In need of depth at goaltender, the New York Islanders have acquired former New York Rangers first-round draft choice Al Montoya. The Islanders acquired Montoya from the Phoenix Coyotes Wednesday in exchange for a sixth-round draft choice.
The Islanders needed established goal-tending help after Kevin Poulin was lost for the season due to suffering an injury during warm-ups on Tuesday.
Montoya will not report to the Islanders. Rather, he will report to the Islanders’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
Montoya, 25, has an 11-8-0 record with a 3.19 goals against average (GAA) and a .891 save percentage in 21 games this season with the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL. He has played in five career NHL games, all with Phoenix, and posted a 3-1-0 record with a 2.08 GAA and a .925 save percentage.
The Islanders have suffered injuries to Poulin, Rick DiPietro and Nathan Lawson this season. They also traded away vetern netminder Dwayne Roloson.