Four Takeaways: Lou Lamoriello’s Season-Opening Press Conference  

With the on-ice portion of rookie camp set to start on Thursday, New York Islanders President and General Manager Lou Lamoriello held a season-opening press conference on Monday morning at Northwell Health Ice Center. 

Lamoriello confirmed that the entire coaching staff will remain unchanged for the upcoming season, meaning that Doug Houda and John MacLean will continue their assistant coaching duties behind the bench, as will Piero Greco as the team’s Goaltending Coach.

“We’re going in knowing exactly who we are and exactly what everybody is capable of doing,” Lamoriello said. “It’s our job to hold them accountable each and every night.”

ISLES LEAVE DOOR OPEN FOR PARISE  

While Zach Parise will not be on Long Island when the Islanders begin training camp on Sept. 21, the 39-year-old winger has also not announced his retirement from the NHL. Lamoriello made it clear on Monday – as well as over the summer – that there will always be a home for Parise on Long Island, should he make the decision to play this season.  

“Zach will be with his family,” Lamoriello said. “We'll see how the rest of the season goes. Right now it's important for him to be there [after] he spent a couple of years away. That is the decision at this point.” 

Parise has played 18 seasons in the league, including two with the Islanders, 21 goals and 34 points last season. Lamoriello drafted the Minnesota native 17th overall in the 2003 NHL Draft for the New Jersey Devils.  

“I think everybody knows the relationship that I have with Zach,” Lamoriello said. “I understand, appreciate and respect the decision of where he's at. He made the right decision for his family and we’ll leave the door open for him.”

ROMANOV AND WAHLSTROM UPDATES  

Lamoriello is optimistic that his players are healthy and ready for training camp.  

Alexander Romanov, who battled through an upper-body injury at the end of last season and into the playoffs, should be good to go for training camp, with Lamoriello adding that the 23-year-old defenseman would be close to a return, if he’s not ready for day one.  

Romanov registered 22 points (2G, 20A) through 76 games in his first season as an Islander and appeared in four playoff games. The defenseman recorded 129 blocks and 198 hits during the regular season.  

“He’s skating,” Lamoriello said. “We’ll be as cautious as we possibly can. If it was up to him, he’d play with two broken legs.”  

Oliver Wahlstrom is healthy and expected to be ready for camp after sustaining a season-ending lower-body injury on Dec. 27, 2022. Wahlstrom had 16 points (7G, 9A) through 35 games played last season.  

“He's certainly a player that we're excited to have back,” Lamoriello said. “He's put a great summer in. He's 100%.”

CATES SIGNS PTO  

The Islanders will have one player on a PTO (professional tryout) when training camp opens in Jackson Cates.  

The 25-year-old forward spent his three-year professional career in the Philadelphia Flyers organization, collecting two points (1G, 1A) through 20 career NHL games and 13 goals and 20 assists through 102 AHL games.  

Lamoriello said the Islanders turned down several other PTOs, opting to give the team’s in-house prospects a chance to showcase themselves during training camp. 

“The young players we have… they’ll be pushing, and they have to be given opportunities,” Lamoriello said. “When you’re signing a player to a PTO, you almost have to guarantee them some exhibition games and so forth. That's the reason they come.”

CONFIDENCE AND BELIEF IN THIS GROUP  

The Islanders, who made the playoffs in four of the last five seasons, opted to keep their team together over the offseason, signing their pending free agents to extensions as opposed to fielding interest from other free agents.  

“That was more important for us than anything we could have done to help the team,” Lamoriello said of his off-season extensions. “If we weren't able to do that, certainly we had other thoughts, but our priority was exactly what transpired.” 

The Islanders were able to lock up the goalie duo of Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov to substantive contracts over the summer, with eight and four-year deals respectively. Sorokin’s eight-year deal will begin in the 2024-25 season, as he was in the last year of his current three-year contract. 

“Our intention was to keep intact our goaltending tandem,” Lamoriello said. “When I go to bed at night, I feel pretty good with our goaltending.”  

The Islanders also signed Pierre Engvall and Scott Mayfield to a pair of seven-year deals, solidifying his faith in the current roster.   

“There's no question this season started today after the last game,” Lamoriello said. “I'm extremely excited because of what I've seen our coaches do throughout the summer and since they've been here. I'm excited about the shape our players are in and the amount of time and effort they’ve put in this summer.”