Islanders escape trouble as Kashawn Aitcheson narrowly avoids a serious injury

Islanders Avoid Disaster After Injury Scare

The Islanders narrowly escaped a serious situation during their preseason game on Sunday when their first-round pick had to leave the ice following a late hit from Noah Julsen in the second period.

Julsen, making a decisive move, collided with Kashawn Aitcheson, who had his head down while playing the puck. It seemed like the impact caused Aitcheson to hold his knees together while he went down, creating a tense moment for the Islanders’ defense.

Immediately, Aitcheson signaled to the trainer and was helped off the ice without putting weight on his left foot, as Tony Dengero stepped in for him.

Though Aitcheson didn’t return to the game, coach Patrick Roy reassured everyone later that the injury wasn’t serious. “He’s fine,” Roy mentioned after a tight 3-2 shootout loss to the Flyers. “It’s just a lower body issue. He’ll be okay.”

Dengero, who had been playing alongside Aitcheson, seemed to think the hit was, well, pretty spectacular.

“The puck was starting to slow down. He had a great idea of what was happening,” he said. “When Julsen came in, it was a good hit—nothing too worrisome. We just need to look out for each other.”

Roy commented that he felt the hit was a bit reckless but acknowledged it was a tough call to make in real-time.

Since it was just a preseason game without the usual production, there was only one replay angle available, making it hard to get a clear picture of what happened.

Aitcheson, while not as hyped as the top draft pick Matthew Schaefer, had drawn the attention of the Islanders when he was available at No. 17 in the draft. The 19-year-old, who played junior hockey with the OHL Barry Colts, was even compared to Jacob Trouba because of his talent for making big hits.

“I thought the kids played a really good game,” Dengero added, reflecting on the team’s effort.

The Islanders had a special teams focus during practices leading up to the game but ended up being scoreless during a power play that lasted 3:01.

“We thought our entry was good. We thought we controlled the puck,” Roy noted. “It’s a process, and time will tell.”

The roster featured a blend of about 50% NHL and 50% AHL players, with David Littic starting in goal, stopping 16 of 15 shots before Parker Gahagen took over.