Islanders’ Kyle Palmieri a potential low-risk, high-reward trade addition for a contender

Feb 7, 2025

New York Islanders right winger Kyle Palmieri

Credit: Feb 1, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Islanders center Kyle Palmieri (21) celebrates after scoring a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the third period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

We’re exactly one month from the NHL’s March 7 trade deadline and we’ve got you covered at Daily Faceoff with at least one trade-focused story every day until Deadline Day.

Today we continue our player profile series with New York Islanders winger Kyle Palmieri, who is the No. 11 ranked player on our Trade Targets board. Despite the fact the Islanders have won eight of their last 10 games to climb back in the playoff chase, and that Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello will likely give this team every chance before making a decision, it’s never a bad thing to be overprepared for the market.

2025 Trade Deadline Countdown: 1 Month

KYLE PALMIERI
Right Wing, New York Islanders
Shoots: Right
Age: 34
Height: 5-foot-11 | Weight: 196 lbs
Cap Hit: $5 million
Term: Pending UFA
2024-25 Stats: 53 GP, 14 G, 20 A, 34 Pts, 18:12 TOI
Career Stats: 13th season (Anaheim / New Jersey / Islanders), 871 GP, 260 G, 253 A, 513 Pts
Best Year: 2023-24, 82 GP, 30 G, 24 A, 54 Pts, minus-16, 17:13 TOI
Playoffs: 8 appearances, zero Stanley Cups, 5 rounds won, 68 GP, 18 G, 14 A, 32 Pts

Archetype and Ideal Role

Shooter, Middle-six winger

While Palmieri is fully capable of elevating to a second-line role, and can be used interchangeably in a middle-six spot, an ideal fit is for a team looking for scoring punch as a third-line winger. Similarly, Palmieri can be slotted as the shooter on a second power play unit – or slide up to the top unit for a team that either has a weak PP1 or the unit goes cold and is looking for a spark.

Scouting Report

Last season was magic for Palmieri, who hit 30 goals for the first time since the 2015-16 season. Interestingly, his shooting percentage last year (13.8 percent) is worse than this year (14.9 percent) – but Palmieri is only on track for 22 goals, which is nearly a one-third drop in production. So, what’s happened? For one, the Islanders’ power play is dreadful. Ten of Palmieri’s 30 goals last year came with the man advantage, and that has dropped to just two goals this season. Much like we learned in our breakdown of teammate Brock Nelson, Palmieri’s overall numbers have seen a precipitous decline based on New York’s abysmal 32nd-ranked power play.

On that power play, Palmieri saw success last year when used as a net-front presence. This year, he has played more of a left flank. Any acquiring team would be wise to use Palmieri either in the bumper position or the net-front.

Palmieri has a heavy shot. NHL EDGE has tracked his top shot speed at 95.55 mph, which puts him in the 97th percentile among all skaters. But location is also key. Palmieri ranks in the 89th percentile in generating shots from the mid-range and 75th percentile in shots from high-danger locations – and those are the types of numbers that could allow a player to net double-digit goals during a deep playoff run. He registered seven goals in 19 games as the Islanders advanced to the Eastern Conference Final in 2021. Over the course of his career, Palmieri has been a relatively consistent scorer in both the regular season (0.298 goals per game) and the playoffs (0.264 goals per game), so it’s fair to expect that consistency to continue.

The other thing is that Palmieri, who turned 34 on Feb. 1, is still moving well. He can get shots off from key areas because he arrives on-time. In a straight line, Palmieri maintains his quickness and a key facet of his game is under-handling the puck.

Buyer Beware

It will be important for an acquiring team to set clear expectations for Palmieri’s deployment. Two things stand out about this season: Palmieri should not be used on the penalty kill, and he shouldn’t be expected to come up with key stops in late-game situations in his own end.

Palmieri isn’t known for both physical play and/or stick checks. He ranks 24th on the Islanders with 1.5 blocked shots per 60 minutes, which is incredibly low, and he is 14th on the team in takeaways.

Palmieri is also playing a lot more on the penalty kill this season. In just 53 games this season, Palmieri has already played nine more minutes on the PK than he did over 82 games last year. The problem is that the Islanders’ penalty kill ranks 31st in the league at 70.5 percent, which to be fair, is a slight improvement from the 32nd-ranked unit last year.

Potential Suitors

New Jersey Devils: Not only is Palmieri from New Jersey, the pride of St. Peter’s Prep, but he already spent parts of six seasons with the Devils and would certainly feel comfortable there. He’d provide the depth scoring touch that the Devils are searching for this deadline.
Tampa Bay Lightning: The Bolts were in the mix to try and land free agent Brandon Saad last week. They missed out, but if they’re in the market for a similar scoring winger, Palmieri would fit the build. Just not sure they’re willing to pay the price.
Edmonton Oilers: He’s probably a bit higher-end than the Oilers would be looking to add, but Palmieri as a shooter on Leon Draisaitl’s right flank is something to think about. Are the Oilers on his 16-team no-trade?
Los Angeles Kings: Man, the Kings could really use another scoring winger to add to the mix. But with the way this season has unfolded, are they wise to be in the market for a potentially expensive addition?
Dallas Stars: We don’t believe the Stars are finished just yet. They’ve added a cerebral winger in Mikael Granlund, could they use a shooter in Palmieri? His cap hit would work with the Stars’ LTIR space.

Comparable Trade Returns

March 6, 2024
To Florida: Vladimir Tarasenko
To Ottawa: 2024 Cond. 4th Round Pick, 2025 3rd Round Pick, Sens retained 50%
(4th Round Pick upgraded to 3rd Round Pick because Panthers won the Stanley Cup.)

March 5, 2024
To Vegas: Anthony Mantha
To Washington: 2024 2nd Round Pick, 2026 4th Round Pick, Caps retained 50%

Whether it’s a second and a fourth, or two thirds, this is likely the sweet spot that the Islanders could hope to expect on the market for Palmieri. Tarasenko appears to be a pretty solid comparison in general: Tarasenko was two years younger than Palmieri at the time of his trade, he is also a former multi-time 30-goal scorer, and his production at the time of the trade from Ottawa – 17 goals in 57 games – nearly perfectly matches what Palmieri has produced this season for the Islanders.

Both teams retained 50 percent for Tarasenko and Mantha, and that may need to happen in Palmieri’s case to squeeze his $5 million hit under the cap. Bear in mind, Palmieri does have a 16-team ‘no-trade’ list where he can block a deal to half the league, which is something the Islanders will certainly honor.

Summary

Palmieri has been a model of consistency throughout his entire NHL career – in both the regular season and postseason. He is a steady producer who has a strong shot and can contribute depth scoring in a playoff run. He won’t be a play driver and he won’t be entrusted with late-game defensive heroics, but Palmieri has the ability to score clutch goals – and even just one or two game-winners in a long run would make this price a worthy one to pay.

Daily Faceoff analyst Jon Goyens contributed to this report. Find him on Twitter: @gourmet_hockey

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