ELMONT, N.Y. — New York Islanders fourth-line center Casey Cizikas returned to the lineup on Saturday afternoon against the Tampa Bay Lightning at UBS Arena after missing one game due to a hand injury.
Cizikas took an Erik Karlsson shot to the hand during Tuesday’s victory in Pittsburgh against the Penguins and missed Thursday’s loss in St. Louis to the Blues.
Kyle MacLean was recalled from Bridgeport to fill in for the veteran center and partook in pregame warmups on Saturday while Cizikas tested out how he felt. Head coach Patrick Roy revealed that during his pregame availability, Cizikas would be a game-time decision.
Defenseman Scott Mayfield did not partake in pregame warmups on Saturday — the team announced shortly before the 2 p.m. ET puck drop that he was day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
It has been a particularly rough stretch for Mayfield as of late. He committed three penalties to help key the Rangers’ improbable comeback on Sunday in the Stadium Series game at MetLife Stadium.
While he didn’t leave Thursday’s game against the Blues early, he recorded just 15:24 of ice time, which was his fourth-lowest total this season.