It’s odd to think that Robin Lehner hasn’t played a game on the Island since the 2018-19 season. But thanks to the past two seasons being altered because of COVID-19, if Lehner gets the start in net for the Golden Knights against the Islanders on Saturday, it will be his first time back on the ice in Long Island since he played for the home team.
Though Lehner was only an Islander for one season, he left an outsize impact on the organization. Not only did Lehner go 25-13-5 as a starter to help the Islanders reach the postseason in Barry Trotz’s first year in charge, but his mental health advocacy, which continues today, helped advance a conversation the NHL is still slow to have.
“Tomorrow I’ll go back to the people that accepted me for who I am and the ones that supported me no matter what,” Lehner, who is bipolar, tweeted on Saturday. “Gonna be amazing seeing you guys again. Long Island, I’m forever grateful for [your] place in my journey. Often when I go through these things, I think of you.”
Lehner signed with the Islanders after hitting a low in his personal life. In March 2018, he had to leave a game after suffering a panic attack. Lehner then went to a drug rehab facility to deal with an alcohol and sleeping pill addiction that started after he suffered a concussion while playing for the Ottawa Senators.
He has been sober since 2018 and has talked openly about his struggles. Following his season with the Islanders, Lehner won the Masterton Trophy for perseverance.
“I’m just really proud of him, what he’s done with his life,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz said Saturday. “And he will tell you this, he’s dealt with a lot of issues. A lot of, I’ll say demons in his past. All those things, it’s not easy. And what he’s been able to do with his life first, his family.
“And dealing with everything from depression to all those type of issues, having the career that he’s having, getting we would say back on the rails from maybe a little bit of a spiral. But it started with, if a person’s not in a good place, it’s going to be hard to have success in the game.”
Trotz and the Islanders saw Lehner earlier this year when they played in Vegas, beating the Golden Knights, 2-0. Whenever he sees something that reminds him to do so, Trotz will send Lehner a text saying “Hi” or wishing him well.
“All the credit goes to Robin because it was hard,” Trotz said. “It’s hard to do a lot of stuff he did. And he’s been able to stay with it. You look at it, he’s become one of the top goaltenders in the league. He became one of our leaders in our room, and I think he’s one of the leaders on Vegas right now. That says a lot about Robin and the strength that he has in terms of talking about mental health issues.”
Though hockey still has a long way to go as far as addressing mental health — a reality often noticeable by looking at Lehner’s own social-media feed — he’s done a lot as far as advancing the sport’s view of those issues.
“Whatever the social issue is, there’s always one person that has to step out and be the first,” Trotz said. “And they usually get beat up a little bit publicly and criticized, you see it all the time. That’s where the courage comes in. And Robin stepped up and said, ‘I do have issues, I’m gonna talk about these issues.’
“And I think that’s the strength that he has and it carries over. It’s allowed other people to feel comfortable talking about certain things in the mental health area.”
Kyle Palmieri didn’t skate on Saturday. After suffering a lower-body injury on Thursday against the Bruins, his status for Sunday’s game is unknown.
With COVID-19 sweeping through the NHL and the league’s participation in the Olympics coming into question, Anders Lee said players want to go, but alluded to a potential five-week quarantine with a positive test in Beijing as a major stumbling block.
“They want to represent their country and have that opportunity, but they also want it to be in an environment that makes sense, one that’s good for the athletes,” Lee said.
Trotz, an assistant coach for Team Canada, said if the league goes, he plans to go.