Mike Riley's recovery from heart surgery took the next step.
Riley, who recently traveled with the islanders and began practicing, has been officially cleared for contact as it is an important hurdle if he plays again by the end of the season.
The Islanders don't give any kind of timeline for the defender's return, but if he is cleared for return, they will need to mix the roster questions to Riley, but things seem to be moving in the right direction.
“From the moment he was injured in Buffalo until today, he's gone through a lot,” coach Patrick Roy said earlier this week. “It's nice to see him that he wants to continue and that he wants to come back. Many of us are a bit of mental issues, we probably don't think so.
“It's the beauty of our sport. I see it. [Kris] Pittsburgh Retan [who dealt with heart issues causing two strokes]I'm watching [Reilly]. They are passionate about the game and it's great to see it. ”
Following a huge hit from Buffalo's Jordan Greenway, Riley suffered a concussion on November 1st and hasn't played since.
He quickly recovered from the concussion, but the tests discovered a heart condition that required surgery.
Since mid-December, Riley has been on the ice regularly – usually before the rest of the team practiced – but he has not made any progress beyond that, not being allowed to contact him.
Hudson Fassing will remain in the lineup for Saturday's match against predators on the third line between Casey Ciszicus and Jean Gabriel Pago.
Pierre Engvall is pulled back to the fourth line, and Max Tsyplakov is set to be a healthy scratch.
“There's nothing I dislike about Shippy. I just want to go back to what he's doing so well,” Roy told reporters. “The level of competition around the net and stuff like that.”
Marcus Hogberg skates himself, but Roy said the backup netminder has not yet faced a shot when he recovers from a presumed hand injury.
Matt Balzal has not yet started skating after undergoing surgery before the four countries were destroyed.
