LAS VEGAS — In the early morning hours out west on Thursday, Islanders defenseman Tony DeAngelo paid tribute on X to Larry Brooks after news broke of The Post hockey columnist’s death at age 75.
“Very sad to hear about the passing of Larry Brooks,” DeAngelo wrote. “Nobody did the job like him. His opinions were strong, but he was always willing to say them to your face & let you have your say back. [We] became closer over the years, talking frequently about hockey. Will miss those talks.”
DeAngelo amplified those thoughts in a conversation with The Post after the Islanders’ morning skate ahead of their 4-3 overtime victory over the Golden Knights.
“He was a tough critic for the game, but he also was a big advocate for the players and he was smart,” said DeAngelo, who was a 22-year-old Ranger when he first encountered Brooks in 2017. “He was up to date on everything. He knew about the CBA, he knew what the GMs were doing, he knew what the coaches were doing.
“My favorite thing, I just [liked his] honesty, how he just called it how he’d seen it,” DeAngelo continued. “And if you didn’t like it, you could tell him about it, and he could take it.”
The Islanders recalled D Travis Mitchell from AHL Bridgeport and put a non-roster designation on Scott Mayfield, whose wife, Emily, went into labor Wednesday with the couple’s first child.
Mitchell skated in warmups wearing No. 38 but did not play against the Golden Knights, with Adam Boqvist drawing in alongside Alexander Romanov.
F Max Shabanov wore a regular practice jersey for the morning skate after donning a non-contact red one during Wednesday’s practice. Shabanov (upper body) last played in a game on Oct. 21 vs. San Jose.
“Obviously, we’d like to see him in a practice with contact to see how he feels,” coach Patrick Roy said of a potential return for Shabanov.
“We’ll see how it goes, how it’s going to play out.”
Backup goalie David Rittich is slated to get the call Friday against the Mammoth in Salt Lake City.
The Islanders are 2-0 in the second game of back-to-backs this season.
Ilya Sorokin, who had 26 save, picked up the win in net against Vegas.
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