Things didn’t look good as defenseman Robert Bortuzzo couldn’t get back to his feet, struggling to put weight on his right leg after taking a hit last night during the New York Islanders’ overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche last night in Denver.
On Wednesday afternoon, the image isn’t any prettier as the Islanders placed Bortuzzo on injured-reserve with an upper-body injury.
Bortuzzo’s injury comes with a bit of irony for the Islanders.
The team has dealt with multiple injuries to their backend this season and acquired Bortuzzo in a trade from the St. Louis Blues just a few weeks ago as a reinforcement.
In 11 with the New York, Bortuzzo was -3 and largely served as a penalty killer.
Bortuzzo wasn’t the only member of the team to suffer an injury last night, either.
Goaltender Semyon Varlamov left the game towards the end of the first period and did not return. The Islanders have recalled goalie Ken Appleby from AHL Bridgeport on emergency loan.
Varlamov was listed as day-t0-day last week after “tweaking” something during a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Dec. 27.
If there are any positives in this situation for the Islanders, it’s that defenseman Adam Pelech appears to be nearing a return from long-term injured reserve.
Pelech has been out of the lineup with an upper-body injury since Nov. 24. He’s participated in practice the last few days and is currently with the team in Arizona, where they will face the Coyotes tomorrow night at Mullet Arena at 9 p.m. EST.
This Story Will Be Updated.
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