George Makes Season Debut for the Islanders: “It’s Where You Want to Be”

Isaiah George had to wait a while between his 33^rd and 34^th NHL games, but he made his season debut for the New York Islanders on Saturday.

“It’s always great to be up here, this is where you want to be,” George said after skating 13:56 TOI and recording one blocked shot on a pairing with Adam Boqvist. “Obviously had some moments where you wish you had better shifts ,but I felt comfortable out there getting back into the groove of things. I felt like I was handling the puck and seeing the ice really well.”

George was recalled from the Bridgeport Islanders in light of an upper-body injury to Ryan Pulock, who is listed as day-to-day. George, who brings a smooth skating skillset and a solid defensive game, is looking to build off of last season’s solid showing with the Isles, where he put up five points (1G, 4A) along with 34 blocks and 14 hits.

"We're excited to see George," Head Coach Patrick Roy said. "He's been playing really well. Unfortunately for him, every time we needed a call-up, he was hurt or sick. We're excited to have him up here right now. We love our young guys, we trust them, it's a good opportunity for him. He played so well last year."

The Islanders’ blue line has needed reinforcements this season, mainly because of a season-ending injury to Alexander Romanov in November. The Islanders have called up Marshall Warren, Travis Mitchell and Cole McWard to fill that hole. Though George has the most NHL experience with 33 games under his belt, he missed 15 games in Bridgeport due to injuries and the timing didn’t line up for an Isles recall.

George called it a “tough situation”, but he kept working toward his chance for a second stint at the NHL level.

“It was just a tough start but that’s the way it is sometimes, it’s out of your control,” George said. “So, I’m just happy with the way I stuck with it, I didn’t let it stop me from coming to the rink every day and working to get back and playing good hockey, and I feel like I did a good job of that in the last couple weeks here.”

George used that time in the American Hockey League (AHL) to hone his skills and work on those finer details, learning as much as he can from new Bridgeport Head Coach Rocky Thompson.

“He’s doing a great job, putting us in great positions to win games,” George said. “He’s big on the details of things. That has definitely helped my game, little stick details and positioning details.”

Through 24 games in Bridgeport this season, George recorded 10 points (2G, 8A) along with a plus-five rating. Now he’ll jump onto a moving train and help the Isles, which can be challenging.

“Obviously when you’re playing somewhere else, you get used to the guys you’re playing with and the systems, the little things.,” George said. “And then when you come to a new team mid-swing, it’s like catching up on those little details and getting used to playing with guys. The NHL is a faster, harder league. So just getting re-acclimated to that too.”

His teammates are excited to see him back at the NHL level and had a positive assessment of George’s season debut on Saturday.

“I thought he was really good,” Bo Horvat said. “Jumping in at this part of the season, it’s not easy, especially with the injuries he’s dealt with too. I thought he looked good tonight and he’ll continue to look better.”

George has been familiar with the Islanders locker room for quite a while – he’s built friendships with the guys through his four training camps on Long Island and his 33 games last year. He was happy to be back on Saturday for a chance to stick around again.

“It’s awesome, they were great to me last year and in camp this year too,” George said. “It’s great to see the guys again. All smiles when I came up here this morning.”