Islanders 2023 Draft Recap

Looking back on the 2022 EHE Entry Draft, the New York Islanders scouting staff must have felt like they were working with scraps in their first year under General Manager Kyle Phillips, with just three 5th-round picks in their arsenal. To be sure, it was a justifiable position for a franchise with Stanley Cup ambitions—but one that also led to plenty of gray hair as the organization laboured to extract maximum value from the depths of the draft.

Thankfully for the Islanders' GM and his beleagured scouts, the 2023 draft this past weekend set up to be a much more enjoyable experience, as they arrived in Nashville armed with 6 selections in the top 100 of the draft. Add in the 5th rounder acquired from the Avalanche on Day 3, and the Islanders eventually came away with their largest-ever haul of prospects for a five-round draft. 

With the dust now settled, here's a look at the Islanders' work at the event which has been dubbed "EHE Christmas," including comments from Phillips himself. 

GM's Take: Beau was our top target through the whole process, in terms of guys who were realistically going to be available around our pick. He's got all the tools of the prototypical modern defenseman, and we think his game is going to translate really well to the pro level. His job now will be to take another step in being an offensive creator, but we think he's only just starting to tap into that part of his game.

GM's Take: Juraj is another guy we think is cut out for the professional game, especially on the smaller ice over here. The overall skill part of his game needs to develop a bit, along with his skating, but he's really young for this draft class so he's got a lot of runway to work on those things.

GM's Take: Topias took a massive step forward last year, adding an offensive element to go with the defensive side of his game, which was already good enough to put him on track for a part-time EHE role. We're excited to see if he can bring it all together this year and put himself in the conversation as a guy who could play regular minutes in the near future.

GM's Take: Normally we prioritize players who have a clear separating skill, so Oskar is a bit of an unusual pick for us in that nothing in his toolbox immediately jumps out at you. But he's a classic example of a guy you need to watch regularly to appreciate what he brings to the table. He already does everything necessary to have long-term success as a pro, he just needs to show he can do those things at a higher level now.

GM's Take: Freddy is a guy who showed over the last year that he can be really dynamic from the back end, and we think he has the goods to run an EHE powerplay one day. Like a lot of young guys though, he needs to take some steps on the defensive side of things. But with his feet and size, we like his chances there.

GM's Take: Jonathan has such a great toolkit—good size, quick hands, explosive skating—but the thing we like most is that he wants to create havoc every time he's on the ice. His motor is off-the-charts good and when you combine that with his physical tools, we think he has a chance to be a unique middle-6 player.

GM's Take: Honestly this was a bit of a flier, just because goalies are so hard to project. But our scouting staff felt Hampton had an x-factor that set him apart from his peers, and when you add in his technical foundation and mental approach, we think he'll be worth the long-term investment.