Per NHL.com:

One of the several intriguing unrestricted free agent goalies came off the market just after the signing period began Thursday when Martin Biron signed a two-year contract to be Henrik Lundqvist’s backup with the New York Rangers.

Biron, who reportedly will earn $1.8 million over the two years, doesn’t necessarily have to change addresses since he spent last season with the New York Islanders. He had a tough year, going only 9-14-4 with a 3.27 goals-against average and .896 save percentage for the struggling Islanders.

The Rangers identified a backup goalie as one of their major needs in order to take some of the workload off of Lundqvist’s shoulders. Biron, formerly a No. 1 with Philadelphia, will be asked to do that after Steve Valiquette and Alex Auld struggled in that role last season. Lundqvist has played in at least 70 games in each of the past four seasons.

Biron, who debuted with Buffalo during the 1995-96 season, has appeared in 462 NHL games and is 208-176-25 with 26 shutouts, a 2.63 GAA and .910 save percentage. He served as the Flyers No. 1 goalie from 2007-09, taking them to the Eastern Conference Final in 2008.

Per NHL.com:

Martin Biron had a memorable night at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Saturday — one that was a long time coming.

After coming up short for his 200th career victory in his final days as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers last season, Biron finally achieved the milestone in a 5-0 victory against another former team, the Buffalo Sabres.

But not only was it his 200th win, but it was his first victory as a member of the Islanders after nearly a month with the club.

“It’s been a while,” said Biron, who made 38 saves for his 26th career shutout. “This was my sixth game this year. I had one (chance) last year before the end of the season to try to get it. Not that I was focusing on it, but it’s fun to know that it’s there. To be able to say, ‘OK … we finally broke the ice to get some more wins,’ that’s a good thing. It took a little longer than I wanted, but we’ll take them. Hopefully, I can keep working the same way and we’ll get there.”

Saturday was Biron’s sixth start of the season — an indication of just how frustrated the veteran goaltender must have been entering the game. Two of his five losses came in overtime, including last Monday’s 3-2 loss at Montreal, where he made 28 saves.

“I think I’ve been getting better every game,” said Biron, who lowered his goals-against average to 2.92 and raised his save percentage to .911 in his first win. “I’m slowly getting to the way I want to play. It’s good to get the guys a bit of a confidence boost.”

Confidence isn’t hard to find in the Islanders’ dressing room these days. Saturday’s win was the team’s third win in four nights against some of the top squads in the Eastern Conference. The Isles earned a 3-1 victory against the Rangers on Wednesday before notching a huge overtime win at Washington on Friday. Despite losing their first six contests, the Islanders have accumulated points in nine of their first 13 games.

“I think everybody is starting to understand each other a bit better,” Biron said. “There are guys who are trying to get different roles and fit in different ways. I think that we’re seeing guys step up every night.”

Biron certainly did on Saturday, as he was forced to make eight saves before his team even recorded its first. Less than three hours later, he became a 200-game winner in the NHL.

“I’ve got to think it’s pretty special,” said head coach Scott Gordon, who was a goaltender for the Quebec Nordiques for parts two seasons between 1989 and 1991. “I think that puts me at about 195 away.”

NY Post:

The Islanders won’t be caught short again.

Ensuring stability in nets regardless of the state of Rick DiPetro’s health, the Islanders have signed free agent goaltender Martin Biron to a one-year, $1.4 million steal of a deal, The Post has learned.

Biron, who will be 32 next month and who has been a No. 1 for Buffalo and, most recently, Philadelphia, is the second free agent netminder signed this summer by the Islanders, who were crippled last season when chronically injured DiPietro went down early with a recurring knee issue that required surgery.

On July 1, GM Garth Snow signed 40-year-old Dwayne Roloson, the No. 1 who guided the Oilers to the 2006 Cup Finals, to a two-year contract worth $2.5 million per season.

Well-placed sources have told The Post the Islanders still expect DiPietro to be ready for training camp when the club convenes in Saskatoon in September.

Biron’s addition, however, removes the urgency to rush DiPietro so he’s ready to begin the season that commences with a 13-game crush in October.

The addition of Biron and the construction of a veteran tandem buys time for both the Islanders and for DiPietro, who played in five games last season before undergoing surgery in early January. Forced to go with a combination of Joey MacDonald and Yann Danis in DiPetro’s absence last season, the Islanders finished with the NHL’s third-poorest goals-against average at 3.34.

DiPietro, who has undergone multiple surgical procedures on his knee over the past two seasons, in addition to procedures on both hips, is scheduled to begin skating next month, though he and club management have been mum on his status.

Biron went 29-19-5 with a 2.76 GAA in sharing the Flyers’ net last season with Antero Nittymaki. Biron is a nine-year veteran with a career 199-162-45 record and 2.59 GAA. He took the Flyers to the Eastern finals in 2008 before losing to the Penguins, who then eliminated his team in a six-game first-round series in 2009.

If DiPietro is healthy enough to become part of the Islanders’ early-season rotation, Snow will have a comparably cheap asset (Biron) to move for players or draft picks. If DiPietro needs more time, however, the Islanders will be able to sleep well at night.