Islanders place veteran forward Casey Cizikas on IR

The New York Islanders announced Wednesday that they have placed forward Casey Cizikas on the injured reserve and recalled forward Kyle MacLean from their AHL affiliate in Bridgeport. 

The move with Cizikas is retroactive to Jan. 9, meaning that he can return anytime he is healthy enough to do so. He is currently listed as week-to-week with a lower-body injury so he may be out until closer to the All-Star break.

Cizikas has been enjoying one of his better offensive seasons this year with five goals and six assists in 39 games. However, his defensive work is his calling card, and it has not been quite as good as in previous seasons. 

Cizikas has long been one of the top defensive forwards in the NHL, but his overall play at five-on-five and the penalty kill has fallen off this year in comparison to previous seasons.

MacLean is the son of long-time New Jersey Devils forward John MacLean. He will join the Islanders from Bridgeport, where he has spent the past four seasons with the team. 

In 193 career AHL games, the 24-year-old has 29 goals and 49 assists and is -4. He has yet to dress in an NHL game, meaning that he could make his NHL debut in the coming days. This season with Bridgeport he has six goals and 13 assists in 36 games.