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Islanders Convinced Schenn to Accept Trade In Critical Meeting

Originally posted on NHL Trade Talk | Last updated Mar 8, 2026 10:30 AM ET

Brayden Schenn accepted a trade to the New York Islanders on trade deadline day, but he might not have had Patrick Roy and Mathieu Darche gotten in a room with the former St. Louis Blues center and convinced him to come over.

Elliotte Friedman noted during the most recent Saturday Headlines report, that it took a meeting with the Islanders coach and GM to sway Schenn towards the Isles. Friedman didn’t necessarily say that Schenn had denied the trade or that he didn’t want to waive his no-trade to become a member of the Islanders, but it sounds like he wasn’t sure.

The Islanders and Blues were staying in the same hotel out west and Darch and Roy asked if they could have a face-to-face meeting with Schenn. “There was no way Patrick Roy was letting Brayden Schenn get out of that room without saying yes,’ a source said to Friedman when he told that story.

Friedman then said, ultimately, it was that meeting that pushed it over the edge. If not for all three sitting down, Schenn probably stays with the St. Louis Blues, and one of the bigger trades of the day doesn’t happen. “It was in that meeting that they convinced Schenn to say yes, and that was the final thing that got that deal over the line,” Friedman said. “It was a crazy week in St. Louis.”

In the end, the trade did happen. The Islanders gave up a first- and third-round pick plus a prospect in exchange for St. Louis’ captain.

This article first appeared on NHL Trade Talk and was syndicated with permission.

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