Michal Neuvirth Trade Gives Islanders Much-Needed Goalie Depth for Playoff Run

Entering the trade deadline, the New York Islanders were not expected to make much of a splash. It’s not that they weren’t believed to be interested in finding upgrades; after all, the Isles sit fifth overall in the NHL standings and are a legitimate playoff threat. The problem was that moves earlier in the season which added defensemen Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy left the team critically short on trading chips.

Despite those disadvantages, general manager Garth Snow found a way to make his team better.

The goalie position had been a source of concern for the Islanders for years, which was why the team went to some pains to upgrade it over the summer. Those efforts consisted of bringing in veteran ‘tender Jaroslav Halak to hold down the No. 1 job and turning to an emerging Chad Johnson in the backup role. Obviously, the Halak decision was the most critical for the team, and so far it has worked out well for player and club alike. Unfortunately, Johnson has been a disaster as Halak’s No. 2.

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Johnson was a reasonable bet for New York. He was coming off a season in which he played 27 games and provided a 0.925 save percentage for the Boston Bruins, and while his AHL track record always suggested that those numbers were a bit of a mirage all he had to do was provide the Isles with competent relief. His 0.889 save percentage should make it abundantly clear that he hasn’t been able to do that.

This was a problem for Snow and the Islanders. Halak has had injury issues in the past, and all it would take would be one unfortunate collision and all of a sudden the team’s playoff hopes would rest on a struggling Johnson. It was a problem complicated by the fact that Johnson had signed a two-year deal over the summer (as per NHL Numbers), which meant bringing in a new goalie also involved dealing with the old one.

For the cost of a third-round draft pick, he not only managed to dispose of Johnson but at the same time added a goaltender who can do far more than just provide effective relief. Michal Neuvirth is a very good bet in a backup role, and it’s not outside the realm of possibility that he even unseats Halak as starter.

Neuvirth, a 26-year-old pending unrestricted free agent, joins the Islanders with better numbers on the season than the incumbent Halak. Despite his 6-17-3 record with the wretched Sabres, Neuvirth has a sterling 0.918 save percentage, a number seven points higher than that posted by Halak.

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That isn’t to say that the Islanders will or even should hand the reins over to Neuvirth. Halak brings a considerable edge in experience, both in the regular season and the playoffs. His career numbers are better. Both goalies spent time with the Washington Capitals last season at different points; Neuvirth was 4-6-2 with a 0.914 save percentage while Halak went 5-4-3 with a 0.930 save percentage.  If we, like the Islanders, need to decide which of the two is a better goalie today, there’s a solid case for Halak, and he would be my pick.

But this is still an important trade for Snow’s team. It gives the club a legitimate alternative should Halak struggle or get hurt, and as any hockey fan knows, the ability to address holes created by injury can be vital to a postseason run.

It also gives Halak his first serious competition for work this season. Readers may remember that Halak was once one of Montreal’s stable of goalies, and that he was dealt to St. Louis in the summer of 2010 after a brilliant performance for the Habs. At the time, he was competing for starts with highly touted prospect Carey Price; it brought out the best in him, and the Canadiens eventually had to deal Halak to make room for the challenger, because on merit he wasn’t going to surrender the job. Halak thrived in a highly competitive environment once before; it’s not crazy to think that the acquisition of a potential rival might help push him to great heights once again.

Statistics courtesy of NHL.com. 

Jonathan Willis covers the NHL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter for more of his work.