Ryan Pulock will miss 4-6 weeks with a lower-body injury

Things are going from bad to worse for the New York Islanders.

New York is in the midst of a four-game losing streak and they’ll now be without one of their top defenders for an extended period of time.

The team announced on Wednesday that Ryan Pulock will miss four-to-six weeks with a lower-body injury…

Pulock blocked a shot in the second period of the Islanders’ 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday. He played just 2:28 in the third period and then sat out for New York’s 5-1 loss to the Florida Panthers the following night.

Pulock is tied for the team lead on the Islanders in terms of time on ice per game alongside defensive partner Adam Pelech. Defensive defenseman Scott Mayfield was moved up to the top pairing with Pelech in Pulock’s absence on Tuesday and it’s expected that Sebastian Aho will also take on a larger role on the team’s blueline.

The Islanders are off to a 5-6-2 start and sit eighth in the Metropolitan Division. The team will play its first game of the 2021-22 season and the first-ever game at UBS Arena on Saturday against the Calgary Flames.