Arron Asham was acquired by the New York Islanders from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for RW Mariusz Czerkawski and a 5th round draft pick on draft day June 22, 2002. First reaction by Islander fans was negative. Czerkawski, a former two time 30 goal scorer for the Islanders, was seemingly on his way out after a very sub par performance in 2001-02. Plus Czerkawski failed to show up until game 6 of the Islanders 2002 first round playoff series against Toronto. But the collective feeling was that the Islanders could have gotten more for the "Polish Prince." Asham prior to being acquired by the Islanders had never played more than 46 games or scored more than 5 goals in any of his previous 4 seasons with the Canadiens. He was considered a 4th line player at best that was moved in and out of the lineup all his career. While most onlookers believed that the Islanders just paired off salary, GM Mike Milbury believed he was adding size and grit, something the Isles lacked in their playoff series with Toronto, by acquiring Asham and his 5-11, 196lbs frame. 

From the start of the 2002-03 season, Asham struggled which turned the fans against him. But like he did with Shawn Bates in 2001-02, coach Peter Laviolette took Asham under his wing and as the season went along molded him into a solid smaller version of a power forward that could hit and chip in offensively when needed. By season's end, Asham had potted 15 goals and 34 points in his first full NHL season, while at the same time Czerkawski struggled so badly in Montreal that he got into coach Michel Therrien's dog house pretty early, requested a trade and eventually found himself playing for Fredericton in the AHL. Czerkawski finished the season with only 5 goals and 14 points in 43 games, meaning Asham outscored him by three times. What seemed like a bad move at first turned out to be an absolute steal by Milbury. And the Islanders should benefit from the move for quite a while as Asham is just entering his prime at 27 years of age. The Islanders used the 2002 5th round pick also acquired in the deal to draft a Swedish prospect named Marcus Paulsson, who eventually went unsigned.

Update: Asham missed the last month of the 2005-06 season with a sprained knee. He is currently a restricted free agent. His 2005-06 salary was $627,000.

Career highlight to date: Scored the first 2 goal game of his career in LA on February 15, 2003 to help the Islanders win a crucial game on the road 3-2.