When Islanders GM Mike Milbury traded Brad Isbister and Raffi Torres to Edmonton last spring for Janne Niinimaa, the fear was that Isbister would turn into an elite power forward as soon as he left Uniondale, in much the same way Todd Bertuzzi did.

But when the Oilers invade the Coliseum tonight, it’s Torres, who left the Islanders as a little-used farmhand with little NHL experience, who has turned into the type of grinding, scoring forward the Isles could use.

Torres, drafted with the No. 5 pick in 2000 after the Isles took Rick DiPietro at No. 1, showed flashes in his brief Islanders tenure of an ability to electrify the Coliseum with some big hits and tenacious play. However, the organization did not hang on to him long enough for him to realize his potential, quite the opposite of how it was reluctant to let Isbister go for years.

Going into tonight’s game, in which the Islanders are looking to snap a three-game winless slide, Torres has 11 goals and 18 points and has turned into a serviceable left wing, getting 11:58 of ice per night. The success he’s found on a hard-working and skating team is no surprise to Steve Stirling, who coached Torres for parts of the last two years at Bridgeport.

“It’s a different kind of team,” Stirling said. “The Western teams play a little different than the Eastern teams. It’s a new lease on life for him. They obviously liked him for a long time from what I hear, and they’re giving him every opportunity to play in a role that may be perfect for him.”