2026-27 NHL Prospect Pool Breakdown: New York Islanders’ Top 10

Jul 30, 2026, 10:30 EDTUpdated: Jul 29, 2026, 15:07 EDT

2026-27 NHL Prospect Pool Breakdown: New York Islanders’ Top 10

Credit: Steven Ellis

Welcome back.

It’s time for Daily Faceoff’s third annual NHL Prospect Pool Breakdown, looking at the best all 32 teams have to offer. We’re highlighting the top 10 prospects for every franchise, their biggest strengths and weaknesses, and so much more.

Here are the criteria for being labeled a prospect: players generally have to have played in 50 or fewer NHL games or spent more time outside the NHL than in it last year. Players over 23 years old are not included. Goaltenders are a bit more subjective, but they must be 25 or under and have played fewer than 20 games in the past season or fewer than 30 games over their career.

Today, we’re breaking down the New York Islanders.

Since I started doing this series back in 2023, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a team improve their pipeline as quickly as the Islanders did last year.

Getting Matthew Schaefer obviously did a lot of the heavy lifting, but they picked three players in the first round last year that I had projected as top-10 prospects. Two of them make up the top three here in Victor Eklund and Kashawn Aitcheson. They also added Malte Gustafsson, one of the better defensemen in the 2026 NHL draft. The blueline used to be a major weak point in the Islanders’ system, and now it’s one of the more impressive U-20 groups you’re going to find.

The Islanders could still use a bit more center depth, but this is a group that is definitely significantly deeper than it was two years ago, and it will continue to improve as the Islanders try and figure out the long-term future. The team still isn’t close to contender status, but they’ve got a solid pipeline with some young players they can trade away to bring in immediate help if needed. Honestly, that’s all you could ask for from a team that had one of the worst prospect pools in the league just two summers ago.

Biggest Strength

Surprise! It’s the blueline. Getting Gustafsson was a huge addition to this pipeline because he’s so defensively responsible while also being quite talented with the puck for a larger defender. I’m a big Aitcheson fan, and while I might like him a bit more than Gustafsson, I feel like Gustafsson has a clearer path to big minutes in the NHL as a big dude who gives you little space to work with while being quite skilled. Isaiah George has gone into some NHL action, and I think he’s definitely someone you’d want to keep an eye on. I also don’t mind Jesse Pulkkinen, Lincoln Kuehne and Xavier Veilleux, among others. There’s enough variety there to expect at least three to four defenders listed below to become full-timers in the next few years.

Biggest Weakness

With Calum Ritchie getting the call-up to the NHL last year, there isn’t much in terms of center depth left to go around. Danny Nelson is a solid option, but I feel like he’s more of a third-line center at the absolute best. Beyond that, Luca Romano has some decent skill, and Kamil Bednarik has had some solid moments, but neither is a sure bet to make the NHL. I’m happy with the decision the Islanders made this year at the draft to pick a defender at No. 13, but I do wonder if they’ll use one of their higher picks next year to improve their options down the middle.

Fast Facts:

NHL GM: Mathieu Darche
Dir. of Amateur Scouting: Trent Klatt
Dir. of Player Development: Eric Cairns
AHL Affiliate: Hamilton Hammers
ECHL Affiliate: Worcester Railers
Recent NHL Graduates: Matthew Schaefer, LHD; Calum Ritchie, C

TOP 10 PROSPECTS

*Victor Eklund (Steven Ellis/The Nation Network)*

1. Victor Eklund, LW, 19 (Hamilton Hammers, AHL)

Acquired: Drafted 16th overall, first round in 2025

Eklund put up a decent 24 points in 43 games in his first full season of SHL hockey. He then came over to North America, had an assist in his first NHL game, and put up more than a point per game in the AHL to close out the season. Add in a World Junior gold and an overall impressive international season, and it was hard not to like what we saw from one of the more intense wingers from the 2025 NHL draft. I think there’s a top-six winger in the making here. As long as he continues to work on his off-puck game, I don’t think it’ll be long before he’s cracking the Islanders roster on a full-time basis. For now, I just want to see him get comfortable living and playing in North America, and Hamilton will be a good spot for him.

2. Malte Gustafsson, LHD (Hamilton Hammers, AHL)

Acquired: Drafted 13th overall, first round in 2026

Gustafsson was one of the most fascinating defenders down the stretch last season. Gustafsson is a 6-foot-4 defender who played well in the SHL, despite having little to show for it on the scoresheet. His skating is good for his size, allowing him to play a very mobile game. Gustafsson rarely struggles to get the puck out of his zone. I also feel like he showed a bit more flash with the puck near the end of the year than we all first thought, especially at the U-18s. Match that with the fact that he’s one of the most competitive defenders you’ll find, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him wiggle his way into a third-pair role to start the NHL season if injuries were to arise.

3. Kashawn Aitcheson, LHD, 19 (Hamilton Hammers, AHL)

Acquired: Drafted 17th overall, first round in 2025

*Kashawn Aitcheson (Steven Ellis/The Nation Network)*

Aitcheson is an absolute beast. Most OHLers called him the toughest player to play against during his tenure in Barrie. It wasn’t hard to see why, given he was always hovering around the 100 penalty minute mark. He hits hard, but he’s also so skilled with the puck, as shown by his more than 50 goals from the past two seasons combined. Aitcheson was a huge reason why the Colts advanced to the OHL final, although the club seemingly fell apart against Kitchener. I thought he had a so-so World Juniors, but for the most part I thought this is a guy that should have no problem cracking Long Island’s top four. At the very least, his lay-it-all-on-the-line playstyle will make him a fan favorite.

4. Dmitri Gamzin, G, 23 (CSKA Moskva, KHL)

Acquired: Drafted 115th overall, fourth round in 2024

Gamzin was drafted as an overage prospect in 2024, but he has quickly established himself as one of the most fascinating goalies outside the NHL. He had a 22-10-6 record with eight shutouts and a .938 save percentage in his first year as a KHL starter last year. In particular, he heavily outplayed both Spencer Martin (who’d eventually bolt for an NHL deal) and league veteran and former Russian Olympian Alexander Samonov. Gamzin is quick, has good size and is extremely competitive. I think he’ll be a decent NHL backup, but his deal runs until 2028, so you’ll have to be a bit patient with him.

5. Cole Eiserman, LW, 20 (Hamilton Hammers, AHL)

Acquired: Drafted 20th overall, first round in 2024

Eiserman has always been known more for his goal-scoring exploits, and he capped off his college career with 43 goals in 71 games. It wasn’t always easy trying to get pucks on net given Boston University’s struggles last year, but Eiserman still impressed more often than not. I can’t say the same about his World Junior performance, though – for an older prospect, he was extremely underwhelming. Eiserman’s projection has always been a bit too dependent on his ability to get pucks on net and dominate on the power play. We’ll see if that carries over to the NHL, but I’m interested to see how he does in Hamilton first. For starters, he needs to keep adding speed to his game, and for a guy who can clearly tussle with anyone, I want him to be a bit more consistently aggressive.

6. Danny Nelson, C, 20 (University of Notre Dame, NCAA)

Acquired: Drafted 49th overall, second round in 2023

*Danny Nelson (Steven Ellis/The Nation Network)*

If you’re looking for spicy slappers and flashy dekes, you’re not getting it here. But Nelson is still one of the most interesting two-way forwards in the system, and one who has a future home on the Islanders’ third line. He’s been solid in college, and I liked his playmaking abilities at the World Juniors in Ottawa. It feels like he’s always in the right spot at the right time, and that he has the high-end hockey sense to take away passing lanes. I feel like Nelson will be a reliable NHL forward who won’t put up a ton of points, but will do whatever the coaches ask of him.

7. Daniil Prokhorov, RW, 19 (Hamilton Hammers, AHL)

Acquired: Drafted 42nd overall, second round in 2025

I didn’t love Prokhorov’s game in his draft year, but I have started to come around to him. His offense is nothing to get excited about, but he’s got enough unteachable traits that make him intriguing. For starters, he’s huge at 6-foot-6, and he moves well for his frame, too. He had a good second half in the Russian second-tier league, and scouts were impressed with his AHL debut in April. He’ll go full-time with the Hammers in 2026-27, where I expect him to slot in more in a middle-six support role. There, look for Prokhorov to open up lanes for his linemates while being a nuisance for opponents (without getting himself into too much trouble).

8. Isaiah George, LHD, 22 (Hamilton Hammers, AHL)

Acquired: Drafted 98th overall, fourth round in 2022

George has played in 37 NHL games over the past two years, including a four-game run last year. Onlookers have been impressed with his D-zone play, and he makes very few mistakes under pressure. He’s a hard-hitting blueliner who doesn’t try to play outside his comfort zone and prefers to keep things simple. I think his offensive instincts have improved over the past few years, but it feels like the former London Knights defender will be more of a No. 6/7 guy the rest of his career. Still, it seems like the Islanders like him enough to keep him as a consistent call-up option, and I hope he has a mega training camp to get himself on the Islanders’ radar in a more prominent role.

9. Quinn Finley, LW, 21 (Hamilton Hammers, AHL)

Acquired: Drafted 78th overall, third round in 2022

Finley had a productive three-year run with the University of Wisconsin and will now embark on his first year of pro hockey. I wasn’t overly high on him back in junior because it didn’t feel like he was explosive enough of a scoring threat to earn an NHL role. I’m still not convinced, but he’s definitely more confident as a goal-scorer than he once was. I think we’re talking about a ceiling of a third-liner as long as he continues to improve his off-puck game. Fortunately, that also has taken nice steps forward over the past two years. But will it be enough? If he explodes offensively in Hamilton, it’ll be tough to ignore him.

10. Jacob Kvasnicka, RW, 18 (University of Minnesota, NCAA)

Acquired: Drafted seventh round, 202nd overall in 2025

What a year for Kvasnicka. At one point, he was tracking for more than 100 points. That didn’t pan out, but he was still a highly productive forward for the upstart Vees team. Kvasnicka was a mid-level producer with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program two years ago, but he ended the year with a wonderful performance at the U-18 World Championship. Kvasnicka plays with a ton of pace, but his lack of physicality and defensive ability hold him back. Currently, though, he’s looking as confident and skilled as ever, and he could become a steal in an already impressive 2025 draft class for the Islanders. I think he could be an energetic scoring winger deeper in the lineup if everything pans out.

Other Prospects: Artyom Matyuk, C (18), Robert Cowan, C (19), Tomas Poletin, LW (18), Luca Romano, C (19), Kamil Bednarik, C (20), Jesse Nurmi, LW (21), Gleb Veremyev, C (23), Jesse Pulkkinen, LHD (21), Calle Odelius, LHD (22), Lincoln Kuehne, RHD (18), Vladimir Dravecky, RHD (18), Sam Laurila, LHD (19), Xavier Veilleux, LHD (20), Dennis Good Bogg, LHD (22), Zachary Schulz, LHD (21), Tomas Machu, RHD (23), Burke Hood, G (19), Joshua Kotai, G (23)

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