James Wisniewski: No hard feelings

Wisniewski said he was a bit shocked by the trade to the Canadiens, but that's more due to the fact that he's now been traded three times in 22 months; he knew that the Isles' failures this season meant there were changes coming.

"They're 16 points from a playoff spot and they're building with the young talent they have," Wisniewski said. "They got a second-rounder for me. It's a deal they felt they had to make. There's definitely no hard feelings."

Wisniewski was right: Garth Snow said that the emergence of 20-year-old Travis Hamonic made this deal easier to make. That and the fact that Wisniewski was making $3-million this season and would be looking for a long-term commitment, either from the Islanders or elsewhere.

Now he has half a season plus the playoffs to make an impression in Montreal, where the Canadiens are looking to fill the void left by the absence of Andrei Markov.

"All the history, the tradition up there, 18,000 screaming diehards every night," Wisniewski said. "I just have to do what I can to help the team I'm with. Now, that's the Montreal Canadiens."