Brock Nelson has developed into one of the greatest post-dynasty New York Islanders over his 12 seasons with the franchise.
Only the legendary Mike Bossy, Bryan Trottier, Denis Potvin, and Clark Gillies (all Hall of Famers) have scored more goals in their Islanders career than Nelson. The legendary foursome, along with John Tavares and Josh Bailey, are the only Islanders who have more points than him.
He was one of the centerpieces of a squad that made back-to-back Stanley Cup semifinals and helped revolutionize a maddeningly inconsistent franchise upon the arrival of general manager Lou Lamoriello and former head coach Barry Trotz. His contributions will likely land him in the Islanders Hall of Fame — perhaps even with his No. 29 sent to the rafters at UBS Arena.
But how many more contributions as an Islander does the 33-year-old center have left?
Nelson will be a free agent following this season, and the Minnesota native has understandably approached his potential foray into the open market as non-committal as possible. He has made his love for the Islanders known but has not necessarily affirmed that this is where he wants to stay.
“I want what’s best for me, my family and team, and everything,” Nelson said (h/t Ethan Sears, NY Post). “There’s a lot of factors that go into it. I know everybody kind of wants an answer right now. That’s not how the world works. YOu don’t aways get what you want. Everything will sort itself out. Lou’s a great guy. I love playing for him… He’s given me a great opportunity the last seven years. He’s an influential guy in hockey in general. My agent has a great relationship with him and communicates with him and I know everything will kinda sort itself out.”
Perhaps he took a note from his former teammate, Tavares, who swore up and down that he wanted to remain an Islander before jumping to the Toronto Maple Leafs during the summer of 2018. A laissez-faire approach tempers expectations: Things will play out how they are supposed to, and if he does leave, he will not be vilified by the fan base of a franchise he truly admires.
Going into free agency provides a chance to go home to Minnesota and join his hometown Wild — a team that has been constantly linked as a logical, and almost favored, landing spot. It also entertains the possibility of joining more of a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. As much as Lamoriello believes in the group he assembled, their window for a championship closed three-plus years ago.
However, Nelson is not averse to the prospect of spending the entirety of his career with one team, the team that drafted him.
“I think that’s a factor. I think that goes hand in hand with me being at the stage I’m at with family and life outside of hockey,” Nelson continued. “Kids are older now, in school… Being familiar with the Islanders, different things and kids are settled down there. That’s a factor, for sure. Only knowing Long Island, only being an Islander, knowing how much history the team has and the legends that have played there before and what they’ve done plays into it as well.”
Islanders brass appears motivated to make that a reality. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, Lamoriello and Nelson’s agent, Ben Hankinson, are expected to speak about a contract extension during the 4 Nations Face-Off, which runs from Wednesday to Feb. 20. Nelson is currently representing Team USA at the best-on-best tournament.
If little progress is made, the prospects of Nelson potentially being traded before the March 7 deadline increase. Of course, the Islanders’ play will dictate just how plausible that is.
Should they continue to hang around the Wild Card picture in the Eastern Conference despite a heinous start to the 2024-25 campaign, they will keep Nelson and test their luck in free agency, where they stand to lose him for nothing.
If they sink further in the standings, there would be no shortage of suitors willing to make a deal with Lamoriello for a veteran center with 30-plus goals in each of his last three seasons.
