Casey Cizikas is the latest injured Islander.
The sparkplug fourth-line center is out week-to-week with a lower body injury, the team announced prior to Thursday night’s match against the Maple Leafs at UBS Arena.
“He’s a big part of the group,” coach Lane Lambert said. “His motor is always running. Guys are going to have to replace him somehow. Certainly we have the ability to do that. As we’ve done and will continue to do with our defense or whoever else is out, it’s the next-man-up mentality.”
Cizikas, who has five goals and six assists in 39 games, blocked a hard shot from the point by defenseman Filip Hronek in the first period of the Islanders’ 5-2 loss to the visiting Canucks on Tuesday night. He left the ice unable to put weight on his left leg, though he did return for two brief penalty-killing shifts early in the second period before exiting the game for good.
Tuesday marked defenseman Adam Pelech’s first game back after a 20-game absence for an upper-body injury. Thursday marked defenseman Scott Mayfield’s sixth game back after he missed eight games with an upper-body injury.
Defenseman Ryan Pulock (long-term injured reserve/lower body) and goalie Semyon Varlamov (injured reserve/lower body) both remained sidelined.
Lambert declined to answer why the Islanders opted not to place Cizikas on IR for now, saying that was a question for president/general manager Lou Lamoriello.
Hometown memories
Mathew Barzal greeted a group of youth players, coaches and parents from the Burnaby (British Columbia) Winter Club after the Islanders’ morning skate. It’s essentially where Barzal, from Coquitlam, B.C., learned the sport.
“They’re in town for a tournament, the 11-, 12-year-olds,” Barzal said. “Just wanted to bring them down because, that rink, that organization, has a special spot in my heart. Pretty much my whole childhood was spent there.”
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