Now that Duclair is hurt, for a period that has only been described as “long term,” it is again Holmstrom who will get the first shot at a first-line role.

The Islanders have mostly used Holmstrom in the bottom six, but given him the occasional chance higher up the lineup and emphasized the 23-year-old’s offensive potential. It was, though, his defensive awareness that first allowed him to stick in an NHL lineup.