It's been a very long offseason for New York Islanders star Mathew Barzal. In fact, his offseason basically began on February 1, the night he blocked a Darryn Raddysh point shot in Tampa Bay.
That play resulted in Barzal having to undergo surgery on his kneecap, which sidelined him for the remainder of the 2024-25 season. It was a gut punch for a guy who had missed 21 games earlier in the year because of an upper-body injury.
Barzal was ultimately limited to just 30 games played on the campaign, producing 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in those appearances. His Islanders missed the playoffs by only nine points, which you have to imagine could have been different had their best offensive player been healthy.
The three-time All-Star has had plenty of time to rest and recover over the last seven months, though on Monday at the NHLPA North American Player Media Tour, he shared that the injured knee may never get back to the way it used to feel. Daily Faceoff writer Matt Larkin posted his interesting comments on X (formerly Twitter).
"Injuries like this, you potentially never feel back at 100 percent. But mentally, I'm at a point now where it doesn’t really matter. If I’m feeling great, if maybe one day I’m a little sore or whatever, it is what it is. And I got six more years left on my contract right now, and I’m committed to just doing everything I can to be the best player I can be," Barzal said.
Matthew Barzal injury update: says he'd be 100% ready to suit up if #Isles had a game tomorrow.
— Matt Larkin (@MLarkinHockey) September 8, 2025
Full answer on rehab from his season-ending injury last season: pic.twitter.com/kxJAVzABD0
As the 28-year-old referred to, he will be entering the third season of the eight-year, $73.2 million contract extension signed with the Islanders back in 2022.
Barzal's future on Long Island
Whether there was merit to any of it, Mathew Barzal's name was thrown around in some trade rumors and speculation throughout the summer.
A lot of that can be attributed to the regime change in management, going from longtime general manager Lou Lamoriello to newly appointed Mathieu Darche. Lamoriello was in charge for the vast majority of Barzal's career, which included signing him to the long-term extension at big money.
Reports had shut down the Islanders' willingness to move Barzal; however, that hasn't stopped whispers about his future with the team, particularly as they've started retooling the roster and getting much younger.
It leads to a pretty pivotal year for Mathew Barzal to make a strong first impression on Darche and company, proving that he can stay healthy and be a key piece of the core moving forward on the Island.