Lamoriello doubled down on new season

The New York Islanders are returning to the 2022-23 season looking mostly the same. Lamoriello believes this year's team is the team that went to back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020 and 2021.

The Islanders had the 13th overall pick in the NHL Draft. They traded it to Montreal for Alexander Romanov. The team also signed Noah Dobson and AlexanderRomanov to new contracts. The Islanders didn't sign Johnny Gaudreau or Nazem Kadri. It's the first time since 2019 that the team had a first-round pick. There was speculation that J.T. Miller was going to be traded to the Islanders. However, the deal fell apart. Islanders also extended Dobton and Romanova for three years each and Kieffer Bellows for one season.

Robin Salo signed a two-year extension this summer. He has 21 games of NHL experience. Sala scored a goal and four assists with the varsity Islanders and in 40 games in the AHL with Bridgeport Islanders.

Lane Lambert will be the new head coach of the Islanders after Barry Trotz was relieved of his duties in May. Lambert has been a coach for the last 12 seasons. The Islanders didn't have the season they expected and Lamoriello is looking for a new voice. Mathew Barzal scored 59 points last season but Oliver Wahlstrom scored just eight. The team needs to find a permanent linemate for BarZal and a consistent scorer. It's also important for Anthony Beauvillier and Kyle Palmieri. They need to play a more consistent game. Lamoriollo's contract is in the final year.