Ross Johnston getting shot at showing own identity for Islanders 

Casey Cizikas’ eventual return from COVID-19 protocol could lead to Matt Martin also being reinserted into the Islanders’ lineup to reunite the team’s identity line.

Or not.

Because as much as the team’s nominal fourth line has struggled at times this season, there’s been some success with a reconfigured bottom trio. Zach Parise, normally a wing, is centering burly Ross Johnston and holdover Cal Clutterbuck.

Those three played together for a third straight game as the Islanders faced the Predators on Thursday night at UBS Arena, looking for their first back-to-back wins since Nov. 4-6 after Tuesday night’s 5-3 victory at Ottawa. Martin was again a scratch.

The trio first came together in Sunday night’s 3-2 home shootout loss to Chicago with Martin dealing with a nagging injury that coach Barry Trotz said he could play through.

"[Johnston] plays a similar role to Marty and Marty has been a little bit dinged up," Trotz said. "Johnner gets around the ice a little quicker. He spent a lot of time the last couple of years honing that part of his game. I felt, through the preseason, he did a really good job.

"But I felt it was Marty’s spot, putting Casey, Marty and Clutter back together as an identity line. They haven’t been as good this year. Marty missed all of training camp. Casey got a little bit banged up and got sick. We’ve missed that identity line. I felt that we needed a little more pop."

Cizikas practiced with the Islanders during Thursday’s morning skate for the first time since testing positive on Nov. 27.

It’s not that the new line has gotten a ton of ice time — Johnston logged 8:39 on Tuesday — as Trotz has freely blended his lines throughout the four-game point streak (1-0-3) the Islanders brought into Thursday. At times, Trotz double-shifted Mathew Barzal with the fourth line, or mixed-and-matched his wings.

The thing is, it has been working. Tuesday marked the most goals the Islanders have scored since a 6-2 win at Montreal on Nov. 4.

"Keeping things simple helps, getting my legs moving and just getting a feel for the game again," said Johnston, one of eight Islanders who tested positive for COVID-19 and whose only other previous game this season had been logging just 5:50 in a season-opening, 6-3, loss at Carolina on Oct. 14 with Martin still recovering from offseason ankle surgery.

"Zach has been great in the middle for us," Johnston added. "Whoever is first back in the [defensive] zone, I think we all have confidence in who can play low. And the [offensive] zone time we’ve had, we’ve been able to find one another. I know it’s not natural to him, but he looks right at home."

Parise, who signed a one-year, $750,000 deal after the Wild bought out the final four seasons of his 13-year, $98 million deal, had just four assists in his first 21 games. He was again denied his first goal of the season when he couldn’t convert a shorthanded breakaway in the second period at Ottawa.

"He doesn’t have a lot of production in terms of goal scoring, but you can’t ever question his effort," Trotz said. "He’d like to get his first for us, and he will. Because he goes to the hard areas and he wins his battles and he gets opportunities."

And Trotz said some of his bottom-six forwards can earn more playing time even as the Islanders return to full health.

"Yeah, absolutely," Trotz said. "When you have more cards to play, you’re going to play them. There’s guys in our top six that are pretty dry."

By Andrew Gross

andrew.gross@newsday.comAGrossNewsday

Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.