Isaiah George was sent back down to AHL Bridgeport on Tuesday to make room for newly acquired defenseman Carson Soucy on the Islanders roster, per the NHL’s media site.
George played just two games with the Islanders during his stint, notching an assist Monday night when his shot was tipped in by Mathew Barzal as part of the Isles’ 4-0 win in Philadelphia.
The defenseman, who played 33 games with the Islanders last season and seemed like a good bet to carve out a role this year, has gotten some hard luck all year long.
When the Islanders were cycling through call-up options to replace Alexander Romanov, with Marshall Warren, Travis Mitchell and Cole McWard all getting chances to play, George was dealing with a pair of injuries.
And once he was back healthy and playing well enough in Bridgeport to earn a chance of his own, general manager Mathieu Darche finally decided to look outside the organization by bringing in Soucy, who is expected to fill Romanov’s role for the rest of the season.
As George is waivers exempt, sending him down was an easy move unless the Islanders were willing to put Ryan Pulock on injured reserve, which would have guaranteed Pulock — who is day to day with an upper-body injury — will not play Wednesday against the Rangers
Because the NHL has done away with paper transactions, George will need to play at least one game in Bridgeport — which is next in action Friday — before he is eligible to be called back up.
It wouldn’t be surprising if another NHL chance does come soon for George.
His ability to play both sides of the ice makes it highly possible that he’ll be the next man up in case of another injury, or if Pulock misses an extended period.
On the ice from Long Island
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Sending George down, though, is an indicator that Pulock should be back pretty soon. If he can’t go Wednesday, the Islanders would be without an extra defenseman against the Rangers.
Though that is not as big a consideration at home as it would be on the road — it’s not impossible to get someone from Bridgeport to Long Island if need be — it will have factored into the decision-making process.
The Islanders did not hold practice Tuesday.
