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BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — It was another day without a game for Thomas Hickey. Another lengthy conditioning skate, another night away from his house on Long Island, another day out of the NHL.

Hickey is 31 and in the second year of a four-year, $10 million deal. He was Lou Lamoriello’s first signing back on July 1, 2018, a day remembered on the Island for a veteran who chose to leave. But somewhere from the time Hickey fell awkwardly into the boards in Denver on Dec. 17, 2018 to now, his professional life has been turned upside down.

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And it’s not even close to the most important thing happening in his life.

Back home in Calgary, Dan Hickey is fighting a losing battle with cancer. Thomas’ older brother is only 33 but has glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumor that defied treatment since doctors discovered it in September. The diagnosis came right around the time Thomas found out he was going on waivers and to the AHL, after what he called “my best training camp in 12 pro seasons.”

Dan Hickey had surgery to remove a similar tumor 18 months earlier, between his 2017 marriage to Jocelyn and the September 2018 birth of their daughter, Windsor. Thomas had confided in his Islanders teammates after watching his brother undergo two surgeries on the first tumor followed by an intensive round of chemotherapy. That 2017-18 season was a trying one for Thomas, but when he made it home in April, he saw his brother was recovering well from the ordeal.

Despite the enormity of Dan’s surgeries and treatment, his life was settling into a kind of normalcy — back to work for an energy company in Calgary, raising his daughter, seeing his brother when they could during the 2018-19 Islanders season. But a routine MRI last September changed everything: The tumor had returned, more aggressively than before, and spread further around Dan’s brain. It was too extensive to attempt another surgery.

Dan went on an experimental treatment before the new year, but the glioblastoma didn’t respond. He was taken off the trial in January and returned home, surrounded by family and friends and at peace.

“We’re just trying to be behind him, lift him up and help him get stronger, be happier day by day,” said Thomas, who has been back to Calgary three times in the last six weeks. “I’ll continue to go home when I want to, when he wants me there. I’ve got that freedom and that means more to me than any other thing in hockey.”

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Thomas’ frustrations over his role with the Islanders could have consumed him. He joined the Islanders prior to the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, plucked off waivers from the Kings. He’d spent four full years in the Los Angeles organization without a single call-up, the fourth overall pick from 2007 becoming an NHL afterthought at 23.

Debuting with the Islanders in 2012-13, Hickey paired with veteran defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky and was part of a ragtag crew that reached the playoffs. Hickey worked his way from those unassuming beginnings to 449 NHL games with the Islanders, 12th-most among defensemen who have played for the organization. Five of his 22 career goals are overtime winners, including his Game 3 OT winner in the 2016 first-round series against the Panthers that gave the Isles a leg up in their first postseason series victory in 23 seasons.

Even with coach Barry Trotz coming in last season, Hickey’s roster spot never seemed in doubt. He was a regular for the first 31 games, alongside Scott Mayfield or Ryan Pulock.

Then, in Game 32, Hickey suffered a concussion. The Islanders called Devon Toews up, and even when Hickey was healthy again, he was no longer a regular. He played eight more games and all four of the second-round series loss to the Hurricanes after Johnny Boychuk went down with an injury.

Coming into this season, Hickey didn’t see anything preventing him from regaining his spot on the defense.

“I had good conversations after last season. My understanding was a clean slate for everyone,” he said. Instead, after that standout camp, Lamoriello told Hickey he was being waived and, failing a claim, was going down to the AHL to start the season. Rookie Noah Dobson was too mature for juniors and ineligible for the AHL due to his age, so Hickey was the odd man out.

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“Sometimes, there’s the business side of it, the organizational side of it and they felt Noah was ready,” Hickey said. “He’s done a great job and sometimes it comes down to numbers.”

Still, Hickey was the eighth defenseman and the next lefty-shot on the depth chart. Nick Leddy missed a few games in early November and Adam Pelech suffered an Achilles injury on Jan. 2; both times Hickey, the obvious fill-in choice, was hurt. He’s played just 14 games with the Sound Tigers this season.

“You look back and it could have been 7-10 days I could’ve been down here,” Hickey said. “Injuries happen, things play out as they do and no ill will towards them. But I was definitely caught off guard, I had no inclination. As a hockey player, you’ve got to understand both sides of it. So while I was surprised, it doesn’t mean anything’s over.”

He spent much of his rehab time in November with the Sound Tigers at the Islanders’ Northwell Health facility, close to his Garden City home. The Islanders teammates he’s been close with for years have been there for him as he copes with his brother’s declining health from afar.

“He knows we’re all here supporting him,” Anders Lee said. “It’s tough because you don’t see him every day, but you just feel for him, for his brother, for their whole family. He’s been on our minds for a long time now. We’re trying to be there for him and his family, be as supportive as possible. … It’s just really hard. Thomas is such a great person, Dan is a great person and all we can hope is things can turn somehow.”

A GoFundMe page set up for the Hickeys two weeks ago has nearly reached its goal of raising $250,000 to support Dan, Jocelyn and Windsor, now nearing 18 months old. Thomas may yet get a call-up to bolster the Islanders’ defensive depth down the stretch, or he may finish out the year with the Sound Tigers and have this be his first season without an NHL game since 2011-12.

“We’re a personal family, but when I talk about perspective, the most important thing is I’ve been lucky to be with this organization that’s allowed me to be with him, spend some quality time with him, go back home when I need to,” Thomas said. “This isn’t the most important thing in my life by a long shot. But it is good to have an outlet and have the support from the organization top to bottom, being in the fight behind my brother.

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“Every one of my teammates, here and on the Island, has been a great asset for me in wishing him the best. That means more than playing, more than anything else.”

(Top photo of Thomas & Dan courtesy of Thomas Hickey)

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