Just deal with it
Contract talks, trade rumors won’t shake Okposo’s focus
Kyle Okposo smiled and shook his head, knowing this isn’t the last time he’s going to be asked the question.
“I’m not talking contracts,” he told The Post in a quiet moment on Thursday at the Islanders’ practice facility in Syosset, L.I. “That’s not going to be a distraction this year. I’m not even thinking about it.”
It was only a halftruth, with training camp a time when the big picture can at least be glimpsed before the fullon grind of the season begins. And when it does, when the defending Stanley Cupchampions Blackhawks come to Brooklyn and anoint Barclays Center with its first regularseason game as the home of the Islanders on Oct. 9, then Okposo will be solely focused on hockey.
But with one year left on his contract and carrying a modest $2.8 million salarycap hit, the 27yearold Okposo has heard his name mentioned in a couple of trade talks. The Islanders are the only NHL team he has known since they took him with the seventhoverall pick in the 2006 draft, but the possibility of that changing sometime soon is a distinct reality.
“I don’t want to say unsettling, but a different feeling,” Okposo said. “I’ve had security for quite a while, and a good squad, so definitely [this is] the first time that has popped up. But you have to just go about your business and make sure that you’re sticking with your gameday routine.”
As for if it’s motivation, Okposo was quick to answer.
“Yeah, for sure,” he said. “You want to prove to everybody what you’re worth and I’m excited to do that.”
The Islanders have some depth at forward, more than they did when Okposo first signed his fiveyear, $14 million deal in 2011. But that hardly makes the 6foot, 216pounder expendable.
He was off to the best start of his career last season before he needed eye surgery over the AllStar break, limiting him to 60 games total. He still finished with 18 goals and added two more in the sevengame, firstround series they lost to the Capitals. That followed a careerhigh 27goal season in 201314.
“People talk about a power forward, but he’s got a lot of skill,” coach Jack Capuano said. “Look at the point production he’s put up the last couple years.”
Capuano has known Okposo for a long time, and also knows the University of Minnesota product is valuable for more than just what he brings on the ice.
“He’s been a great leader,” Capuano said. “I had him as a young kid when we went to Europe as USA Hockey, and you could see it right then and there. … As long as Kyle can stay healthy and play his game, we expect big things out of him.”
So it will be on general manager Garth Snow to judge the offers coming in and decide if that’s the best route for his team. Snow also will have to judge if he can get an extension done with Okposo’s agent, if that’s the avenue both want to explore.
But the goal for Okposo is not to let those things enter his mind, as tough as that might prove to be.
“Just have to approach it the same way, try to have as clear a mental head as you can,” Okposo said. “Relax and play the game like you know how. I know what I can do and I trust my abilities, so I just have to go out there and do it.”