Islanders Training Camp: Boychuk misses Day 2, will see doctor for upper body injury

Day 2 of Islanders training camp saw the return of the team’s head coach but the loss (at least temporarily) of a couple of trusted veterans.

In Jack Capuano’s first day back with the Islanders after Team USA’s elimination (or mercy killing) at the World Cup of Hockey, defenseman Johnny Boychuk sat out with what Capuano called a “nagging injury.” He’ll be evaluated by doctors before the team decides what to do next.

Via the official site:

"He's got an upper-body injury, that's all I can say about him right now," Capuano said. "It was more us wanting him to see a doctor here today and get re-evaluated to make sure it isn't anything serious and if it's not, I don't expect him to miss a lot of time, but again you don't know what's going to come out of the result."

In other words, better safe than sorry, especially during training camp for a guy with 463 career NHL games under his belt. Maybe there’s still some lingering discomfort from the separated shoulder he suffered last December. Boychuk had a very “off” last season in general, but he’s still expected to be one of the Islanders top four, so any time missed is going to affect the team in a big way.

Also missing on Saturday was Cal Clutterbuck, who left practice with a lower body injury. No word on what it could be right now but again, there’s time right now.

The Islanders’ first preseason game is Monday night against the Flyers at Barclays Center.