The New York Islanders finally snapped a three-game losing streak Friday night.
Now they just have to hope it wasn’t the costliest day of their season.
The undermanned Islanders will embark upon an extended stretch without at least two of their key players Sunday afternoon when they visit the New York Rangers. It’s the first clash this season between the longtime rivals.
Both teams were off Saturday after earning one-goal wins Friday night. The Islanders edged the host Buffalo Sabres 4-3 and the Rangers outlasted the visiting Ottawa Senators 2-1.
The much-needed win came with a heavy price for the Islanders, who took the ice without first-line center Mathew Barzal (upper body) before losing defensemen Adam Pelech and Mike Reilly to upper-body injuries during a two-minute span in the second period. Pelech was hit in the face by a puck while Reilly landed on his head after being checked by Jordan Greenway.
The Islanders said on Saturday that Reilly is day-to-day. But Pelech and Barzal — the latter of whom was injured in Wednesday’s 2-0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets — were each placed on injured reserve and are expected to miss four to six weeks. Barzal was placed on long-term IR, which means he must miss a minimum of 10 games and 24 days.
Defensemen Samuel Bolduc and Grant Hutton were recalled from Bridgeport of the American Hockey League.
The Islanders, whose 26 goals this season were third-fewest in the NHL entering Saturday, already were without fellow first-liner Anthony Duclair, on injured reserve after suffering a right leg injury Oct. 19.
Islanders coach Patrick Roy said Saturday he had faith that a veteran-laden team would respond well to the latest challenge.
“It really (stinks) losing guys — I mean, don’t get me wrong here — but at the same time, this is the reality of today,” Roy said. “We need to find ways to win games, and you know what? I do trust this room. This is a strong room, this is a room (in which) guys care. It’s a room that has a lot of leadership.”
Generating offense has also been a challenge for the Rangers, who opened the season by scoring 31 goals in their first six games but have just eight in the last four contests (2-2-0).
The Rangers have been outshot 148-95 in the last four games, including 41-18 by the Senators on Friday and 46-19 by the Washington Capitals in the latter’s 5-3 win on Tuesday night.
Goalie Igor Shesterkin has made at least 40 saves in consecutive games for the first time since Feb. 9-11, 2020, when he had 42 saves in back-to-back wins over the Los Angeles Kings and Winnipeg Jets.
“It’s nice to have a goaltender who can make those saves, but that’s not what we’re looking for,” Rangers coach Peter Laviolette said. “It’s great that he is on point, but we still have to do a better job.”
The Rangers likely will add to their forward core Sunday, when winger Jimmy Vesey is expected to make his season debut.
Actvated from long-term IR on Saturday, Vesey missed the last four games of the Eastern Conference final with an upper-body injury and has been sidelined this season by a lower-body injury suffered in training camp.
