Visnovsky’s agent says he’ll join Isles no later than Feb. 11

If you believe Lubomir Visnovsky‘s agent Neil Sheehy, the flighty defenseman will play his first game for the New York Islanders no later than Feb. 11.

(That’s a home date against the Carolina Hurricanes.)

Sheehy says that the 36-year-old blueliner could even hit Long Island sooner, citing the potential resolution of “personal medical reasons within his immediate family.”

Some might wonder if the Isles really want to deal with a player seemingly reluctant to join the team, but there are a couple reasons why they are going in a reasonable direction.

Most obviously, the Slovakian defenseman has had plenty of success at the NHL level, including a 68-point output in 2010-11 that drew some Norris Trophy talk.

Some of the team’s latest transactions also show that the franchise’s D corps could use a boost; they’ve recently claimed Brian Strait and Thomas Hickey off waivers.

Lastly, the Islanders have been through the messy process of dealing with a player who was initially reluctant to play once before. Evgeni Nabokov has become their go-to goalie the last two seasons after sitting out the remainder of 2010-11 following a waiver claim.

Perhaps Visnovsky will eventually come around, too.

(H/T to Rotoworld)