How's this for capping a day of Islanders fan ennui? On the heels of coming up empty on Trade Deadline Day -- when every fan hopes for the tooth fairy to drop by with undeserved gifts -- the Islanders also learn that Andrew MacDonald is out 4-6 weeks with a broken foot (aka "The Sutton") and oft-injured Trent Hunter returned from the Olympic break to promptly hurt his quad and "upper body," shelving himself for 1-2 weeks.
Tough break for MacDonald, who played so well in 38 games as an unexpected call-up for Radek Martinek (well, when you're next in line behind the injury-cursed Martinek, you should generally expect action) that he earned a four-year contract during the break. Naturally, this being our luck, he breaks his foot in his first game afterward.
The bright side, I guess, is recent AHL acquisition Dylan Reese now gets a look in Atlanta for his NHL debut. Reese has put up some points in the AHL, and his Bridgeport debut included a goal and an assist.
Now about that Rick DiPietro health update: It's ... indefinite.