The Islanders have reinforcements coming, and likely just in time for Wednesday’s outdoor showcase at Yankee Stadium against the rival Rangers.
Before Saturday afternoon’s controversial 4-3 shootout loss to the Blues at the Coliseum, coach Jack Capuano said defensemen Lubomir Visnovsky and Travis Hamonic, along with starting goalie Evgeni Nabokov, all skated in the morning and all were on pace to be back at some next week.
Visnovsky has been out with a concussion since Oct. 19, but has skated without a non-contact jersey since Tuesday.
“He’s doing real well,” said Capuano, who desperately needs Visnovsky’s veteran presence as well as his aptitude at the point of the power play, which went 0-for-6 over 8:50 in the loss, including a 4-on-3 in overtime that resulted in a called goal for Thomas Vanek, only to be declared a kick and overturned by the league headquarters in Toronto. “We should get a real good idea [Sunday] for the start of the week if he can play or not.”
Visnovsky said earlier in the week the main thing he has to do before being ready is getting back into reasonable shape following the first three-month inactive period of his career. He has been taking pretty intensive conditioning skates, and Capuano won’t ease him back in.
“Once he’s ready to go, when our trainers and our doctors say that he’s good, there’s a good chance that he’ll play right away,” Capuano said. “I won’t [use too much] caution because I believe in what they say.”
Close too is Nabokov, who has missed 10 straight and has been out since Jan. 6 with a quadriceps injury. If things go well, Capuano said the 38-year-old could be activated in time for Monday night’s home game against the Bruins.
“There’s a possibility that he plays or backs up on Monday then gets another practice on Tuesday,” said Capuano, who will send Anders Nilsson back to AHL Bridgeport once Nabokov is activated, as Kevin Poulin started in net against the Blues, his ninth start in Nabokov’s 10-game absence. “If he’s had these last four or five days, there’s a good chance that he could be ready by next week to play.”
Hamonic is a little different situation, because he still hasn’t been cleared for contact after suffering a concussion on Jan. 12 in a game against the Stars in Dallas. Saturday morning was the first time he skated since being injured, and he is less likely to be ready for the Stadium Series game — though it’s certainly not impossible.
“He is progressing,” Capuano said about Hamonic, his No. 1 defenseman, who has missed seven in a row. “We’ll go through more of his protocol on Monday, so we’ll have an update on Monday.”
Of course, the coach is not about to put any of his players in jeopardy of getting injured even further, no matter the circumstance. Yet, with the struggles of some of his younger defensemen — especially Matt Donovan — there is no question the impending returns of Visnovsky and Hamonic have put roster spots in question.
“We have Visnovsky and Hamonic probably coming back next week,” Capuano said, “so there’s a lot on the line for these guys as we move forward.”