I think one thing Tavares did for the Isles is get Lamoriello and Trotz in there.
If Tavares had just said at the start of the season that he's not coming back, Snow would have just traded him and that would be that. Similarly, if he just signed an extension I don't think there would have been any changes, either.
Lamoriello coming in was directly a result of the Islanders doing everything they could do appease Tavares of his need to play for a competitive team. In the end, it worked out I'd say. They're a pretty solid team and they have a ton of cap space.
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