success that he had as part of the Edmonton Oilers roster. He’s not broken the 60-point threshold since he scored a career-high 76 points during the 2011-2012 season. That said, he’s been more than reliable for regular production and he seems to hit the 40-50 point market over the course of a full season with ease. The one area that Seattle might struggle with early is scoring goals. Eberle is a goal scorer having potted more than 20 in six of his 9 full-length NHL seasons.
Islanders Can Go Free Agent Shopping Now
As for what the Islanders do now, they need to address their top-six, especially on the right side where Eberle leaves a hole. The Islanders will have money to spend. With Eberle, Nick Leddy, and Andrew Ladd coming off the books, the Islanders will have more than $20 million with which to go shopping.
Expect the team to be in on a couple of bigger-name free agents or potentially make a deal to trade for a player who has some salary on their contract but are looking for a new environment in which to play.
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