New York Islanders forward Mathew Barzal walked out of Friday night’s warm-up game against the Flames in Calgary with a lower body injury.
At the beginning of the game, the “Isles” announced on Twitter that the 25-year-old’s state of health would be reassessed every day. Barzal, the team’s top scorer this season with 41 points in 40 games, showed no sign of injury in Thursday’s 4-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers.
The British Columbia native’s mysterious absence only worsens the islanders’ infirmary record. Kyle Palmieri, Adam Pelech, Oliver Wahlstrom and Simon Holmstrom have been sidelined for several days with various complaints.
The visitors were beaten 4-1 by the Flames, who took the lead thanks to goals from Milan Lucic, Blake Coleman, Nikita Zadorov and Nazem Kadri. Veteran Zach Parisé was the only player representing the Big Apple who could shake the ropes.
In his first game since December 17, goalkeeper Semyon Varlamov looked weak at times, getting beaten four times on 21 shots.