The New York Islanders hit the ice for practice on day 16 of training camp on Friday morning. See below for the lines news and notes.
RITCHIE, DROUIN MISS PRACTICE
Calum Ritchie will be out 1-2 weeks with a lower-body injury, the team announced on Friday morning. The center left Thursday's contest against Philly after the second period.
Jonathan Drouin (sick) missed his third consecutive skate.
ROY'S ASSESSMENT OF PRESEASON ACTION
The Islanders went 2-2-2 through six preseason games. Head Coach Patrick Roy thought Thursday's 4-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers was a high note to end on, noting the tream's strong forecheck, tracking and defensive zone coverage.
"The objective is to build for our first game of the season," Roy said. "Last night was a good way to play the game, I don't care about the win or the loss but the way we played. That tells me we're [headed] in the right direction."
Roy said that the goal in the next six days ahead of Thursday's season opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins, he wants his group to continue to work on special teams and overall team structure.
"The main thing is we want to be connected on the ice as a unit of five," Roy said. "That's going to be something we continue to hammer home."
