The New York Islanders have a much more talented roster than most pundits give them credit for.
But Frank Servalli isn’t one of them. In fact, the notable insider picked one of the Isles’ rising stars as this season’s breakout candidate in a recent column on Casino.ca.
Servalli is talking about Calum Ritchie.
“There are a number of players, from Will Smith to Jimmy Snuggerud, on the precipice of blast off – but the information we keep fielding on Ritchie is noteworthy. ‘He’s one of the smartest hockey players I’ve watched,’ one Eastern Conference director of scouting said. ‘His hockey IQ is off the charts and he’s just getting started. I still can’t believe Colorado traded him.’ Ritchie quietly collected 30 points in 65 games last year after his promotion from AHL Bridgeport and this scout thinks he’ll more than double that output in his sophomore season.”
And when looking at the numbers on the Islanders’ 21-year-old, there’s plenty of reason to see why there’s cause for optimism.
Ritchie played his first full season at age 20, racking up 13 goals. That’s not bad, and it’s certainly a highly encouraging start to the former first-round pick’s NHL career. That early success has translated to a full-time role this season, landing on the team’s second line with veteran Brayden Schenn and newcomer Matias Maccelli.
Ritchie’s Hockey IQ Could Drive a Major Jump
The most interesting part of Seravalli’s report isn’t necessarily the prediction that Ritchie could double his production. It’s the reasoning behind it.
Ritchie already showed flashes of that intelligence last season. He wasn’t simply surviving in the NHL after his promotion from Bridgeport. He produced 30 points in 65 games while adjusting to the league at just 20 years old.
That matters for the Islanders because Ritchie now enters the season with something he didn’t have a year ago: experience.
He knows the pace. He knows the physical demands. More importantly, he knows what works at the NHL level.
If that hockey IQ allows Ritchie to play faster and make decisions a step ahead of defenders, the Islanders could have a much more productive offensive weapon on their hands.
Islanders Could Get Much More Than 30 Points
The Islanders don’t necessarily need Ritchie to become a superstar overnight. But if Seravalli’s sources and assessments are right and the young forward can more than double his production, the impact could be significant.
Ritchie has already moved into a more prominent role on the second line alongside Brayden Schenn and Matias Maccelli. That gives him an opportunity to play with established NHL talent while taking on more responsibility himself.
The next challenge is turning those opportunities into consistent offense.
His 13 goals last season were a promising starting point, but there is a reasonable path toward a much bigger total now that he has a full NHL season under his belt. The Islanders are betting on that progression, whether they say it explicitly or not.
And if Ritchie takes that leap, it could change how people view the Islanders’ young core. Suddenly, the team wouldn’t just have an intriguing prospect who graduated to the NHL. It would have a legitimate emerging offensive centerpiece.
Islanders Have Breakout Star in Calum Ritchie, Seravalli Says