Will we see Julien Gauthier make his season debut against the Stars?
EAST MEADOW, NY -- By the time you read this, the New York Islanders will be in Dallas ahead of their Saturday night showdown with the Stars.
Although the Islanders' offense wasn't a problem in their 5-4 overtime loss to the Utah Hockey Club on Thursday, head coach Patrick Roy wasn't certain he'd be going with the same lineup.
"I'm not sure yet," Roy said on Friday afternoon. "We'll think about it on the plane. We have a couple of hours to think about that."
After the Islanders ran lines at practice, the line tweak that Roy could be making is playing Julien Gauthier on the fourth line in favor of Oliver Wahlstrom.
Both took reps during Friday's skate, which garnered our attention.
On Thursday, Wahlstrom looked solid early, doing the little things to get the puck out of the zone while also making some smart reads to intercept Utah passes.
But, in a moment where Roy showed trust in Wahlstrom and the fourth line, No. 26 didn't rise to the occasion.
With the Islanders defending a one-goal lead with just over two minutes to play, Kyle MacLean got in on the forecheck, laying a hit on Juuso Valimaki.
Wahlstrom also tried to lay a hit, but the bigger issue was that, with their slim one-goal lead, he got caught way too high in the offensive zone, leading to a fast-break chance for Utah, leading to Josh Doan's equalizer:
Noah Dobson failed to read the play correctly, which ultimately led to the goal, but Wahlstrom's aggressiveness at a time when he needed to be more aware didn't help.
We'll see if that costs him his spot in the lineup on Saturday.
Gauthier beat out Hudson Fasching, Pierre Engvall, Liam Foudy, and Fredrik Karlstrom for the final forward spot on the NHL roster.
While Wahlstrom got the first look on the new-look fourth line because of his shot and physicality, Gauthier brings the speed element that could complement MacLean and Casey Cizikas very well.
No, he doesn't have Wahlstrom's shot, but Gauthier has the size that could prove a bigger advantage against a heavy Dallas Stars team.
In 27 games last season, Gauthier scored five goals with four assists for nine points before scoring seven goals with three assists for 10 points in 17 games with the Bridgeport Islanders of the American Hockey League.