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The New York Islanders will make the first pick in the draft on Friday. After months of speculation, the hockey world will know who they'll select at No. 1. There has been chatter that it'll be James Hagens or Matthew Schaefer, but they may opt to make a move to select both.
Hagens could be the top pick, but he's not the only one on their radar. The Islanders also want to pick Schaefer, potentially circling back later in round one for Hagens.
To do so, they're aiming to trade Noah Dobson and a package of future players and picks to get Schaefer. This presents some difficulty, but New York general manager Mathieu Darche is trying, according to NHL insider Frank Seravalli.
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"Isles have shifted approach in Noah Dobson talks from roster players to futures and Round 1 picks tonight. Belief is NYI seeking to package return to reach up and grab Long Island native James Hagens. Lot of work ahead for Darche to make #Schaegens a reality," Seravalli tweeted on Friday.
FanDuel's Andy Strickland reported that the defenseman prefers to stay in the Eastern Conference in any trade. It limits the options for New York to get a pick high enough to take Schaefer.
The draft begins on Friday, and the Islanders may attempt to do something impressive.
Islanders land Matthew Schaefer in round one of final mock
The Islanders have a difficult choice to make during Friday's NHL draft, with no clear consensus top pick. On her latest mock draft, ESPN insider Rachel Doerrie thinks it'll be Matthew Schaefer.
"This is not rocket science and no one needs to overthink this," Doerrie wrote on Thursday. "The James Hagens story — his being a Long Island native, and an Islanders fan — is a great one, and we will address that later, but Schaefer is the clear-cut best player available in this draft.
"Many scouts believe he will become a franchise cornerstone defenseman capable of driving play at both ends of the ice. They are in a precarious position on defense with Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov in need of new contracts."
As for James Hagens, he landed with the Philadelphia Flyers at No. 6.
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