Islanders best draft selections by round: 10th

June 17, 10:31 PMNew York Islanders ExaminerLee Forman

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Until 1994, the NHL draft featured double-digit rounds; nowadays it only reaches the 7th.  To find the best New York Islanders 10th round selection one needs to look at the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.  The 1988-89 season was the first of many transitional years for the once dominant franchise; it marked the first time since their second season that the team failed to make the playoffs and finish with a record of .500 or better.  By this time, core players Mike Bossy, Denis Potvin, and Clark Gillies had all retired, while the final active member of the inaugural squad, Billy Smith, departed following the season.
 
Just prior to the 1989 draft, the Islanders run of good luck scouting and picking players had dried up.  The team selected 2nd overall and chose Dave Chyzowski (126 games in NHL).  Things got better in the second round where they grabbed feisty forward Travis Green, but it went downhill from there.  Over the next 7 rounds the Islanders drafted 9 players that combined to suit up in 202 NHL games (an average of 24.4 games per player).
 
The 1989 draft will be remembered for its bargains in the middle-late rounds.

• 3rd round – Rob Zamuner, Nicklas Lidstrom, Jason Woolley, and Kris Draper each have recorded more than 300 career points.  That guy Lidstrom is pretty good.
• 4th round - future snipers Robert Reichel and Sergei Fedorov were taken.
• 6th round – Pavel Bure and his 779 career points was selected, as was Dallas Drake and his 477 NHL points.
• 9th round – Donald Audette finished his career with 260 goals and 249 assists.

With the 191st overall pick the team selected defenseman Vladimir Malakhov.  The 6’4’’ blue-liner spent only 2 full seasons on Long Island but they proved to be the most productive offensively of his career.  The Islanders made postseason appearances in both those years.  He dressed in 166 games for the Islanders and accumulated 27 goals and 98 assists in that time.  The Russian was sent packing in the infamous 1995 trade with Montreal along with fan favorite Pierre Turgeon in exchange for Mathieu Schneider, no name Craig Darby, and crybaby Kirk Muller. 
 
Malakhov went on to play 720 career NHL games in parts of 16 NHL seasons.  He even dressed for both local rivals, 4 seasons with the Rangers and 2 seasons with the Devils.  His accomplished career ended when he retired in 2006.  He has both a gold medal and a Stanley Cup to his credit.
 
Honorable mention: David Volek, 1984 NHL Entry Draft