Anthony Duclair, Isles GM Mathieu Darche want smooth start 

Anthony Duclair was one of the first Islanders to reach out to new general manager/executive vice president Mathieu Darche.

It’s a small tidbit and not all that surprising, given that the two knew each other from Duclair’s brief stint with the Lightning in 2024, when Darche was that team’s assistant GM.

Still, it’s perhaps an indication that any lingering hard feelings between Duclair and the organization, specifically with coach Patrick Roy, can be smoothed over — if they haven’t been already — after Duclair requested a leave of absence and missed the final eight games of his injury-plagued first season with the team. That immediately followed Roy calling out Duclair’s performance in a 4-1 loss to the Lightning at UBS Arena on April 1 as “God-awful.”

“Everything is well. Every team, every now and then, has little issues like that,” Darche told Newsday this past week after attending the NHL Scouting Combine in Buffalo. “I have a little bit of a relationship with him. I did talk to him. He was in a good mood. We’re going to sit down, like I do with every other player.”

Asked if Duclair will be ready for September’s training camp, Darche said that will be part of what he and Duclair discuss.

“He seemed in a good mood, so I sure hope he’ll be all ready to go for training camp,” Darche said.

Duclair, who will turn 30 this summer, signed a four-year, $14 million deal with the Islanders — his ninth NHL team — with the hope that his speed and playmaking would complement Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal on the top line.

But Duclair was injured five games into the season — it was widely thought to be a groin issue — and was noticeably slowed when he returned in December. Duclair, who finished with only seven goals and four assists in 44 games, said several times the injury would affect him all season.

Roy, whose relationship with Duclair extends to the player’s junior hockey career, limited his ice time to 12:15 in that loss to the Lightning.

“He was God-awful,” Roy said after the game. “He had a bad game. That’s why I didn’t play him a lot. And he’s lucky to be in the lineup. I’m sorry if I lose it on him right now, but that’s how I feel. He’s not skating, he’s not competing, he’s not moving his feet. He’s not playing up to what we expect from him.”

Two days later, Roy announced that Duclair had asked for — and been granted — an indefinite leave of absence.

Duclair did not speak to the media during the Islanders’ breakup day on April 19 after they missed the playoffs by nine points with a 35-35-12 mark.

But Duclair is far from Darche’s main priority after returning from the Scouting Combine.

The Islanders own the first pick in the NHL Draft on June 27, thanks to an improbable win in the NHL Draft Lottery despite only a 3.5% chance. The NHL’s first buyout period begins either June 15 or 48 hours after the end of the Stanley Cup Final, whichever is later.

The free-agent market opens on July 1. Defensemen Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov are restricted free agents with arbitration rights who, theoretically, could attract an offer sheet from another team.

Unrestricted free agent Kyle Palmieri of Smithtown agreed to a two-year, $9.5 million deal on May 30, the same day UFA defenseman Adam Boqvist agreed to a one-year, $850,000 contract.

“When players have arbitration rights, it’s a process,” said Darche, hired on May 23. “So I’ve been talking to the agents. I’m meeting with our pro staff next week on Long Island. We’re discussing the team. But I’ve had discussions with the agents. I just told them, ‘Listen, I want to sign your guys. Let me catch my breath here.’ There’s no rush. They’re restricted and there’s the arbitration process. I’ll try to get something done, but all in due time. It’s not like it has to be done this week.”

Dobson, 25, is coming off a three-year, $12 million deal. Romanov, also 25, is completing a three-year, $7.5 million contract. Both have expressed their desire to remain with the Islanders.

“I just want to sign a new deal with the Islanders,” Romanov said on April 19. “That’s all. I want to stay here. I like the fans. I like the place and this group of guys. I really love this place.”

Darche also seemed to cool any speculation that either Pierre Engvall or defenseman Scott Mayfield might be a buyout candidate. Both will be entering the third season of seven-year deals. Mayfield’s carries an annual average value of $3.5 million and Engvall has a $3 million AAV.

“All year, you always look at all your options with your roster,” Darche said. “But I don’t expect any of that right now unless something changes substantially.”

By Andrew Gross

andrew.gross@newsday.comAGrossNewsday

Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.