What will the Islanders do if the blue line gets healthy?

The New York Islanders will have decisions to make if any of their blue-line staples are ready to return following the 4 Nations Face-Off break. 

Noah Dobson (lower body) and Ryan Pulock (upper body) should be working their way back during the tail-end of the two-week break. 

Scott Mayfield (lower body), who is considered day-to-day, should also be back on the ice soon. 

With all these injuries, the Islanders went out and brought in three new defensemen: Tony DeAngelo (sign), Scott Perunovich (trade), and Adam Boqvist (waivers). 

What these moves did was push seventh defenseman Dennis Cholowski to the bottom of the totem pole. But, because of Mayfield's injury, Cholowski has been playing, albeit a very limited role with the team essentially running five defensemen the last four games entering the break. 

So, if one defenseman is able to return before Feb. 23, their first game back at home against the Dallas Stars, it's likely that Cholowski will be placed on waivers. 

Boqvist has been playing his off-side, so it's likely that he'll hop over to his natural left side if one of the defensemen can return, the likely one being Mayfield.

However, if two defensemen can return, who is next to come out of the lineup?

Despite a tough way to enter the break with two own goals, DeAngelo has played so well alongside Alexander Romanov that it doesn't seem like a pairing that will be easily split up. 

One of Perunovich or Boqvist would come out. 

Judging by the minutes--Boqvist has played the second-fewest--he would likely become the seventh defenseman with Perunovich remaining in the lineup. 

I think you see where this is going. 

If all three defensemen are back after the break--unlikely, but hey, you never know--Perunovich would come out, and then the club would have to make waiver decisions to become roster-compliant.

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