Rangers archrival still unsure when Mathew Barzal will return from ‘unfortunate injury’
The New York Rangers won’t have to concern themselves with trying to shut down forward Mathew Barzal when the New York Islanders come to Madison Square Garden on Monday, just as they didn’t have to worry about dealing with him in their 5-1 win at UBS Arena on Tuesday. And Isles eneral manager Lou Lamoriello won’t guarantee that their most dynamic forward will be ready when the Rangers come back to the arena at Belmont Park on April 10.
“No,” he told Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic when asked if there was any update on Barzal, who’s been out since being injured on Feb. 1 and had a surgical procedure on his left kneecap a few days later. “Hopefully, he’ll be (back) before the end of the year, but he’s going through rehab right now and that’s all I can say. It’s an unfortunate injury.”
The Rangers can’t be unhappy that they won’t have to deal with Barzal on Monday. The 2018 Calder Trophy winner has 35 points (10 goals, 25 assists) in 31 career games against the Rangers, the most points he’s amassed against any team. He plays on the Islanders top line and is among the League’s best puck-carriers because of his speed and elusiveness, especially on the power play.
It’s been a tough season for Barzal, who was injured late in regulation during the Islanders’ 3-2 overtime win at the Tampa Bay Lightning when he blocked a shot. He’s on injured reserve and missed seven games, but the Islanders have yet to place him on long-term injured reserve. Barzal also missed 23 games with an upper-body injury sustained against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 30. He has 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) and is plus-10 in 30 games this season.
The Islanders are famously one of the most closed-mouth organizations in the NHL when it comes to revealing anything about injuries. But teammate Brock Nelson told The Hockey News this week that Barzal “is in good spirits. Obviously, another injury for him, it sucks. You don’t want to see him go down. You don’t want to see anybody go down, but he’s been a big part of our team for a long time, and he’s the future. He’s a dynamic player. But I think he’s in good spirits.”
Not knowing when Barzal will be back from his injury leaves Lamoriello in a bit of a quandary with the NHL Trade Deadline a week away on March 7 and the Islanders seven points out of a wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference — and three behind the Rangers.
If Lamoriello knew that Barzal would be able to return soon, he might decide to try to bring in some more offensive talent. If not, Lamoriello might decide to be a seller – and he’d likely find takers for forwards Nelson, Kyle Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pageau, three members of the core that got the Islanders to the Eastern Conference Final in 2020 and 2021 and into the Stanley Cup Playoffs in four of the past five seasons.
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Mathew Barzal one of several key players injured this season for Rangers archrival
Barzal’s kneecap issue is the latest in a parade of injuries that has decimated the team this season. Ex-Rangers forward Anthony Duclair missed more than a month with a lower-body injury and hasn’t contributed much offense since his return. The defense corps has been battered, with Noah Dobson, Ryan Pulock, Adam Pelech and Mike Reilly all missing sizeable chunks of time; at one point, the Islanders were dressing three defensemen (ex-Ranger Tony DeAngelo, Scott Perunovich and Adam Boqvist) who were picked up as free agents, on waivers or in minor trades.
“It’s sort of been an exceptional year for injuries from our perspective,” Lamoriello said. “But we’ve also seen a lot of injuries throughout the League this year.”
All but Reilly have returned; Dobson dressed for the Islanders’ 2-1 road win against the Boston Bruins on Thursday after missing 11 games.
Lamoriello told LeBrun that even with his team barely hanging on in the playoff race and no sign that Barzal will be back soon, he’s not ready to throw in the towel.
“I don’t think there’s any question I believe we’re capable of that,” Lamoriello said when asked if his team could make the kind of late-season run that got them into the playoffs last season. “But we have to get it done.”
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