Anthony Duclair was finally placed on long-term injured reserve Saturday, and the Islanders used their extra salary cap space to make a flurry of moves.
With Duclair’s $3.5 million salary no longer on the books, the Islanders made two call-ups, one signing and sent one player down — ceding salary accrual, but making their current roster deeper and better in the process.
In no particular order:
- Pierre Engvall, a surprise cut at the end of training camp, was called back up.
- So too was Hudson Fasching, who failed to make the team out of camp after an injury meant sitting during a crucial few days of competition.
- Matt Martin, who was practicing with the team on a tryout contract, was signed to a one-year deal.
- Liam Foudy, who had played two games as a call-up, was sent back down to AHL Bridgeport.
As for Duclair, putting him on LTIR formalizes what had already been announced.
The winger will be out 4-6 weeks with a lower-body injury, believed to be to his right leg or groin.
With the LTIR designation retroactive to Oct. 19 and requiring a minimum of 10 games and 24 days, the earliest Duclair can be activated is in Vancouver on Nov. 14 — well within the announced timeframe.
Whether or not to put Duclair on LTIR came down to whether the Islanders were comfortable continuing to carry 12 healthy forwards — the maximum they could fit under the cap while Duclair was still active — in exchange for continuing to accrue dollars ahead of the trade deadline.
Engvall, who carries an extra $1.15 million cap charge if called up on top of the $1.85 million penalty the Islanders were dealing with while he was in the AHL, could not fit under the cap while Duclair was active — adding another wrinkle.
Now, the Islanders have 14 forwards on the roster, all of whom have considerable experience with the club, hopefully giving Patrick Roy more usable options as he sorts through life without Duclair.
Of the three new faces, Engvall and Fasching are more likely to come into the lineup quickly, with Engvall being an option for the top six if Roy decides he’s seen enough from Simon Holmstrom, who has played in Duclair’s usual spot alongside Bo Horvat and Mat Barzal.
Fasching is more likely to slot into the fourth line, where Foudy had been playing and where he had most of his better moments with the Islanders over the last two seasons.
Martin looks like a candidate for that spot as well, given his long history as an Islanders fourth-liner — and while he might be the player with the lowest potential impact, he is certainly the most compelling story, for his career with the Islanders looked done and dusted late into the summer.
Given that Engvall and Fasching both participated in Bridgeport’s Friday night game in Charlotte, N.C., there was even a heightened chance of an Islander debut for Martin on Saturday against Florida.
So unlikely did a return to the roster for No. 17 look that in an August interview with The Post, general manager Lou Lamoriello said the team would “probably be moving on” from Martin and his longtime linemate, Cal Clutterbuck.
Clutterbuck is now doing some work with MSG. Martin, instead of going that route, signed a tryout contract with the Islanders that would allow him to keep practicing with the team, but with seemingly minimal chances of making it onto the roster.
Indeed, he did not make it out of camp and even after Duclair’s injury, Lamoriello was still telling reporters that a full-time contract for Martin was not in consideration.
But as the general manager likes to say, don’t ever make assumptions.
