Islanders give defenseman Isaiah George second chance
The Islanders' Isaiah George during the first day of training camp on Sep. 18, 2025 in East Meadow. Credit: Dawn McCormick
Isaiah George finally is getting his second chance with the Islanders.
The 21-year-old defenseman, who played 33 NHL games last season, was recalled from the Islanders’ AHL affiliate in Bridgeport and paired with Adam Boqvist for Saturday afternoon’s 5-0 loss to the Sabres at UBS Arena.
Ryan Pulock (upper body), who missed a game for the first time this season, is day-to-day and Alexander Romanov (right shoulder) was lost for the regular season on Nov. 18. Defenseman Cole McWard, an AHL All-Star, was returned to Bridgeport after being a healthy scratch the previous six games.
“It’s a big opportunity,” said George, who logged 13:56 with one blocked shot. “I just want to make the most of it.”
George had a goal and four assists for the Islanders last season and suffered a concussion against the Maple Leafs on Jan. 2, 2025.
Injuries have limited him to 24 AHL games. He returned on Jan. 9 after missing five games with a lower-body issue.
“It was awesome coming back [to the NHL],” George said. “I dealt with some adversity to start the year. That was unfortunate, but I was proud of the way I kept working through it.”
“I was pleased with his game,” coach Patrick Roy said. “I thought he was playing with confidence and he was skating well.”
Notes & quotes: The Islanders switched their team flight to Philadelphia for Monday’s game against the Flyers to Saturday night instead of Sunday afternoon to avoid the expected winter storm . . . Forwards Marc Gatcomb and Max Tsyplakov were the healthy scratches . . Sabres goalie Alex Lyon recorded his second shutout in six career starts against the Islanders and earned his ninth straight victory. That matched original Islander Gerry Desjardins for the Sabres’ franchise record set from Dec. 11-29, 1976.
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
More Islanders
