It was as fitting a welcome back as any for Casey Cizikas.
During a rush drill, according to Newsday’s Andrew Gross, Cizikas went hard into the post and knocked the net off the hinges. It prompted head coach Barry Trotz to yell “welcome back.”
Tuesday’s practice was the first time Cizikas skated since Oct. 8. He had been sidelined by a lower-body injury and had been placed on injured reserve on Oct. 14. Cizikas has appeared in only three games so far this season.
His appearance on Tuesday was a good sign, but there is no timetable for Cizikas’ return just yet.
Look who was back on the ice today!!
👋 @zeeker11! pic.twitter.com/IXlJ2E1GpH— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) October 22, 2019
“He skated pretty well,” Trotz said, according to the team website. “I don’t have any timeframe for him right now, but we’ll see how he is tomorrow. That was a big load for him to handle. He’s been doing some skating, but that was a big load and we’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”
The Islanders are in the middle of an extended break without any games. They last played on Saturday in Columbus again and aren’t back in action until Thursday when they host the Arizona Coyotes.
And while Cizikas was back on the ice at Northwell Health Ice Center, two Islanders were still missing. Tom Kuhnhackl took another maintenance day and Leo Komarov was out again due to illness.
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