After a summer spent in silence, the New York Islanders opened September with the announcement of four signings, agreeing to multi-year deals with Anthony Beauvillier, Ilya Sorokin, Casey Cizikas, and Kyle Palmieri.
Per The Athletic’s Arthur Staple, Beauvillier’s deal is for three years with an average annual value (AAV) of $4.1 million while Cizikas’ comes in at six years with a $2.5 million AAV.
Sorokin’s agent, Daniel Milstein, announced Sorokin’s extension at three years, believed to be worth $4 million AAV while Palmieri’s comes in with a four-year, $5 million AAV pact.
Retaining all four players eats into the Islanders’ remaining salary cap, which
Both Palmieri and Cizikas were unrestricted free agents, but radio silence throughout the offseason — which effectively began on July 1 — indicated that both forwards were not going anywhere else.
Cizikas is one of the longest-tenured Islanders having spent the past decade with the organization. He has carved his niche as one of the best defensive centers in the NHL while serving as the engine to the Islanders’ fourth line, nicknamed the “identity line.”
Palmieri was acquired from the New Jersey Devils at the 2021 trade deadline, a necessary big splash after the Islanders lost captain Anders Lee for the season. He recorded seven goals and two assists in 19 playoff games as New York made it to a second-straight Stanley Cup semifinal.
Beauvillier and Sorokin were restricted free agents, meaning their rights still belonged to the Islanders this offseason.
The 24-year-old Beauvillier was an anchor on the Islanders’ second line, posting a 26-goal pace during the shortened 2021 season and most memorably potting the overtime winner in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup semifinals against the Tampa Bay Lightning — which proved to be the last goal ever at Nassau Coliseum.
As for Sorokin, the Russian product received a bridge deal as he continues to acclimate to life in North American after coming over to Long Island in 2020. He appeared in 22 regular-season games during his rookie campaign last year before backstopping the Islanders to a first-round playoff victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins, going 4-0 with a .943 save percentage.
