Islanders sign Quinn Finley to two-year ELC

Celebrating in Las Vegas. | Getty Images

The Islanders offseason has begun with the signing of Quinn Finley to his two-year entry level contract.

Finley made the NCAA championship final with the University of Wisconsin as arguably the Badgers’ best forward in his junior year. They ultimately lost the title to Denver University, 2-1.

Listed at 6’, 190 lbs., the left-shooting winger was a third-round selection (78th overall) in the 2022 NHL draft. He played three seasons in the USHL before moving to the NCAA. He’s not a “top 100 NHL prospects” guy but could be a serviceable NHLer good AHLer.

Watching NHL draftees at the Frozen Four, the Athletic had this short blurb:

Finley was Wisconsin’s best forward for my money over the last two years, but he was less impactful this week. He spent a lot of his shifts in the offensive zone but struggled to break through.

That’s not as high as Scott Wheeler’s previous ranking of all Islanders prospects, where he put Finley in “Tier 3” (same as Isaiah George) and said Finley is a guy with:

above-average skill who processes the game at an advanced level and makes his plays without overstepping his boundaries. I like his work ethic, the consistency of his approach and his habits. He has a quick release and the instincts to get open for it as well. I’m not sure what his upside is as a pro, but he’s become an excellent college player and is on track to get signed. He plays a well-liked, well-rounded, versatile three-zone game that has shown more secondary skill over the last couple of years than I thought was there.

This signing was reasonably expected, so no big news here. Now the hard part begins.