Islanders Beat Senators 5-3 Two defensemen were lost in the opening four minutes in the New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/latest-news/the-morning-after-isles-beat-the-dreaded-three-goal-lead-and-ottawa-5-3-for-third-in-a-row] 5-3 win over the Ottawa Senators on Friday night. Adam Pelech [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/latest-news/new-york-islanders-adam-pelech-sebastian-aho-injury-report] seemed to have suffered a wrist injury after a hit along the boards, while Sebastian Aho [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/latest-news/new-york-islanders-adam-pelech-sebastian-aho-injury-report] fell awkwardly into the boards, limping off the ice. The Islanders played the rest of the game with four defensemen in what Islanders captain Anders Lee called a "gutsy" win. But now, the Islanders have to figure some things out. With no morning skate, we don't have updates on their statuses ahead of the Islanders' Saturday night match against the Philadelphia Flyers. If both can't go, that would leave the Islanders with just five healthy defensemen, with Samuel Bolduc [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/news/new-york-islanders-samuel-bolduc-two-year-extension-defenseman-rfa] already up with the club. So, couldn't the Islanders recall a defenseman from Bridgeport? No, they cannot. The Islanders have just $534,030 in available cap space, and any recall option would carry a cap hit of no less than $762,500. Moving a player to IR wouldn't help the Islanders because that just creates a roster space, not cap space. The Islanders could place one of them on LTIR, meaning the player must miss 10 games and 24 days. If the Islanders decided to go that route, they would forfeit their right to accrue cap space, which, in this day and age, is a huge risk. What about an emergency recall? The NHL's CBA states that if a team can't field six healthy defensemen and 12 healthy forwards, a player can be recalled on an emergency basis. The Islanders have that situation if both injured defensemen can go, so that's that right? Wrong. While the Islanders can certainly use an emergency recall, the NHL CBA also states that a team must play one game, from start to finish, without a fully healthy (12 forwards, 6 defensemen) to have the ability to make the recall. Friday night didn't count because the Islanders started the game fully healthy, so that means if both can't go against the Flyers, they will have to play 12 forwards and five defensemen. Bolduc would come in and serve as the fifth defenseman. Just to clarify, the Islanders cannot run 13 forwards and five defensemen if they want an emergency recall to be an option. After Saturday's game, if the Islanders still need a player for their Tuesday game against the New Jersey Devils, then an emergency recall can be made. The likely options in Bridgeport are Robin Salo, Grant Hutton, Dennis Cholowski, and Paul LaDue. Salo has 32 games of NHL experience under his belt, with three goals and six assists. He has two goals and two assists in 16 games with Bridgeport this season. Hutton, who missed significant time for Bridgeport in 2022-23, has five assists in 16 games this season. He played 16 games for the Islanders in 2021-22, with one goal. Cholowski, a former first-round pick by the Detroit Red Wings, has 117 NHL games under his belt, with 10 goals and 20 assists. In 16 games this season for Bridgeport, the 25-year-old has one goal and nine assists. LaDue has played in 70 NHL games with five goals and 13 assists and has had two assists in 15 games with Bridgeport this season. Salo and Cholowski can quarterback power plays and help fill the hole Aho may be leaving behind. Bolduc, however, would likely quarterback the Islanders second power-play unit if need be. What the Islanders can do is send down Simon Holmstrom, who is waiver-exempt and recall one of these defenseman. Julien Gauthier, with Matt Martin injured, would draw in. We will speak with Islanders head coach Lane Lambert at 4:45 to get updates on Pelech and Aho's status.
