PHILADELPHIA — What looked like an added piece of misery to an already terrible day for the Islanders ended up being a false alarm.
Pierre Engvall exited Saturday’s 4-3 shootout loss to the Flyers with 3:04 left in regulation after his left knee buckled in an apparent non-contact injury, but coach Patrick Roy said after the game there was nothing to worry about.
Engvall, indeed, returned to the bench for overtime (though he did not get in the game) and was in the dressing room afterward.
So for now, the Islanders can breathe easy after what initially looked like it could be a catastrophic injury.
Engvall was, in fact, one of their better players Saturday, tying a team-high six shots on goal and continuing what’s been a solid month since being put on a line with Casey Cizikas and Hudson Fasching.
With his future as an Islander having been in question since failing to make the team out of training camp, Engvall is one of the players who still has something to prove over the season’s last three games after the team was officially eliminated from playoff contention Saturday.
The Islanders need to make a decision on whether to buy out the winger, who still has five years left on his contract at $3 million per year after this one.
If the Islanders buy out Engvall, they would be on the hook for a $1 million cap hit from next season through 2034-35, creating $2 million in savings for the first five of those seasons.
The Swede has 15 points in 58 games this season, with eight goals and seven assists.
Goaltender Marcus Högberg recovered well from a horror-show performance two nights earlier against the Rangers, stopping 19 of 22 shots in regulation and overtime, then four of five in the shootout.
“Marcus gave us a chance to win in overtime,” Roy said. “And we couldn’t score that goal that would win the game for us.”
Roy declined to reflect on the season after the Islanders were eliminated Saturday, saying he would do so after it ends.
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