Not only did the wheels fly off for the Islanders during the second period against the Devils on Sunday, but their captain might have put himself at risk for a suspension during a pivotal stretch for the team’s playoff hopes.
Anders Lee was given a game misconduct for a knee-to-knee hit on Nico Hischier that was cut-and-dried over the line, with the Islanders forward connecting with the Devils’ captain’s left knee.
Hischier went straight to the dressing room, later returning for the third period, while Timo Meier jumped in to defend him.
After Meier and Lee dropped gloves, the pair received fighting majors, with Lee receiving an additional five minutes for kneeing and a game misconduct. Meier also received a two-minute instigator penalty and a 10-minute misconduct.
“Pretty clear, didn’t like the hit,” Meier said after the 4-0 Devils win. “It’s a dirty hit. So I stepped in and let him know. That’s it.”
Lee did not speak to reporters in the dressing room after the game. Isles coach Patrick Roy said he had not seen the hit closely enough to comment on it.
“I’m gonna have to take the time to look at it frame by frame to really look at it before making any comments on this,” Roy said.
If the league chooses to take additional action on Lee’s hit, it will likely result in the Islanders being without their captain for at least part — if not all — of the three-game road trip that starts on Thursday in Sunrise, Fla.
Lee was fined, but not suspended, for a 2014 elbow on then-Blues defenseman Carl Gunnarsson
It seems distinctly possible, however, that he will face suspension this time around. If so, it will only do more damage to the Islanders’ playoff hopes — which are already nearing life support.
Matt Martin, Simon Holmstrom, Pierre Engvall and Hudson Fasching have all taken turns as the extra forward out in the last couple weeks and it would be no surprise to see that pattern continue.
Islanders coach Patrick Roy took a matchup-based approach on Sunday when he reinserted Holmstrom into the lineup for Martin — using the Swede on the fourth line for the first time all season — in order to counter the speed of the visiting Devils.
And if no one grabs hold of a spot, there will be no reason not to continue making lineup decisions based on matchups and what happens to be working at a given time.
“You want to see the guys compete for ice time and you want to see the guys competing to stay in the lineup,” Roy said before Sunday’s match. “At the same time, Marty just does everything well. It’s not because he’s not playing well that he’s out — we just want to have speed, that’s all it is.