Bolduc scores 1st NHL goal

Lane Lambert knew by the time he spoke to reporters before Tuesday’s game that Samuel Bolduc would be in the lineup. But when asked about the 22-year-old defenseman, who had played four games with the Islanders but looked likely to be a healthy scratch Tuesday, the coach kept his poker face.

“I like his size, I like his reach, I like his poise with the puck,” Lambert said. “Certainly as we saw and witnessed, when he gets into people, the play gets pretty much ended there. There’s a lot there.”

Lambert then spoke of the learning opportunity that comes with being here, “and then with practicing and watching the games” if a call-up isn’t in the lineup. Only Bolduc wasn’t watching and learning during Tuesday’s 4-0 result against the Kraken. He drew into the lineup with Alexander Romanov missing the match for personal reasons, and made an immediate impact, scoring his first NHL goal 7:59 into the game with a wrist shot that beat Martin Jones from the left point.

That goal opened the floodgates for the Islanders, who dominated the game from there on out in an eventual blowout win.

“First I was a little bit surprised,” Bolduc said. “After that, something I’ll never forget.”

Bolduc finished the game having skated 18:29, blocking three shots and displaying the same poise that made him stand out over his first four games. He did that after finding out for certain that he was playing just an hour beforehand, though Lambert told him to be ready earlier in the day. For a player who made the AHL All-Star Game this year, it’s been a compelling audition to get into the top-six.

The reasons for Romanov’s absence are unknown, though his wife, Sofia, gave birth last week. Lambert, though, said postgame he’s not expected to miss an extended period of time. That means Bolduc would have to push someone out of the lineup to get in.

Oliver Wahlstrom, who is out indefinitely, was in the press box on Tuesday with crutches and a brace on his left knee.

“We’re not sure,” Lambert said, asked if Wahlstrom would miss the rest of the season.