Seems like just last year the Islanders were 11-1-1 and sitting atop the Eastern Conference, doesn’t it?

Welcome to 2002, already off to a ridiculously bad start for the Islanders, struggling to regain the top spot in the Atlantic Division, four points behind the Rangers, albeit with five games in hand.

Aside from the standings, it was announced yesterday defenseman Roman Hamrlik will be out of action for three to six weeks after he undergoes arthroscopic surgery tomorrow on his right knee.

Hamrlik originally hurt the knee Nov. 27 against the Caps – today’s opponent – missed one game and has been playing through it since, during which time he is a minus-4.

The Hamrlik news comes on the heels of the news his defensive partner and fellow Czech, Radek Martinek, will miss the remainder of the season with a torn right ACL, leaving the Isles (19-11-5-2) already thin on the back line without half their top four defensemen.

Hamrlik had averaged 25:29 of ice time a game, while Martinek, out since Dec. 12, was seeing 21:07 a night.

The Hamrlik news couldn’t have come at a worse time for an Islander defense looking for more physical play in their own end.

General manager Mike Milbury may want to speed up the process on trading for a physical defenseman and the Hamrlik injury makes a brooding presence on the blue line that much more glaring. For now, the Isles will fill the void with Ray Giroux and Ken Sutton, both up from AHL Bridgeport.