Thomas Hickey back in Isles' lineup

Thomas Hickey is in the lineup for Wednesday’s visit from the Jets, shaking off the bruised ankle he suffered blocking a shot on Saturday.

That’s good news for the Isles and their depleted defense corps, which could ill afford to lose another regular. Aaron Ness goes back in after sitting the last two games in place of Radek Martinek.

“It’s definitely fair to say we haven’t been at our best,” Hickey said of the defense. “I think if the whole team can pick up its play, we’ll come out looking a little better. In our zone it’s not just the two D, it’s all six guys and we all have to be better.”

As far as the injured, Lubomir Visnovsky and Brian Strait were both at the Coliseum on Wednesday morning. Visnovsky (concussion) said he’s feeling better, riding the bike every day and will see a neurologist next week to determine if he can take the next step to resume skating.

Strait (upper body) still hasn’t been able to do much except work out off the ice, so there’s still no timetable there.

Colin McDonald and Eric Boulton are the scratches among the forwards, with Brock Nelson taking McDonald’s spot on the fourth line with Matt Martin and Casey Cizikas.

Kevin Poulin makes his fourth consecutive start in goal, and it will be his seventh straight appearance. Evgeni Nabokov (groin) was also spotted at the Coliseum on Wednesday, as he is about 2-3 weeks away from returning.