Overview

• General manager Mathieu Darche selected nine prospects in his first draft, including defenseman Matthew Schaefer with the first‐overall pick.
• Darche acquired additional first‐round selections at 16th and 17th overall by trading defenseman Noah Dobson to the Montreal Canadiens.
• Later rounds added high‐ceiling talents such as Russian winger Daniil Prokhorov and center Luca Romano to bolster organizational depth.
• Darche emphasized character, competitiveness, size and skill in prospects, aiming to rebuild a farm system that had stalled under the previous regime.
• With free agency beginning July 1, the Islanders have $20.9 million of cap space to re-sign Alexander Romanov before pursuing a right-shot defenseman.