Oliver Wahlstrom working his way back, battling for spot on Islanders' roster
Oliver Wahlstrom of the Islanders skates against the Devils at UBS Arena on Friday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Oliver Wahlstrom likely will have a spot on the Islanders’ opening-night roster. He’ll find out by Monday at 5 p.m., when the 23-player list must be submitted to the NHL.
The real question is whether the right wing, still working his way back from a season-ending knee injury on Dec. 27, will be in the lineup when the Islanders face the Sabres on Saturday night at UBS Arena.
“He’s coming off a long layoff,” coach Lane Lambert said. “He’s getting up to game speed. He’s getting situations that he can play in. To me, it looks like he’s still trying to find his way a little bit from a speed standpoint.”
Wahlstrom played in four of the Islanders’ six preseason games and had one assist. His best outing came in Friday night’s 3-0 loss to the Devils as he took three shots in 13:33, skating with Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Brock Nelson and getting time on the second power-play unit. He was on ice for two of the Devils’ goals, including defenseman Simon Nemec’s shorthanded tally.
“I’m just trying to rehab my knee right now,” said Wahlstrom, who had seven goals and nine assists in 35 games last season before getting injured. “Get back to where I was. That’s the most important thing. I can’t control all that type of [roster] stuff. I’ve just got to keep rehabbing and getting better.”
Wahlstrom agreed to a one-year, $874,125 deal as a restricted free agent without arbitration rights in what amounts to a prove-it contract.
The Islanders, currently with 24 players, did not place anybody on waivers on Sunday for the purpose of being reassigned to their AHL affiliate in Bridgeport. Wahlstrom probably is battling Simon Holmstrom, former Ranger Julien Gauthier and Ross Johnston for playing time, and only Holmstrom is waiver-exempt.
But both Hudson Fasching and Pierre Engvall are day-to-day for maintenance, so the Islanders could get to the 23-man limit by placing one on injured reserve to start the season.
Or could Wahlstrom be placed on IR to give his knee more time to recover?
“It’s not too bad,” he said when asked if there are things on the ice he needs to relearn as he rehabs his knee. “Some timing and stuff can come back a little better. But it’s been good.”
Lambert may have hinted at the Islanders’ roster plans after Saturday night’s game when he was asked if Wahlstrom will need regular-season games to get back closer to 100%.
“It’s solved in a couple of different ways,” Lambert said. “We have a week of good practice and he has to continue to solve that. And when he gets his opportunity, we have to see him at game speed.”
Notes & quotes: The Senators released former Islander Josh Bailey from his professional tryout offer on Sunday. He again is an unrestricted free agent after being traded to Chicago in the offseason and bought out of the final season of his six-year, $30 million deal.
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.
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