Bo Horvat misses practice; unclear if he will start for Islanders Tuesday night

The good news is that Adam Pelech practiced. The bad news is that Bo Horvat did not.

Win some, lose some. Such is life.

The Islanders did not have their top-line center on the ice for Monday morning’s practice at Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow,  and it is unclear if Horvat will play Tuesday night against the Minnesota Wild at UBS Arena.

“We don’t know until tomorrow,” Islanders coach Lane Lambert said when asked if Horvat would be able to dress against the Wild. 

Horvat blocked a shot from Carolina’s Brady Skjei midway through the third period of the Islanders’ 4-3 overtime loss to the Hurricanes on Saturday. Hemissed a couple shifts but did return to the game. 

If Horvat cannot play, Mathew Barzal will likely slot in as the top-line center and Oliver Wahlstrom will be his right wing, as they were during the nearly one-hour practice.

For Barzal, potentially moving back to center is a return to his natural position.

“I know if one of the [other centers] get hurt, I might have to fill it,” said Barzal, who normally serves as the right wing on the top line. “So I felt [good].”

While a possible move back to the middle is something akin to a return to normalcy for Barzal, drawing back into the lineup — and in a top-six position, no less — is an opportunity for Wahlstrom.

The 11th overall pick in the 2018 draft has played in five of the Islanders’ 10 games this season, as Lambert has struggled to find a right wing for Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s line. 

Wahlstrom has not recorded a point in his five games, and has just seven shots on goal.  

“Get his shot off,” Lambert said, in response to a question about what he wanted and needed to see from Wahlstrom. “We need some production and be solid defensively.” 

Which is where Pelech factors in. 

The shutdown defenseman missed Saturday’s loss to the Hurricanes with a lower-body injury suffered in Thursday's 3-0 win over the Capitals in Washington.

Pelech was a full participant in practice, but Lambert was unsure of his status for Tuesday night.

“I thought he was OK,” Lambert said. “Again, I think…we’ll see after practice.”

Not that there’s ever an optimal time for a team to have key players suffer injuries, but this is a particularly suboptimal time for the Islanders to not have Horvat and Pelech available.

The Islanders have dropped two of their last three games, with both losses coming on home ice to Detroit (Oct. 30) and Carolina by identical 4-3 scores and in overtime sessions. In those games, the Islanders blew 2-0 and 3-0 leads. Their opponents also had more attempts (73-70 by the Red Wings and 100-38 by the Hurricanes).

Notes & quotes: Defenseman Scott Mayfield also did not practice, but Lambert said the veteran was given a maintenance day … Lambert declined to comment on the NHL fining Barzal $5,000 for high-sticking Carolina defenseman Tony DeAngelo in the second period of Saturday night’s loss. Barzal was penalized on the play, and the league announced Sunday that he had been fined. “The league makes the decision,” Lambert said. “And I don’t have any comments on it.”