The NY Islanders are trying to trade defenseman Travis Hamonic according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. If Hamonic is moved to either of those two teams (and they certainly make the most sense) of his preferred teams, I’m guessing that a forward would be going with Hamonic for a trade to make sense.
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Per Dreger, Hamonic has “family concerns in West Canada and requested a move before the season”.
There’s a ton to like about this player. Alexander Edler is good, but four years older and has a no-trade clause, while Chris Tanev is pretty solid and signed through 2020, but probably would require an additional asset in order to acquire Hamonic.
Among 135 defencemen to play at least 2000 5-on-5 minutes since the start of the 2013-2014 season, Hamonic ranks 22nd with 11.2 shot attempts per 60 minutes, while on the ice for 50.7% of shot attempts at even strength. Hamonic lost his father at a young age and is known to often host young kids in similar situations as his guest at Islanders home games. If that makes it tough to get a deal done for Big Buff, would Jacob Trouba or Tyler Myers be viable options to consider? It would absolutely break my heart if they did that deal, but if you’re talking about players that could replace Hamonic in the Islanders lineup, the Bruins only really have one guy like that left. Hamonic is from St. Malo, Manitoba, which is approximately 45 miles south of Winnipeg. He had five goals and 28 assists last season.
Hamonic, who missed the playoffs last season with a torn MCL in his left knee, leads the Islanders in ice-time with 23:20 per game through 19 appearances.
Islanders general manager Garth Snow declined to comment on the report and Hamonic did not immediately return a text message seeking comment.
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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports.
