With winger Kyle Okposo hitting free agency and moving on to the Sabres, the Islanders quickly signed his replacement by agreeing to a deal with Andrew Ladd.

That term is... well, it's not good. Ladd has already turned 30 years old and will be 31 before the All-Star game. The $5.5M AAV is less than what Okposo procured from the Sabres and is manageable in the short term. Ladd is a proven goal scorer, notching 20+ goals in five of the last six seasons (which includes 18 goals in 48 games during the lockout shortened 2012-2013 campaign).

Ladd is a strong two-way player and brings a veteran leadership presence to the Islanders, as Ladd won a Cup with the Blackhawks and was captain of the Jets before being traded last season. He will full a role on the top line next to John Tavares, providing some defensive responsibility with the ability to get to the net and drive play. For the Islanders, who are knocking on the door of being a top tier team in the Eastern Conference, they will be able to replace the goal scoring lost with Okposo's departure, a critical move to stay competitive in the short-term.

The Islanders have two more seasons of Tavares under control at a team friendly deal ($5.5M cap hit) before he is due for a significant raise and most of the forward group turns over. That piece of information limits the sting of Ladd's term, and his cap hit was fairly market driven for the number of goals he should provide. The issue is that Ladd likely won't be a $5.5M, top line forward by the time New York needs to rebuild their forward group.

Still, with the Islanders knocking on the door of a deep playoff run and needing to recoup the losses of the goals provided by Okposo and Frans Nielsen, the Islanders could have done worse than Andrew Ladd.

Fantasy Slant

Ladd should jump right on to the top line with Tavares, which immediately gives Ladd fantasy relevancy. As we've seen with Okposo and other forwards such as Josh Bailey and Ryan Strome, Tavares can provide a point boost to those on his line. Ladd should also help Tavares, as the top line center was often on the ice when the opposition was generating scoring chances. Tavares will remain an elite, early round draft pick, and Ladd should be considered early as well in redraft leagues. Ladd should push for 30 goals and 60 points with potential for more before he begins to fall off.