Islanders Beat Blue Jackets 7-3 The New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/latest-news/new-york-islanders-barry-trotz-lane-lambert-mathew-barzal-bo-horvat] will be without defenseman Ryan Pulock [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/players/new-york-islanders-alexander-romanov-ryan-pulock-lane-lambert-blown-leads-third-periods] for at least the next three games, as he's been placed on Injured Reserve. Players that land on IR must miss a minimum of seven days, so Pulock will be eligible to be activated out of IR ahead of the Islanders' game against the Boston Bruins on Dec. 15 at UBS Area. Late in the second period of the Islanders' 7-3 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, Pulock took a Zach Werenski point shot off what appeared to be the lower portion of his right leg. Pulock did not leave the game but didn't play the final 8:14 of the third period. As we saw with the acquisitor of Mike Reilly off waivers from the Florida Panthers after Adam Pelech (LTIR) and Sebastian Aho (IR) fell victim to injuries, Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello was proactive again, acquiring Robert Bortuzzo from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for the team’s 7th round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft. Bortuzzo, who has no points in four games this season, carries a salary cap hit of $950,000. Because Pulock is on IR, which creates a roster spot, and Pelech is on LTIR, which allows the Islanders to go over the cap by $5.75 million, nothing has to be done for Bortuzzo to stay on the roster. Bortuzzo is the Blues defenseman who crushed Pelech behind the Islander's goal last season on Dec. 6, sidelining the Islander's top defensemen for 21 games: Defense Pairing Projections: Alex Romanov -- Noah Dobson Samuel Bolduc -- Robert Bortuzzo Mike Reilly -- Scott Mayfield Aho has been practicing with the team and could be ready soon as he's spent the necessary seven days on IR You can watch Rosner talk Islanders hockey on Hockey Night in New York [https://www.youtube.com/@hockeynightny] with co-host Sean Cuthbert [https://twitter.com/seanyhockey] live Sunday nights at 8 PM ET during the season at twitch.tv/hockeynightny [https://www.twitch.tv/hockeynightny].
