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Noah Dobson, New York Islanders (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

Grading the Canadiens’ Blockbuster Trade for Islanders’ Dobson

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Alex Chauvancy | Last updated Jun 27, 2025 2:55 PM ET

Happy NHL Draft Day, hockey fans. It got started off with a bang earlier this afternoon, with the Montreal Canadiens announcing they had acquired defenseman Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders. They also announced they had agreed to an eight-year extension worth $9.5 million annually with Dobson. Here are the full details:

Canadiens receive:

Dobson, (8 x $9.5 million)

Islanders receive:

Emil Heineman
2025 first-round pick (16th overall)
2025 first-round pick (17th overall)

The Canadiens are looking to build off a surprise playoff berth and get an immediate and needed upgrade to their blue line. Meanwhile, Mathieu Darche’s first transaction as the Islanders’ general manager was a significant one, and it signals a potential shift that it may be time to start a rebuild on Long Island.

Canadiens Hit Close to a Home Run

Even though the Canadiens made the playoffs last season, they were one of the most porous defensive teams in the NHL. They allowed 2.87 expected goals per 60 minutes, the second-worst rate in the league. Only the Anaheim Ducks allowed more quality chances per hour than the Canadiens.

Dobson’s defensive game was inconsistent earlier in his career, but he’s made significant strides in his own end over the last couple of seasons. He was one of the Islanders’ best shot suppressors in 2024-25, allowing 2.28 expected goals per 60 minutes. Perhaps the Islanders’ more defensive style of hockey under Patrick Roy played a part in that, but there’s no doubt he’s improved as a defender.

The improvement defensively doesn’t go unnoticed, but Dobson’s strength is his offensive game and ability. He excels at getting the puck out of the defensive zone cleanly with his high-end passing ability, and he can skate it out with possession if he needs to. He’s a high-volume shooter and sets up his teammates for plenty of chances in the offensive zone.

The one area where Dobson needs to improve is his rush defense. It’s his biggest weakness, but one that he could still address since he’s such an excellent skater; his top skating speed ranked in the 89th percentile this past season.

I really like this trade from the Canadiens’ perspective. Dobson’s extension may seem pricey (as well as the acquisition cost) since he’s coming off a down season where he totaled just 10 goals and 39 points, but his underlying metrics are all quite good. I’d bet on him bouncing back, and chances are he’ll live up to a $9.5 million cap hit with the salary cap rising the way it is.

Canadiens Grade: A

Islanders Ready to Rebuild?

Rebuilds are not something we’ve come to know from the Islanders since Lou Lamoriello led their hockey operations for close to the last decade. But the Dobson trade may signal a shift that Darche is ready to shake things up on Long Island.

It’s not a deep draft, but two first-round picks are two first-round picks. The Islanders’ own selection is already first overall, so they’re adding a top prospect — likely Matthew Schaefer — to their system tonight. However, I’m not sure they’ll remain at 16th and 17th overall.

We all know that top prospect James Hagens is a Long Island native and grew up an Islanders fan. It wouldn’t shock me if Darche is trying to weaponize the two picks he received from the Canadiens to move up into the top 10 to draft Hagens. If so, it could be quite the 24 hours for Islanders fans.

We also shouldn’t write off Heineman as a throw-in for the Islanders. He finished with ten goals and 18 points in 62 games for the Canadiens this season and has some potential. He still needs to round out his offensive game and develop some more tools, but there’s third-line potential. At the very least, he looks like an NHLer.

While I certainly like this trade more for the Canadiens than the Islanders, the latter still made out fairly well. It depends on what they do with the extra picks in the first round later tonight, but if the plan is to start a needed rebuild, this was a step in the right direction.

Islanders Grade: B+

Advanced stats from Natural Stat Trick and Advanced Hockey Stats