from Arthur Staple of Newsday,

The Islanders have a deal in place to send their first-round pick to Vegas to steer the expansion franchise toward selecting a designated player off the Isles’ unprotected list, two NHL sources confirmed to Newsday on Monday.

TSN first reported the existence of the deal.

The player designated for selection is still unknown, though clearly the goal for general manager Garth Snow is to clear some salary-cap space to upgrade the team’s roster before next season.

The deal also includes a third piece going to Vegas. There is a strong possibility that it would be Mikhail Grabovski, who has yet to be cleared to play after suffering a concussion in March of 2016. Grabovski’s $5-million cap hit is on the books for one more season for the Islanders, who are already within $4 million and change of the coming season’s $75-million salary cap.

Multiple reports indicate that Snow has been working the phones to try and secure a high-end offensive talent to bolster the team behind John Tavares.

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