There might not be a more important Islander than Adam Pelech. We saw during the 2019-2020 season what life could look like for the Islanders without him and it wasn’t pretty. What he’s been able to do the last three years is nothing short of remarkable.
Before Barry Trotz arrived, Pelech was a weird case study. Garth Snow decided to protect him in the 2017 expansion draft and at the time Pelly was just a seventh defenseman. He would become more of a regular the following year but he was just okay putting up 19 points playing in 78 games.