Islanders trying to extend Kyle Palmieri in stunning trade deadline reversal

SAN JOSE, Calif. — This trade deadline could have been a hard pivot toward the future for the Islanders.

Instead, it ended up as something in between, not quite the same old standby of defiantly sticking with the group, but not quite enough to call this deadline the full-blown retool it could have been.

Moving Brock Nelson on Thursday night for a package headlined by a future first-round pick and prospect Calum Ritchie was a seismic move for the Islanders, one that bolstered their asset pool and maximized the return for a player who, by all indications, wants to test the market upon hitting free agency July 1.

Declining to move Kyle Palmieri on Friday, with the Islanders instead agreeing with the player’s camp to keep working on an extension — though nothing is done yet, a league source indicated that the sides are close enough that both believe something will happen — sends the opposite message, and gives off a feeling that general manager Lou Lamoriello only moved Nelson because he was backed into a corner.

“I want to be here,” Palmieri said, confirming that his agent is talking with Lamoriello. “And I want to be fighting for a playoff spot with these guys. … The last couple days of waiting and hanging out here were tough, but I’m focused and excited on the opportunity this group has.”

As for other assets the Isles could have dealt, namely Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Anders Lee and any one of their surplus of defensemen, well, stripping this team down to its foundations just wasn’t in Lamoriello’s DNA, even if this season provided a much more compelling case to do so than anything in recent memory.