New York Islanders star forward Mathew Barzal suffered a knee injury during Saturday night’s 3-2 overtime victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena.
The 27-year-old was struck in the right knee by a shot late in the third period, prompting his early exit. Head coach Patrick Roy had no updates on him following the game.”
“That’s hockey isn’t it?” Roy said. “Barzy knows what he has to do and he was in that shooting lane. That’s what you need to do as a hockey player. Sometimes you have bad luck.”
Not only has the bad luck followed Barzal this season, but his team as a whole. The winger missed 21 games earlier this season due to an upper-body injury that landed him on long-term injured reserve. In 30 games, he has six goals with 14 assists.
While his status for Sunday night’s matchup against the Florida Panthers is unknown, any sort of absence would provide another sizable void for a team that has been decimated by injuries this season.
Barzal and the summer’s marquee signing, Anthony Duclair, encountered long-term absences already while backup goalie Semyon Varlamov is still sidelined. The defense has been ransacked with Noah Dobson, Ryan Pulock, and Mike Reilly sidelined. It has forced the Islanders to sign Anthony DeAngelo, Scott Perunovich, and Adam Boqvist all within the last week.
Despite a significantly short-handed roster, New York continues to churn out results as it digs out of a first-half hole that saw them sit in last place in the Metropolitan Division less than two weeks ago. Saturday night’s overtime win in Tampa was their seventh straight victory, moving the team just three points out of a Wild Card spot.
