Patrick Roy tells Pierre Engvall he can control his future with Isles
Islanders left wing Pierre Engvall sets before a face-off against Chicago in the second period of an NHL game at UBS Arena on Thursday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
RALEIGH, N.C. – Patrick Roy delivered a carpe diem message to twice-waived forward Pierre Engvall, whose current tenure with the Islanders may necessarily end as soon as injured top-liner Anthony Duclair or goalie Semyon Varlamov are ready to play.
“I said to him the other day, ‘Pierre, it’s never too late,’” the coach said before the Islanders faced the Hurricanes on Tuesday night at Lenovo Center. “‘Seize the moment and go out there and take advantage of it.”’
Engvall, in the second season of a seven-year, $21 million deal, was in the lineup against the Hurricanes on Brock Nelson’s second line with Kyle Palmieri after playing a strong 12:15 with an assist in Sunday’s 5-3 loss in Chicago that opened this three-game road trip. Engvall cleared waivers on Saturday, making him eligible for a return trip to the Islanders’ AHL affiliate in Bridgeport, where he started the season following a sluggish training camp performance.
He was recalled when Duclair was placed on long-term injured reserve after he got hurt on Oct. 19. But with Mathew Barzal coming off LTIR on Sunday and Duclair on the cusp of being ready – Roy confirmed he has been medically cleared and it’s just a matter of when he says he can play – the Islanders will have to shed salary to remain under the $88 million salary cap.
“It is what it is and I’m just trying to go out and do my best,” Engvall told Newsday. “I’m human so, obviously, it wasn’t nice to be on waivers. You only control what you can control and I’m just trying to do the best I can.”
Engvall acknowledged he and his agent, Claude Lemieux, have discussed the situation with Islanders president/general manager Lou Lamoriello.
Lamoriello signed Engvall to the surprisingly lengthy extension after acquiring him from the Maple Leafs as a pending unrestricted free agent. Lamoriello was also the Maple Leafs former GM.
“Yeah, we spoke,” Engvall said. “That’s between me and Lou. I think he’s been supportive of me. He’s been talking to me. I think he believes in me.”
Roy has consistently said he wants Engvall to be more aggressive in attacking the net. There are games when the lanky Swede has used his impressive skating speed in the way Roy wants, such as Sunday in Chicago and when he put together a career-high, three-game goal-scoring streak from Nov. 14-19 in Vancouver, Seattle and Calgary.
Other times, though, Engvall has seemed content to play out on the walls.
“I thought he had a great game against Chicago,” Roy said. “Sometimes, you need this. He’s a great person. He’s a good teammate. But, sometimes, your expectations are higher than what the player does. You want to do something that will create the spark in him. Hopefully, that could happen to Pierre because he’s a player that we need.”
Engvall skated on Kyle MacLean’s left wing in Chicago with Simon Holmstrom before Roy altered his lines against the Hurricanes.
Teammates have appreciated the way Engvall has handled being placed on waivers again and, generally, how he’s handled his up-and-down season overall.
“It’s mentally challenging, for sure,” Fasching said. “I give him a lot of credit. He’s put on a good face and it seems like he’s handling it as well as he can. It’s difficult. You’re trying to maintain your confidence amidst all of that and a lot of it is out of your control. I think he’s controlling what he can control and that’s all he can do.”
Notes & quotes: Goalie Ilya Sorokin started his ninth straight game as Varlamov (lower body/injured reserve) remained unavailable…Nelson played in his 873rd game, moving past Clark Gillies for fifth on the Islanders’ all-time list…Duclair (lower body/long-term injured reserve) again participated with the team in the morning skate but missed his 28th game.…Bo Horvat (lower body) was a game-time decision after being sidelined Sunday…Defensemen Isaiah George and Grant Hutton remained healthy scratches. George, a rookie, said watching the game from the press box was another way to learn. “You get a different perspective,” said George, out of the lineup for the second straight game. “Up top, the game moves a lot slower and you can see how everything is broken down, all your options.”
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
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