The NHL suspension took place on March 12. With all sports being put on hold and everyone’s lives being flipped upside down, the future for everyone comes with a lot of uncertainty. This global pandemic can be felt by everyone around the world, from the sick to the healthy.
The absence of sports is not something being looked over either. Everyone around the world feels the joy and pain of watching sports, and with absolutely no games going on right now, all sports fans collectively as one are sad.
However, with all that being said, the suspension of play in the NHL could not have come at a better time for the Islanders. Ever since the Islanders lost forward Casey Cizikas in a win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Feb. 11, the team has struggled.
Cizikas suffered a laceration on his leg due to a skate cut from an opposing player on the Flyers. Even though the Islanders only lost Cizikas for three to four weeks, those weeks have felt like decades with the Islanders’ struggles.
Since Cizikas went down, the team has won two games and lost a whomping 11 games. With the Islanders this season, Cizikas has been an unsung hero. He has been playing an enormous role on the team’s fourth line. His presence was invaluable this season.
The Islanders owe so much of their success this season to their fourth line. And, when pieces of that fourth line are missing, such as Cizikas, it is seen in Islanders’ overall play. It is fair to say the Islanders pretty much fell off a cliff after they lost Cizikas. 

Despite the complete drop into the abyss, the Islanders play started to decline after defenseman Adam Pelech sustained an achilles injury in early January. Like Cizikas, Pelech had become extremely underrated in his role. Pelech became a reliable player on the backend for the Islanders. Ever since the Islanders lost Pelech for the season, the team has been mediocre with about a .500 record.
Before Pelech’s injury, the islanders were merely unstoppable, one of the leading team’s in the NHL and even being considered possible Stanley cup contenders. Casey Cizikas’ absence on top of the Pelech’s just escalated the Islanders’ descent into the outside of the playoffs.
To make matters even worse, on the Islanders losing streak after the team lost Cizikas, they lost yet another player: defenseman Johnny Boychuk. The Islanders were facing off against the Montreal Canadiens. In a play in front of the Islanders net, Boychuk suffered a freak injury where opposing player Artturi Lehkonen’s skate came up and sliced the eyelid of Boychuk. The fan favorite defenseman left the ice in a panic and received 90 stitches. Thankfully Boychuk did not damage his eye and is set to return when play resumes in the NHL.
Injuries have not been kind to the Islanders. It is evident injuries have been holding the Islanders back this season. And, hopefully, if NHL play does resume, the Islanders will finally be rested and healthy again. Although Pelech is out for the rest of the season, both Cizikas and Boychuk should be back and ready for the final push to get the Islanders back into the playoffs.

Ethan Halle

Ethan is an Economics Major at the University of Florida looking to pursue a double major in Sports Management with a minor in political science.