from Andrew Gross of Newsday,

So, yes, after firing Trotz, this offseason became a referendum on how Lamoriello was going to pilot the franchise forward.

But Lamoriello and the Islanders remained silent again on Day 2 of free agency, as was the case after the market opened on Wednesday and Johnny Gaudreau wound up signing with the Blue Jackets and every other team in the Metropolitan Division added pieces and seemingly improved.

On Thursday, solid playmaker Ondrej Palat, who won two Stanley Cups with the Lightning, agreed to a five-year, $30 million deal with the Devils, who, like the Islanders, went hard after Gaudreau.

The Islanders were the only one of the NHL’s 32 teams not to announce a new contract either Wednesday or Thursday.

Maybe this will all make more sense in a couple of weeks, or by the time the puck drops for next season. Maybe the wily and always-secretive Lamoriello has a potent Plan B after missing out on Gaudreau because GMs always have to have a Plan B. So maybe the angst in Islanders’ nation – amplified via social media, which always distorts things anyway – will be alleviated.

But, right now, there’s every reason to worry about how the Islanders will get better next season.

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