The New York Islanders’ night against the Toronto Maple Leafs took an even tougher turn when two more forwards left with lower-body injuries, leaving the club to close out the game shorthanded.
According to a team announcement, Calum Ritchie and Matias Maccelli both exited before the finish. Ritchie barely got onto the ice at all.
On his first shift, Maple Leafs defenseman Nick Blankenburg hit him, and he did not return. With Mathew Barzal still recovering from injury, Ritchie had been centering the Islanders’ second line and had produced a goal and an assist in eight games.
Maccelli’s night ended after 5:39 of ice time. It has not been confirmed that the injury came from the sequence, but he appeared to suffer a leg injury after getting tangled up with defenseman Darren Raddysh. Maccelli was on New York’s top line for the game.
Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference, the Ottawa Senators are aiming for Wednesday as the return date for defenseman Jake Sanderson, according to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Citizen. Sanderson has been out since Ottawa’s season opener. The timing matters all the more because the Senators are set to host the Florida Panthers on Wednesday, with Brady Tkachuk in the building.
The Philadelphia Flyers are still searching for their first win, and they’re doing it without winger Owen Tippett. Jordan Hall of NBCS reported before tonight’s game that Tippett was a game-time decision because of an upper-body injury, but he ended up out of the lineup. He has one goal and one assist in nine games this season.
The Maple Leafs also made another roster move, assigning defenseman Cade Webber to a conditioning loan, according to the AHL transactions log. Toronto had already done the same with forward Dakota Joshua yesterday. Webber started the season on long-term injured reserve after offseason elbow surgery, and last season he recorded three assists in 33 games for the AHL’s Toronto Marlies.
In Other News...
Islanders Grind Out A Win That Created A New Worry
The Islanders got exactly the kind of road result they needed in Toronto, a 4-1 win built on timely scoring and a steady night from Ilya Sorokin, who stopped 28 shots. Anthony Duclair and Bo Horvat scored in support, and Simon Holmstrom capped it with the empty-netter as New York handled the game with a shortened bench and enough structure to keep the Leafs from turning it into a track meet.
The concern came early, when Cal Ritchie and Matias Maccelli both exited in the first period, leaving the Islanders to juggle their lines for most of the night. Any win on the road is useful, but a victory that costs you two forwards can change the mood fast, especially with one injury appearing more serious and the team now waiting to find out how much more damage came out of a night it otherwise controlled. [Read more 🡒]
Varlamov Just Made The Islanders Backup Goalie Decision Much Tougher
Semyon Varlamovs latest turn in net gave the Islanders one more thing to think about after a shootout loss to Ottawa. Starting for just the second time this season, the veteran allowed three goals on 22 shots, but the larger takeaway was less about the final score and more about how he looked coming off a long road back to game action.
Varlamov has been working his way back after 22 months rehabbing from a double-knee replacement, and every outing now carries extra weight in the backup race behind Ilya Sorokin. His performance suggested he is at least making this a real conversation for the Islanders, even if the longer-term picture in net is still far from settled. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Suddenly Face A Bigger Concern Than Their Win In Toronto
The Islanders came out of Toronto with more than just a result to sort through after losing two forwards to lower-body injuries in the same game. Calum Ritchie exited in the first period and Matias Maccelli later left in the second, leaving New York to finish the night shorthanded and immediately wonder what the lineup might look like next.
Ritchie was hurt after going into the boards, while Maccellis injury came on a separate sequence later in the game, and neither player returned. For a team trying to keep its footing in a tight stretch of the schedule, the bigger issue now is not the points from Toronto but the possibility of being without two forwards if those injuries linger. [Read more 🡒]