And then there were 24.
The Islanders waited longer than most to cut their training camp roster down, but finally did so ahead of their final preseason game on Friday, a 3-0 loss to the Devils at UBS Arena.
Forwards William Dufour, Ruslan Iskhakov, Eetu Liukas, Kyle MacLean, Matt Maggio and Reece Newkirk were sent to Bridgeport, along with defensemen Aidan Fulp and Travis Mitchell.
Likewise, forwards Arnaud Durandeau, Otto Koivula, Karson Kuhlman, and Brian Pinho were put on waivers for the purpose of being sent down, as were defensemen Grant Hutton, Dennis Cholowski, Robin Sabo, and Paul LaDue along with goaltenders Ken Appleby and Jakub Skarek.
The only surprise in that bundle of moves regards Calle Odelius, whose original plan was to return to Djugardens IF to play out his contract in the Swedish Allsvenskan.
Moving the 2022 second-round pick to the AHL now represents a step forward in the development of the 19-year-old, who featured in just one preseason game.
It is unlikely that any of the players who were waived will be claimed, but not impossible.
Durandeau and Salo, two relatively young players who have not turned into NHLers in the Islanders system, are the most intriguing names there.
The Islanders need to cut one additional player and get to a 23-man roster before 5 p.m. on Monday, but Friday’s moves solidify a dynamic that has been evident since the start of camp, with the last roster spot being a race mainly between Simon Holmstrom and Ross Johnston.
Oliver Wahlstrom, who is on a one-year prove-it deal coming off a knee injury, could not be considered 100 percent safe going into Friday’s game, but it would be a surprise if he was not on the team.
Holmstrom would not require waivers to be sent down, but Johnston carries a bigger cap hit ($1.1 million) and it’s unlikely he would be picked up off waivers.
“I think it’s important [to keep everyone in the organization],” coach Lane Lambert said before Friday’s loss. “But at the same time, you’re going to do what’s right for the hockey club and what’s right for the opening day roster.”
Holmstrom seemingly has more of a chance to be in the everyday lineup than Johnston, and has spent most of the preseason — including Friday — on the top line with Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat.
The Islanders changed things up slightly against the Devils by putting Holmstrom on Horvat’s right, which Lambert said was experimental.
The only other player who has gotten reps with Barzal and Horvat during the preseason is Anders Lee.
The Islanders played something close to an NHL lineup against the Devils, but Johnston — along with Pierre Engvall and Hudson Fasching — did not play.
Engvall and Fasching were both called day-to-day for maintenance, though Lambert said neither is a concern for opening night. Their absences, though, did prevent the Islanders from making Friday a complete dress rehearsal.
Julien Gauthier played in Engvall’s usual spot to Brock Nelson’s left, while Wahlstrom played to Jean-Gabriel Pageau’s right in a spot that Fasching is currently the favorite to occupy.
Wahlstrom is still in the fight for playing time, but the 3-0 loss against what amounted to a junior varsity Devils team probably did not do much good for anyone looking to make a good impression.
If anything, it gave the Islanders a significant amount of homework over the next week before they play a competitive game.
Lucky for them, there is over a week before the season starts next Saturday against the Sabres.
“Obviously, first game of the season’s coming up,” Wahlstrom said. “So we got to dial in here and we know what we can do best and work with that.”
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