Islanders goalie Jaroslav Halak makes season debut
NEW YORK (AP) Islanders goalie Jaroslav Halak made his season debut Saturday night against the unbeaten San Jose Sharks.
Halak missed the first four games due to an undisclosed upper body injury, with the Islanders going 2-1-1 in his absence. Backup Thomas Greiss was 2-0-1 with a 2.64 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage.
The Western Conference-leading Sharks came at 4-0-0, one of two unbeaten teams in the league.
Halak, 38-17-4 with six shutouts and a 2.43 goals-against average last season in his first year with the Islanders, left New York's preseason opener on Sept. 21 after two periods and had not played in a game since.
Defenseman Thomas Hickey also made his season debut. He was injured in a preseason game on Sept. 28 against Washington and was expected to miss up to four weeks.
Forward Eric Boulton was placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury.
