The Future of Superstar Matt Barzal:

Islanders Superstar Matt Barzal is the quintessential example of the trajectory of the game of hockey and where it is trending towards. The days of the big and strong team success of the 2012 and 14 LA Kings are long gone. The game of hockey is constantly evolving and recently, it has placed an emphasis on speed and skating ability, rather than size and physicality. Since entering the league in 2015, Matt Barzal has shown his quick hands and tremendous skating ability, similar to a younger version of American born player Patrick Kane. He can skate like the wind and his edge work on the ice, specifically showcased during the three on three overtime periods is truly impeccable. Barzal has been very successful since entering the league. His career got off to a great start after he won rookie of the year with eighty-five points in the 2017-18 season. Already seen as an all-star player, he has yet to enter the prime years of his career which is scary considering the fact that he is the type of player who is always looking to improve his game. As a result, one can expect his game to ascend for at least the next few years. Fortunately, Barzal has been able to showcase his level of skill and talent with success, considering that he plays for a stringent coach in Barry Trotz. Over the past two seasons, Trotz and the Islanders have embraced their identity as a hard-working defensively structured team. Consequently, some might think that Barzal has overachieved in light of the team's priorities and emphasis on structure. Trotz's philosophies are very effective. He has proven that reliance on a structure can lead to success as seen when he won the Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals in the 2017-18 season. Even last year, his philosophies were successful as seen when he lead the Islanders to the second round of the playoffs when they were seen as a bubble playoff team, at best. While acknowledging this, Trotz is not the coach that will allow a player like Barzal to have the luxury of merely playing in the offensive zone. Some might say that despite the team's success, Trotz has inhibited Barzal from reaching his true potential offensively as a number one center. Would he have more success if he were drafted by a team like Tampa or Toronto who gives their players more freedom offensively? Even if the team is successful, is he happy playing for a team that might not allow him to achieve his peak individual success?

As a pending restricted free agent this summer, Matt Barzal will be looking to maximize this economic opportunity like other players have done in the past. The Islanders, with stringent General Manager Lou Lamoriello, have been notorious for being strict with their cap space, forcing all-star caliber players like Anders Lee to accept team-friendly deals. Lou Lamoriello is old school and if Barzal's asking price is too high this will become a very interesting topic and debate throughout the summer. Additionally, Barzal might even have less leverage now that this pandemic has caused the teams to be more cautious with their cap space. According to some NHL insiders, the maximum cap space for the 20-21 season might not even increase at all, as it usually does each year. If Barzal is not willing to sacrifice some of his earnings, could he take another route this summer? Could another team offer-sheet an ascending superstar like Barzal? This scenario has become more likely, as seen last season when the Montreal Canadiens offer-sheeted another ascending superstar, Sebastian Aho from the Carolina Hurricanes. At the time, many considered the Habs' offer feeble, as the Canadiens did not offer enough money to real Aho from the Hurricanes. Although considered a frugal offer at the time, could the Habs' offer start a precedent with each coming offseason? It sure seems more likely given recent revenue loss in the NHL and the inability to increase the cap for next season. Teams with ample cap space will be looking to exploit these advantages more than ever. No one in the league was expecting the cap space not to increase next season. Consequently, teams like the Maple Leafs, Lightning, and Blackhawks might struggle to facilitate their cap space under the guidelines for next season.

Teams with the most cap space this off-season most likely be the most active teams this summer. One team that has the ability to offer Matt Barzal ample dollars is the Columbus Blue Jackets. As reported by Elliott Freedman previously, the Blue Jackets attempted to offer-sheet Mitch Marner of the Toronto Maple Leafs last summer. This offer sheet was to no avail as Marner was not looking to sign in Columbus long-term. However, assuming Freedman's report is accurate, one can assume that Blue Jackets General Manager Jarmo Kekalainen might be willing to offer-sheet Matt Barzal this offseason. The Jackets have ample cap space to work with this summer, more specifically they have over five million dollars to work with (capfriendly.com). Last April, the Blue Jackets raised their stock and fan interaction when they won their first playoff series in franchise history. Columbus is slowly becoming a hockey town. Whether or not they make the playoffs this year is to be seen, however, if they want to take the next step after losing two key free agents last summer, adding a player like Barzal would certainly help. With a solid front officer and a great head coach in John Tortorella, Columbus is heading in the right direction. In this era of hockey, teams are so evenly matched and it is becoming exceedingly harder for franchisees to separate themselves from the rest of the pack., Even in the NHL the draft, in recent research, it has been shown that after the second overall pick of each draft, there is a significant drop off in future NHL success from each draft class. Selecting players becomes a coin-toss. Teams need to be willing to take risks financially with established NHL players. Offer-sheeting Matt Barzal is the perfect example. Other teams could offer-sheet Barzal, as well. However, at this moment in time, the Blue Jackets seem like the most reasonable option, considering that they are closer to a championship-caliber team, unlike the lowly Senators and Kings who have enough money to facilitate an offer sheet. Those teams would have a difficult time luring in a player who would have the chance to stay with the Islanders, a much more well-rounded team than both the Kings and Senators, even if he was offer-sheeted for lots of money. Despite saying all of this, Matt Barzal has publicly said that he would like to resign with the Islanders and this, of course, would be the most likely option. However, depending on their upcoming contract negotiations, things could get interesting this summer.

Many other restricted-free agents in the past few offseasons have struggled to obtain their financial demands with their teams. Even if some of those high-quality players did end up signing with their teams, it does not mean that the player and the team are on good terms. Players like those are sometimes the ones who get traded. Matt Barzal will be in no different position than those other players this upcoming summer.