Islanders open to signing Lee to new deal — The Fourth Period
The New York Islanders finished short of the playoffs this season and the team will begin to shift is focus to the off-season and mapping out its plan for the 2026-27 campaign.
Islanders captain Anders Lee will see his seven-year, $49 million contract expire this summer and is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent July 1.
Lee, who turns 36 on July 3, expressed his desire to stay on Long Island when speaking with the media on Wednesday.
“Yeah, of course,” Lee said. “I’ve given everything I have to this organization, it’s where I’ve played my entire career. It’s where I’ve put my best foot forward as much as I can, and don’t take anything for granted.”
Drafted by the Isles in the sixth-round, 152nd overall, of the 2009 NHL Draft, Lee has played in 923 career NHL regular-season games, all with the Isles. He has collected 308 goals and 241 assists in that span and Islanders GM Mathieu Darche revealed he would like to see his captain play at least another 77 games to hit a milestone.
‘I’d love to see him play 1,000 games with the Islanders,” Darche told the gathered media. “What that looks like, whether we were able to find something that’s suitable for us and for him, we’ll discuss. But I know he’s not far from (1,000 games); I’d love to see that, but I’m always looking forward to what other options we have. What do we need to do to move this roster forward? But the way Anders played this year, I think he can still help us.”
In all 82 games this season, Lee registered 19 goals and 23 assists for 42 points.
He surely won’t make $7 million next season on his next contract, but a deal around an AAV of $4 million could be in the cards once Lee’s camp chats with Darche in the not-too-distant future.
