NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Islanders acquired Robert Bortuzzo in a trade with the St. Louis Blues on Friday that gives the Eastern Conference playoff contenders some much-needed size and depth on the blue line amid injuries.
The Islanders sent a seventh-round pick in the 2024 draft to the Blues for the veteran defenseman who has only gotten into four games this season while mostly sitting out as a healthy scratch.
The addition of the 6-foot-4, 217-pound Bortuzzo was finalized after New York put defenseman Ryan Pulock on injured reserve with a lower-body injury. Adam Pelech and Sebastian Aho are the other Islanders D-men on IR.
Bortuzzo, 34, had been with the Blues since 2015. He scored two goals in 17 games during their Stanley Cup run in 2019.
A native of Thunder Bay, Ontario, Bortuzzo has played in 592 regular-season and playoff games for Pittsburgh and St. Louis since making his debut with the Penguins in 2011.
