When the Islanders reported Sunday for their training camp physicals, their top scorer and best player, Mathew Barzal, was not there. Barzal, a restricted free agent, remained unsigned as of late Sunday, and he won’t be on the ice Monday when the team holds its first practice of the season.
If you listen to Islanders coach Barry Trotz, though, and Barzal’s teammates, there’s nothing to worry about.
"It's nothing unusual for us,’’ Trotz, with a straight face, said of Barzal’s absence on Sunday’s Zoom call with local media. "If we're missing a person here, that's part of NHL hockey and the world today.