"The hope will be for him to play this week and have good results and hopefully join us shortly," Head Coach Barry Trotz said of Clutterbuck. "Clutter came to Lou and said I wouldn't mind going down and that says a lot about Clutter to try to get prepared to help us out. Some guys feel too big and they can't go down there, but he's preparing to help us. By doing that he's going to get some game action and come and join us if everything goes well."
Bellows was returned on loan after a seven-game stint with the Isles, recording three points (2G, 1A) over that span. Bellows was recalled by the Islanders on Feb. 3, recording an assist in his NHL debut on Feb. 4 and scoring his first two NHL goals on Feb. 6.
"He's opened our eyes to his development and where he's come from and he's done a good job," Trotz said of Bellows.
Koivula has played seven games for the Islanders this season, including his NHL debut on Nov. 16. Koivula has 22 points (9G, 13A) in 36 games this season with Bridgeport. Koivula can help the Islanders down the middle, as Casey Cizikas is out with a leg laceration and Derick Brassard's status is out for Friday's game after leaving Wednesday's game with an upper-body injury. Brassard did not participate in the team's morning skate and is considered day-to-day.
This is Ladd's second recall of the season, after being up with the Islanders from Dec. 21 to 27. Ladd has 14 points (11G, 3A) in 34 games with the Sound Tigers this season. He has not played since Feb. 1, as he's dealt with a nagging upper-body issue, but has continued to practice with the Sound Tigers. Trotz said Ladd brings some experience and offensive abilities to the Islanders.
"He brings experience, he's scored a lot of goals in this league, so we're looking at the experience factor jumping in there and he's good around the net," Trotz said of Ladd.
