The record says it, the standings say it and the Islanders’ play on the ice Monday shouted it to the pinwheel ceiling at Madison Square Garden: Sell, sell, sell. This was not just a four-point game in the standings,

Just ahead of puck drop, we received some fresh news on the Brock Nelson front for the first time since before the 4 Nations Face-Off. On TSN’s Insider Trading, Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports that the New York Islanders have not made Brock Nelson available for trade as of today.

Teams are still waiting to hear back from GM Lou Lamoriello as to Nelson's availability as of Wednesday and extension talks are ongoing.

Lou Lamoriello, who’d prioritized keeping his high-character core together too long after the successful seasons from 2018-2021, finally accepted reality and sold high on one of his best players. 901 games and 12 NHL seasons,

The New York Islanders enter the NHL trade deadline with a lot of questions to answer. They have pending free agents and sit outside of a playoff spot. But the Eastern Conference is weak and one key piece could catapult them up the standings.

Lou Lamoriello didn't win the trade deadline but he didn't lose it either. The Islanders will move forward with the same group minus Nelson.

It’s officially the eve of the NHL Trade Deadline. Despite how close the deadline is, the New York Islanders camp is in virtual radio silence regarding Brock Nelson’s status. This is exactly how team president and general manager Lou Lamoriello likes it.

Brock Nelson practiced with the Avalanche in Denver on Friday. Yet, perhaps surprisingly, there were no other key members of his former team missing from the Islanders’ practice at Sharks Ice. President/general manager Lou Lamoriello did not trade fellow forwards Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Anders Lee despite teams inquiring about them,

So even as Wednesday passed without news coming from the Islanders as the NHL trade deadline approaches on Friday, there was still plenty to talk about. All indications are that president/general manager Lou Lamoriello has fielded calls from other teams with Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri pending unrestricted free agents and potential fits for several playoff contenders.

Every practice, every game is a prove-it moment. The point? The Islanders have a multitude of players with a lot to prove to coach Patrick Roy and president/general manager Lou Lamoriello. Start with the team as a whole as they entered Monday night’s match against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden just six days after their rivals ran them out of UBS Arena with a 5-1 win.

It’s time for another edition of NHL rumours. All of the smoke has settled from Friday’s trade deadline. However, there is still plenty to talk about in the rumour mill.