With Konopka hurting, Islanders call up Sim
The Islanders recalled Jon Sim from Bridgeport of the AHL with fellow tough guy Zenon Konopka's availability for Wednesday's game in doubt. (Oct. 11, 2010) Credit: Jim McIsaac
Attempts at stifling a seven-game losing streak brought inevitable change to the Islanders upon their departure to California Tuesday for a three-game West Coast swing beginning in Anaheim Wednesday night.
Veteran scrapper Jon Sim was recalled from the team's Bridgeport affiliate. Forward Josh Bailey was back to his natural position at center after a stint on wing. Defenseman Jack Hillen was clean-shaven.
The last alteration had nothing to do with redirecting the fortunes of the team, now 4-8-2 after an encouraging 4-1-2 start. His wife, Hillen said, "got on me" about the beard he had been sporting.
Coach Scott Gordon said that Sim was a logical fill-in with Zenon Konopka's availabilty uncertain. Konopka stopped a shot with his foot in Saturday's loss to Philadelphia and didn't return to practice until Tuesday. Sim appeared in the team's first 11 games before he was sent down to Bridgeport, where he produced five goals in four games, including a hat trick a week ago.
Bailey, the Islanders' top draft choice in 2008, thrived as a winger part of last season and arguably was the team's most effective player before sustaining a hip flexor injury on Oct. 19. He was reinstalled at center during Monday's practice, and declared he was "happy to play anywhere they want me.
"Like anything, something you spend your whole life at, you're more used to it," Bailey said. "But being moved around can be a good thing. You don't want to get too comfortable."
Clearly, Gordon is looking for more comfort in terms of goal scoring, prompting the latest shuffle of lines, with Bailey between Blake Comeau and P.A. Parenteau, John Tavares centering for Matt Moulson and Michael Grabner, Frans Nielsen working with wings Matt Martin and Trent Hunter.
"There's more to it than just this combination or that," Gordon said. "You're trying to balance, do we put speed with a guy? Do we put skill with a guy? Do we put some strength with a guy, create room for him? Obviously we haven't found the combination yet."
After a fast start, "goals have dried up and we're just trying to find something that works," said Gordon, who noted that injuries to Bailey and Tavares and Trent Hunter didn't help. "When you don't have success and you're not scoring and lines aren't generating anything, you have to mix it up."
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