Kyle Palmieri signed a two-year contract with the New York Islanders on Friday. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The 34-year-old forward had 48 points (24 goals, 24 assists) in 82 games for New York this season and was third on the team in goals and points.
He could have become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
Selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round (No. 26) of the 2009 NHL Draft, Palmieri has 527 points (270 goals, 257 assists) in 900 regular-season games for the Ducks, New Jersey Devils and Islanders, and 32 points (18 goals, 14 assists) in 68 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
“You can’t just replace someone like Kyle out of thin air sometimes,” Islanders captain Anders Lee said Thursday. “I know what he means to this team. I know what he means to me as a friend and a teammate. Kyle’s a great player and has played in this league a long time. He knows what it takes to win, how to play the game. He can get dirty if he needs to, and he puts the puck in the net. Those are tough to replace. And ‘Palms’ is a great, great teammate to so many guys in that room, and a great leader. So it would be great to have him back, absolutely.”
New York also signed defenseman Adam Boqvist to a one-year contract on Friday.
The 24-year-old defenseman had 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) in 35 games this season for the Islanders and Florida Panthers, including eight points (two goals, six assists) in 17 games with New York after he was claimed off waivers from the Panthers on Jan. 31.
The No. 8 pick by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2018 NHL Draft, Boqvist has 99 points (27 goals, 72 assists) in 244 regular-season games for the Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Panthers and Islanders, and no points in eight playoff games.
The signings are the first made under general manager Mathieu Darche, who was hired on May 23 to replace Lou Lamoriello after the Islanders announced on April 22 that he would not have his contract renewed.
New York (35-35-12) finished nine points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference this season. They had lost in the first round of the postseason the previous two seasons.
The Islanders won the NHL Draft Lottery on May 5 and will have the first pick of the 2025 Upper Deck NHL Draft on June 27.
NHL.com independent correspondent Stefen Rosner contributed to this report
