The forward left New York's 6-2 loss at the Boston Bruins on Saturday at 6:05 of the first period after a hit from forward Craig Smith. Barzal returned to the ice during a stoppage at 7:28 to skate around but went back to the locker room before play resumed.
"It's clearly a big hole for us in certain areas, but what it means is other guys have to step up to the plate and create some abilities to contribute and make up for what we're missing with him," Islanders coach Lane Lambert said.
The Islanders (28-24-7) are one point ahead of the Florida Panthers for the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoff from the Eastern Conference and two points ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who have played four fewer games. New York defeated Pittsburgh 4-2 on Monday in its first game without Barzal.
"'Barzy's' a dynamic player, one that can change the projection of a game pretty quickly," Islanders captain Anders Lee said before the game. "The way he handles the puck and possesses it is a huge factor in our team success. So, having him out is a big loss for right now in the interim. We have to find a way to fill those shoes. We talk about it all the time, but it's going to be a tough one to fill. We can do it. We've got guys. Everyone step up, take a little bit more responsibility."
Barzal leads the Islanders with 37 assists and is second with 51 points in 58 games this season, behind forward Brock Nelson (57 points). He also leads New York with 19 power-play points (four goals, 15 assists), and the Islanders control 54.7 percent of all shot attempts at 5-on-5 when Barzal is on the ice.
New York is also without forwards Josh Bailey and Jean-Gabriel Pageau. Each is out with an upper-body injury.
The Islanders recalled forward Arnaud Durandeau from Bridgeport of the American Hockey League on an emergency basis. The 24-year-old made his NHL debut against the Penguins, getting four shots, two hits and one block in 14:09 of ice time.
Durandeau, a sixth-round pick (No. 165) in the 2017 NHL Draft, said prior to the game that it would be "a dream come true."
"I've been pretty hot lately," he said. "At the start of the year, wasn't scoring much, but just shooting the puck more and using my speed (now)."
