Barzal Off Skates Two Weeks for Islanders

New York Islanders forward Mathew Barzal is not expected to skate for roughly the next two weeks after aggravating a previous injury, the club said on the eve of training camp. ESPN and the Associated Press carried the same overnight update: Barzal is working to get healthy, camp opens Thursday under Peter DeBoer, and the regular-season opener at Toronto on Sept. 30 is already under pressure because of the shortened camp calendar around the new 84-game schedule.

Barzal, 29, is New York's highest-paid forward and led the Islanders with 72 points last season while playing 81 of 82 games. Injuries limited him to 30 games in 2024-25, so any early-camp setback hits the fan base where it already hurts. DeBoer has pointed to Barzal as part of the leadership group around new captain Bo Horvat. That voice is quieter until he is back on blades and earning power-play reps again.

Why two weeks matters now

Missing two weeks of skating with the opener only about two weeks away is not a quiet maintenance day. It is a race against the calendar. The Islanders said Barzal is actively working to get back to full health and that nobody is more committed to getting his body right. They did not invent a firm return date beyond the off-skates window, and fans should not invent one either.

Fantasy hockey drafts that locked Barzal as a top Islanders scorer now need a contingency for the first stretch of the season. Streaming depth wings and watching line combinations without him is the boring correct move until he is cleared to skate in a full practice. A 72-point pace does not punch a camp badge by itself when soft tissue flares before the first skate.

Camp without the leading scorer

Thursday's first sessions start without Barzal in the rotation. Horvat's line chemistry and power-play looks will be built around whoever earns the reps in those early groups. Islanders fans tracking camp reports should treat every Barzal update as provisional until he logs a real practice, not a skate-around photo from the hallway. Sept. 30 in Toronto is the first hard deadline on the board, and a compressed camp leaves less room to catch up.

New York still has Horvat, the rest of the top six, and a coaching staff that wants camp to stay on schedule. Two weeks off skates puts the opener squarely in the conversation. That is the Islanders' biggest camp story until Barzal is back on the ice for a full day.