Michael Grabner didn't know countryman Thomas Vanek before the Vanek trade

Michael Grabner hoped to recruit Thomas Vanek, his countryman, to stick around with the Islanders. That didn't happen according to plan, obviously, with Vanek almost certain to be dealt before the March 5 trade deadline.

The funny part about the recruiting narrative? Grabner and Vanek barely knew one another before the Oct. 27 trade that brought Vanek to the Islanders. The two most celebrated Austrian-born NHL players are only three years apart, but neither spent much time playing organized hockey in his native country as a youth.

"By the time I was a teenager, he was already gone [from Austria]," Grabner said. "And then I left, and we were both playing over here at different levels. It's been great to have him here for as long as it lasted, to really become friends after all this time."

It was especially good for Grabner in the run-up to the current Olympic tournament, with both players' first time representing Austria on the horizon. Grabner had a hat trick in Thursday's opener for the Austrians, an 8-4 loss to Finland. Despite being two of only three current NHLers on Austria's roster, Grabner and Vanek are on different lines as both play left wing.

Grabner's name had been tossed around the rumor mill as part of a Vanek deal, but sources told Newsday that Grabner's name has not come up in trade talks. With two more seasons and a salary of $9 million (with a $3-million cap hit) remaining, Grabner's value seems to be higher with the Islanders than in a trade.

There's also the fact that Grabner has only nine goals in 56 games and had a 31-game goal drought despite continuing to use his speed to generate two or three scoring chances a night.

"Things haven't gone so great here," Grabner said the night before he and Vanek left for Sochi. "We're going to enjoy our first Olympics and when we get back, it's back to business. We'll just take it day by day and I'll enjoy whatever time I have to be teammates with him."