Islanders, Bruins swap prospects

The New York Islanders, parent club of the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers, have acquired forward Ben Walter and a conditional draft pick from the Boston Bruins — parent club of the AHL’s Providence Bruins — in exchange for forward Petteri Nokelainen.

The 23-year-old Walter was Providence’s team MVP last season, finishing second on the club in scoring with 24 goals and 43 assists for 67 points and posting a team-leading plus-23 rating in 73 games.

Walter added four goals and four assists in 13 playoff games for the P-Bruins, including a Game 7 hat trick in Providence’s first-round series win over Hartford.

"Ben Walter is a strong addition to our roster and immediately becomes one of our top prospects," said Islanders general manager Garth Snow. "Our staff loves his two-way play, work ethic and knack for scoring big goals. Ben is a young player who will battle for a position in training camp and gives us excellent depth at an important position."

The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Walter – the son of 15-year NHL veteran Ryan Walter – is entering his third professional season after three years at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell. He has 40 goals and 67 assists for 107 points in 135 AHL games, and has also made 10 NHL appearances with Boston.

Nokelainen, 21, was a first-round draft choice (16th overall) by the Islanders in 2004. He recorded six goals and 10 assists for 16 points in 60 games for Bridgeport last season.

A native of Imatra, Finland, Nokelainen spent the 2005-06 season with the Isles, scoring a goal and adding two assists in 15 games.