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Report: Isles have no plans to trade Niederreiter

Nino Niederreiter

It appears the New York Islanders aren’t going to entertain the idea of dealing Nino Niederreiter.

One day after reports surfaced that the Isles prospect wanted out of the organization, a Newsday source claimed GM Garth Snow had no plans to move Neiderreiter.

Snow wouldn’t comment on the demand, but did offer the following:

“All conversations with players remain private, but I will say that Nino has never told me that he’s unhappy.”

According to Newsday, Andre Rufener -- Niederreiter’s Switzerland-based agent -- recently sent Snow an email asking that he try to trade his client, New York’s first-round pick (fifth overall) at the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

Here’s more, from Newsday:

Rufener declined to comment on the trade request, which was first reported by ESPN.com.

Rufener sent Snow the email last week, during the Islanders’ six-day training camp prior to the start of the current, 48-game season, voicing his displeasure with the team’s handling of his client.

The next day, Snow, along with his coaches from the Islanders and in Bridgeport [New York’s AHL affiliate], sat down with Niederreiter after the scrimmage between the Islanders and the Sound Tigers and discussed why Niederreiter did not get an invite to the NHL camp.

Niederreiter took the training camp snub in stride -- “I’ve learned that there are things you cannot control and you can’t worry about those,” he said -- but that didn’t make the situation any less strange.

During a camp scrimmage between Bridgeport and the Isles, Niederreiter was one of the best players on the ice, scoring a pretty goal (out-muscling 6-foot-4, 240-pound defenseman Matt Carkner and beating No. 1 goalie Evgeni Nabokov in the process.)

There are also questions about how much more Niederreiter has to gain at the AHL level. He was recently named to the league’s Eastern Conference All-Star team and has 36 points in 39 games.

That said, there are arguments in favor of keeping him in the minors. Niederreiter had a difficult rookie campaign in 2011-12, scoring just one goal (his only point) in 55 games while posting a minus-29 rating.