Islanders receive bad news on captain Anders Lee

New York Islanders fans got some very unfortunate news on Wednesday morning as general manager Lou Lamoriello announced that captain Anders Lee would miss the remainder of the 2020-21 season after suffering a torn ACL on March 11th against the New Jersey Devils. Lamoriello added that Lee's rehab won't take as long as some ACL injuries because his injury is strictly to the ACL and nothing else suffered damage. Lee will have surgery this week and is expected to return in time for the start of the 2021-22 campaign.

Lee was tangled up with Devils forward Pavel Zacha, and was slow to get up. He needed help to the locker room, and couldn't put any weight on his right leg.

The Edina, Minnesota native was enjoying a successful season to this point, recording 19 points (12 G, 7 A), 12 penalty minutes, and was a +11.

Lou Lamoriello: Lee undergoing surgery this week, will be ready for next season. Done for this one however. #Isles— Arthur Staple (@StapeAthletic) March 17, 2021

LL: Lee has a torn ACL. Rehab will not be as bad as some ACL injuries because nothing else is damaged besides the ACL. #Isles— Arthur Staple (@StapeAthletic) March 17, 2021

This news will likely make GM Lou Lamoriello very busy over the next few weeks leading up to the NHL's trade deadline on April 12th. The club is expected to be quite active in talks to bring in a top-six forward, with Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri, and Mikael Granlund among the players being discussed.

The Islanders currently sit second in the MassMutual East division with a record of 19-7-4 through 30 games this season. Prior to Tuesday's loss to the Washington Capitals, the Islanders were on an impressive nine-game winning streak, which skyrocketed them up the division standings.

Losing a player, and leader like Anders Lee is a massive blow to the Islanders. Given the fact Lamoriello is expected to be busy ahead of the deadline, it shows they're determined to do whatever it takes to make a deep playoff run this year, and succeed their finish last season which saw them go to the Eastern Conference Finals.

New York will be back in action on Thursday night against the Philadelphia Flyers.

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