Islanders center Jean-Gabriel Pageau (44) celebrates his goal with teammate Anthony Beauvillier (18) after scoring against the Florida Panthers during the second period of an NHL Stanley Cup playoff hockey game in Toronto on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. Credit: AP/Nathan Denette
Jean-Gabriel Pageau started his Islanders career just as the team went into a 0-3-4 slide that led smack into the NHL’s COVID-19 shutdown.
No one seriously tied the slump directly to the player – although teammates did good-naturedly rib him about the coincidence as the team prepared to resume play.
But still, there was some pressure on Pageau to produce given that the cost of securing him included high draft picks in a trade and $30 million over six years on a contract.