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Call an exorcist: Islanders goalie Kevin Poulin hurt in warmups, Mikko Koskinen gets surprise start

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The Islanders might want to considering calling in an exorcist at Nassau Coliseum. Before the start of tonight’s game, rookie goalie Kevin Poulin injured his leg during warmups in preparation for tonight’s game with Toronto. Poulin was simply skating in warmups but appeared to catch a rut in the ice and went down. With Poulin out of action, fellow rookie netminder Mikko Koskinen got the call to make his first career NHL start.

Poulin was getting the start tonight because Rick DiPietro is out with facial fractures and a swollen knee after his one-sided fight against Pittsburgh’s Brent Johnson. Nathan Lawson is also out of action for at least another week as he and Poulin are the other guys out of Bridgeport that get the call to be DiPietro’s backup. Koskinen is the fifth goalie to start a game for the Islanders this season joining DiPietro, Lawson, Poulin, and the departed Dwayne Roloson who now starts in Tampa Bay.

While many panned the Islanders for grabbing Evgeni Nabokov off waivers when the Red Wings attempted to sign him, it’s become all too obvious why they tried to get the NHL veteran on the cheap from waivers. Of course, you have to wonder what they might’ve been thinking when Tampa Bay’s Mike Smith went unclaimed on waivers just last week.

For now, the Islanders have to start wondering if part of Charles Wang’s Lighthouse Project is to figure out which curse they’ve unearthed by being located on Long Island. Perhaps the Amityville horror was actually located in Hempstead.