The Islanders TOUGH DECISION With Cal Ritchie | New York Islanders News

The Islanders TOUGH DECISION With Cal Ritchie | New York Islanders News

Looking at the wings on that fourth line, it’s Cyclova. Which one do you pull? So you could play Kellen Richie. Well, both of those guys are wingers, right? So could you make the case that he pulls? You could certainly make the case. Absolutely. We’ve seen him through preseason and we believe he hasn’t been playing well. And like the underlying numbers hold that Case Zikas, at least according to what I found online, is one of the worst players, one of the worst centers in the preseason. You got Hunter Macau, Luca Penelli, and then Case Zikas had the worst um I think that’s expected goals out there. Sorry, game score, the worst game score, third worst game score for centers through the entire preseason of all of for all teams. It’s not playing well, man. So there’s no justification there if it’s like, well, I guess we got to play the kid over Casey, man. And he had his worst year maybe of his career, honestly, this this past year. 17 points in 82 games. Uh only seven goals. You know, you go to the two years prior, he had 23 points and 21 points and was playing, you know, nearly 14 minutes a night. ice time goes down to 13 minutes, which is still a lot for, you know, a fourthline center, but you know, minus three, 51 penalties, only the seven goals. He’s, you know, unfortunately, this is what happens when, you know, depth players get into their mid-30s. The falloff can be quick. That’s exactly right. He’s 34 years old. I I forget when his birthday is. I feel like he just turned 34. Or am I wrong? No, honestly, not really. In February, he turned 34. So he’ll be 35 this year. Yeah, I say that as ancient like Bill and I are both like my bones hurt here and then the 35year-old is old. Um but he is for NHL standards. So yeah, like if Richie steps in that probably means that um Caseas has to step back out and that would be certainly a blow to him, right? Like yeah, you remember from what what Cal was talking about on the was it the Camman Strick Strickland podcast he’s saying like our name our names both Matt Martin are all three Matt Martin Cal Clutterbuck and Case Zikas were just kind of permanent markered almost there and then they hadn’t moved the names at all and that was like that for years and at this point it’s not only we’re we might not sure where we’re putting you in is we’re not putting you in at all. That’s the thing, right? Like two of the three are gone. Cal was the first one to go, then Matt Martin, and now Casey’s the lone survivor here, right? And you know, he’s the youngest of the bunch. He’s the center, and honestly was probably the best all-around player of the three, but the, you know, different style on that fourth line. Like just look at who the projected wingers are right now in Dclaren Siplov. Not anywhere close to Matt Martin or or Cal Clutterbuck in in play style. If he comes out of the gate slow, he didn’t look good in the preseason. He wasn’t great last year. How how long is the leash, I guess, is my my question that that I have for Casey Zikas. I don’t think it’s very long. And it’s not to say that he needs to be good because the team depends on it. It doesn’t like if the team sucks. I don’t care. Uh that’s totally fine. It just you’re trying not to suck ideally. And if you think you got someone who’s better than Case Zeke is then and you can play him then then you do that. It just if we suck and we have no other alternatives and whatever we suck. Um but but I I think the leash is is pretty short. It is longer now because you got a guy who who should be taking his spot who’s out. Um, but once Callum Richie is good to go, maybe you give him another two week like conditioning stint in in the minors in the AHL just to get him up to speed type of thing and then you you bring him up, which would be totally fine because he wouldn’t be playing fourthline minutes there at the AHL level. Uh, and then you give Casey a little bit longer to figure it out. But I I do like the the point that uh that Burmis made in the Discord when when I posted that picture of of Case Ziggus being having like the third worst game score for centers. It’s like he’s a vet. Wouldn’t be shocked if he was just coasting getting himself into shape, which is true. I said the same thing myself during one of our previous podcasts talking about the preseason going like I think it was we were talking about Matthew Barzal. It’s entirely possible that he’s not going all out balls to the wall for the preseason because it’s preseason. But yeah, you got a guy who’s chomping at the bits to take your spot, you kind of gotta give it, man. That’s what that’s what I mean. It feels like there’s more pressure now on guys like Sikas and Pujo who he talked about, you know, adnauseium this off season with, you know, when when are we going to see Kyle Richie and PJO might be the the guy out, but honestly, and people started to say this a few weeks ago, it might make more sense for Sikis in the short term, but even that wouldn’t necessarily stop them from trading Pou at the deadline if they got a good um offer for him, but it’s I don’t know. I just think it’s going to be really interesting to see how the Islanders play this. They they don’t have to make a decision right now because of the Cal Richie injury. But it does make things a little bit more interesting a couple weeks from now when when he’s healthy and then okay, what do you do? Do you send him down to the miners? Is I know it’s only four games, but does you know Sikas is he only playing nine minutes a night? Doesn’t really look very good. Like what’s what’s going to happen here in the first week or two? Yeah, because remember last year they had to resign Matt Martin to figure out their fourth line. Like what are we going to do here if the fourth line sucks again? So I think four games is is enough. Even if it sucks, you just wait it out and you hope that Callum Richie comes back sooner rather than later. He’s young, so the bounceback ability from an injury is a little bit higher, specifically for something that isn’t that super serious as it seems to be. So maybe he slots right back in and you’re like, let’s give it a shot. Let’s see how how it works. Uh and then you skip like the twoe conditioning stint that I brought up. But if it’s going re decently well with with Sikas in there, then he’s giving himself a little bit more for runway there and you can have Callum Richie start in the in the AHL and and then bring him up once he does the thing at the AHL level we all expect him to do. Yeah, I wouldn’t be surprised if they go the conservative approach with it. Um but I do think you can make the argument against doing that. I I’m just saying, yeah, I wouldn’t be I wouldn’t be surprised if they went that route. That just seems like my the feeling that I have. But if you’re gonna be a Are you going to be a team that’s in a transition year, right? Yes. Do I want to go through that uh transition with Casey Zikas and JG Pacio or do I want to find a spot for, you know, the the 20-year-old with upside in the lineup? I would prefer to find the spot for the 20-year-old, you know, in the lineup somewhere.

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