# 2002–03 New York Islanders season

The 2002–03 New York Islanders season was the 31st season in the franchise's history.

## Regular season
### Final standings

Atlantic Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 2 | New Jersey Devils | 82 | 46 | 20 | 10 | 6 | 216 | 166 | 108 |
| 2 | 4 | Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 45 | 20 | 13 | 4 | 211 | 166 | 107 |
| 3 | 8 | New York Islanders | 82 | 35 | 34 | 11 | 2 | 224 | 231 | 83 |
| 4 | 9 | New York Rangers | 82 | 32 | 36 | 10 | 4 | 210 | 231 | 78 |
| 5 | 14 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 82 | 27 | 44 | 6 | 5 | 189 | 255 | 65 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | P- Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 52 | 21 | 8 | 1 | 263 | 182 | 113 |
| 2 | Y- New Jersey Devils | AT | 82 | 46 | 20 | 10 | 6 | 216 | 166 | 108 |
| 3 | Y- Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 36 | 25 | 16 | 5 | 219 | 210 | 93 |
| 4 | X- Philadelphia Flyers | AT | 82 | 45 | 20 | 13 | 4 | 211 | 166 | 107 |
| 5 | X- Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 44 | 28 | 7 | 3 | 236 | 208 | 98 |
| 6 | X- Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 39 | 29 | 8 | 6 | 224 | 220 | 92 |
| 7 | X- Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 36 | 31 | 11 | 4 | 245 | 237 | 87 |
| 8 | X- New York Islanders | AT | 82 | 35 | 34 | 11 | 2 | 224 | 231 | 83 |
| 8.5 |||||||||||
| 9 | New York Rangers | AT | 82 | 32 | 36 | 10 | 4 | 210 | 231 | 78 |
| 10 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 30 | 35 | 8 | 9 | 206 | 234 | 77 |
| 11 | Atlanta Thrashers | SE | 82 | 31 | 39 | 7 | 5 | 226 | 284 | 74 |
| 12 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 27 | 37 | 10 | 8 | 190 | 219 | 72 |
| 13 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 24 | 36 | 13 | 9 | 176 | 237 | 70 |
| 14 | Pittsburgh Penguins | AT | 82 | 27 | 44 | 6 | 5 | 189 | 255 | 65 |
| 15 | Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 22 | 43 | 11 | 6 | 171 | 240 | 61 |
Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast
P – Clinched Presidents Trophy; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

## Playoffs

The Islanders lost in the first round to the Ottawa Senators 4–1.

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2002–03 regular season :
October: 3–6–1–0 (home: 2–4–0–0; road: 1–2–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1LOctober 10, 20021–5@ Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)0–1–0–0Recap
2LOctober 12, 20021–2Washington Capitals (2002–03)0–2–0–0Recap
3WOctober 15, 20024–3 OTNashville Predators (2002–03)1–2–0–0Recap
4TOctober 17, 20023–3 OT@ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)1–2–1–0Recap
5WOctober 19, 20025–4@ Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)2–2–1–0Recap
6LOctober 22, 20021–4Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)2–3–1–0Recap
7WOctober 24, 20025–3Florida Panthers (2002–03)3–3–1–0Recap
8LOctober 26, 20022–6Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)3–4–1–0Recap
9LOctober 29, 20022–3Phoenix Coyotes (2002–03)3–5–1–0Recap
10LOctober 30, 20022–4@ Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)3–6–1–0Recap :
November: 5–7–2–0 (home: 2–4–1–0; road: 3–3–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
11LNovember 2, 20021–6St. Louis Blues (2002–03)3–7–1–0Recap
12LNovember 4, 20022–4Calgary Flames (2002–03)3–8–1–0Recap
13LNovember 7, 20020–3@ Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)3–9–1–0Recap
14WNovember 8, 20024–2Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)4–9–1–0Recap
15WNovember 10, 20023–2Dallas Stars (2002–03)5–9–1–0Recap
16LNovember 12, 20023–5Ottawa Senators (2002–03)5–10–1–0Recap
17LNovember 14, 20021–4@ Boston Bruins (2002–03)5–11–1–0Recap
18WNovember 16, 20023–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)6–11–1–0Recap
19TNovember 20, 20023–3 OT@ Florida Panthers (2002–03)6–11–2–0Recap
20WNovember 21, 20027–2@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)7–11–2–0Recap
21WNovember 23, 20023–1@ New York Rangers (2002–03)8–11–2–0Recap
22TNovember 27, 20022–2 OTOttawa Senators (2002–03)8–11–3–0Recap
23LNovember 29, 20022–4Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)8–12–3–0Recap
24LNovember 30, 20022–4@ Ottawa Senators (2002–03)8–13–3–0Recap :
December: 8–3–2–0 (home: 5–2–1–0; road: 3–1–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
25WDecember 3, 20022–1Vancouver Canucks (2002–03)9–13–3–0Recap
26WDecember 6, 20024–2Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)10–13–3–0Recap
27WDecember 7, 20026–3@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)11–13–3–0Recap
28LDecember 10, 20022–3Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)11–14–3–0Recap
29TDecember 13, 20023–3 OT@ Florida Panthers (2002–03)11–14–4–0Recap
30LDecember 14, 20023–4@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)11–15–4–0Recap
31TDecember 17, 20022–2 OTDetroit Red Wings (2002–03)11–15–5–0Recap
32WDecember 19, 20024–2@ Minnesota Wild (2002–03)12–15–5–0Recap
33LDecember 21, 20021–3Washington Capitals (2002–03)12–16–5–0Recap
34WDecember 23, 20023–1Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)13–16–5–0Recap
35WDecember 28, 20023–0Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)14–16–5–0Recap
36WDecember 30, 20022–1 OTFlorida Panthers (2002–03)15–16–5–0Recap
37WDecember 31, 20021–0 OT@ Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)16–16–5–0Recap :
January: 8–4–0–2 (home: 5–2–0–0; road: 3–2–0–2)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
38WJanuary 3, 20038–4Boston Bruins (2002–03)17–16–5–0Recap
39OTLJanuary 4, 20032–3 OT@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)17–16–5–1Recap
40WJanuary 7, 20036–3Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)18–16–5–1Recap
41LJanuary 9, 20030–4Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)18–17–5–1Recap
42WJanuary 11, 20037–3Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)19–17–5–1Recap
43OTLJanuary 13, 20033–4 OT@ Washington Capitals (2002–03)19–17–5–2Recap
44LJanuary 15, 20030–5@ New Jersey Devils (2002–03)19–18–5–2Recap
45WJanuary 16, 20033–2 OT@ St. Louis Blues (2002–03)20–18–5–2Recap
46WJanuary 19, 20034–1@ Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)21–18–5–2Recap
47LJanuary 21, 20030–5New York Rangers (2002–03)21–19–5–2Recap
48WJanuary 24, 20033–1@ Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)22–19–5–2Recap
49LJanuary 25, 20031–4@ Columbus Blue Jackets (2002–03)22–20–5–2Recap
50WJanuary 28, 20035–2Pittsburgh Penguins (2002–03)23–20–5–2Recap
51WJanuary 30, 20033–1Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)24–20–5–2Recap :
February: 5–4–3–0 (home: 3–1–2–0; road: 2–3–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
52LFebruary 4, 20031–2Philadelphia Flyers (2002–03)24–21–5–2Recap
53LFebruary 7, 20030–3@ Washington Capitals (2002–03)24–22–5–2Recap
54WFebruary 8, 20033–1Buffalo Sabres (2002–03)25–22–5–2Recap
55WFebruary 11, 20036–2Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)26–22–5–2Recap
56LFebruary 13, 20030–2@ Nashville Predators (2002–03)26–23–5–2Recap
57WFebruary 15, 20033–2@ Los Angeles Kings (2002–03)27–23–5–2Recap
58TFebruary 17, 20032–2 OT@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2002–03)27–23–6–2Recap
59WFebruary 19, 20033–0@ San Jose Sharks (2002–03)28–23–6–2Recap
60WFebruary 21, 20034–1Colorado Avalanche (2002–03)29–23–6–2Recap
61TFebruary 23, 20034–4 OTBoston Bruins (2002–03)29–23–7–2Recap
62LFebruary 25, 20032–5@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)29–24–7–2Recap
63TFebruary 27, 20033–3 OTNew Jersey Devils (2002–03)29–24–8–2Recap :
March: 5–8–2–0 (home: 1–4–0–0; road: 4–4–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
64WMarch 1, 20032–1 OTBuffalo Sabres (2002–03)30–24–8–2Recap
65TMarch 3, 20031–1 OT@ New York Rangers (2002–03)30–24–9–2Recap
66LMarch 4, 20031–3Tampa Bay Lightning (2002–03)30–25–9–2Recap
67LMarch 6, 20031–4@ Boston Bruins (2002–03)30–26–9–2Recap
68LMarch 8, 20032–4New Jersey Devils (2002–03)30–27–9–2Recap
69LMarch 11, 20033–4@ Vancouver Canucks (2002–03)30–28–9–2Recap
70WMarch 13, 20035–2@ Edmonton Oilers (2002–03)31–28–9–2Recap
71WMarch 15, 20035–2@ Ottawa Senators (2002–03)32–28–9–2Recap
72LMarch 17, 20030–1@ New York Rangers (2002–03)32–29–9–2Recap
73TMarch 18, 20033–3 OT@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)32–29–10–2Recap
74WMarch 20, 20036–3@ Montreal Canadiens (2002–03)33–29–10–2Recap
75LMarch 22, 20032–4New Jersey Devils (2002–03)33–30–10–2Recap
76WMarch 25, 20039–2@ Chicago Blackhawks (2002–03)34–30–10–2Recap
77LMarch 28, 20032–5Toronto Maple Leafs (2002–03)34–31–10–2Recap
78LMarch 30, 20030–6@ New Jersey Devils (2002–03)34–32–10–2Recap :
April: 1–2–1–0 (home: 0–1–1–0; road: 1–1–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
79TApril 1, 20032–2 OTNew York Rangers (2002–03)34–32–11–2Recap
80LApril 3, 20032–5@ Detroit Red Wings (2002–03)34–33–11–2Recap
81LApril 5, 20032–3Atlanta Thrashers (2002–03)34–34–11–2Recap
82WApril 6, 20032–1@ Carolina Hurricanes (2002–03)35–34–11–2Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point)
  Overtime loss (1 point) :

### Playoffs

2003 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (1) Ottawa Senators – Senators win 4–1
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1WApril 9, 20033–0@ Ottawa SenatorsIslanders lead 1–0Recap
2LApril 12, 20030–3@ Ottawa SenatorsSeries tied 1–1Recap
3LApril 14, 20032–3 2OTOttawa SenatorsSenators lead 2–1Recap
4LApril 16, 20031–3Ottawa SenatorsSenators lead 3–1Recap
5LApril 17, 20031–4@ Ottawa SenatorsSenators win 4–1Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Islanders only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Islanders only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 79 | Alexei Yashin | C | 81 | 26 | 39 | 65 | −12 | 32 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −1 | 2 |
| 55 | Jason Blake | C | 81 | 25 | 30 | 55 | 16 | 58 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −2 | 2 |
| 37 | Mark Parrish | RW | 81 | 23 | 25 | 48 | −11 | 28 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 4 |
| 38 | Dave Scatchard | C | 81 | 27 | 18 | 45 | 9 | 108 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −3 | 6 |
| 17 | Shawn Bates | C | 74 | 13 | 29 | 42 | −9 | 52 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 0 |
| 27 | Michael Peca | C | 66 | 13 | 29 | 42 | −4 | 43 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 4 |
| 4 | Roman Hamrlik | D | 73 | 9 | 32 | 41 | 21 | 87 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −2 | 2 |
| 3 | Adrian Aucoin | D | 73 | 8 | 27 | 35 | −5 | 70 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 4 |
| 45 | Arron Asham | RW | 78 | 15 | 19 | 34 | 1 | 57 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 16 |
| 28 | Jason Wiemer | C | 81 | 9 | 19 | 28 | 5 | 116 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −3 | 23 |
| 12 | Oleg Kvasha | LW | 69 | 12 | 14 | 26 | 4 | 44 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 2 |
| 29 | Kenny Jonsson | D | 71 | 8 | 18 | 26 | −8 | 24 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −2 | 0 |
| 15 | Brad Isbister‡ | LW | 53 | 10 | 13 | 23 | −9 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 11 | Mattias Weinhandl | RW | 47 | 6 | 17 | 23 | −2 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2 | Mattias Timander | D | 80 | 3 | 13 | 16 | −2 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 24 | Radek Martinek | D | 66 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 26 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 4 |
| 13 | Claude Lapointe‡ | C | 66 | 6 | 6 | 12 | −3 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 44 | Janne Niinimaa† | D | 13 | 1 | 5 | 6 | −2 | 14 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −4 | 12 |
| 33 | Eric Cairns | D | 60 | 1 | 4 | 5 | −7 | 124 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 13 |
| 16 | Raffi Torres‡ | LW | 17 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 26 | Justin Mapletoft | C | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 44 | Sven Butenschon† | D | 37 | 0 | 4 | 4 | −6 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 21 | Trent Hunter | RW | 8 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 10 | Eric Manlow | C | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 16 | Justin Papineau† | C | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Randy Robitaille† | C | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 0 |
| 20 | Steve Webb | RW | 49 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −5 | 75 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 10 |
| 39 | Rick DiPietro | G | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 49 | Eric Godard | RW | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −3 | 48 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 32 | Alan Letang | D | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 59 | Alain Nasreddine | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Chris Osgood‡ | G | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8 | Tomi Pettinen | D | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 36 | Ray Schultz | D | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6 | Brandon Smith | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Garth Snow | G | 43 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 24 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |

### Goaltending

* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Islanders only.
| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 35 | Chris Osgood‡ | 37 | 17 | 14 | 4 | 912 | 97 | 2.92 | .894 | 2 | 1993 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Garth Snow | 43 | 16 | 17 | 5 | 1120 | 92 | 2.31 | .918 | 1 | 2390 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 134 | 12 | 2.36 | .910 | 1 | 305 |
| 39 | Rick DiPietro | 10 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 273 | 29 | 2.97 | .894 | 0 | 585 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | 0 | 15 |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Roman Hamrlik |
| League (in-season) | NHL YoungStars Game selection | Mattias Weinhandl |
| Team | Bob Nystrom Award | Jason Blake |
| Team | Bob Nystrom Award | Garth Snow |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Tomi Pettinen | October 12, 2002 |
| First game | Justin Mapletoft | October 15, 2002 |
| First game | Eric Godard | October 17, 2002 |
| First game | Mattias Weinhandl | November 4, 2002 |

## Transactions

The Islanders were involved in the following transactions from June 14, 2002, the day after the deciding game of the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 9, 2003, the day of the deciding game of the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 22, 2002 (2002-06-22) | To New York Islanders Arron Asham5th-round pick in 2002 | To Montreal Canadiens Mariusz Czerkawski |
| June 22, 2002 (2002-06-22) | To New York Islanders Eric Godard | To Florida Panthers Florida's 3rd-round pick in 2002 |
| June 22, 2002 (2002-06-22) | To New York Islanders Mattias Timander | To Columbus Blue Jackets 4th-round pick in 2002 |
| July 3, 2002 (2002-07-03) | To New York Islanders Jason Wiemer | To Florida Panthers Branislav Mezei |
| October 11, 2002 (2002-10-11) | To New York Islanders Sven Butenschon | To Florida Panthers Juraj Kolnik9th-round pick in 2003 |
| March 9, 2003 (2003-03-09) | To New York Islanders Randy Robitaille | To Pittsburgh Penguins 5th-round pick in 2003 |
| March 9, 2003 (2003-03-09) | To New York Islanders 5th-round pick in 2003 | To Philadelphia Flyers Claude Lapointe |
| March 11, 2003 (2003-03-11) | To New York Islanders Justin Papineau2nd-round pick in 2003 | To St. Louis Blues Chris Osgood3rd-round pick in 2003 |
| March 11, 2003 (2003-03-11) | To New York Islanders Janne Niinimaa2nd-round pick in 2003 | To Edmonton Oilers Brad IsbisterRaffi Torres |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Term | Via |
| July 18, 2002 (2002-07-18) | Alan Letang | Calgary Flames | | Free agency |
| July 19, 2002 (2002-07-19) | Eric Manlow | Boston Bruins | | Free agency |
| July 22, 2002 (2002-07-22) | Blaine Down | Barrie Colts (OHL) | multi-year | Free agency |
| August 3, 2002 (2002-08-03) | Brandon Smith | San Jose Sharks | | Free agency |
| August 6, 2002 (2002-08-06) | Jeff Hamilton | Karpat (Liiga) | | Free agency |
| September 6, 2002 (2002-09-06) | Alain Nasreddine | Edmonton Oilers | | Free agency |
| May 26, 2003 (2003-05-26) | Wade Dubielewicz | University of Denver (WCHA) | 1-year | Free agency |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Via |
| June 14, 2002 (2002-06-14) | Chris Armstrong | EV Zug (NLA) | Free agency (VI) |
| July 1, 2002 (2002-07-01) | Jim Cummins | | Contract expiration (III) |
| July 9, 2002 (2002-07-09) | Kip Miller | Washington Capitals | Free agency (III) |
| July 12, 2002 (2002-07-12) | Raymond Giroux | New Jersey Devils | Free agency (VI) |
| July 17, 2002 (2002-07-17) | Jason Krog | Anaheim Mighty Ducks | Free agency (VI) |
| July 29, 2002 (2002-07-29) | Jason Podollan | Adler Mannheim (DEL) | Free agency (VI) |
| August 6, 2002 (2002-08-06) | Dick Tarnstrom | Pittsburgh Penguins | Waivers |
| August 26, 2002 (2002-08-26) | Dave Roche | New Jersey Devils | Free agency (UFA) |
| August 26, 2002 (2002-08-26) | Ken Sutton | New Jersey Devils | Free agency |
| October 14, 2002 (2002-10-14) | Evgeny Korolev | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (RSL) | Free agency |
| November 3, 2002 (2002-11-03) | Mats Lindgren | Vancouver Canucks | Free agency (UFA) |
| January 9, 2003 (2003-01-09) | Darren Van Impe | Syracuse Crunch (AHL) | Free agency (UFA) |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term | Contract type |
| July 3, 2002 (2002-07-03) | Mattias Weinhandl | multi-year | Entry-level |
| July 17, 2002 (2002-07-17) | Martin Chabada | multi-year | Entry-level |
| July 23, 2002 (2002-07-23) | Adrian Aucoin | 2-year | Re-signing |
| July 26, 2002 (2002-07-26) | Eric Cairns | 2-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2002 (2002-08-01) | Jason Wiemer | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 2, 2002 (2002-08-02) | Mattias Timander | 2-year | Re-signing |
| August 3, 2002 (2002-08-03) | Arron Asham | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 6, 2002 (2002-08-06) | Mark Parrish | 2-year | Re-signing |
| August 7, 2002 (2002-08-07) | Shawn Bates | 2-year | Extension |
| August 20, 2002 (2002-08-20) | Dave Scatchard | 2-year | Arbitration award |
| September 12, 2002 (2002-09-12) | Steve Webb | 1-year | Re-signing |

## Draft picks

New York's draft picks at the 2002 NHL entry draft held at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 22 | Sean Bergenheim | Finland | Jokerit (Finland) |
| 3 | 87 | Frans Nielsen | Denmark | Malmö IF (Sweden) |
| 5 | 149 | Marcus Paulsson | Sweden | Morrums GoIS IK (Sweden) |
| 6 | 189 | Alexei Stonkus | Russia | Yaroslavl Jrs. (Russia) |
| 7 | 220 | Brad Topping | Canada | Brampton Battalion (OHL) |
| 8 | 252 | Martin Chabada | Czech Republic | Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) |
| 9 | 283 | Per Braxenholm | Sweden | Morrums GoIS IK (Sweden) |