It was only a day before he broke his scoreless streak to begin the season that Kyle Palmieri was telling Pete DeBoer that he wasn’t comfortable about how he was taking part in.
And understandably so. Even coming off an ACL damage, Palmieri has a historical past of success in the NHL and was put on the Islanders’ prime line for a purpose.
And going into Tuesday evening, that prime line had yet to be on the ice for a 5-on-5 objective. More particularly, Palmieri had yet to look like himself.
That’s to be expected, to some diploma, as he offers with the aftereffects of an ACL tear that ended his 2025-26 season in late November. Of course, that doesn’t make it straightforward on Palmieri.
Kyle Palmieri and the crowd rejoice after he scored the go-ahead objective in the third interval of the Islanders’ 3-2 win over the Canucks on Oct. 13, 2026 at UBS Arena. Robert Sabo for New York Post
“We talked about that, everything he’s going through is normal,” DeBoer said. “The truth he’s not 25 makes this course of even a little bit harder but again, you saw it tonight.
“I saw signs of it last game, and I told him that. I thought last game was his best game. There was some really good signs that he was starting to get his timing back and do some of the things that he does well.”
A key piece of foresight, it turns out, as Palmieri scored for the first time in 11 months in Tuesday’s 3-2 win over the Canucks — then added the game-winning objective for good measure.
“It’s awesome to see,” Cal Ritchie instructed The Post. “Obviously you see how much he went through last year, that’s a hard rehab. You gotta put in a ton of work.”
Palmieri said Tuesday that the damage — and subsequent help before he limped off the ice — “replays in your head a lot.” Maybe his tip-in from Matt Kessel will, too.
It wasn’t his first recreation back. But it was the first time it actually felt like the Islanders had Kyle Palmieri back.
Of course, it doesn’t change that there will be days his knee is performing up. Palmieri has said more than once that much of his time now is spent managing his physique, and alluded to that again on Tuesday. Still, this evening was a step — and a large one.
“I knew it was gonna be hard coming back and finding a way to be an impact player,” Palmieri said. “That process is ongoing. Obviously it feels good to get on the board and get a win tonight, but for me, it’s staying focused on the next day and getting myself ready and staying healthy.”
Simon Holmstrom was dropped to the fourth line, with Ondrej Palat transferring up to the third line.
Matt Kessel was inserted into the lineup for Scott Mayfield, with Tony DeAngelo flipping back to his pure proper aspect.
Ilya Sorokin began his fifth recreation in six to open the season.
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