Islanders 360

Arizona's Lighthouse

2009-12-07T14:31:00.012-05:00

Last week, I was able to leverage a business trip to Phoenix into an opportunity to catch the Coyotes host the Flames at Jobing.com arena in Glendale. It was nice to be able to cross another arena off my list and catch a Western Conference game in person for the first time. Thanks to Stub Hub I managed to grab great seats 11 rows off the ice, on the blue line, for less than $40 per ticket. A few quick impressions from the game:

- The arena is new and clean, but as a venue for hockey I was not particularly impressed. There are only 2 seating levels, and while the 100s offer great views, the 200s start so high above the ice I can't imagine it being a great fan experience.

- Speaking of fan experience, there isn't much of one. I know some hockey purists criticize the game day operations at the Coliseum for being too heavily geared towards the kiddies or non-hockey extracurriculars, but at least they keep the fans engaged. During the tv timeouts at the Coyotes game, there wasn't much to do but wait for the puck to drop.

- Perhaps due to the items above, coupled with the fact that they play...ya know...in the middle of the desert, the crowd was Weak (with a capital W). A half-full arena, with half of those there cheering loudly for the Flames (a lot of Candian snowbirds in Arizona for the winter). The Coyotes contingent was largely passive and silent.

Frankly, everything about my experience (save the fact that the Aramark concessions were all about $1 cheaper than at the Coliseum) made me appreciate the way we have it even more. I always felt that the Isles offer a better in-game experience than the other arenas I've visited (Boston, Buffalo, MSG, NJ, Tampa) but thought maybe I was just being a homer. Now I think I'm right. As much as I understand we have a terrible facility from a players perspective, I can't imagine any NHLer feeling more fulfilled playing in the shiny new Jobing.com arena.

But all of that is prelude to the real attraction in Glendale. The Westgate City Center, aka Arizona's version of the Lighthouse. In short, Westgate encompasses the arena, the U. of Phoenix football stadium (home of the Cardinals), restaurants, shops, hotels, a park, and nice open plazas. It's a fantastic environment. After being there for 5 minutes, I was having a blast enjoying the sights and sounds. But after another 5 minutes, my enjoyment turned to anger. Anger at the progress-killer we call Long Island.

Without getting myself all wound-up rehashing the LH development process up to this point, I'll keep it simple. A destination like Westgate would absolutely work on Long Island. Yes, of course there are real logistical and enviromental concerns but, at the risk of being overly simplistic, where there's a will there's a way. It can get done. It would be arrogance to think Long Island is so different from other parts of this country where mixed-use destinations have been developed successfully.

Three's a Crowd

2009-11-24T10:39:00.002-05:00

The Islanders goaltending situation is about to reach critical mass, and I don't see nearly enough being written about the realities that will bring. If recent reports are correct (and certainly any news regarding DiPietro's return should be taken with a fistful of salt), Ricky will begin full practices with the team this week. That will be followed by a conditioning stint / AHL action in Bridgeport, clearing the way for his return to NHL action in a few weeks.

If we take for granted he is healthy (albeit rusty), there are two big questions that need to be resolved.

First, what will his role be for the remainder of this season? Roloson has established himself as the clear #1, and it's hard to ignore the fact that he's earned points in 12 of his 14 starts. And a 58 save performance ain't too shabby either. So does DP return as the clear back-up to Rollie? Do we platoon the two? Or does DiPietro get the opportunity to win back the #1 role after he shakes off the rust?

Second, what does this all mean for Biron? It's an odd balancing act because, barring an injury to some team's #1, Marty's trade value won't peak for a few months. And no question that value won't increase if he's not seeing any NHL action leading up to the trade deadline.

We're going to have three 1A/1B options and not enough room for all of them.

Complicating matters, there is the issue of team chemistry. This group, at least by all appearances, seems to have a cohesiveness that has been clearly lacking in recent years. If there's a bad apple in the bunch, he's tough to spot. And Biron by all accounts is one of the best-liked guys in the league. If Ricky returns with a sense of entitlement, the boat may begin to rock.

My feeling is that DiPietro should return as the clear #2 behind Roloson. Long-term, there is zero doubt that Ricky is the guy that gives us the best chance to win. But he hasn't played much meaningful hockey over the last 2 years, and that will unquestionably show. As with any team, he should have the opportunity to play into the #1 role, but it will need to be earned. His history with the team, contract...etc., should have no bearing on things. His ego will just need to accept this new short-term reality. As for Biron, unfortunately he hasn't showed enough this year to justify keeping the spot ahead of a presumably healthy DP. And let's be real, he was a bargain and any return we can get for him will be gravy. Of course I want to maximize that return, but I won't lose sleep if all we can get is a mid- to late-round pick.

What do you think is the right answer to this goaltending surplus?

On the Road

2009-11-05T12:30:00.002-05:00

Isles stand at 15 points through 15 games (5-5-5), on pace for 82 points at the end of the year. The last three seasons, the point cutoff for the playoffs was 93, 94 and 92 points.

If the Isles hope to take that next step, there is only one statistic to look at. Road victories, or lack of them. The Isles current sit at 1-3-3 on the road. You need only look at last season when the Isles finished with a road record of 9-29-3 to see their recent history of road failure.

The Isles start a stretch tomorrow of 8 of the next 9 on the road. 13 of the next 16. This is a critical stretch for a team that has shown some promise early in the season. Can this team string together a few wins on the road? There are some winnable games on the schedule, starting tomorrow against New Jersey, who have not had much home success this season.

BC

To Win or Not To Win?

2009-11-03T14:16:00.002-05:00

As of this posting, the Isles find themselves sitting in 7th place in the East after a recent stretch of 5-1-2 hockey. An unlikely scenario just 2 weeks ago. Now there's no telling whether this good play will continue and whether or not we'll be sitting in a playoff position come Thanksgiving or Christmas. Islander fans are no doubt enjoying the team's play. However, I think it's appropriate to ask an important question... is this winning good for the Islanders?

At it's surface, it a strange question. Of course you want to win. Of course you want to make the playoffs. Charles Wang has reiterated the goal every year is the Stanley Cup. But what's better for the long term success of this team? A 6th, 7th or 8th place finish or another top 5 draft pick?

I'd argue it all hinges on the results of any potential playoff series. The organization is in flux on two fronts, the Lighthouse and the team. You've got a young team that still lacks size and scoring. You've also got an arena deal waiting with the future of the franchise on LI in doubt.

The Isles right now are very close to the salary cap floor, so they certainly have room to make a run at big time (and big money) free agents. Of course, we all know our recent success at landing that prized free agent. So, given this is still a young team, another top 5 draft pick is as perfect a fit as can be. You'd be looking at someone who would probably crack the lineup immediately and for entry level money.

You have an owner trying to drum up support for an organization that has had an awfully bad run. Would a successful season and a playoff round win permanently put fans back in the seats for a long time to come? Tough to say. Is a renovated arena enough to get people interested again on it's own even if the team struggles continue another season or two?

I'd argue that a winning team now trumps another top 5 prospect, but barely. Why? Two reasons. The first is selfish. I'd like to see at least a playoff series victory in my adult life, and most certainly while I know the team will be on LI. Second, I think players just want to win. Yes, some just play for money but if you have an organization that is winning, you're more likely to attract a free agent piece of the puzzle, new building or not.

Perhaps some crazy thoughts only 15 games into a season.. and perhaps the future will prove this all to be a moot point.

What do you think, what's better for the team? Vote in the poll.

BC

Paralysis by Analysis

2009-11-02T15:46:00.002-05:00

My day job keeps me knee-deep in numbers and spreadsheets all day (yes, despite my prowess with the written word, I only moonlight as an Isles Blogger). So statistics and analysis are in my blood, for better or worse. I'm inclined to dig into the numbers to try to tell a story - even when there might not be one to tell. 13 games is a relatively small subset, but it's what we have to work with. So without further ado, here's some stats (with snarky commentary at no extra charge) for your reading pleasure...

Through 13 games this year, the Isles are 4-4-5 for 13 points. At this same point last season, they were 4-8-1 for 9 points. Same number of wins, 4 additional points. So there's one reason to not be miserable about all the OT losses.

Goals per game is 2.54 (22nd in league), up from 2.42 (29th) for the entire '08-'09 season. In other words, (Tavares + Moulson) > (Comrie + Guerin).

Goals against per game is 3.00 (20th), much improved from our 3.34 (28th) from last year. Again, despite early struggles, (Roloson + Biron) > (McDonald + Danis).

Our PP% is 21.3% (15th), up from 16.9% (23rd), and our PK is a strong 82.4% (8th) versus 79.8% (22nd) last year. Last year we just called it "Teams", this year we can actually refer to it as "Special Teams".

Last year we ranked 28th in the league with a sad .700 winning percentage when leading after 2 periods. We've actually slipped one spot to 29th, but are sporting a pathetic .500 percentage thus far. Think about that - when we step onto the ice in the 3rd period leading, it's a coin flip as far as whether we will win or lose. We are the Brad Lidge of the NHL.

Next up for the Islanders, Dwayne Roloson faces his former team while Mike Comrie's flu bug forces him to practice his toe-drag from home.

MC

Road Warriors

2009-10-29T09:51:00.005-04:00

A great win last night against the Rangers. Unquestionably the Isles strongest 60 minutes of the year thus far, in all aspects of their game. They rolled 4 strong lines, were aggressive on the forecheck, responsible defensively, and took much higher-percentage shots than we've seen thus far this season. One can't help but wonder where we'd be if we played with that type of intensity and responsibility all season. At least it gives us some hope.

The next 3 games are very important. First, we need to see if we can carry some momentum from this great performance. But more importantly, 2 of the next 3 games are at the Coliseum where the Islanders are a respectable 2-2-2. After Monday's home game versus Edmonton, the team plays 9 of their next 10 on the road (0-2-3 so far). The Islanders can't afford to fall victim to their quirky schedule. If they don't find a way to win on the road and match the home team's intensity, this season will officially be over before Thanksgiving.

If we can get through this stretch successfully (let's define success as 4+ wins in those 10 games), the reward comes in December. From Dec 12 thru 29, the Isles play 10 straight games in NY (8 at Coliseum, 2 at MSG). If we can stay in the mix until then, hopefully the crowds will come and the Coliseum can provide a true home-ice advantage through that long home stand.

Next up for the Isles are two division leaders - at Washington then home versus Buffalo. Good tests for a team that, at least for one night, looked like they are ready to play with the big boys.

MC

Polishing the Turd

2009-10-28T11:04:00.005-04:00

We're all too familiar with the epic collapses and shootout fails that have brought the Islanders to their current position in the cellar of the Atlantic with a 1-4-5 record. I won't insult anyone's intelligence and pretend that we should be anything but borderline miserable at this point. But the purpose of this post is to try to put a positive spin on things. Play a little "what-if" to put things in a slightly different perspective.

First and foremost, we need to remember, it's VERY early in the season. As Chris(topher) Botta recently pointed out (sarcastically?), the Isles are only 4 points out of a playoff spot. To put that in a language you can understand, we are a mere 4 OT losses from the playoffs! But seriously, it's so early in the season that we can have but one regulation win and still be only 4 points out of the 8-spot. If this were March and we were 4 points out of a playoff spot, we'd be ecstatic. In October/November, a good week or two can catapult you from the basement to a home-ice-in-the-first-round slot. Again, the point is it's very early and there's plenty of time to get it going.

But that begs the question - does this team have the ability to string together some wins? I think the answer is yes, and we only need to look at the last 10 games to support that. 3 of their 4 regulation losses were by 3+ goals and they were badly outplayed in each. So there's no rewriting history on those. Their only other regulation loss (against LA) was a 1-goal game, but every team is going to have a bunch of those during the course of a season. So we'll ignore that as well. It's in the 5 OT losses that, a different bounce here or there, could change the whole complexion of the season.

Let's pretend the collapse in Boston never happened. Then let's assume of the remaining 4 games we lost in OT or shootout, we split instead. Here's our record:

4-4-2, 10 points

We'd be in the #10 spot, one point behind Boston and Philadelphia for a playoff spot. I don't think there would be one fan in Islanders country that would be complaining. Sure, we are cursed and all those bad things DID happen. But it really isn't too far fetched to imagine a scenario where we are sitting with a .500 record and 10 pts at this stage of the game.

I feel like this team is capable of .500 hockey this season. A win tonight and we are only 2 games under with a gazillion left to play. I'm not saying it will happen. But it can.

Now, back to reality...

Pacing '08-'09

2009-10-21T22:12:00.002-04:00

It's tough in this day and age of information overload to watch a hockey game from the DVR. I was about an hour behind watching this evening's game against Carolina, and despite my best efforts was made aware of all developments in real-time. There were texts from friends at the game, updates on my Twitter feed, and emails from friends warning me of yet another collapse. It's a strange feeling watching a solid 3-1 game late in the third, yet knowing the disaster that is going to happen. In fairness though, given the Isles history, those watching the game live probably knew what was going to happen just as well as I did.

My main takeaway from the game is that the Isles are on pace to match their point total from last season, averaging 0.7 points per game. This can be taken as a positive or negative, depending on your disposition. Personally, I think it's a good thing. I have no doubt this year's Islanders can and will play better hockey than they have thus far this year. If that's the case, they will show improvement over their '08-'09 point total, which is success in my book. I don't have delusions of grandeur.

Here's my takeaways from the game:

- Coming into this game, I was thinking that, despite leading the team in scoring, I wasn't overly impressed by Matt Moulson. Not to say I didn't like him for this team, just that his stats overstated his real impact. Tonight, he showed me that he is for real. He played a solid 2-way game and is on pace to be one of the better surprises we've seen on the Island in many years.

- What is going on with Mark Streit? Not just tonight, but all year he's looked like a different player. He's got a respectable 4 pts and is only a -1, but I'm looking beyond the stat sheet. He's had enormous difficulty keeping the puck in the offensive zone and has misfired on more shots than I remember from all of last year. We need him to step it up.

- Best game of the year by Roloson thus far, and I would say that even if they lost the shootout. Finally looked like the player I've watched in Edmonton the last few years.

- Josh Bailey continues to be invisible, and is not building on the promise he showed in the second half of last season. 7 shots on goal for the whole season thus far is unacceptable.

Nice to get the first win behind us. Onward and upward to Saturday when the overrated (yeah, right) Ovechkin hits the Coliseum Ice. Remember, in Islanders country, 2 wins constitutes a streak. Lets make it happen.

Columbus Day Matinee

2009-10-12T11:49:00.014-04:00

Happy Columbus Day, all. Just as Christopher Columbus set sail back in 1492 en route to discovering uncharted territory, the Islanders hope to sail past the Kings today to discover their first win of the young season.

I'll do my best to make that the last lame Columbus metaphor in this post, but I can't make any promises. But on that subject, here's some interesting Columbus trivia to commemorate the day. Columbus died believing that the land he found was actually the East Coast of Asia. He thought the Earth was smaller than it actually is, and that he sailed unfettered around virtually the entire globe. Amazing that the man lauded for the greatest non-scientific discovery in history died not knowing what he accomplished.

Anyway, enough with the history lesson. We have a game to play. The Kings have been working their way East, as they opened the season at home winning their first two of their first three and scoring 15 goals in the process. They then traveled to St. Louis where they played a tighter game, beating the Blues 2-1. Today they play their first of two NY-area games in this Columbus Day matinee against our winless (and technically lossless) NY Islanders. The Kings haven't seen postseason play in six seasons, and hope that this is the year that the rebuild finally pays off with some spring hockey.

The Islanders have to be hungry coming back home after the debacle in Boston on Saturday night (what a way to introduce live hockey to my nephew). If this were the NFL, you'd have to love their chances against a West Coast team traveling east for an early afternoon start. But this ain't the NFL, and the Islanders continually find new and unique ways to give up valuable points. Regardless, I can only hope that this year's Columbus Day game is an improvement from last year's 7-1 whooping at the hands of the Sabres.

Here are the three key things I am looking for out of today's game.

1. A regulation win. Well, duh. Actually, I'll just take a win in any form. That will give the Islanders 5 points through four games. Last season, the Islanders had 5 points through 10 games. Progress in Islanders Country is measure in inches, not miles, and a win today would be a nice reminder that it's not 2008 anymore.

2. Better play from Sutton and Witt. If we are going to have success this season, we absolutely need better skating and stronger play from these 2 cogs of our defense. We have reason to be optimistic with the play of the Tavares-Okposo-Moulson line, but all of that will be for naught if our D is old and slow.

3. Josh Bailey needs to make his presence felt. It's only 3 games and I'm still bullish on Bailey, but he's been more or less a non-factor thus far. I don't need stats to make me happy, I just need to notice him more. We drafted him to be a playmaker, and he was well on his way towards the end of last season. Let's hope it's just taking him time to adjust to all that extra muscle on his frame.

In an ominous sign, today's media notes point out that the only meeting last year between the Kings and Isles went to a shootout (Isles lost). Biron is set to start in goal, so at least if it does go to the shootout we might see at least one Isles save (sorry, Rollie).

On a side note, Colin Wilson is making his NHL debut tonight. He is one of the names that will forever be linked with Josh Bailey in determining the success or failure of last year's draft day maneuvers.

Halfway through the first, no score. A brief fight between Joel Rechlicz and Raitis Ivanans, not won by the Wrecker. A few noticeable strong plays from Witt, so my #2 key to the game is working out so far.

Ryan Smyth just go a nice Coliseum welcome (sarcasm notice!) as he tried unsuccessfully to beat Witt up the left boards. And now, they just announced a promotion to text your guess for who will score the Isles first goal. Are they always so confident that they can wait until 15 minutes have been played before announcing this contest, knowing we'll be scoreless? Sadly, yes. Seconds later, Okposo is robbed just outside the crease.

Schremp showed some really nice moves around the net and got a great shot off, but was denied by Quick. In his 2+ games thus far, he's looked pretty solid. No doubt worth extending his "probationary" period. It's not as if Tambellini's absence is killing us. But I'll keep my expectations in check...there was once a day that I was proclaiming Marc Andre Bergeron the second coming. Proof that conclusions should not be drawn after a few good games. End of first, scoreless.

I spent the first-half of the second period having a nice conversation with Nick Giglia from Let There Be Light(house). I've been reading his work from day 1 but this was my first chance to meet him in person. A sharp guy, and the work that he has done on behalf of all Lighthouse supporters and Islanders fans has been invaluable. Thank Nick!

On the powerplay, Streit twice fails to keep the puck in the zone. Not typical of him. Tavares is set up for what would have been a trademark Tavares goal from down low, but he wasn't able to get his stick on it. It would have been nice to hear this place erupt. PP is over, no scoring.

A terrible non-call against the Kings moments before the put it past Biron to make it 1-0. It irks me irrationally when the refs directly influence the outcome of a game. I'd rather lose 7-1 then lose 1-0 when that one goal comes after a bad non-call. End of second, 1-0 Kings.

2-0 Kings as Drew Doughty goes top corner on a laser from the high slot. With the lack of scoring chances the Isles have generated today, it doesn't seem likely that a comeback is pending. Likely our first regulation finish of the season.

I always think of Kids Day as a good opportunity to sell the game of hockey to young (potential) fans. Sadly there hasn't been too much in this game to convert these kids to fans for life. On that note, I'm signing off unless this team makes a liar of me and mounts a nice Bruin-esque comeback.

MC

Thanks Jackman

2009-10-11T17:44:00.001-04:00

In all the bitterness from the loss yesterday I forgot to send out a thanks to Tim Jackman who tossed me a puck for my son at his first hockey game. A classy gesture.

BC

50 Minutes

2009-10-10T22:53:00.002-04:00

Serenity now...

On my drive back from the Garden tonight, I struggled to call this loss devastating. Certainly, after complete dominance for 50 minutes, and up 3 goals, even the most jaded Islander fan was left feeling kicked in the stomach. Deja Vu all over again. We've all seen these collapses before and the flashbacks to early last season are frightening.

I'm telling myself it's the 3rd game of the season. We have 1 point from every game. Anything to get my mind off the last 10 minutes.

So many positives to take. Isles were physical and strong on the puck all night. They moved the puck well and came out of the defensive zone with poise and a plan.

Serenity now.

Radom thoughts: why was JT not in the shootout? Is it me or do Witt and Sutton look slow? Has Bailey been invisible? I hope Martinek stays healthy this year.

Quick turnaround to a Monday afternoon game. Let's hope these guys have short memories.

BC

Schremp Cocktail

2009-10-08T15:26:00.003-04:00

Rob Schremp will make his Islander debut tonight against the Senators in Ottawa. The underachieving Oiler castoff has a lot to prove but is anyone else hoping that for just once, another team's underachiever will turn into a producer for the Isles rather than the other way around?

BC

I think it will be interesting to see what kind of leash they give Schremp. As Botta reported, he is going be given the opportunity to make his mark on the second line. So production will be expected. Will this turn into a multi-year project ala Tambellini, or will some scoring be required to keep his spot? If he struggles over the next 10 games, do we write him off? This is always dicey when you have someone who was so prolific at one level and struggles at the next. My feeling is, he's already exercised his grace period in Edmonton. If he's not contributing as a second line player (with PP time) within 15-20 games, you move on. It's time to put up or shut up.

MC

A Reflection

2009-10-07T15:59:00.003-04:00

"You're right I suppose, I mean, I guess it is childish. But when I was about 18 and my dad and I couldn't communicate about anything at all, we could still talk about baseball. Now that - that was real" - City Slickers

Perhaps a bit melodramatic I suppose but there is an inherent truth about this quote that I can apply to hockey, and more specifically the Islanders. Beyond my love of hockey as a sport lies something much deeper, a connection to my family and friends. A common bond of experiences, shared heartbreak and triumph that I think many Islander fans can relate to.

When there was nothing else much to talk about, when we were at different points in our lives, there was always hockey in general, and more specifically the Islanders to talk about. Going to a game and sitting next to my Dad, learning the players names and jersey numbers, seeing a new team for the first time, and learning the rules. Experiencing the game through my Dad's eyes and learning to love it and have a passion for it because of him is something I'll never forget.

I reflect on this as I prepare to take my son to his first Islander game this Saturday in Boston. I wish it could be on Long Island, but alas, my life has taken me to Massachusetts, and this is the best I can provide at this point. My son is very young, only 3, and I know he'll be more interested in the popcorn than the players, and the zambonis more than the goals, but I can only
hope this is the start of a passion for the game that I can pass along to him, just as my Dad did for me.

I grew up during the dynasty years, when going to a game at the Coliseum was an event that people fought to get into. When a sellout and a victory was the norm. Today, we all know things are different. We're now all faced with the possibility of losing our team. Who among us hasn't been pushed to the brink of abandoning this team forever? Just when the team's management seems to start pulling things together we are faced with the Town of Hempstead. Will the Islanders still be in Nassau when my son is old enough to truly care? Will they be in NY? I guess it's that stark reality that has made me appreciate this day more than anything.

In the event that the worst happens, and the Isles leave, I fear my love of the sport will go with them. So while we still have the Isles, and even though I'm over 200 miles away, I plan on passing my love of hockey to my son with the hope that he will be able to remain an Islander fan for all his years, no matter where life takes him. And anticipating the day I can take him to the
Coliseum for a home game...or even better, take him to the Lighthouse for his first home game.

I'll have a recap of Saturday's game by the end of the weekend along with some pictures. Let's hope for a win in Ottawa in the mean time.

BC

The Case of O'Malley vs. Murray

2009-10-06T13:59:00.006-04:00

If worse eventually comes to worst, and the Islanders do leave Long Island, many will undoubtedly draw comparisons between Kate Murray and former Brooklyn Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley. O'Malley, for those that don't know, is the man vilified as being responsible for moving the Dodgers to Los Angeles, changing the future of the borough forever. He was/is so hated in Brooklyn, writers Pete Hamill and Jack Newfield once included him in their "triumvirate of evil" along with Hitler and Stalin. Given Kate Murray's perceived role in the Lighthouse approval process by most LH supporters, she will clearly become public enemy #1 should the team ever find it's home elsewhere.

The truth is, with all due respect to those still seething over the Dodgers after all these years, O'Malley's true contemporary is Charles Wang. To compare O'Malley to Murray is an insult to good ol' Walter. In fact, the similarities between the situation facing O'Malley in the early 1950s and Wang over the past decade are eerily similar.

By the early '50s, despite the on-field success of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Ebbets Field was in bad shape. The physical structure was deteriorating, seating had been added which made the stands overcrowded, and attendance was on the decline. In 1955 the Dodgers won the championship and averaged only 13,400 fans per game (their lowest level in a decade). Many believe racial tension was a factor in the attendance drop as well. While the signing of Jackie Robinson was revolutionary for the game, it escalated racial tensions and kept many families away from the ballpark.

However, over in the South Bronx racial tensions were undoubtedly higher, yet the Yankees were drawing great crowds. The real issue was access. Yankee Stadium was easily accessible by subway or highway. Ebbets field was less convenient to get to and parking was limited.

Now here's where the similarities begin. In 1952, O'Malley reached the point where he knew a new stadium was necessary to survive. He commissioned designer Norman bel Geddes to design a new stadium, for which the plans were ultimately described by the New York Times as "a grandiose order". The project was derisively referred to as "O'Malley's Pleasure Dome". It was too big, too much. A criticism Charles Wang knows all too well, I might add. He had the money for the stadium, but needed a suitable location on which to build. He targeted a site on the corner of Atlantic Ave and Flatbush Ave, but securing that land required the help of the one-and-only Robert Moses.

That proposed land was being eyed for redevelopment. At the time, it was occupied by a LIRR depot, Fort Greene market, and a number of small businesses. O'Malley needed Moses, who was granted condemnation power from the government under Title 1 of the Federal Housing Act (FHA), to essentially condemn the land and sell it for the purpose of building a new stadium. The purpose of the FHA was to eliminate urban slums by giving local agency funds to purchase property and sell it to conform to a larger "public purpose". This certainly seemed to fit the bill.

Moses rejected the request, however, indicating that the stadium did not serve this larger public purpose. The truth, or at least what many believe to be the truth, is that O'Malley simply didn't care about Brooklyn or spectator sports, and felt he had bigger fish to fry in terms of developing parks, roads, and public housing. Also, it is believed that Moses' vision was to have the team play at a city-owned stadium in Flushing Meadow, Queens.

In January 1957, O'Malley issued an ultimatum: Unless something is done in six months, I will have to make other arrangements. There is still a short time left before we could be forced to take an irrevocable step to commit the Dodgers elsewhere". Does this sound familiar to anyone?

For 4+ years O'Malley tried to work with Moses to work things out in Brooklyn, but was continually left frustrated. Again, does this ring a bell with anyone? Finally, after the 1957 season, O'Malley followed through on his ultimatum and moved the team to Los Angeles, forever altering the course of Brooklyn's future. The worst part of all? That piece of land eyed by O'Malley remains undeveloped to this day (someone please correct me if I'm wrong...if I am I can safely say the land was only developed in the last 5 years or so**).

So in this case, Kate Murray is playing the Robert Moses role. Ironic, considering many (rightfully) point to Moses as a visionary largely responsible for a lot of the progressive, smart development on Long Island. In the case of the Dodgers, he did not serve Brooklyn as kindly.

I've made no secret I am pro-Lighthouse. But the truth is, I recognize that there are legitimate concerns about the project. Is it a bit too ambitious? Possibly. Are there serious traffic and environmental issues that need to be addressed? Undoubtedly. But will Long Island benefit from such a development? Unquestionably. And will a similar opportunity ever come to have this land developed using almost exclusively private funding? Unlikely.

On an emotional level, I would get behind almost anything to enable the Islanders to stay in their rightful home. But on an intellectual level, I am able to evaluate this proposal on it's true merits. Long Island is on the decline. Businesses are leaving, our young people are being priced out of the housing market and leaving the Island, taking their intellectual capital with them. We need a stimulus. Where else is it going to come from? This is our one, unique opportunity to reverse the course of the Island over the last 20+ years. Put and end to the strip-mall sprawl that somehow fits in with our vision of suburbia. Spark a new way of thinking on this Island. The Lighthouse in and of itself is not the only answer, but it's a step towards reversing the course of an Island on the Decline.

I have a nightmare of seeing the Islanders, in their new city with their new team name, hoisting the Cup in a few years. Like those poor Whalers fans who felt so much pain watching the Hurricanes win it all. But the real nightmare will be, in 50 years from now, looking at the former site of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and seeing a vacant lot of cracked concrete.

** Update Oct 7 - Thanks to my dad for pointing out that the land in question is what Bruce Ratner is currently seeking to develop as part of his deal to bring the Nets to Brooklyn. I was not aware that these were one and the same.

MC

Isles on TV Tonight

2009-09-14T09:24:00.002-04:00

A quick programming note regarding tonight's pre-season matchup against the Vancouver Canucks. The game will be broadcast on MSG Plus starting at 10:30PM EST (it will be on a 30 minute delay, but who cares after 5 months without the Isles).

No word who we'll see suited up tonight, but it will be nice to get our first taste of hockey for the season. Hope everyone enjoys!

MC

Help preserve "Point Blank"

2009-07-30T14:35:00.003-04:00

As I'm certain you're all aware, the Islanders have chosen to terminate their "sponsorship" of Chris Botta's Point Blank blog, effectively signaling it's demise. I encourage everyone to write to customerservice@newyorkislanders.com and let your voice be heard. Here is a copy of my letter:

I am writing to express my deep disappointment that the Islanders organization will no longer continue to sponsor Chris Botta's "Islanders Point Blank" site. I write from a family of season ticket holders since 1973.

Traditionally, it's been accepted that the team needs to generate some buzz on the ice to be successful. While that's still true, over the last year it's become clear that there are other mechanisms through which to build buzz, mobilize and grow the fan base, and drive attendance. Chris' site has done just that. Through his great writing, he's created a community of passionate Islanders fans that I haven't seen since we were a contender. Sure, the impact is difficult to quantify as far as putting fans in the seats, but I have no doubt his site has driven attendance, merchandise...etc. He's managed to keep interest alive all year round, for a team that previously generated little excitement even during the season. Now more than ever we need this type of grass roots support as we approach some major milestones in the Lighthouse approval process.

Obviously I, and others that wrote, are motivated by the personal desire to save our favorite web site. But putting myself in the organization's shoes, I find it impossible to believe that you underestimate the impact of Chris's site as much as you clearly do. This is a chance for an organization to take another step in the right direction, rather than make another move that leaves the fan base scratching it's collective head. Ultimately, the cost to continue your "sponsorship" can't amount to more than "rounding error" on Okposo's next contract. It's a proverbial drop in the bucket.

I hope you'll reconsider and continue your relationship with Chris for the sake of the fans and, ultimately, the organization as well.

Thank you for your time.

Michael Carey

The Crease Runneth Over

2009-07-23T09:45:00.006-04:00

Last night, I was with my son as he was taking his first steps (gratuitous proud dad announcement!) when I got a text from a friend telling me of the Biron signing. I of course pushed my boy aside to run to the nearest computer to get all of the details (kidding, kidding). Admittedly, the news caught me off guard at first, but now that I've had a few hours to digest it, I think it tells us a few things:

1. Ricky is not going to be ready to start the season, and likely won't be ready until at least after the Olympic break. Sure this is just conjecture, but I'm sure if they expected Ricky to be ready by even Thanksgiving, they would be comfortable enough letting their new $5M man Roloson carry the load until then.

2. Scott Munroe did not give the coaches and GM a warm fuzzy feeling. It's hard not to feel a little bad for the guy, who by all accounts seems like he has the potential to be a backup at least on par with the guys we called our starters last year. He must have expected a legitimate shot to be the #2 guy while DP continues his "recovery". And given the fact that he would be backing up a guy who just received his AARP card, a few starts along the way would not be unexpected.

3. Familiarity does NOT breed contempt. A team with a former goalie as GM and coach suddenly developed the deepest pool of talent (perhaps not in terms of quality, but quantity) at the position in the NHL. Too bad our GM and coach aren't former skilled scorers, we'd be talking Cup contention, baby!

4. Snow's desire to add an enforcer is not as strong as we'd like it to be. I'm sure he's working some angles, but to add another goalie with the lack-of-enforcer elephant still in the room says something to me.

Through all this, I wish DP a complete recovery. He's become the in vogue whipping boy of the fanboy commenters on Botta's and Logan's blogs. But for many, many games he was our best player, and he stole many a win for us along the way. There's no doubt we are a better team with a healthy Ricky in the crease.

JT Behind the Curtain

2009-07-08T14:10:00.012-04:00

Today's press conference was a success in that there were about 500 people (my estimate) that showed up to the Nassau Coliseum on a weekday afternoon to give our #1 pick a warm welcome to Long Island. For Tavares, despite generally showing little emotion, I'd have to imagine it's reassuring to see such a nice turnout in what has likely been described to him as a poor hockey market. To the fans in attendance, however, the festivities were a bit ho-hum. Maybe I'm subconsciously comparing it to the environment back at the Draft Party, but more likely it's a reaction to the whopping 3 overall questions asked. And pretty terrible ones at that. (Who was that last guy, anyway?)

Turns out, the "real" media did all of their work at the "post press conference" press conference that occurred behind the curtain after the dog-and-pony show ended. I made a last minute decision to attend and therefore didn't have any kind of press credential. But thanks to modern technology, I was able to use my phone to show my picture from the Isles Website to prove who I was and gain access. Thank you iPhone.

Here, for those of you that sat through the 3 (generally) awful questions during the press conference, is a quick post-event quote from JT regarding Steven Stamkos' first season and reaching out to learn from his experiences:

"Me and Steve have worked a little bit together, playing a little bit of summer hockey, and obviously Team Canada and a couple of one-event teams in the Ontario Hockey League. I know he got off to a slow start but I think obviously it's a tougher situation, and most guys [do] when they step in. Obviously like I said there are going to be times when there's growing pains, it's a long season with 82 games. And for me there's going to be a lot of new experiences, and things that I'm going to go through. Obviously, I'd love to be able to contribute right away and have success but I think he showed up really well towards the end of the year, overcoming adversity, and if I get a chance to I'd love to talk to him and pick his brain a little bit and learn a lot from him because I'm a guy who loves to listen and loves to learn and always believes I can get better. So any way I can do that I'll look into those options."

Nothing overly spectacular, I know, but that's what I've got to offer. I was live-updating like a madman via Twitter, so if you want to catch up through that and check out all of my pictures from the event, follow me at Carey303 or click the link in the sidebar to the right.

Quick Recap and Preparing for the Dog Days

2009-07-02T14:20:00.003-04:00

As far as playoff-less offseasons go, this year's is unquestionably the most exciting in the recent history of the team. Days after the season ended, we had the drama of the Draft Lottery. My heart-rate increased with each envelope that was opened. I started to settle down a bit after Colorado was revealed at #3, figuring even if Tampa won they would take Hedman. Still, I nearly hit the ceiling when we secured that #1 spot and John Tavares.

But a funny thing happened on the way to ordering my new #91 (or will it be #61?) jersey. Garth decided to get all cutesy and throw some serious doubt into what seemed like the obvious and inevitable decision. For the next two months, I was run through the emotional wringer trying to decipher the hints, clues, and flat-out misinformation slowly funneled out to the public. There was a lot of pro-Hedman sentiment emerging. Was it the dastardly Candian media trying to mess with our young, impressionable GM's head? For my own sanity, I'm done trying to rationalize all that went on. Things hit a new level of crazy a week or so before the Draft, when suddenly flavor-of-the-week Duchene was THE GUY. I'm not ashamed (ok maybe just a bit) to admit I had a few nights of fitful sleep last week hoping this organization would not make another colossal error. Hearing the right name called on Friday was a catharsis to a long, emotional-roller-coaster of a summer.

Before I could even catch my breath, though, it was July 1 - Free Agency Frenzy! The adrenaline starts pumping again, despite Garth doing his best to temper expectations. Suddenly, despite logic dictating otherwise, I'm imagining Komiksarek accepting a big hometown discount to join the Isles. I think, maybe Mike Cammelleri would welcome the challenge of restoring pride to a once great franchise.

Well, as big name after big name fell off the board, I started to think a little more clearly. I was actually yearning for the good old days of Jon Sim, whose signing was a tsunami compared to the splash we made yesterday. No disrespect to Roloson, who under the circumstances is a good signing. It was just ho-hum considering there was no real surprise there.

So now we are starting the dog days of summer. Other than a modest FA signing or two, there won't be much going on until camp opens. So here, as a service to you faithful reader, are a few suggestions to help get you through the next 3 months:

- Go see The Hangover. Usually great comedies take a little time to grow on me. Not this one. I can't remember the last time I laughed that hard in the movies.

- Take a trip to Europe to catch some dates from Faith No More's summer tour. The best band of the 90's is Reunited and it feels so good.

- Read some classic Paul Auster - I'd start with Leviathan or Moon Palace, and work your way towards Mr. Vertigo and the New York Trilogy.

- Head up to New Paltz and so some rock scrambling at the Mohonk Preserve. Head up to Bonticou Crag for a challenging and rewarding climb.

Keep checking in for regular updates throughout the summer, and feel free to follow Carey303 for all you twitterers. Until next time...

MC

Party on Garth!

2009-06-29T16:08:00.006-04:00

First off, let me just say that this is a great day to be an Islanders fan. We don't get to say that too often, so soak it in. For the first time in a long time, a high profile decision went the way the fans were hoping (and praying) for. Clearly, this is just one step in a much longer rebuilding process. But it's one more piece of the puzzle, and while we wait we've at least had a little spark jolt us out of our losing-induced stupor.

Friday night was, for better or worse, one of the most exciting nights in recent Islanders history. Probably the best since the electrifying Al Arbour night back in November...2007. My brother drove down from Boston for the Draft Party and thankfully did not leave disappointed.

But things were looking dicey for a while. The swell of (mis)information in the hour before Garth stepped up to the podium was overwhelming. The "certainty" that Duchene was their guy (per Newsday) spread like wildfire throughout the Coliseum. No disrespect to the kid, but PHEW. When Garth, in his stilted manner of speech, finally said "Jo-", the old barn erupted even before he finished his thought.

Here's a few quick thoughts from a fun night in Uniondale:

- Hockey truly is like no other sport. Not only for drawing 10k fans to the Coliseum 2 months into the offseason. But in what other sport would you have a living legend like Trottier - one of the Top 25 players in the history of the sport - mingling with the crowd, signing autographs, talking hockey? If this were baseball, he'd be perched behind a long table charging $75 per signature.

- How on earth did Charles Wang know there were - and unless my memory is faulty I am quoting - "10,119 fans" at the Coliseum?!? They didn't even collect the "required" tickets! Was Rain Man in the press box counting the fans?

- I'm fine with the de Haan maneuvering now, but at the time I was so excited for the crowd to erupt once more as Kassian's name was called with the #12 pick. Oh well. I'll give Garth & Co. the benefit of the doubt on that one for now.

- I was thinking, if the Islanders can become competitive quickly, now is the perfect time to really grow the fan base. There is a lot of dissatisfaction with the ticket prices and policies of the Giants, Jets, Yankees and Mets. The Islanders are the most family friendly and convenient alternative and can really capitalize on the ill will the other local sports franchises have generated.

For those that care, I've decided to keep the blog going and try to keep/make it relevant in the midst of all the other great Islanders blogs and sites. And while I'm still trying to figure out exactly what Twitter is, I am on twitter. You can follow me under Carey303. Until next time...

MC

We Are The Ones We've Been Waiting For

2009-05-26T15:08:00.004-04:00

Things have been quiet in 360-land for quite some time. In the next couple of months, I'll be deciding whether to continue with the blog or bid my small handful of readers a fond farewell. Frankly, with the plethora of high-quality Islanders blogs out there, it's very difficult to keep this site relevant given the (very) limited time I have to devote to it.

In the meantime, I might as well use my little piece of Internet real estate for something productive.

The message is simple. The next several months are critical in determining the future of the Islanders on Long Island. I know this isn't a revelation, but I still think the message hasn't truly hit home for many. All the talk about Tavares vs. Hedman is great, but it is meaningless if we do not get to enjoy the fruits of this draft here on Long Island.

And it is a very real possibility if we do not all make our voices heard. So I am here to ask each of you to get involved as much as possible, whatever form that may take. Step 1, however, is to get educated. Sadly, the best source for information at this point is the blogosphere. I mean that as no disrespect to my fellow bloggers, but rather as a sad commentary on the role of the mainstream media on this issue.

So here are some good, independent sources for news and opinions on the Lighthouse project:

Let There Be Light(house) - THE definitive source for Lighthouse coverage. For those needing an education on the issues, I'd recommend reading through his archived posts as well as his current ones.

Islanders Independent - BD Gallof and friends have a relatively new blog that, to date, has focused fairly equally on both hockey related issues as well as Lighthouse related issues.

NY Islanders 7th Woman - Somewhere along the way, Dee's hockey blog has evolved into a good source for some first-hand Lighthouse reporting and opinion pieces. Check out this piece for a good example an item I haven't seen covered anywhere else.

Islanders Point Blank - I'm confident there is literally no one that is reading my blog that hasn't already checked out Chris Botta's blog at least a few hundred times, so no need to say anymore.

I don't want to slight any of the other bloggers out there doing great work. This is just a sampling to get you interested and involved.

I'll leave you with a small excerpt of a comment I left on Nick's Let There be Light(house) site earlier today regarding many people's inclination to write-off the Lighthouse and focus on alternatives in Queens/Brooklyn/Suffolk:

Over the past 12 months, the majority of Lighthouse news has skewed towards the "discouraging" end of the spectrum. I think a lot of passionate Islanders fans are starting to panic and are looking for quick-fix alternatives.

The problem is that many of these people genuinely believe Queens/Brooklyn/Suffolk are viable and EASY alternatives. And why not? The little droplets of "news" we hear regarding these areas, unlike the Lighthouse, is all positive (Queens will welcome us with open arms! We already share a color scheme with the Mets!!). Of course, the reason the news is all encouraging is because there's been no substantive dialogue AT ALL up to this point (correct me if I'm wrong). But to someone relying on sound bites, these sure seem like good options to keep the Islanders on the Island.

So here's what I think needs to happen. First, we need to get people away from promoting alternatives (I know you've been working this point already). It's creating divisiveness within the one group that should demonstrate the greatest solidarity. We share a common goal, we need to share a common strategy to achieve that goal.

MC

How YOU Can Help Keep the Islanders on the Island

2009-02-20T10:02:00.002-05:00

I'm going to keep this short and sweet. This coming Tuesday, February 24th, there is a critical public meeting being held at the Town of Hempstead's Town Hall. It's being called "one of the two" most important public events in the Lighthouse approval process. If you support this project as an Islanders fan or a concerned citizen of Long Island, you can play your part by coming out for this meeting and demonstrating that support.

Here are the specifics:

Tuesday, February 24th at 10:30AM
Town Hall
One Washington Street, Hempstead, NY

For more and better information than I could possibly hope to provide, please click over to Nick's Let There Be Light(house) blog. And while I'm on the subject, kudos to Nick for the great job he does.

This is a hockey blog, so from purely that perspective I'd encourage everyone who possible can to make it out to this meeting. There's some real evidence that public sentiment is finally having an influence on Kate Murray and the Town. This is a great opportunity to further that influence and help ensure our franchise's future on the Island.

MC

A George Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand

2009-02-02T11:07:00.005-05:00

Like my friend Homer in the picture to the left, I've recently acquired a visitor on each of my shoulders. Prior to the Islanders current 3-game winning streak, I only had one voice in my ear. The devil was there, savoring every loss as the Islanders marched towards victory in nothing but the Draft Lottery and the opportunity to grab a cornerstone talent like John Tavares. Somewhere in the midst of winning only 2 of 22 games, I grew to accept the fact that utter failure was in the best long-term interest of the team. While one player does not make a team (especially a young talent like Tavares), it would certainly improve our chances of turning the franchise around. I mean seriously, do the Pens make the Finals if they don't win the Crosby Lottery? I think not. As much as I love the team, I was willing to accept some short-term pain to make the horizon that much brighter.

Now, though, things have gotten a little more complicated. Somewhere on the way to the cellar the Isles woke up and started winning. Relatively speaking, 3 straight is an absolute tear. More important than the wins, though, is the way they are winning. And in that regard, it's all about the kids. The Comeau, Bailey, Okposo line has been leading the charge. They are providing us a nice glimpse of what the future might hold. And Nielsen has been playing very solid hockey all year (when healthy).

Now, an angel has emerged on my other shoulder. Rather than look at this season an an opportunity for Tavares, why not see it as the year of Okposo, Bailey, and the other kids? If our wins are coming as a result of their development, how can I root against that?

So I'm torn. In a perfect world, the kid line will continue to tear it up, we'll win our share of games, but still secure that #1 lottery pick (Go Thrashers!). The playoffs are out of the question, so I would find it hard to stomach, say, the #5 pick (before trading down, twice...again).

Double Standards

2009-01-29T11:56:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, we learned that the Detroit Red Wings signed Henrik Zetterberg to a 12-year extension. The deal is worth a reported $72M and will keep him in a Wings uniform through his 40th birthday. Sound familiar?

Just for fun, Google the following:

"Zetterberg Contract", then "DiPietro Contract"

Click through the first 5 or 6 stories returned from each of those searches. If you don't feel like taking the time, I'll give you a preview of what you'd find...

On Zetterberg: talk of a "landmark" deal, references to how he's coming off his best season, how the Wings have secured a major piece towards defending the Cup this year and for many years to come.

On DiPietro: phrases like "dumbest move", "idiot owner", "rookie GM", and regrets, regrets, regrets.

Sure, the DP deal was the first of its kind in the NHL. Frankly, I don't have any problem with people criticizing it. It's a polarizing topic. What frustrates me is the double standard in reporting on Rick's deal relative to the several similar contracts that have followed. His injuries of late are irrelevant, since all of the harsh words I'm referring to regarding DPs contract were spoken before injuries were a reality.

To me it's another example of writers looking to take pot-shots at the Isles, Charles Wang, and Garth Snow. So be it. Time will tell which of these deals end well and which cripple their respective franchises. Unfortunately, our contract is the one that looks the riskiest at this point. Clearly, though, not risky enough to scare off Detroit from traveling down a similar road.

MC

Number Running Pt. 2 - From Bad to Worse

2009-01-21T13:31:00.005-05:00

Back in October, when hope still lingered for the 2008-2009 season, I prepared an analysis of some statistics relative to last season. Now here we are, 46 games into the year...let's update and revisit those numbers.

2007-2008 ; 2008-2009
Goals For 2.3/gm (30th); 2.4/gm (29th)
Goals Against 2.9/gm (23rd); 3.5/gm (29th)
PP% 14.5% (29th); 17.3% (18th)
PK% 81.8% (19th); 81.4% (15th)
Shots for 29.7/gm (10th); 29.4 (14th)
Shots against 30.3 (21st); 32.8 (29th)

If you're looking for a glass-half-full conclusion to draw from these number, I recommend you only look at the power play stat. Clearly this was an area that needed to be addressed after last season. The addition of players like Mark Streit and Doug Weight have helped tremendously in this regard.

Beyond that, it's pretty much all doom and gloom. Being 29th (out of 30 teams, by the way) in both Goals For and Goals Against speaks for itself. And for a team relying primarily on inexperienced NHL goaltenders, our defense hasn't been successful in clamping down on the opposition, falling to 29th in Shots Allowed.

But the good times don't end there! Here are a few additional mind-boggling stats:

- In last year's disappointing season, we averaged 0.96 points (in the standings) per game. This year? 0.63 points per game. Ugh.

- You look at the stats above and think our special teams are respectable? True. So what does that mean for our 5-on-5 play? Our goals-for vs. goals-against ratio in 5-on-5 play is 0.57. Meaning we allow almost twice as many even-strength goals as we score. Think about that. We are at the bottom of the league. The next worst team, Ottawa, has a ratio of 0.77. The best team, Boston, sits at 1.60.

- When we score first, we only win 42% of the time. We are the only team in the league under 50%. For comparison purposes, San Jose wins 82% of the time when scoring first.

- What about when we are lucky enough to lead after 2 periods? We win only 64% of the time, also good enough for bottom of the league. This means that when we enter the third period with a lead, we lose 1 out of every 3 times. Unacceptable. Colorado has won every game this year when leading after two.

I hope it doesn't seem that I report on these numbers with any happiness. They are sickening. But looking at things this way really points out that there are deep, systemic problems with this team. A team built on character is not good enough. And on a side note, a team supposedly built on character should at the very least work hard every night, which we have not gotten from the group.

We are rebuilding. Numbers like this can be tolerated in the short-term. But at some point, Gordon's system needs to click, we need to add some skill, and we need to get our #1 goaltender back. Things can become respectable quickly. Hopefully the team will still be on Long Island when that happens.

MC

The Fans

2009-01-20T11:40:00.002-05:00

As of this posting, the Isles record stands at 12-29-5. Like many of you, I've got a bit of agita. Despite the meager expectations, I'm not sure anyone predicted this. Injuries have been a plague on the team, there has been the slow progress on the Lighthouse project, talk of a move to Kansas City and a confirmed training camp move to Saskatchawan (won't mention the Dubie incident). All of this should be leaving Islanders fans even more disgruntled and frustrated than we normally are. Goals have been few and far between and my God... 12 wins!!

However, a funny thing happened on the way to the doom and gloom...

The fans are still showing up. OK, the detractors will still point out the fact that the Isles are at the bottom of overall attendance. Fine, I understand. But tell me if you wouldn't totally understand the Isles fan base throwing in the towel. Here's a fanbase that has survived the Spano purchase, the Milbury era, poor trades, rebuilding, and then rebuilding again, a rise to respectability, and then a quick fall. Did I mention the Milbury era??!!

Check out recent official attendance figures.

1/19 vs Caps 15,221
1/17 vs NJ 16,234
1/15 vs Boston 15.548
1/13 vs NYR 16,234
12/31 vs Fla 12,211

Would anyone think twice if these numbers were closer to 8,000? These number show me that the Isles fans are out there, that they still love this team, and that they're still willing to show up and give support. We're 1 or 2 steps from either rising again or falling off the face of the earth. Lighthouse Project + Tavares = a new era, and new hope for fans that deserve it more than anyone. The same Coliseum most like equals the end of the franchise.

Just imagine a young team, centered around DP, Bailey, Okposo, Neilsen, Comeau, (Tavares or Hedman). A new building. Don't tell me we couldn't fill a 17,500 seat arena. Don't tell me we don't have the fan base.

I don't want to sound like a commercial but we are all Islanders. We've known the passion for hockey this area has. Let's hope we have the opportunity to show the rest of the league once again.

BC

Back In The Saddle

2009-01-20T11:23:00.002-05:00

I could lie and say that we went on a blogging strike. We wouldn't post another entry until the Islanders won a game... but anyway, life, kids have gotten in the way the past month. Look for a new post this afternoon.

Thanks for the patience...

BC & MC

Just a Little Patience

2008-12-10T17:14:00.004-05:00

A work trip to Germany mercifully kept me insulated from hockey for much of the last week. And as much as I love watching hockey, I don't have what it takes to watch a loss on the DVR if I already know the unfortunate outcome. So last night's loss in Philly is the first game I've seen since we beat the Sens on home ice back on November 25.

The thing that struck me watching last night's game was the renaissance of Andy Hilbert. For the previous 2 seasons, Hilbert was the target of many a fan's ire. I may have been known to make a joke or two at the expense of the man who on many occasions appeared allergic to the back of the net. I questioned the validity of his claim to a roster spot, and even now I stand by my feelings at the time.

But the organization showed patience towards his development. His game evolved, and over the course of last year he greatly improved the defensive aspects of his game. He became an essential cog in the PK. The goals still weren't coming, but at least he was creating an identity, reinforcing his belonging in the NHL.

This year, he's developing into a more well-rounded forward. He continues to be one of our best penalty killers. He up to 7 goals through 28 games, one fewer than his Islanders season high. And his minus 3 is the best among all forwards playing at least 15 games. He's the poster child for an organization's patience paying off. And to the handful of fans at the Coliseum each game screaming for Hilbert to "go to the bench"...this ain't 2006, have you actually watched this guy lately?

On the flip-side, today brought the news of the Isles placing Jon Sim on waivers after just 29 1/2 games as an Islander. So much for the analysts who liked to say thing like "People don't realize how much the loss of Sim hurt the Islanders last season." Apparently, not so much. At least not in Scott Gordon's system. I can't say I disagree with the move, and if it opens a spot for Comeau or Jackman full-time then it's all good. But it's funny, just hours after mulling over the patience shown to Hilbert, the team exhibits the exact opposite with Sim.

MC

'Tis Better to Give

2008-11-25T09:09:00.002-05:00

Back on Nov 1, the Islanders gift-wrapped a win for the Canadiens, a nice early Christmas present. They put a pretty bow on it and placed it under the tree with a note reading "Do not open until 3rd period". For most of last night's rematch in Montreal, it appeared as if our hosts were going to be ungracious and not return the gesture.

Thankfully, there is at least one man in Montreal with good manners. There'll be an extra slice of yule log on the table this year for Ryan O'Byrne, who with just under 5 minutes to play scored an own goal on a delayed Isles penalty. You can watch the glorious replay here!

Now, I do feel bad for the kid. Those 2 seconds of watching the puck slide towards the net must have felt like an eternity. And no doubt the fans in Montreal will be tough on him. But I'll make no apologies for the win. It's nice to finally be on the receiving end of some good karma.

Lost in the mix of the craziness from the game are a few great stories. The continued resurgence of Doug Weight, Josh Bailey playing like he belongs, Mark Streit proving he's more than just a PP quarterback, and the makings of a goaltending controversy. But we'll save those for another day.

Tomorrow the Isles look to overspeed their way to the .500 mark. Less than 2 weeks ago, that seemed unfathomable. It's a testament to the quality of hockey we've been witnessing of late. I'll be the first to admit, I became disgruntled too early in the season. Now, I'm starting to believe.

MC

Shame on You Colin Campbell

2008-11-24T11:45:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Arthur Staple, who gets Mr. Campbell to speak up here.

Quoting from the article,

"It was a tough one and we beat ourselves up about it all night," Campbell told Newsday on Monday morning. "We had 8-to-10 guys look at it, and after the hearing [Saturday morning], we took a couple extra hours to talk about it." It just wasn't a flagrant elbow to the head, the way the Pock one was."

This is the biggest load of BS I've heard in a while.

Watch the hit here.

Mottau literally has to jump into the air to lay the head shot onto Nielsen. I'm sorry, but his explanation is weak and a slap in the face to hockey fans everywhere. Reverse the jersey colors on this hit and tell me what you think happens?

Shame on you Colin Campbell. NHL discipline has become a joke. At a time when head shots have become front page news, this decision, or lack thereof, is pitiful.

One can only hope the Isles dish out their own justice the next time the teams meet.

BC

Injustice

2008-11-22T17:40:00.002-05:00

Only briefly, because it's eloquated better elsewhere, but Mike Mottau of the Devils gets only two games for the hit on Frans Nielsen last night.

I know we Isles fans can sometimes find conspiracy where there's none, but explain to me how Thomas Pock is sitting five games? Because Pock received a major penalty?? You tell me that Mottau's hit only deserved a 2 minute minor? Please...

The NHL appears to have no rhyme or reason to their discipline policy. If they want fans to stop crying conspiracy then they need to start enforcing suspensions with some consistency.

BC

Riding the Wave

2008-11-20T09:24:00.005-05:00

Intangibles are very important in sports. Those qualities that you can't quite quantify or define. None is more important than momentum. A close second is confidence. No doubt, the Islanders left the Coliseum on Monday night with an abundance of both. Unfortunately, they were walking right into the biggest momentum killer of all - time off. While it's not as extreme as the 8-day break between games they'll experience from Jan 21 to Jan 29, 4 days off is a long stretch in the NHL. Relate it to your own jobs - when you come back to work on Monday after your 4-day Thanksgiving break (assuming you're lucky enough to have Friday off), won't it take you a little time to get back into "work mode"?

There are a few factors working to their advantage. Their game on Friday will mark the return of Brendan Witt, which will help both on the ice and in the locker room. It will also be the first time since roughly 2004 when we've had a fully healthy D corps. Plus, there won't be a fatigue factor from the short hop to Newark. And facing a Brodeur-less Devils is akin to the Jets facing a Brady-less Patriots. If you can't beat 'em now, then when?

As after any break, the first period will be key. How will the rested-yet-rusty Isles keep up with a Devils team playing its second game in two nights? I'll go out on a limb and predict that whoever leads after one wins the game.

It'll be nice to pick up a win at the Rock and regain some of that confidence and momentum as we head up to Buffalo. Personally, I'm hoping for a little payback for the 7-1 beatdown I witnessed back on Columbus Day. As far as individual game performances go, that was the low-point of our season. What better way to make a statement that this team is for real than to make amends for that performance?

Shake off the cobwebs, boys, it's time to get back to work.

MC

Corner Turned?

2008-11-17T12:11:00.002-05:00

Ask any Islander fan which is the one team that has given this organization fits over the past decade, and it wouldn't take long to figure it out. The Ottawa Senators have owned the Isles, posting a 35-12-11-1 record entering this season.

I have never agreed with taking an all-time series record to make a prediction of future results. Each season is different for every team, with new faces in the rotation and old faces gone. There's no denying though the confidence, or lack thereof, one organization can have playing another when the history is so lopsided. Such has been this series. New players, new coaches, same results.

Thus entering the back to back series with a record of 4-9-2, one had to believe that a bad situation was about to get worse. Granted, the Sens had been going through their own struggles this season and weren't the powerhouse they used to be... but again, look at the history. This was the two games to turn the Sens season around and send the Isles further into the cellar.

Right? Well, the Isles put together two back to back 60 minute efforts, something we haven't seen all year, and improved to 6-9-2. Suddenly this throw away season has some new life. Players and coaches are focusing on a return to .500 play. There appears to be a new sense of focus and energy.

That being said, is it possible that with their back to back wins, that the monkey is off the back of the Islanders? That somehow the failure of an organization over another that had crept into the psyche of the team is no more? Can the Isles use the two wins to turn the corner on a disappointing start to the season?

Something certainly feels different anyway.

The Canucks come to town tonight with their impressive start and reckon to be a force for the Isles to deal with. Can the Isles continue the momentum towards .500 with another win?

15 Years Later, It Still Hurts

2008-11-13T09:12:00.002-05:00

I have to give credit where credit is due. The Rangers are one of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference. At the moment, I'd probably give a slight edge to Montreal. It's still early, and a lot can (and hopefully will) still change. But over the past few seasons, regardless of their record or place in the standings, I never considered them to be a true threat to even advance to the Cup Finals. Too many missing pieces. This year, things appear to be wide open.

For whatever reason I woke up this morning pondering what things would be like if, gasp, the Rangers win the Cup this year. And yes, I am knocking on wood as I write all of this.

It took me back to the summer of 1994. I was returning home after my freshman year of college. Through May and early June, I was dealing with some major damage to my knee which kept me distracted from most things - including, mercifully, the Rangers march towards the Eastern Conference Championship. I was certainly aware of it, it just wasn't as big a priority as it normally would have been. In early June I had knee surgery which essentially had me on modified bed rest for most of the summer. Which meant a lot of time planted in front of the TV. Just in time to watch 54 years of futility come to a gut wrenching end.

June 14, 1994 - a day that will live in infamy. Literally the second the clock hit triple-zeroes, I turned off the TV. I couldn't watch. I was depressed enough being laid up for the whole summer, I needed this like a proverbial hole-in-the-head. Try as I did, it was impossible to avoid coverage of the win. It took all I had not to jump out the window every time I saw the cackling Messiah Messier hoisting the Cup.

As guilty as I feel saying this...thank goodness for OJ. Three days after the Evil Empire proved you can buy the Stanley Cup, a former NFL star led the LAPD on a low-speed chase down I-405. From that moment, all you could find on TV was coverage of all things Simpson. No more media time for the NHL's new darlings. Like any victim in denial, I was able to pretend like it all never happened.

Should the unthinkable happen again this season, I actually think I'd be able to handle it a bit better. Maybe it's the natural maturity that comes with age, but realistically I haven't matured much over the years. I think what it boils down to is, as much as I despise the Rangers, I don't have a lot of hate for the current players on the roster. Sure, I hate Queen Henrik, but I respect his skills. And of course I loathe Colton Orr, but isn't that what he's there for? Beyond those clowns, the Rangers have put together a pretty good team. Sure, a lot of it was bought, but in this new salary cap era their moves are far less detestable than they were in the early 2000s. I think they've put themselves in a tough position for the future with some inflated contracts, but as far as the team today, it's pretty solid. If I'm being honest, I wouldn't mind having some of those pieces on our roster.

But still, it would hurt. A lot.

Between now and June, I'll continue to stick pins in my Drury voodoo doll. But should worse come to worst, I'll just move back to my state from 1994 - denial. I'll draw the curtains, plug my ears, and wait for October to come around and wipe the slate clean.

MC

Is it Just Me?

2008-11-12T16:36:00.016-05:00

MC, continuing to look for distractions from the Horrorshow on Ice

I360 Exclusive - Islanders Petition League for Rules Change

2008-11-10T09:41:00.003-05:00

We at Islanders 360 have received a copy of an official petition submitted by Charles Wang to the NHL's corporate headquarters in NYC. The one-page memo seeks the implementation of proposed rules changes "immediately and unilaterally". Our confidential source confirmed that this is an unprecedented move by a team's owner, yet those in power at the NHL are highly intrigued by his suggestions. The following italicized text contains the full contents of Wang's submission.

To Commissioner Bettman:

On behalf of the New York Islanders organization and General Manager Garth Snow, let me first commend you on the fantastic job you have done over the past 15 years as commissioner of the NHL. Our franchise is grateful for the dedication you've shown to the sport and, importantly, it's success on Long Island.

The purpose of this correspondence is to formally request the implementation of some changes to the official rulebook. We are requesting that these measures be enacted immediately and unilaterally.

In short, we propose that the league discontinue the archaic practice of recording wins and losses. Do you realize that the NHL maintained "standings" throughout the Bush Administration? Look it up, it's true. Aren't we all ready for change? I believe the country has answered that question with a resounding YES!

Consider the savings to the league. You no doubt employ a veritable army of accountants to maintain these win-loss ledgers. And how much more manpower have you required since the advent of the "Overtime Loss"? Imagine being able to cut all those bean counters from the payroll! There's also the benefit of increased employee satisfaction. Have you ever seen a player after a loss? He's bummed out. Now, what if you could promise every player he'd never experience the pain from a loss ever again! Imagine the satisfaction!! Besides, what ever happened to playing for the love of the game?

An obvious question is raised - how will we determine who earns the Stanley Cup? We have a solution for that important issue. Ever hear of a little show called American Idol? The American people love to vote on meaningless contests. They eat it up. After each game, you will open a toll-free line (reminding the people these are 888 numbers, not 800 numbers) and allow the country to vote for the team that demonstrated the most grit and character. At the end of the season, the team with the most votes hoists the Cup. No longer will teams that employ skill players be unfairly rewarded.

Should you deem this proposal too controversial, we have an alternative recommendation. End all games after 40 minutes. Earlier finishes will make the game more attractive to the youth of America whose bed-time prevents them from enjoying a full three periods. Growing the young fan-base will ensure the health of the sport for generations to come. It's called good sense.

If that doesn't sell you, here's plan C. The game ends once one team scores 3 goals. Because, um, 3's a magic number.

Thank you for your consideration, and we look forward to the implementation of these suggestions post haste.

Sincerely,

The Wanger

We at I360 applaud these visionary ideas. The ball's in your court, Commissioner. Do the right thing.

MC, clearly frustrated (and joking, in case it's not blatantly obvious)

Southern Fried

2008-11-07T08:09:00.003-05:00

Fom now on, I'm only going to be comfortable if the Islanders enter the third period either tied or losing, because playing with the lead is something this team cannot seem to handle, losing 4-3 to the Thrashers after holding a 3-1 lead early in the 3rd. Two quick early 3rd period goals by Atlanta put a damper on what was turning out to be a nice effort by the Isles.

Quoting from Logan's article, if Gordon thinks "it's more of a failure to do our system than anything else", one has to ask the question, is this just a team struggling with a new system, evidence of a failure of the coaching staff, or the players just taking leads for granted?

As I mentioned in a previous post, this team has mastered the art of the 40 minute game. If they show speed, puck movement and a scoring touch during 2 periods, then they clearly understand the system. What is it that causes this basic breakdown for the remaining 20 minutes? Does Gordon need to take a page out of the Ted Nolan motivational guide? I guess this is why there is a sports psychology profession.

As a fan, you're left shaking your head because one minute you think the team is ready to make the turn, to take the next step and throw together a few wins in a row. Then comes that cold hard slap.

So the Pens come to town tomorrow night. Let's hope the Isles figure this out. I know the playoffs area long shot, but giving up these critical points early in the year make the playoffs an even longer shot.

BC

Deja Vu... Almost

2008-11-03T21:39:00.004-05:00

Answer honestly. When the Isles started the third period tonight up 3 goals, you thought right back to Saturday night. But wait, this is Columbus. We couldn't possibly squander this lead, right?

You could almost feel that the slighest bit of adversity would throw the Isles into a free fall. Such is the fragile psyche of this group right now. The Jackets first goal seem to instantly deflate the Isles confidence and you could hear the groans of even the most grisled fan.

Against the Canadiens, a clearly superior and more experienced team, you could make an excuse. However, the Jackets are a team the Isles should be capable of beating, which makes their 3rd period performance all the more frustrating. You have to think the Isles are fighting the mental game right now. They've mastered the 40 minute game but can't quite put together a full 60 minute effort. Yes, some of this is attributed to the skill level and experience of this group, but again, I suspect the most of the Isles issues reside above the shoulder pads.

Now, who knew that it would take 2 goals by Chris Campoli in overtime to seal the win?

One can only hope the OT redemption gives the Isles a boost in confidence going into the game tomorrow against the Rangers. I get the feeling that this team is capable of getting on a roll if they believe in themselves. A win against our rivals would go a long way.

Other Notes: Since when did "Chili" become 3 goals? Hopefully I'm only slightly dating myself by saying that I remember when 6 goals was "Chili". I understand reduced expectations but come on! 4 goals at least, please.

When the Isles announced a new (old) third jersey, I though, oh boy, here we go again. I must admit that I really like the new jersey. Am I ready for it to be our #1 jersey... hmm, maybe not quite yet but it's a classic look.

Speaking of jerseys.. when will the white return as the home standard?

Final thought... is Tambellini the new Hilbert?

BC

Starting Over Again

2008-10-29T10:14:00.000-04:00

The start of a new NHL season is like starting in a new school. A fresh start. What happened last year doesn't matter. Nobody knows you. You can be who you want to be and you can start the year with all the optimism in the world.

Well the Isles started their new school with the persona of "overspeed". They survived the first few days before the bullies tracked us down for our daily after school beat down. Our lunch money has been stolen and we're a little bloodied.

A 2-6 start is not what any of us expected. Isles continue to make the same bad turnovers which lead to goals and our defense is shaken and badly wounded. The frustrating part is that this team has shown signs of figuring out this system. When they play it right, it works great. We limit opposition shots, take few bad penalties, and generate quality offensive chances. But boy, when it's not working, it's brutal to watch.

I mean, take away DP and Meyer's turnovers against Carolina and we win. A bad early goal against the Rangers and perhaps a different game. Shakey defense against Dallas and DP has no chance.

The question is now... what do we do about it? Do we accept the after school beatings or do we start fighting back? The other teams around the league are looking to see if we will tuck tail and run or stand up for ourselves.

The first positive sign was the team captains seeking coach Gordon out for a meeting yesterday. What comes out of that meeting remains to be seen but it's nice to see the veterans stepping up and not throwing in the towel. We're getting Sutton back on D this week which should help tremendously. Now, if we can only get a healthly, confident DP back in goal.

We start our new season tomorrow night in Philly. Another chance to right the ship and start showing the rest of the league that we won't lay down, that there's some fight left in us.

BC

Number Running

2008-10-22T16:55:00.007-04:00

Five games into the season seems like a good time to take our first look into the numbers of the '08-'09 campaign. Sure it's early, but what can we tell so far about this year's Islanders versus last year's team?

They're pretty much the same. Or as the great Denny Green likes to say, they are who we thought they were.

Looking at 6 major metrics, we'll see that the team hasn't moved by more than four spots (in terms of ranking within the league) in any of them. For a team that by all accounts had a disappointing season last year, this is not what you want to see.

There are X-factors aplenty - learning the new system, the early injuries to our D-line, the fact that DP has only played one game so far...etc. But over the course of any season, issues will arise. You can only hang your hat on these for so long before they become the norm and define your entire year. So let's take a look at how we stack up year-over-year:

2007-2008 ; 2008-2009
Goals for 2.3/gm (30th) ; 2.2/gm (26th)
Goals against 2.9/gm (23rd) ; 3.2/gm (21st)
PP% 14.5% (29th) ; 11.1% (25th)
PK% 81.8% (19th) ; 80.0% (21st)
Shots/gm 29.7 (10th) ; 30.2 (10th)
Shots allw'd/gm 30.3 (21st) ; 32.4 (25th)

Beyond this, last year we averaged earning 0.96 points per game, and so far this year we are at 0.80 points per game.

Sure, at this point in the year a 3-game hot streak can completely change this picture. Just as a 3-game cold streak will, in the other direction. The point is, as I watch this team I can't shake that feeling of deja vu. That is what prompted me to look into these numbers in the first place...I keep feeling like I am watching last year's team with some new faces.

We'll check back into things in a few weeks, and see how the team is shaping up as we head deeper into the fall.

MC

Addendums

2008-10-10T09:10:00.003-04:00

A couple quick-hit follow-ups to some recent I360 posts...

First, it seems my concerns from A Season on the Brink regarding the importance of the Lighthouse developments are shared by Forbes magazine. In their ominously titled The 10 Sports Franchises Most Likely to Move, they've identified the Isles as one of the top candidates across all the major sports. They cite the drop in franchise value from $160 million to $149 million (dropping them from 12th to 25th in terms of value in the NHL) and the poor per game attendance. They conclude by saying "The team desperately needs the amenity-filled new arena it's pushing for to draw the casual fans who aren't coming to plain old Nassau Coliseum. If it doesn't happen, a franchise that was once among the greatest ever (four straight Stanley Cups Cups from 1980 to 1983) could bite the dust".

Luckily, Greg Wyshinski from Yahoo! Sports Puck Daddy did his best to debunk the Forbes article. Still, an article like that on the eve of our season opener is not what any of us were hoping for.

I was happy to see Chris Botta validate my theory from Media Bashing, that a lot of the Isles bad press is a result of off-ice matters. He relates a nice story from two years ago of an NHL broadcaster admitting his predictions for the team were directly influenced by the GM debacle. Hopefully someday these "experts" will start to focus on the team itself...and hopefully when that day comes the team will answer the call and open some eyes.

Enjoy the opener tonight, and see you all at the Coliseum tomorrow.

MC

East Predictions or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying About the Experts and Love Our Underdog Status

2008-10-08T12:09:00.004-04:00

I read the preseason predictions along with everyone else. If nothing else, I find them mildly entertaining, an exercise in futility. We all know where most folks feel the Isles will finish (scroll down). Am I worried what they think? Please.

I'm certain that most folks, even the "experts" don't know any more than I do, so I'm not worrying what they think. Here is my stab at a predicted order of finish for the East.

1. Montreal

2. Washington

3. Philly

4. Pittsburgh

5. Devils

6. Rangers

7. Ottawa

8. Boston

9. Buffalo

10. Tampa

11. Islanders

12. Carolina

13. Florida

14. Toronto

15. Atlanta

Like all Islander fans, I always have optimism on the eve of the season. Whether that's warranted or just blind faith can be debated. I know we will be better than most so called analysts believe. We return a similar team from last year and are mostly healthy going in. We remained far more competitive last season than anyone thought and had the team remained healthy, who knows? Would I be happier if we had Sillinger and Sutton to start the year. You bet. Can Gordon get the same effort out of this group that Nolan did? Let's see.

While I believe we can remain competitive, our success relies on DPs ability to return to form quickly and the team's ability to score consistently, especially on the power play. I also recognize the challenges that this team faces, and with that comes the realization that it will take a lot of factors for us to squeeze into the playoffs.

The Eastern Conference is such that I think my top 5 teams are virtual locks. From 6-12, it's wide open and anything can happen.

I'll be tuned to Center Ice Friday and Saturday rooting from afar. Let's Go Isles.

Media Bashing

2008-10-07T09:14:00.003-04:00

In these days leading up to the presidential election, you'll often hear claims from the GOP of bias in the "liberal" media. Whether those claims are founded or not, they have nothing to complain about compared to Islanders fans. We are the sportswriters' red-headed stepchildren. We've grown accustomed to getting no respect, no respect at all. Any Islanders fan who peruses any site's power rankings, for example, will instinctively scroll directly to the bottom of the page. We know where we'll be.

Still, it was a bit of a punch in the gut reading Johnette Howard's recent column in Newsday, The Islanders can't seem to do anything right. It's an article that exists for the sole purpose of trashing the Islanders, and more directly it's fans. There's no broader context to it, just an apparent attempt to stir the pot with some good old fashioned trash talkin'. Maybe new Newsday Czar Dolan offered a bounty to the first "journalist" to make an Islanders fan cry.

Aside from it being a seemingly random attack, my main problem with the column is that it is just plain lazy writing. It's essentially predicated on the notion that the Islanders lack any redeeming qualities. Ms. Howard is not alone in promoting this ideal. It's become the consensus in the hockey community where it's almost a writer's obligation to take pot shots at the Isles. But here's the real deal folks, in as plain English as I can muster:

The Islanders aren't as bad as everyone thinks.

Yes, I know how that sounds. Not exactly a ringing endorsement for my team. But it's the truth. There's plenty of negatives to write about this team, but these sweeping characterizations of the Islanders as the dregs of hockey society are the byproduct of a flawed mob mentality.

The media (to generalize) seem to be unable to separate the team from the organization. In my opinion, it's the often dysfunctional machinations of the organization that lead many writers to dismiss the on-ice product. Ownership debacles, Sumo goalies, backup goalie to GM transformations...etc. Writers, those topics are fair game. Feel free to tear us apart all you'd like. But understand that once the puck drops, those issues are irrelevant. Which brings us back to Ms. Howard's article...

Aside from the objectionable snarky tone, the handful of specifics she addressed were oversimplified or just plain misleading. I'll address a few of them:

Remember the playoffs? Actually, yes, I do. Considering we are just one season removed from the playoffs, it shouldn't be that hard. And by the way, we've been there 4 of the past 6 seasons. How exactly does that make us the Pittsburgh Pirates of the NHL?

Ryan Smyth...couldn't get out fast enough. Really? Where did you hear that one? Publicly, Smyth and his handlers have always said it was a tough decision and that the Islanders were in the running until the very end. Maybe this is just PR spin, but what do you know to the contrary? Per Garth Snow, "Don (Meehan, Ryan's agent) said we were right in it for Ryan's services until the very end and it was one of the hardest decisions he'd ever been a part of."

Islanders fans streamed out of the draft-day party. Sure, that's true. But also selective. The draft party covered only one pick, and I'd estimate that the majority of those fans that left unhappy from the party were at least largely soothed as the rest of the draft unfolded. You ignore the fact that Grant McCagg of McKeen's Hockey Draft Guide gave the Islanders a grade of B+ and called it one of the top 5 drafts. Or that the Isles grabbed 5 of the top 30 ranked prospects from International Scouting Services.

Islanders fans have thick skins. We wouldn't have survived this long without the ability to brush off bad press. But please, in the future focus on facts. We can take it. And maybe, just maybe, when you start to look at the facts you'll see the team in a more positive light.

MC

Isles Defeat Bruins 3-1

2008-10-04T20:25:00.005-04:00

The Isles defeated the Boston Bruins today 3-1, on goals from Doug Weight, Jon Sim and Mike Comrie. The team came out sluggish in the first 3 minutes of the first period with Freddy Meyer taking an early penalty. After the kill, the Isles turned it up by outshooting the Bruins 12-4. As has been typical, the Isles failed to turn any of those 12 shots into goals.

Second period started out awful. Two quick penalties to Guerin and Gervais set up a 5 on 3 for the Bruins. While the Bruins did eventually score on the PP, the stellar goaltending of MacDonald kept the team in the game for most of the period.

Isles really came out of the gate in the 3rd, taking it to them Bruins and forcing them into numerous penalties.

Impressions: I was very impressed with the play of Streit and Hillen on the defense. Good puck movement on the blue line. Sim continues to impress me with his play as well. His ability to park himself in front of the opposing goaltender paid off again with a sweet deflection of a Thomas Pock point shot.

While the Isles only went 1 for 7 of the PP, I thought the puck movment was solid and the play in front of the net was stellar. Both these things were missing last season and should encourage fans of the team.

Defense

2008-09-30T08:49:00.002-04:00

Since when did the Islanders defense corps become akin to the drummer from Spinal Tap? Short of a gardening accident, choking on vomit or an on-ice explosion of some sort, the Isles blue-liners have been prone to injury after injury. Extending on the theory that you can never have enough d-men, the Isles waiver claim to Thomas Pock yesterday clearly sends the message that either Campoli or Sutton, perhaps both, will be out for an extended period of time. According to Logan, at least the season opener.

Here we go again...

Anybody holding their breath on the over/under to when Martinek goes down this year?

It's times like this I wish the Isles had taken a nice good long look at returning Schneider to LI.

There's still no official word on the injuries to either Campoli or Sutton, nor their severity, and short of sending a team of commandos into Snow's office, we may never find out until they are back in the line up.

Add all of this to the fact that we haven't seen DP in a game situation yet and that eternal optimism of September slowly churns into the "please pass the Pepto" moments of October.

BC

Sim, Scoring and Size

2008-09-24T08:56:00.003-04:00

The puck has officially dropped.

The Islanders first exhibition game is in the books with the Islanders coming out on top in overtime on a goal by Trevor Smith 2-1.

It's only the first pre-season game, but in my opinion, it already underscores three key factors to the upcoming season. First, Jon Sim is back and wreaking havoc on opponents. I think losing him for the season so early last year really cost the Islanders much more than anybody really appreciates. I'm not saying he'll score 30 or have 60 points, but his physical style of play and presence in front of the net should pay big dividends for the team. For a team that seemed to be allergic to the top of the crease last year, his return is more than welcomed. He was rewarded with his first goal last night on the power play.

The other issue is that we outshot the Bruins 38-19. Great, right? Statistically we dominated but here we go again. Scoring. Where is it? I know, I know, it's pre-season with a patchwork lineup but this is exactly the type of problem that needs to be corrected. High volume of shots, few goals. It's early, and coach Gordon and the team have another 2 weeks to work on this. Let's hope they learn to find the back of the net.

Last, we've heard it before and seen it written about. Our lack of an enforcer and overall team size. According to Logan, the Isles puck control dominated the first two periods. Then the Buins got physical and really slowed the Isles down. Will this be another achilles heel for us this year? If teams learn that pounding our guys hard really slows our attack down... and if we have no one to pound back... well, we'll see.

In any case, great to see the team back in action. Let's go Rays.. er, I mean Isles!!

BC

Ray(s) of Hope

2008-09-23T10:02:00.007-04:00

I don't want to be accused of being one of those bloggers who uses his Internet real estate to merely complain and dampen the mood of his readers. That said, and understanding that my last entry had a bit of a depressing tilt to it, I want to balance things out. This posting is all about providing hope! For those who will appreciate the reference, consider me the Andy Dufresne to your "Red" Redding. I'm all about providing a glimmer of light in the otherwise dark tunnel of Islanders fandom.

In order to restore that "Barton Fink Feeling" in all of you (I'm in a movie-referencing mood today), we're going to look at our brothers-in-arms in Major League Baseball, the Tampa Bay Rays. You'll see that there are a lot of parallels to be drawn between the Islanders and the Rays, and that their historic 2008 season should inspire us all to dream big for the 2008-2009 season.

Over the past 10 years...
-The Rays finished in last place in the AL East nine times. In the one instance they escaped the cellar they were still 21 games under .500. They have gone through 4 managers. They play in a bad ballpark and have trouble generating attendance. They were universally considered the least successful franchise in baseball.
- The Islanders finished 4th or 5th in the division seven times, and have not won a playoff series. They have gone through 9 head coaches. They play in an old arena and have trouble generating attendance. They have been largely considered one of the most poorly run franchises in hockey.

Within their division...
- The Rays compete with high-powered, large market teams in the Yankees and Red Sox. These markets have more money to spend and have a much easier time attracting free agents. These teams are built to be successful year-in and year-out, and it was considered virtually impossible for a smaller market team to compete against them.
- The Islanders compete with high-powered, successful teams in the Penguins, Rangers, Flyers, and Devils. These markets have historically spent more money and have a much easier time attracting free agents. The Islanders are generally an afterthought within the division.

From 2007 to 2008...
- The Rays only added two significant pieces to their roster. One, a young stud (Evan Longoria) predicted by scouts to be very successful at the professional level. The other, an aging closer (Troy Percival) that most felt was well past his prime.
- The Islanders added only a couple significant pieces to their roster. One, a young stud (Kyle Okposo, set to play his first full season) predicted by scouts to be very successful at the professional level. The other, an aging center (Doug Weight) that most feel is past his prime.

In 2008...
- The Rays completed one of the most improbable runs from worst-to-first, and currently lead their division and own the second-best record in the AL.
- The Islanders...to be continued.

The Isles have some pieces in place to enable us to believe. We have a blue-chip goalie who, when healthy, is one of the best in the league. We have an above-average defensive unit that can certainly stand toe-to-toe with most in the NHL. We have a number of young prospects that can hopefully prove their mettle this year. The bottom line is, it will take an awful lot of things to fall just right for the Islanders to have a Rays-type year, but stranger things have happened.

September is the time to dream big. It'll be October soon enough, and that's when reality - good or bad - sets in. Let's go Islanders.

MC

A Season on the Brink

2008-09-18T13:57:00.003-04:00

Standing in my backyard this morning, waiting for my pug to finish her morning constitutional, there was a noticeable chill in the air for the first time since the early Spring. It was a tangible reminder of the changing of seasons...not of summer to fall, but of "offseason" to "hockey season". Regardless of universally low expectations for this year's Islanders, I'm still excited for that first puck to drop. What can I say? I'm a glutton for punishment and love the game even when my hometown team struggles.

The big news in 360 land this summer was the birth of my first child, a boy, in July. It's a cliche, but having a child really does make you look at life with new eyes. All my life I'd always hoped to have a son to share my love of hockey with. I imagined bringing him to games, buying him a snack at each intermission just like my dad did for me. I'd tell him stories of the "old days" watching Bossy, Trottier, Lafontaine, Turgeon, and DiPietro...wait, DP will still be on the team as my boy is a teenager, nevermind.

Now that all these dreams are close to becoming reality, I'm unfortunately forced to temper them at the risk that they never come to be. I'm referring to the tenuous future of hockey on Long Island. While there have been no definitive statements from Charles Wang confirming matters, it's become the consensus view that hockey will leave Long Island if the Lighthouse project is not approved. I follow the developments of the project just as many of you undoubtedly do, but I can't cut through all the red-tape to figure out - in plain English - where things really stand. Oh, you just presented the project to Lynbrook residents! What does that mean to me? I want to know exactly what the real hurdles are, when decisions are being made, and how these impact the future of my team.

As I think about my son, I have no choice but to envision two possible hockey-related futures...one where hockey and the Islanders are an important part of his childhood, and one where, realistically, he'll have no interest in the sport or worse yet find himself drawn to the Evil Empire at MSG. If the worst happens and the team does leave, I wonder what my reaction would be? Frankly, I've thought it over and I truly believe I would abandon the game completely. I just don't see how I could continue to enjoy hockey under those circumstances. For all the time and energy I've devoted to the team over the years, it seems almost unfathomable to say that, but I think I'd quit cold-turkey and become one of the Sportscenter crowd who couldn't even tell you who won the Cup last year. Being in this position really generates empathy for the dedicated fans in Winnipeg, Quebec, Hartford and all the other cities that have lost franchises over the years. In each of those places, I'm sure there were thousands of fans as passionate for their team as I am for mine.

We may all be looking at this season with modest expectations. But to me, this year is arguably the most crucial in the history of the franchise. It just so happens that the important events will be happening off the ice. For all of our sakes, I hope I have the opportunity to buy my son overpriced popcorn and soda for the foreseeable future, as we cheer and curse OUR hockey team.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

On an administrative note, I'd like to welcome my brother, Brian Carey, as a regular contributor to Islanders 360. He's written several posts over the last year, and he'll be doing a lot more going forward as co-owner of the blog. This will allow for more (and more diverse) posts this season. Of course, as the founder of this blog I reserve the right to fire him at a moment's notice. Consider him the Ted Nolan to my Garth Snow. Hope you all enjoy the blog this year.

MC

Islanders Name Scott Gordon Coach

2008-08-12T20:52:00.009-04:00

Guest blogger Brian Carey

The Islanders have made a huge annoucement. They have entered an affiliation with Odessa Jackalopes of the Central Hockey League (be sure to vote for Cheese Curds in the online fan poll).

Oh, wait...

The Islanders have ended their search for a new head coach, settling on reigning AHL coach of the year, Scott Gordon. This hiring may not send waves through the hockey world in terms of name recognition, but his resume with the Providence Bruins speaks for itself. He took the baby B's to a 55-18-3 record last season, finishing in the top 10 in both goals for and against. Granted, he's not inheriting an offensive juggernaut in this Isles team, but his committment to defense should produce immediate dividends for DiPietro. And if DP is on the same page with his head coach... well ... maybe we wouldn't have had to look for a new coach.

If for no other reason to be optimistic, just look at Providence Bruins 2004-2005 season. Playing under coach Gordon, one Mr. Andy Hilbert had 37 goals. Seriously... Click the link....

Will Islander fans be patient through what could be a long season? I hope so. For the first time in many, many years, the Islanders seem to be on the right path. A group of young, talented players, a head coach with a track record of developing and molding such players, and a GM who appears seriously committed to building a winner from within. Unfortunately, the right path means probably a long season ahead, with many bumps along the way.

Now, there is no one other than Garth Snow to blame or to congratulate. This is his team, his players, his coach. On paper, this looks like a team that can develop into something great. Of course, they don't play in a vacuum. Let's see if what we've been promised comes to fruition.

Anyway, it's August, and everybody seems to be on the same page, so why not be optimistic...

Random Thoughts

2008-07-30T19:22:00.006-04:00

Guest blogger Brian Carey

Thanks to Greg Logan, a sneak peek at the Isles preseason schedule can be found here. Of note are no games against the Rangers. I for one, am not too upset. Granted the brawls last year were entertaining, but this year's team needs to focus on hockey from the start.

Mark Parrish has been bought out by the Wild. Mark was always one of my favorites when he played for the Isles, and his presence in front of opposing goaltenders was sorely missed. Hope he finds a new team (not in the Atlantic) that he can thrive with.

Check out this

I watched the Isles new DVD, Dinner and a Dynasty the other day. The film features a round table discussion of sorts with past Islander greats and includes some great footage of the "glory years". A good watch for any Islanders fan. I would have liked some more game clips and many of the stories seemed more like inside jokes between the guys. Not a must have but great for the die hard Islander fan in your life. Anybody else out there like to see a release of the entire finals series from the Cup years?

On a related note, I appreciate what the Isles are doing with this DVD release, but there has simply been too much focus on those teams in recent years. I love remembering those teams but I guess the current crop of Islanders need to make a splash before the world stops focusing on the 80s.

Caoching interviews continue this week. Expect an annoucement in about 7-10 days if I had to guess. Vote in the poll for your favorite candidate.

2008 - 2009 Schedule

2008-07-23T08:42:00.004-04:00

Guest blogger Brian Carey

When the Isles season schedule was released last week, my initial reaction was the Charles Wang and the Isles sales and marketing teams must be dancing in their offices. For a team that has struggled with attendance, the sight of 15 Saturday homes games, 3 weekday home Ranger games, 2 weekday games at the Christmas holiday and 5 more holiday matinee games must have elated them beyond belief. That's 25 games that one would expect to draw very good, if not sellout crowds. Isles have always been decent weekend draws and have struggled during the week. So that's almost 60% of your home games covered. Granted, we could sell out every game and still rank in the bottom of attendance but one step at a time.

Let's look at some highlights...

Fri Oct 10, 2008 at Devils - season opener

Sat Oct 11, 2008 vs. Blues - home opener (I hate home openers against Western teams)

Mon Oct 27, 2008 vs. Rangers - first game of the season against the Rangers.

Sat Nov 8, 2008 vs. Penguins - Satan and Fedotenko return to NY

Fri Dec 26, 2008 vs Maple Leafs - Christmas game against Blake and the Leafs.

Sun Apr 12, 2009 vs. Bruins - season ender at home against the B's.

See the full schedule here.

With 7 of their first 11 games at home, this team is set up to come out of the gate quickly. If they can generate some buzz in the community, especially with the young guys, we could have a chance to fill the building more so than in the past. With the Lighthouse project looming, some positive energy in the old barn would be welcomed, especially for those of us who know what it's like to watch a weekday game against the Coyotes with 6,000 of your fellow fans.

A season long six game road trip in March could make or break a team that will be struggling to stay in the hunt all year.

After the Mets blew a 3 run 9th inning lead last night against the Phils, I'm ready for the puck to drop!!

The Young and the Coachless

2008-07-22T09:57:00.001-04:00

Guest blogger Brian Carey

It's July and what should be a time of mini camps and free agent leftovers has turned into another circus of sorts for the Islanders. With the departure of Ted Nolan, the Isles began their search for a new head coach yesterday, with Paul Maurice getting the first crack. The list of other candidates (Quenville, Tortorella, Hartley, Gallant, Sullivan) is a mix of proven winners and other less successful coaches. Snow has a tough decision ahead of him.

I will always have the greatest respect for Ted Nolan, who got more out of this team than anyone ever expected, with less to work with than most teams. The rift between coach and GM, well documented across the internet, just proved too much. As much as this hurts, Snow made the right move here. He accomplished two things. First, he established himself as the clear leader in the front office, the man to answer to. The "committee" model just wasn't working. Too many people to answer to, and nobody to answer to. Second, he gets to hire his first head coach, someone who shares a vision for this team. Nolan wasn't that guy.

In order to get a rocket into space, an enormous amount of energy is required, with various pieces on the ship discarded to fall back to earth leaving the remaining rocket to push the limits of space and to reach it's ultimate goal.

It may be tough to recognize, but guys like Yashin, Peca brought us a good measure of respect around the league a few years back, and when that respect started to fade, and when we had to discard those pieces of the rocket, a guy like Ted Nolan helped push us further into space.

Well, another big piece of the Islanders rocket is now falling back to earth and the team's goal is clear - build a consistent winner with developed youth and some proven veteran leadership. When this team does finally take the next step, we'll all have to remember to tip our caps to guys like Ted Nolan (and to a lesser degree Yashin and Peca).

The Isles are finally getting this right, and much to Snow's credit, they are realizing that they cannot build a winner through free agents and trades. I, for one, am happy that we will actually see our drafted prospects play for us, and not thrive elsewhere as the result off an ill-conceived trade.

The Isles have signed our young core to contracts that will give them 2-3 years to develop together and create a chemistry that should breed success at the NHL level. Now it's time for Okposo, Bergenheim, Comeau, Neilsen and Tambellini to prove they belong in the NHL. It's time for Guerin and Weight (a vastly underrated signing in my opinion) to assert their leadership to help these guys develop. It's now time for the Isles to hire the right coach to mold this team into a consistent playoff contender for years to come.

The new coach must be a proven molder of talent, someone who is willing to take the ups and downs a young team is likely to go through. I have seen some calls that the Isles hire a coach with some name recognition, just to offset some of the PR damage to the team. I disagree, and by this point in time, Isles fans should have enough scar tissue built up to easily deflect the constant ridicule. A guy like Maurice or Quenville seems like the best fit to me, and satisfies both the name recognition and the development molds.

It's July, the time of the year when Isle's fans are at their most optimistic. We have to taper our expectations with what this team is most likely to achieve this year. A playoff berth would be the pie in the sky but the #1 pick next year is just as unlikely. Can our new coach squeeze as much out of this group as Ted Nolan did? Only time will prove that, something Islanders fans know all too well.

Call to the Bullpen

2008-07-21T21:23:00.005-04:00

Guest Blogger Brian Carey

As Mike begins the process of raising the newest Islander fan (get some sleep Mike), I've offered to keep the site updated with my own thoughts on the most recent developments in Islander country. Any time the manager hands the ball to the bullpen, I hope to strike out the side as opposed to giving up a three run homer. We'll see....
First pitch coming soon.

Brevity is the Soul of Witt

2008-07-10T09:19:00.011-04:00

Long Island's own "Braveheart", Brendan Witt, gets a 2-year extension worth $6M to keep him an Islander through the 2010-2011 season. The most remarkable aspect of this announcement is that it is literally the first piece of Islanders news in years that has been met with unanimous fan approval. If you don't believe me, feel free to peruse the notoriously prickly commenters over at Logan's blog here and here.

You can certainly count me in with the masses. As far as defensive defensmen go, Witt's near the top of the class. And he adds a lot of the intangibles that this team needs - leadership, toughness, hockey intelligence. His ratio of effectiveness-to-flashiness is probably the highest in the league. If you're not really watching, you might never notice the guy. But for fans of good defensive fundamentals and the occasional blocked-shot-with-your-face, he's the man.

It was nice to see how complimentary he was towards the organization, and hopefully as one of the team leaders that sentiment can infect the locker room.

Bonus points for anyone geeky enough to get the reference in the title of this post.

Top-Down Management

2008-07-07T16:11:00.003-04:00

Let me start by offering major kudos to Chris Botta, former VP of Media Relations and mastermind of (NYI) Point Blank. What started as an "insider's" blog has only grown more interesting since he severed ties with the organ-eye-zation. The Blogfather, as we inaugural Blog Box members anointed him, never showed this kind of punch in any of the in-person encounters I had with him. When it comes to the written word, however, few can match his honesty and insight.

His latest entry focuses on an issue touched upon briefly in my own blog in the past - the Ted Nolan situation. Ultimately, this entire discussion boils down to one basic question - is Ted the right coach for this team for the upcoming season and beyond?

Of course, this is impossible to answer without a lot more information. As much as fans like to offer opinion-as-fact, none of us know what goes on behind closed doors. None of us really know who-said-what-to-whom or what anyone really thinks deep-deep down in their souls. But why should we let that stop us from adding our two cents?

First, you need to examine the relationship between coach and GM. In my eyes, the relationship between Ted and Garth is damaged. I'm basing that on three things:

1) The increasing lack of humor I saw from Ted Nolan over the course of the season. One of the perks of being a Blog Boxer is the post game access we are granted. Over the course of the year, I saw Ted evolve from a smiling, positive figure into a let's-get-this-over-with kinda guy. Maybe my judgment is off and I'm simply wrong, and even if I'm not there's no saying that his demeanor was a result of his relationship with Isles management. But from my perspective, I felt like I was watching a guy growing more dissatisfied by the day.

2) The interaction between Ted and Garth at the Stakeholders Meeting on April 16th. In short, there was no interaction. Both men knew at the time that their relationship was being scrutinized, and neither made any attempt to quiet the rumblings...even if only for appearances.

3) Things I've read, particularly from Greg Logan and now Chris Botta.

So if we take for granted that things are strained between the two, we need to ask ourselves if it really matters? Does it translate to the on-ice product? My answer is an unequivocal YES.

Let's say Garth is the best GM is the league (stay with me, people) and Ted is a perennial coach of the year candidate. Individually they are at the top of their respective fields. But if they cannot work well together - with respect - towards a common goal, it will never work. It's true of any organization. Garth needs to provide the players and resources for Ted to execute his vision, and Ted need to execute consistent with the organization's goals. Most importantly, both sides to need to understand what is expected from the other. The incentive for most coaches is to "win now" in order to provide a little job security. The Islanders are in a position where the decisions Ted might make to "win now" are counter productive to the long-run health of the team. Garth and Ted need to work together to map out goals and the roadmap to get there. If they can't get on the same page, a change needs to be made.

Next, you need to look at the relationship between Ted and the players. It gets dangerous in sports when you let the players dictate who should be the coach. There's a reason you don't let the inmates run the asylum. But in hockey, and in the Islanders case specifically, there are some things you need to be mindful of. Free agency is such a factor nowadays that you can't afford to allow your players to grow too dissatisfied. They can and will be gone as soon as their contracts allow. In fact, remembering back to when we hired Ted, one of the big advantages was that he was a "player's coach" and the kind of guy that could attract talent that our facility and recent history would otherwise not enable us to get. If he's having the opposite effect, that is a problem. And if there are issues with DP, the blue-chip face of our franchise for the next decade-plus, that is something that needs to be addressed immediately. In my experience, it all starts from the top. If Ted and management can get on the same page, it will be easier for Ted to communicate and execute a consistent message to the team. It won't guarantee unity, but it will certainly help.

As a fan, I feel that Ted has gotten more out of this team than I expected over the past two seasons (factoring in injuries). I've questioned his tactical Xs-and-Os coaching at times, especially relating to the powerplay. But as far as squeezing as much as he could out of our limited talent, I think he did a good job. So from that perspective, I'd like to see things work out. I'd like to see him surrounded by stronger assistants who can help in areas like the PP. But for this to happen, Ted, Garth and the rest of the management team need to do more than talk-the-talk. They need to run the organization as a team. United, respectful, and on the same page. Anything less will keep the Islanders on the bottom looking up for many more years to come.

Playing Catch-Up

2008-07-03T09:55:00.003-04:00

These past few weeks have been all about preparing for the arrival of the newest member of the Islanders 360 family...my first child, due any day now. But in between washing baby clothes, sterilizing bottles, and setting up furniture I've been able to keep one eye on the hockey scene. So this post is all about playing catch-up.

Actually, I had something written immediately after Day 1 of the Draft. It had a decidedly un-family-friendly tone, and I thought it best to sleep on it before I unleashed my anger on you, faithful reader. In hindsight that was a good decision, as my feelings have changed somewhat since that initial knee-jerk reaction.

When the the trade-down from 5 to 7 was announced, I assumed Garth knew Toronto was going to pick Schenn and Columbus wasn't sold on Filatov. At the moment, it seemed like a stroke of genius...two extra picks AND we still get Filatov with the 7th pick. Of course, Filatov went at 6 to the Jackets and then the next trade-down to 9 was called. No problem, I thought, Garth must know Colin Wilson will still be around at 9. Shrewd move, GM! Moments later, Nashville calls Wilson's name and I'm left slack-jawed on the couch, wondering how we ended up here. When our pick finally came around, I tool small solace in the fact that Cody Hodgson was still on the board. Worst case, loose-cannon Kyle Beach could look good wreaking havoc in the orange-and-blue. I'll be honest, of all the top 15 picks, Josh Bailey is the only one I hadn't heard of. Thus my reaction when Garth called his name.

Clearly Day 2 of the Draft proved more successful, at least as far as gut reactions go. If you've been to the Official Islanders Site recently, you've read all the press about being "winners of the draft" and all that mumbo jumbo. Hey, it's nice to be respected (if only for a day). But in examining the Draft as a whole, how do I now feel about what happened on that Friday night?

I still think we should have grabbed Filatov. I understand the need to restock the organization, but we already had extra picks thanks to earlier deals. We were in a position to get an exciting young player, one who could be the face of a franchise that desperately needs one. You don't draft a player for his PR appeal, but he seems to have the talent to back it up. Sure, nothing's for certain, but just once it would have been nice to see this team follow conventional wisdom. If third-round steal Petrov ends up playing for the Islanders and lives up to his potential, I'll change my mind. That just seems like a big roll of the dice right now.

I really could talk about the Draft all day, but it's already old news. We'll re-evaluate things in 3 or 4 years. With these things, only time will tell.

Moving on to a smaller piece of news, I was happy to see the Islanders buy-out the contract of Shawn Bates. I loved Bates a few years back, and he'll always be an Islanders mini-legend for his penalty shot goal in the Toronto series. But this is the right move now, and I'm glad there won't even be the question of him taking time away from our prospects.

Moving on to free-agency, I have to say I am feeling pretty good about what has happened so far (and if you listen to Greg Logan, there's no more moves to come). Sure, we didn't make a huge splash...but any realist knew we weren't going to be in the mix for Hossa, Campbell, Sundin...etc. For me, free agency has been a success because we signed Mark Streit. Bear in mind, my expectations were that we would not do anything in free agency to improve our team. With this signing, we did.

I don't think he'll be able to replicate his numbers from last season, where his crisp passes were feeding a much more potent offense. But the guy should improve our powerplay substantially (though not solve it as Garth said). If you really analyze last season and project how many more games we would have won if we had a respectable powerplay, it's hard to not be excited by this signing. I'm choosing to ignore the rumors of his defensive weaknesses. That's my right as a fan.

I'm ambivalent about the addition of Doug Weight. Clearly, the only real benefit to this deal is the impact he can have on the development of the young guys. Also, I have a gut feeling that the team knows Sillinger might not be ready to go, at least for the start of the year. I saw him after the season finale last year, and he did not look like a guy that would possibly be ready to lace up the skates in September. I don't know anything one way or another, I'm just basing that on what I saw and my zero years of medical training. But the signing does raise one interesting question - can a team get both younger and older simultaneously? I think the Isles managed to pull off that seemingly impossible feat.

I'll leave you with the possible line combinations for next season, courtesy of Greg Logan..

Forward lines
Jeff Tambellini – Doug Weight – Bill Guerin
Blake Comeau – Mike Comrie – Kyle Okposo
Jonathan Sim – Mike Sillinger – Trent Hunter
Sean Bergenheim – Frans Nielsen – Richard Park

Defense pairings
Brendan Witt – Radek Martinek
Andy Sutton – Freddy Meyer
Chris Campoli – Mark Streit

Goaltenders
Rick DiPietro
Joey MacDonald

Extras
F Andy Hilbert
F Ben Walter
F Jeremy Colliton
D Bruno Gervais

Quick thought - how does Tambellini go from a guy the coaching staff has no confidence in to a first-line winger? Only on the Islanders...

And I Just Finally Learned How to Spell Dubielewicz...

2008-06-02T15:13:00.002-04:00

Thanks to Greg Logan over at Newsday, we have a little pre-draft Islanders news to counter the summer doldrums. Word on the street is that the team will be parting ways with four of its UFAs - Dubie, Satan, Tank, and JoVas.

Capable backup Joey McDonald's one-way contract for next season virtually guaranteed that Dubie's days with the team were numbered. In a sense, I was a bit surprised to hear that they even made him an offer. I am and always have been a big fan of Dubielewicz, but given the circumstances of McDonald's contract this is the right decision for the team. I sense a hint of bitterness in Snow's comments - "We made a significant offer that he turned down". Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but why throw in the word significant if you're not at least a little bit upset by the situation? Then, Logan reports that Snow said of Dubie, "There wasn't much confidence from our coaching staff to play him. That's where we ran into trouble playing Ricky too many nights. We need a backup goalie our coaches will have confidence in from Day 1." It's unclear if these comments were made at the same time as the comments about the contract, or if they're just a rehash of an older statement. If the former, clearly there's some bad blood there. Let's hope not, and wish Dubie the best. He gave us a few great memories over the last couple of years.

I'm not at all surprised that Satan and Fedotenko will likely be playing elsewhere in 2008/2009. Factoring in their salaries ($4.5M, $2.9M respectively) and production (16 goals apiece), it's an easy call. Vasicek is a different story. His 16 goals and 34 points were a relative bargain at $750k for the season. Granted, he may be hoping for a nice bump next season. Still, for a team where scoring is at a premium, he added a bit of punch at a good value.

With few marquee free agents on the horizon (and little to no chance of landing the handful of big names), all of this paves the way for a youth movement. Okposo, Comeau, and Bergenheim have spots to lose, and Tambellini, Nielsen, and Walter all have legitimate shots to crack the squad. That is, assuming Snow doesn't pull a repeat of last year and fill the roster with marginal veterans through free agency. Something tells me that won't happen this year.

For a team that is essentially "buying time" until the Lighthouse Project (hopefully) materializes, this is the right approach. For the next couple of seasons, we will flesh out which of our prospects are the real deal. Then, with a new arena in place and a roster of young talent, we'll be able to better attract top UFAs and take a true step forward. At the very least, it's the start of a true "plan", something this team has been lacking for far too long.

On a personal note, thanks for all those who keep checking in to the blog periodically. Updates will likely continue to be sporadic throughout the summer, but I'll be back in full swing by the start of the season.

Stakeholders Meeting

2008-04-17T15:51:00.003-04:00

I'm a little late posting my thoughts and reactions to last night's event at the Coliseum. Rather than rehash everything already reported by Newsday's Greg Logan in his article and blog, I'll just add my two cents on a few items.

First, a request for the Lighthouse developers. If we're lucky enough to ever see this project happen, can you do something about the acoustics in the Coliseum? I was sitting about 15 feet from Garth and Ted as they spoke, and literally could hardly understand what they were saying. It's as if the arena was built to funnel all sound out to Hempstead Turnpike. But enough griping.

After the dog and pony portion of the evening was done, Charles Wang addressed the Lighthouse Project and updated us on the latest status. Nothing new, but a nice update for those that aren't turned on by Town of Hempstead bureaucracy. He still hopes to break ground by July 2009, which to me seems unrealistic. The highlight of his presentation came when he introduced Garth, and acknowledged that most people thought he lost his mind to appoint our back-up goalie to the GM position. He made a "Garth slept at a Holiday Inn Express the night before" joke, which I'll admit was at least a little bit funny (would have been more funny if I was 100% sure he was actually kidding).

I thought Garth's presentation was pretty run-of-the-mill, and his three-point plan for success - draft wisely, develop prospects, sprinkle in UFAs - wasn't exactly a revelation (although, in fairness, what else could he have said?). He understandably didn't give any inkling to his thoughts on the upcoming draft. During the Q&A portion, Garth seemed inclined to say as little as possible. The only "news" in a sense is that he seems very keen on bringing in a true "enforcer" before next season.

Ted was more verbose than Garth, and I thought the portion of the evening devoted to him was more useful. It's very clear that he is very high on both Bergenheim and Comeau, as he should be. Hopefully Bergenheim will be signed soon, an issue which Snow was asked about but danced around quite well. In fact, over the course of the evening there were several instances where the "kids" were discussed. Both Nolan and Snow spoke about Bergy, Comeau, and Okposo. Not one mention of Tambellini until a question was asked specifically about him. To me, that said a lot. The one topic that annoys me a bit...the powerplay woes. Nolan indicated he studied a lot of tape and concluded it was too stationary. I could have told him that in November! Why didn't he address and CHANGE this before it was too late? No good answer to that, unfortunately.

Open House

2008-04-14T16:07:00.004-04:00

This Wednesday evening the Islanders are hosting an "Open House and Chalk Talk", the highlight of which (for me, at least) will be a presentation / Q&A on the direction of the team. I'm hoping there will be some real substance to the event, as promised by Chris Botta, but wouldn't be shocked if it's more of a dog-and-pony show to try to lure some new season ticket holders.

Regardless, I have to say this is one of the great benefits of being a hockey fan and, specifically, an Islanders fan. You just don't get this kind of access in other sports. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but could you imagine the Yankees sending Cashman and Girardi out to interact with the fans like this, especially after an unsuccessful season?

There are a few questions I'm hoping are addressed/discussed during this session:

For Garth
- Do you think your ability to attract free agents would be different if the Lighthouse project was approved before the FA period begins?
- Is your approach with the draft to go for the best player available, or to draft based on needs?

For Ted
- Do you think you were proactive enough in addressing the struggling powerplay this past season? What adjustments do you think you made over the course of the year?
- Do you think your effectiveness as a coach would be different on a "veteran" team vs. a "young" team? Do you think you need to adapt your style based on the experience of your players?

It'll also be interesting to see the interaction between Garth and Ted, in their first "public" interaction since the rumors of a strain in their relationship. Body language may say more than their words in this case.

Hope to see a lot of you on Wednesday night.

We Were In It, But We Didn't Win It

2008-04-08T08:36:00.005-04:00

In what turned out to be a pretty anticlimactic lottery ceremony, the Islanders retained their fifth spot in the 2008 Entry Draft. So say goodbye to those dreams of Steven Stamkos. Luckily, this is a pretty deep draft class. And it may or may not help that 4 of the top 7 rated prospects are defensemen. Not having done my homework yet on the needs of the teams that pick second through fourth -LA, Atlanta, and St. Louis - I can only hope that these teams are looking for some help on the blue line. If so, we can hopefully land the best forward whose name isn't Stamkos.

For those that watched the ceremony, how much were you hoping to see St. Louis' logo come out of the #1 envelope, ensuring Stamkos would help build a new powerhouse in the Western Conference rather than in our own backyard? A team with Lecavalier, St. Louis, and Stamkos won't be bad for long.

If anyone is curious about the picks we have in this year's draft, check out this site. You can see the picks we have in each round for this year's draft as well as the 2009 draft, including information on how we acquired each pick.

The 2008 Entry Draft begins on Friday, June 20.

Do The Right Thing

2008-04-07T10:49:00.003-04:00

I want to encourage everyone reading this to click HERE to read Chris Botta's blog entry from Sunday, April 6. Here's the story in a nutshell...

Despite being tied for first place in the Hummer Metro Ice Challenge, the Rangers are apparently being awarded the full $50k charitable donation while the Islanders are getting nothing. As Chris notes, if you were to look at the two logical tie-breakers (wins within the Challenge & head-to-head wins), the Islanders would win both. Evidently, the decision was made to award the full donation to the Rangers based on their superior regular season record (an element not taken into account at all in the Metro Ice Challenge standings).

I'm used to the Islanders being treated as second class citizens, but this is ridiculous. Sure, the money is going to charity either way, but in the interest of fairness this just stinks.

I hope that by the time many of you read this, a fair resolution will have been reached and Chris will have the opportunity to report the happy news. If not, please feel free to share any ideas to voice our displeasure in the Comments section below.

Update - looks like the issue has been resolved. Better late than never, I suppose.

You Have to Be In It to Win It

2008-04-02T14:08:00.004-04:00

The Islanders finish off their season this Friday at the World's Most Infamous Arena, and it's very tempting to look for a nice, quiet hockey-free space to settle into starting on Saturday morning. Other than hoping for an early playoff exit from our blue-shirted friends in Manhattan, there's little joy in watching hockey's "second season" ramp up without the Islanders. It usually takes at least one round before I can get past the sting of another unsuccessful season.

But this year's a bit different from the last several. Mark your calendars for this coming Monday, April 7. Both Versus and the NHL Network will be televising the 2008 Scotiabank NHL Draft Lottery at 8PM EST. This holds the potential to be a historic day for the franchise. Specifically, we likely have a 8.1% chance of this being a great day for the Islanders.

Here's how it all works. Each of the 14 non-playoff team is entered into the lottery. Your odds of winning the lottery are weighted, based on your point total from the regular season. So the team with the lowest point total (30th place team) has a 25% chance of winning the lottery, the 29th place team has a 18.8% chance...etc. It all goes down to the 17th place team with a 0.5% chance of winning. You can see all of the odds here. The team that wins the lottery will move up 4 spots in the draft.

So what does this mean for the Islanders? At this point, it's very likely that the Islanders will finish in either 26th or 27th place in the league, based on regular season points. For the moment let's assume 26th, since that is where they stand today. In this spot, the Islanders hold the aforementioned 8.1% chance of winning the lottery. If that happens, they would move up from the 5th overall pick to the 1st overall pick. Hello, Steven Stamkos! If they fail to win the lottery, they would either draft fifth or sixth, depending on which team wins it.

So how excited should we allow ourselves to get? Well, the last time a team jumped from the #5 pick to the top spot happened all the way back in 2007 when the Blackhawks literally hit the lottery and snagged Patrick Kane. So why not two years in a row? Oh, and the time before that where a team jumped from fifth to first? 2000, when the little ol' NY Islanders drafted Rick DiPietro.

Unlike in the NFL, where top picks frequently fail at the professional level, holding the #1 pick in the NHL is as close to a sure thing as you can get. In the last 11 years, here are a sampling of the top picks - Crosby, Ovechkin, Kovalchuk, Thornton, Nash, DiPietro, Kane, Lecavalier. So on Monday night, I'll climb out of my hockey-free cocoon in the hopes that the hockey gods are smiling on Long Island.

Love of the Game

2008-03-25T13:29:00.003-04:00

Success is a very relative term. As an Islanders fan, it's fair to characterize the "Charles Wang" era as successful. We've reached the playoffs 4 of 6 seasons (including this one) after failing to make the playoffs in, based on my latest calculations, the previous 47 years. Sure, each trip to the big dance has been one-and-done, but again we are stressing success as a relative ideal. It's not like this is a Devils or Red Wings blog.

As modest as our achievements have been, it's been fun to feel that we have a team that is at least capable of making some noise come April. And believe me, being a die-hard fan throughout the truly dark days of the late 1990s, I wouldn't trade it for anything.

But as with anything in life, there are trade-offs. For me, it has been my experience as a fan. With success comes expectations, and with expectations comes a whole new way to watch the game. Over the past few years, my personal fan experience has (d)evolved. Lately it's become more about strictly measuring wins-and-losses. It's about monitoring the standings with intense focus, and scoreboard watching to gauge the success of those teams within striking distance. It's about hoping that other intra-conference games don't go into OT, turning into 3-point games. It's about calculating playoff scenarios based on "games in hand" and remaining schedule.

What it's not about is enjoying the game for the love of it. And I have to say, that's exactly why I am enjoying this final stretch of games. It's the same feeling I experienced back in 2006 when we were playing "meaningless" games in late March / early April. I go to the Coliseum now and enjoy the game like I did when I was younger. Sure, wins always mattered, but I could still have a great time at a game regardless of the outcome. The pressure of wins, points, and standings all go out the window. It's all about having fun watching the sport I love.

This may all sound a little touchy-feely, but there really is a palpable difference for me now. Granted, I still need to see the team put forth a solid effort to be happy. And last night versus the Penguins, the team delivered. The fact that they won was a complete afterthought - to be honest, I was hoping for a loss. Yes, I'm one of those who is hoping we tank to maximize our chances for the #1 pick in this year's draft.

These are the same feelings that kept me watching and cheering throughout the late 90's, when we were typically mathematically eliminated from playoff contention before Christmas. As much as I'd love to still be in the playoff hunt, it's a nice consolation to be reminded of why I love this game in the first place.

To Be Young Again

2008-03-17T15:25:00.004-04:00

The biggest issue I've had with Ted Nolan during his tenure as Islanders coach is his clear favoritism towards certain players over others. We've seen it in terms of overall ice time, power play time, and in his choice of healthy scratches. But more so we've seen it in his bias towards his veteran players over the young guys. So the only bright spot in our current situation (9 points out with 9 games to play, countless injuries) is that he has no choice but to showcase some of our prospects at the NHL level.

Looking at the box score of our most recent game in Montreal, you'll find a veritable "who's who" of Islanders prospects - Ben Walter, Jeff Tambellini, Steve Regier, Blake Comeau, Matthew Spiller, and Tim Jackman. Seeing as we have only 13 players (excluding goaltenders and Shawn "Gimpy" Bates) under contract for next season, these players must be looking at this home stretch as their best opportunity to prove themselves, before the wheeling and dealing of the off-season begins.

As excited as I am to see more from these players, it also puts a spotlight on this team's biggest problem - scoring goals. Aside from Kyle Okposo (more on him in a minute), these are clearly our top prospects. And as you go down the list, you won't find many (any?) pure goal scorers. Sure, Tambellini has potential, but the guy has simply not stepped up at the NHL level. Say what you want to about his limited ice time, but it didn't prevent Comeau from making an immediate impact in essentially the same role. From there, does anyone project Ben Walter or Steve Regier much above third-line action? Is Tim Jackman more than a fourth-line role player?

Without question both Sean Bergenheim and Blake Comeau have been pleasant surprises this year, and both are prototypical "Ted Nolan Type" players. But despite their hard work and (overused cliche alert!) grit, neither are likely to be much more than 20+ goal scorers throughout their careers. We need prospects that can finish, not just work hard. Over this past offseason, every free agent we signed and every player we drafted was commended by the Isles press machine for their (choose 3 of the following 5):

Character, Grit, Work Ethic, Passion, Heart

Please, can the next player we bring into the fold be known for SCORING? I can see the press release now:

"XXXX is a somewhat dedicated player. He's not known as a 'team first' kind of guy, and will take a shift or two off here and there. But the guy scored 45 goals last year and is projected as our top-line center within 2 years. So we'll leave the grit to our third and fourth line players".

I know, I know...sounds like Yashin and we all know how that worked out. But one thing I promise, if Alexei continued his level of production from Ottawa we would not have soured on him nearly as quickly, if at all. Especially now that we as Islanders fans understand the premium on scoring, I think we'd all be willing to forgive an occasional lapse in effort for a guy that can net 35+ each year.

All of which brings us to tomorrow night, and the NHL debut of Kyle Okposo. Is he the real deal? We'll find out soon enough. But the fact that his reputation is already evolving from a "goal scorer" to a "playmaker" doesn't give me the warm-and-fuzzies. OK so I'm (mostly) kidding...I really am excited to see what this kid can bring to the table, even over the course of a brief 9-game stint.

Worst case, the season continues to spiral out of control and we find ourselves in the running for Steven Stamkos, one of the more heralded offensive prospects to come along in recent years.

Of course, even if we get the #1 pick we'll probably draft a goalie...

Stick a Fork in 'Em

2008-03-10T11:15:00.002-04:00

The Islanders are not making the playoffs this year. And as I type those words, I hear echoes from Islanders Nations screaming "Thank you Captain Obvious!". I'm an optimist by nature, but as some point you have to be a realist, too.

As I prepared to write some quick hits as to what is wrong, what is going to happen...etc., I perused some of my fellow blog boxer's thoughts. Coincidentally, the esteemed BD Gallof hit on exactly what I was going to say. Read it here. And since we are no longer in high school and plagiarism isn't a suspendable offense, I'll let his words do the talking.

So there you have it, my post is just a link to his post. Ahh, nice and easy. Do I feel guilty? No. I'm putting forth the same type of effort the team has provided over the last few games. There's a reason they call it "skating". BD, feel free to add my name to the byline. Other than the Wile E. Coyote reference, you reflected my thoughts exactly.

Core of the Four

2008-03-02T15:03:00.006-05:00

It's about 40 minutes prior to game-time for today's matchup versus the Florida Panthers. This afternoon, the organization is honoring the "Core of the Four" - the players, coaches, and personnel that were a part of all 4 Cups during the dynasty era.

My thoughts after watching the obligatory video montage of highlights from the four Finals victories:

- As an Islanders fan, is it possible to get tired of watching Nystrom score the OT game winner against the hated Flyers to give the team it's first Cup? I can only imagine the emotions I would have felt if I was old enough to be there, and fully appreciate the accomplishment. I've seen that clip hundreds of times, and it never gets old.

- My best memories of that era, as young as I was, are of a team that always worked hard, always worked together. It's that concept of every man pulling his weight that has been missing from this team. Actually, in this age where the business of hockey often overshadows the game of hockey, it's a trait that you rarely see anywhere in the league.

Now we're onto the player introductions. Watching Potvin come out carrying the Stanley Cup over his head fills me both with feelings of nostalgia and the overwhelming desire to experience that once again. It's great to see the Cup on home ice in March, but I'd much rather see it in June.

Of all of the greats here, who had a better run than Ken Morrow? In 1979, he is named player of the year in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. In 1980, he wins a gold medal as part of the "Miracle on Ice", playing in arguably the greatest game in the history of sports. That same year, he wins the first of four straight cups...a nice welcome to the NHL. He might not be first name that comes to mind, but if I could take anyone's hockey career for myself, it would probably be Ken Morrow.

The current players come out to the ice now, wearing throwback jerseys of the former players. There's Guerin wearing the familiar "C", but with "Potvin" written across his back. Comrie's assuming the role of Trottier. I'm not sure at this point if these jerseys are going to be worn for the game itself or just warmups, although my guess would be warmups only. I think it would be kind of cool, albeit a little confusing, if they kept these for the game. How great would it be to hear "Trottier to Bossy...GOAL!" one more time? There's probably a league rule about wearing different names on your jersey, though. I'll have to find out about that one.

Overall it was a nice ceremony. It lacked the punch of Al Arbour's 1500th game ceremony, but as I've previously written, that was a particularly special night. It would hard to beat that, period.

Now, moving on to today's contest with Florida. I'm not going to go so far as to call this a must-win...with 4 more games against the Rangers and two against Philly, we can still gain some ground by winning those "four-point games". But from a gut feel standpoint, if we can't beat the Panthers...at home...with most of the greatest Islanders in history watching...it'd be hard to argue the playoffs are looking good.

The biggest concern would have to be that Wade Dubielewicz is starting today in place of DiPietro (attending to a death in the family). I'm a Dubie fan, but with just two appearance in the last 62 days (covering about 27 games) it's easy to think rust might be factor. The defense is going to need to play an inspired game today. On the brightside, we're facing Florida's backup in Craig Anderson rather than Tomas Vokoun.

Here's my pregame prediction (yes, I know I said I was done making predictions). The Islanders win with authority for a change. I'm thinking a 5-2 final, with one goal by Sean Bergenheim. And by the way, with all due respect, someone needs to tell Sean he looks like a porn star with that moustache.

No live in-game blog from me today. I think I'd rather focus on the game. Besides, I'll leave the live blogging to the expert (Tom) over at The Tiger Track.

Let's go Islanders!

Evaluating My Predictions

2008-02-26T16:21:00.005-05:00

They say a broken clock is still right twice a day. My trusty crystal ball performed a bit better than that, but clearly it's in need of a tune-up before I go out on a limb and make any more predictions. Next time I'll use the ouija board.

Things started on a promising note. I woke up this morning to learn that Mike Comrie signed a one-year extension for $4M. That's second-line center type money, just as predicted in yesterday's post. So it wasn't even 8AM and I was already one-for-one on my predictions. My feeling is that this was a necessary move by our young GM. I've been as frustrated by Comrie's play at times this season as anyone. But looking at the dearth of talent that will be available this summer, we needed to lock up our #1 scorer and solid second-line centerman. Hopefully Snow can work some magic this summer and get a true #1 center to complement this signing.

I was also right-on with the McCabe non-trade. Sure, it's not that hard to predict something that won't happen, but this was the only substantiated rumor we had heading into the final 24 hours before the deadline. Without knowing what may or may not have been offered, I am generally happy that this deal did not happen. Unless we could have acquired the Leafs first-round pick next year (a longshot, at best), I wouldn't have been happy taking on McCabe's hefty cap hit.

From here, my guesses got downright ugly. Again, there's no way to know how close we were to seeing a deal go down, but Satan and Fedotenko will both remain with the team. At this point, my gut tells me neither guy will be re-signed. That said, I wouldn't be shocked if both are. The bottom line is, we need to suit up a full roster next year, and right now any outcome is possible. Especially given Nolan's predilection towards veterans over the newbies. But if I assume for the moment that neither return next year, I would have liked to see a move made. Not so much with Fedotenko, where I doubt we would have seen much of a return. But for Satan, I would assume we could have gotten, at worst, a second-round pick or solid prospects.

Finally, a few deals were done that my Magic 8-Ball failed to foresee. First was the news of the trading our 7th round pick to the Sharks for big defenseman Rob Davison. I can't claim to know anything about the guy other than what you can read on nhl.com. Still, for the depth it provides and the toughness it adds (especially in the absence of Sutton and Witt) it wasn't a bad move. Next came news of Chris Simon going to the Wild for a sixth round pick. I'll give this an A+. Even before the Hollweg and Ruutu incidents, I was questioning Simon's role on the team. His days as a reliable (and responsible) enforcer were behind him, and he didn't contribute enough offensively. In fairness, I didn't so much have an issue with Simon as with the way Nolan over-used him. But seeing as that probably wasn't going to change, given their close relationship, I am happy to see this move made. Lastly, we moved MAB to Anaheim for a third-round pick. I don't exactly understand this move from Anaheim's perspective, but I'm also not an expert on all things Ducks. I've never been a Bergeron hater (he gives me far less heartburn than Berard), but it was clear he was never going to be fully accepted in Nolan's system. Given that, a third rounder seems like fair compensation.

So another deadline came and when. Certainly not the barn burner we had last year, but nothing to get too upset about either. As an Islanders fan accustomed to controversy, I'll take it.

Deadline Predictions

2008-02-25T13:55:00.003-05:00

As I write this, we are a mere 25 hours away from the NHL's trading deadline. The only hard news to materialize thus far is the signing of Trent Hunter to a 5-year, $10M extension. Last year Hunter was far and away my favorite player on the team. While his play has slipped a bit this season, at that price the signing can only be classified as a "no brainer". Plus, my Hunter jersey will not be obsolete for the foreseeable future!

While nothing is ever certain when it comes to the deadline, the one thing I can say with reasonable confidence is that the Islanders will not make the same kind of splash they made last year. And frankly, that is a good thing. Still, despite the cloud of secrecy every GM in the league is operating under, why not look into the Islanders 360 Magic 8 Ball and get some predictions?

Just to give everyone some perspective, here are some of the things in the past that my Magic Ball has accurately foretold:

- The contents of Al Capone's vault
- The ending of "The Sixth Sense"
- The precise date and time of Andy Hilbert's first goal this season

So clearly there's some mojo floating around inside this orb o' mine. Now, onto the predictions:

Will anyone else get re-signed prior to the deadline?
Garth Snow will convince Mike Comrie to stay on Long Island and sign for "2nd line center" money. This will happen prior to 3PM on Tuesday, making Garth's #1 offseason priority a top-line center. There will be no other extensions prior to the deadline.

Will anyone be traded?
Garth is no Mad Mike, but he still needs to make a little bit of noise at the deadline. So of course the answer is YES! With so little talent available, Miro Satan is one of the hottest commodities in the league at the moment. Garth will convince him to waive his no-trade clause for the chance to play for a true contender, and in return the Islanders will get at least a first-round pick in the upcoming draft. Garth will also attempt to move the streaky Fedotenko, and at the last minute will accept a deal that most fans will consider unfavorable.

Will Bryan McCabe come back to Long Island?
Here, the outlook is fuzzy. It all hinges on just how desperate Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher is to clear some cap room. Given the lop-sided nature of any deal that Snow would (hopefully) require to take on that cap hit, I just don't see it happening. If this deal does happen, I predict that it will either be hailed as a stroke of genius or an unmitigated disaster, depending on how the specifics shake out.

Will the Islanders be a better team after the deadline?
As far as this season goes, no. Moving one of our top scorers in Satan will not improve this year's results. Sadly, the 8-ball predicts that the injuries on our blue-line, the loss of Sillinger, and the trade of Satan will keep us on the outside looking in for this year's playoffs. However, with two first round picks in next year's draft, the development of Comeau and Okposo, and getting a healthy D corps back, we will be a more successful team in 2008-2009.

There you have it. No need to follow the news for the next 25 hours, this is how it'll all go down. And hey, if I'm wrong...well, there's a first time for everything.

That Priceless Feeling

2008-02-18T10:50:00.003-05:00

A lot has happened since my last post, all those 18 days ago. When I posed the question "Buyers or Sellers", the Isles were a mere 2 games into their eventual 7 game losing streak. Each loss that followed only served to make my question less relevant. I was ready to SELL, SELL, SELL! A bag of pucks for Comrie? Sold! New t-shirt guns for Sillinger? Done and done.

I'll admit, I was ready to write-off the season. A big contributor to that feeling was the Giants victory in Super Bowl XLII. What does one have to do with the other, you ask? Well, neck-and-neck with my love for Long Island's hockey team is my devotion to NJ's Big Blue. I didn't miss one snap from the Giants 2007 season, and only a handful over the past several years. And while I'd always take a Stanley Cup over a Super Bowl win, I was in a state of constant euphoria ever since Eli hit Plaxico with the go-ahead TD. I barely noticed that the Isles kept on losing, as I spent all my free time watching Super Bowl highlights and reliving that amazing game in my mind.

Finally, by last weekend I made my way back to reality and what I found was depressing. Not only the losing streak. The Giants reminded me of what it can feel like to be a fan of a winner. As crazy as I got watching the Giants win it all, I can only imagine the feeling if (and hopefully when) the Isles bring the Cup back to LI. Facing the dim truth that we are realistically a long way from experiencing that feeling made me...sad. There's no other word for it.

I was 7 years old when we last won the Cup. I have memories of those days, but was far too young to have any real appreciation for it. The Super Bowl reminded me that, for a die-hard fan, you can't put a price on a championship. As much as the Giants' win took my short-term focus away from hockey, it's now increased my appetite for the Stanley Cup.

So even though we've rebounded a bit with three wins in a row, including a dominating performance against Atlanta, I'm still ready to sell. I'm willing sacrifice the next few seasons if it's clear we are moving in the right direction towards building a winner. I don't want to waste too may of DPs prime years, but I don't want to continue to cheer for a team where a first round playoff exit is considered successful. As a fan, all I can do is hope the Snow/Wang/Nolan braintrust has a plan. I can hope that Wang is not only interested in getting the Lighthouse project done, and that he really is committed to building a winner on Long Island. I can hope that I will get to re-live the euphoria I felt two weeks ago, as our Captain of the future lifts the Stanley Cup over his head in front of my disbelieving eyes.

Buyers or Sellers?

2008-01-31T12:57:00.000-05:00

This past Tuesday I sat in a relatively barren NYI Blog Box (just me and Dee from 7th Woman Blog, more on that later) in a relatively barren Coliseum (a disappointing post-All Star crowd) watching an uninspiring loss to the Senators. As I sat there in all that empty space, numb to any of the normal excitement I get attending a game, my mind started churning. I started thinking about the work I needed to do later that night for my "real" job, the renovations I'm doing to my house. Eventually my thoughts returned to hockey (although not on the game at hand) and I started pondering the upcoming trade deadline. My internal dialogue was raging with the age old debate...

Buyers or Sellers?

For a team that consistently finds itself right on the precipice of a playoff berth, this is always a tough question to answer. Are we one or two pieces away from making a serious run at the Cup (and, if so, do we have the resources to acquire those pieces) or are we better off unloading some of our resources with an eye towards the future? To me, there are four key elements to examine in answering this question.

1. The DiPietro factor - as every hockey fan knows, any team with a hot goaltender (not looks-wise, ladies) can make a serious run at the Cup. DiPietro loves the big stage and is capable of carrying this team on his shoulders. From that perspective, perhaps the addition of one or two scorers can get us to that next level and make us a real threat in the East. Let's be honest, Ottawa aside, is there anyone in the East that scares you? If we can capture the #7 seed or better and avoid a first-round matchup with the Sens, anything could happen.

2. The 2008 free agent pool - we currently have a good amount of room under the salary cap, and we have 9 UFAs that may potentially come off of our roster at the end of the season. It would take a crystal ball to even hazard a guess as to what this team will look like next year. But clearly the quality of the upcoming free agent pool, coupled with Snow's ability to land the guys he wants (old arena, wah wah wah), will have a big impact on what he opts to do at this year's deadline. While I follow the Isles very closely, my knowledge of the broader list of UFAs throughout the league is limited. But certainly, this is a big factor.

3. Confidence in our prospects - this can impact things in several ways. On one hand, you could argue that we could move some of our veterans at the deadline (e.g. Comrie, Satan, Fedotenko) and back-fill them with some of our young guys (e.g. Tambellini, Nielson, Okposo) and still make a run into the playoffs. In doing so we could acquire some prospects, rebuild our farm system, and unload players we likely would lose or let go at the end of the year anyway. On the other hand, if our confidence in these rookies is not that high, we could still go this route with an eye towards simply acquiring prospects for the future. Or, on the third hand, if the confidence is not high but we feel like we can make a run at the Cup this year with our current team, we would opt to stay put and let things play out.

4. Talent available via trade - so this one is a no-brainer. Obviously the quality of the players available, coupled with their contract status, will have a big impact. The standings are so tight, it's bound to make things interesting this year. There isn't a clear list of "sellers", as most teams rightfully believe they have a shot at the playoffs. There will no doubt be a few marquee names in the mix (e.g. Mats Sundin) but it's hard to ascertain just how deep the candidates will run.

I'm sure we could add a dozen more items to this list, but these are the ones I have been thinking about.

So what do I think should happen between now and Feb 26th? As usual I'm on the fence. But if I were GM, which is a scary thought by the way, I'd be more inclined to be a seller at this year's deadline. We have a number of pending UFAs that could be attractive throughout the league, most of whom I would classify as unlikely to be resigned by the Isles. And since I would say our realistic chances for the Cup this year are slim, why not stockpile some prospects for these guys while we can? And frankly, I'm of the belief that we could probably backfill these roster spots with guys like Tambellini and Nielson and probably not see too big a drop-off in scoring. In fact, I could argue that things might get better, but that's a topic for a different post. What I can say with confidence is that we won't make the same kind of splash we did last year. And based on the way things turned out from that, that's not a bad thing.

Kudos to Dee - for those that missed it, just wanted to say "great job" to Dee from the 7th Woman Blog for representing the Blog Box so well during her in-game interview with CJ Papa. Despite her self-deprecating comments in her blog, she handled things well and spoke highly of all of the writers contributing to the Blog Box.

D is for Depth

2008-01-23T13:04:00.000-05:00

Chris Campoli is done for the season. I fear I put the jinx on him by awarding the "most pleasant surprise of the year" to the development of him and Gervais, in my previous post. It's like talking about a no-hitter, you don't do it unless you want it to end. So my apologies to all Islanders fans, and to Bruno....BE CAREFUL!

But this is where the Isles much discussed defensive depth pays off. And it puts a spotlight on an unheralded story, the phoenix-like rising (no pun intended from his brief days as a Coyote) of Freddy Meyer, aka The Fabulous Fourth. Coming into this season, I was not a Meyer fan. I had no reservations when I learned he was plucked off of waivers by the Coyotes. Weeks later, after not cracking the mighty Phoenix lineup, we grabbed him back and I was left scratching my head. Now here we are, 19 games later, and his inspired play is proving me wrong. In fact, he was recently granted a 2 year extension, helping to solidify his place on our blueline. So congratulations to Freddy, who seemed to take all the ups-and-downs in stride, and is making the most of his second chance.

Now, some notes on last night's 6-3 victory in Carolina...

- Good resolve shown by the team in bending, but not breaking, with a 2 goal lead late in the third. After blowing two goal leads the previous two games, they allowed Carolina to get within one before snapping out of it. And it's a good thing, too...you can forgive such gaffes for a couple games, but when it hits three it becomes a trend. And trends can be hard to break.

-Nice to see Dubie back in form. Even as a Dubie supporter I couldn't help but wonder if his poor play earlier this season was simply indicative of his lack of playing time, or attributable to something more fundamental. His play over his last few starts has answered that question. He's as solid a backup we've had (with apologies to Garth) since DP supported Osgood.

-Finally, 3 shorthanded goals! What more can I say?

Mid-season Awards

2008-01-15T13:43:00.000-05:00

Before I jump into my mid-season awards, here's a quick plea to the local NY media...

Football season is almost over (as a Giants fan, hopefully not until after Feb 3), the Knicks are a trainwreck, and juiceball doesn't start until April...so how about we see an increase in hockey coverage over the next few months? We've got three local teams in the playoff mix, and some interesting stories associated with each. You can help create an appetite for the sport by improving your coverage of it.

OK, I'll get off my soapbox. Now onto my random awards:

MVP - Rick DiPietro. OK, so this one is a no-brainer, and not even worth expanding upon. Or so you would think, but leave it to Al Trautwig of the illustrious Hockey Night Live! to disagree. He chose Bill Guerin as the Islanders MVP, bolstering the claim that he either doesn't know or doesn't care about Islanders hockey. I guess when you work in close proximity to Isiah Thomas, the insanity can be contagious.

Most Pleasant Surprise - the development of Chris Campoli and Bruno Gervais. There was widespread support from the fans before the start of the season to cut ties with one or both of these guys to make room for Bryan Berard. I made my feelings to the contrary clear back in August. I'm glad to say, I was right (something which doesn't happen every day). Both players have raised their games to the next level this year, and continue to show improvement on both ends of the ice.

Least Pleasant Surprise - the disappearing act of Mike Comrie. Part of me hesitates being overly critical of our leading point scorer, a guy who has 50% more points than our #2 scorer. So the fact that he wins this award despite that speaks volumes. My concern at the start of the year was that he was going to take advantage of his one-year deal to put up monster numbers and then jump ship to a more competitive team. After all, this was the chance he's been waiting for - to be a #1 center in the NHL. Unfortunately, rather than work hard every shift to make the most of this opportunity, he's become prone to disappearing for long stretches. Also, he has a unique issue with skating - his speed moving towards the offensive zone is easily double that of his speed coming back to help out defensively. It's an odd phenomenon, but no doubt a big contributor to his team worst minus 12 rating.

Biggest Bummer - the injury to Jon Sim. I think Billy Jaffe is a good analyst, and so when I heard him say that Jon Sim had one of the best wrist shots in the league I took notice. Plus, his style of play seemed a great complement to the Sillinger line, and I was excited to see if they could be even more productive than last season. Unfortunately his season ended in the home opener, and perhaps not coincidentally the Sillinger line has failed to click thus far in the season.

First UFA to Sign to an Extension - Trent Hunter. We have 9 unrestricted free agents on our roster. They are: Hunter, Comrie, Vasicek, Fedotenko, Satan, Simon, Berard, Meyer, and Dubielewicz. At various points this season, Comrie, Vasicek, and Fedotenko all looked like "must sign" players, but over time much of that luster has worn. By a small margin, I choose Hunter. Last year, he was hands-down my favorite player on the team. Despite a disappointing year thus far, he's the first guy in the group I'd sign.

Best and Worst Trend of the Year - celebrities at the Coliseum. Kevin Connolly, the Duff sisters, Pat Sajak (??!!??)...what to make of this? I guess any exposure is good exposure. Plus I did get a kick out of watching Connolly seemingly challenge a Toronto fan to a fight. He's not a big guy, but it's easy to be bold when you have 15,000 people behind you.

That's it for the First Annual Islanders 360 Random Mid-Season Awards show. Due to the writer's strike, the ceremonies will not be televised this year.

A Chance To Get It Right

2008-01-11T10:23:00.000-05:00

When the puck drops tonight in Binghamton, the Kyle Okposo era will officially begin. In doing so, the Islanders organization will be taking a huge step forward. At least that is what I'm led to believe by so many of the journalists, bloggers, and fans who have been eagerly awaiting his arrival since the day we drafted him in 2006. Even the simple use of the phrase "Kyle Okposo Era" is burdened with so much inherent expectation, I'm worried we're setting up this talented young player for failure from the outset.

I'm not down on KO by any means. To be honest, all I've seen of him are a handful of You Tube highlights and some clips from Draft Day '06. From what I've seen and read, he seems like the real deal. But in a world where perception is reality, what is it going to take for Okposo to be considered a success for the Islanders?

I think the shift in perception from Okposo being a talented pick to a potential franchise savior started during last year's trading deadline. Buried in all the excitement of Ryan Smyth's arrival was the clear statement to the rest of the league that Okposo was "untouchable" and not available in any trade, no matter how attractive it may be. For many fans, most of whom had not (and still have not) seen Okposo play even one shift, this high-potential power forward began to develop a reputation distinctly different from those picks that came before him. Even casual fans knew his name, and the inevitable comparisons to some of the top power forwards in the league grew more pronounced.

A greater factor in the canonization of Kyle Okposo is attributable to the team he is joining. Without rehashing our organization's painful mismanagement of top draft picks, clearly this is a team that hasn't seen a top pick make an impact with the Islanders in a very long time. Obviously DP is the exception to that rule, but even that success is dampened by the events surrounding it (as much as we love DP, wouldn't we rather have Luongo and Heatley?). I believe that so many view this as our chance to get it right. A step towards erasing our memories of all of the top picks we passed on, traded away, or failed to develop. And that is exactly why I'm concerned. Nothing will change what has happened, and we need to be sure we don't put the burden of the last 15+ years on this man's shoulders.

For me, I'll be tracking his progress with great excitement just like anyone else. But when I watch him play, I won't be seeing the ghosts of Luongo, Spezza, Nilsson, Heatley and all the other "what-ifs" that populate the fringes of our past. I'll just be watching Kyle Okposo, a man who I hope will one day be a strong contributor to our team.

Top 5 Games (so far...)

2008-01-02T12:53:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year to all! Let's start 2008 by taking a look back at my favorite games of the season thus far.

#5 11-28-07 Islanders 3, Senators 2 (SO) - this game makes the list primarily because it marked our first victory over the Sens since 2004. But beyond that, it was a pretty exciting game in and of itself. Ottawa tied the game with under 2 minutes to go in regulation, leaving this Isles fan convinced that he'd have to wait another 4 years to see a win against the mighty Senators. Things looked all the more dim when Ottawa was granted a 4-on-3 power play in the OT session and sent out four forwards - Dany Heatley, Jason Spezza, Daniel Alfredsson, and Mike Fisher - to finish the job. The Isles PK was strong, as it has been virtually all season, and the game went to a shootout. Alfredsson put Ottawa up 1-0 and it came down to the Bill Guerin, the Isles final shooter, to tie it up. As we all know, he did and the shootout continued for six rounds, with Mike Sillinger scoring the eventual game winner.

#4 10-06-07 Islanders 3, Sabres 2 - there's always something special about the home opener, especially when the Isles win. The game completed the sweep of the home-and-home series with the Sabres to open the season. The game had a very different feel from the previous night's game, and the Isles played a much tighter team defense in relation to the free-for-all witnessed in Buffalo. Mike Comrie had us all talking "contract extension" with his second two-goal game in a row. For me personally, it was my first game in the NYI Blog Box and the start of an exciting experience.

#3 09-24-07 Islanders 5, Rangers 4 (OT) - normally a preseason game would have no shot at cracking the Top 5, but in this case I have to make an exception. In fairness, it can barely be called a hockey game. It was the type of night that validates the old joke "I was at a fight and a hockey game broke out". If you were there, you'll never forget it, especially watching DP throw left hooks into Al Montoya's head. I'm not normally into excessive fighting in games, but no can argue that the energy in the Coliseum that night was anything but electric. And let's not forget that the Isles came back from a 4-1 deficit to win the game in OT. It showed a lot of character for a team looking for an identity.

#2 12-26-07 Islanders 4, Maple Leafs 3 (OT) - the most recent game on my list, Steve Mears referred to it as the "game of the year" during his post-game comments. The return of Jason Blake to the Coliseum was overshadowed by the game itself, specifically the overtime. Richard Park's hooking penalty ignited a flurry of Toronto chances, with Wade Dubielewicz making one phenomenal save after another. The Isles survived the onslaught and Park was able to redeem himself by poke-checking the puck from Blake to lead a rush down ice, resulting in Comrie knocking home Park's rebound with 9.6 seconds left on the clock. The fan reaction was the most exuberant I've seen all year.

#1 11-03-07 Islanders 3, Penguins 2 - Al Arbour night. I won't go into too much detail, as I've already covered the game in a previous blog entry. In short, it was a magical night and a great experience for all in attendance. A fantastic game, and a great tribute to one of the all-time greats in NHL history.

Feel free to share your favorites in the Comments section. And here's hoping the best is yet to come.

Turning the Tables on Logan

2007-12-17T17:22:00.000-05:00

Since its inception last October, Greg Logan's Islanders blog for Newsday, "On the Islanders Beat", has become required reading for any fan of the team. Most notably, his coverage of the team around last year's trade deadline opened my eyes to the power of this medium in the world of sports. I have little doubt that the NYI Blog Box owes its very existence to the success of his efforts.

I thought it would be interesting to do a little role reversal and have Greg answer some questions for a change. He was nice enough to take some time from his schedule to do just that for Islanders 360.

360: What is your opinion of the NYI Blog Box experiment? Can you contrast your feelings from when you first were made aware of the idea vs. now that it has been "operating" for several months?

Logan: I never was worried about conflict with people in the Blog Box because Chris Botta explained that access would not be identical to what credentialed reporters receive. To a certain extent, I found it ironic that the Islanders would make room for this form of "competition" because I believe it's to some extent a reflection of the success Newsday's Islanders blog had in giving the fans an outlet that kind of energized their passion for the team. As for the practical effect of the Blog Box, I've not had a single problem. I know a couple of the bloggers, and I respect the effort everyone is making. I think it's good for them to get an idea of what actually goes on in the locker room situation after games. Since ITV is transmitting the interviews, it's not as though I can hold all the information for the morning paper, anyway. To be honest, from a competitive standpoint, the TV presentation controlled by teams in all sports is the real bugaboo for sports writers because it piggybacks on our questions. We're under deadline pressure, so I can't go off and have private interviews with various players. There isn't time. If the day comes when the bloggers are acting as their own news outlets, that's when the atmosphere will change. It already has in some sports, such as college football, where I understand recruiting stories have become a cottage industry for bloggers.

360: Have you read any of the blogs associated with the Blog Box, and if so what is your feeling on the quality and perspectives offered therein?

Logan: I've read all of the blogs at some point or another. I'm not religious about it because I have my own work to do, and I try to make time to read all the responses to my blog. So, that's pretty time-consuming as it is. The blogs are kind of like snowflakes, no two quite alike. It's interesting to see the different viewpoints. Some are more technical, concentrating on analysis of the play. And some offer a more personal fan's perspective of how they feel about the Islanders and various issues affecting the team and they give a feel for the fan's experience. There's something there for everyone. I noticed they're all very proficient technologically. I'm from an earlier generation, so I concentrate on reporting and don't do all the bells and whistles with the links and pictures. From that perspective, I'm sure I'm not as entertaining.

360: As a professional journalist, do you take any exception to the concept of bloggers given access to the team and coaches? In your experience thus far, do you feel like the organization has managed the program effectively so as to not interfere with your job and deadlines?

Logan: As I said earlier, I think the team has done a good job of managing the situation. And I completely understand why the Islanders would do it. They need to use every tool at their disposal to market the team. This is cutting edge at this point, and I'm sure it will spread like wildfire because it's obviously generated a lot of interest. The access the bloggers have had hasn't created any conflict. But I can see where it might if a blogger had a close personal relationship with a coach or player that resulted in a steady stream of breaking news.

360: Excluding people on the organization's payroll, you spend more time with and around the team than probably anyone else. If possible, can you remove your journalistic hat for a moment and provide your personal assessment of this team and it's strengths/weaknesses relative to the teams of the past couple of seasons?

Logan: I only can compare to last season because I was immersed in coverage of the Knicks and Larry Brown-Isiah Thomas-Stephon Marbury two years ago and didn't see much hockey. I'm sure my view is similar to that of the fans. Stats don't lie. They don't have enough scoring, and there's no premier sniper that has to be defended every game. I will say that I didn't think the offense would be this unproductive. I know that was the conventional wisdom in the summer, but I disagreed because there are enough players on the team who've had 20-goal seasons in the past that I didn't think it would be a problem. I was skeptical about Andy Sutton early in the season, but now that he's adjusted and figured out how to use his size within Ted Nolan's system, I feel he's been a good addition. Sean Bergenheim is exactly what people told me he was like last season, but he needs to start finding the net like most of the other forwards. Chris Campoli has made major strides since last season, and I can't help but feel that Rick DiPietro is growing into an elite goaltender. Because he has such a flair for the dramatic, there are going to be times when he makes you wonder what he's thinking. But more often than not, he makes plays most guys can't make. I think he's best when he keeps it simple, but there's no denying the difference his puckhandling makes as long as he makes good decisions and doesn't try for the home run every time. Josef Vasicek is another player who has been a real find. He's solid defensively, and he competes better than I had heard he might and obviously has a little scoring touch. I think very few realize what a big loss Jonathan Sim's injury was. He was the surprise of training camp and would have made a big difference. As for top-liners like Bill Guerin, Mike Comrie and Ruslan Fedotenko, they've obviously alternated between good moments and slumps, but there's a lot of season left and I have a feeling their consistency will improve. I know a lot of people think the Isles should trade Miroslav Satan because he's probably their most marketable asset. You can make that argument because they need to replenish the system with as many prospects as possible, but I think it's a mistake to say goodbye to another goal scorer. Ted is giving Miro a lot more time with the top power play, and that will help him. Veterans like Brendan Witt and Mike Sillinger have provided real leadership for two seasons. Sillinger's numbers might be down a bit, but again, Sim would have opened things up for him and Trent Hunter. Richard Park has been a great role player for this team, not only with his work on PK, but he always creates a scoring chance or two.

If there are some qualities I would like to see this team add, I think they clearly need more speed up front and a top-quality defenseman who is a skilled puckmover and can keep the team moving forward quickly and decisively. It often seems the Isles simply don't control the puck in the offensive end as well as the top teams do. It's always a battle to get set up. Same thing on the power play. There's too much wasted time and energy when it comes to generating offensive pressure. That's what I'd like to see addressed along with improving the farm system.

360: Can you give a brief synopsis of the waning hours of last year's trading deadline (prior to the Smyth deal)? Basically a summary of what the day was like for you and how you received the information that you did so far ahead of any other media outlet.

Logan: As much as I enjoyed last year's trade deadline, I really can't go into much detail about the reporting process. I'll just say a reporter starts thinking about the deadline well ahead of time, especially last season because Jason Blake (correctly) believed he was vulnerable. You try to get a feel ahead of time for the organization's goals at the deadline, but you understand no one can predict with great certainty what will happen. From what I understand, Edmonton waited until two days ahead of the deadline to call a few teams to sample the interest in Ryan Smyth. But I began the day more focused on Blake because I had solid information that talks with several teams were ongoing. I know it went right to the wire because I was close to putting a story on Newsday's website saying he was safe when I made a call to a source about five minutes before the deadline and was told to hold off sending it. No doubt it was exciting to see everything crystallize right at the deadline with the Islanders making the biggest deal and with Blake returning in the bargain. But I have to say fans have to be wary of all the rumors from various websites in the days leading up to the deadline. Much of it really is based on newspaper speculation in various cities, and having covered the NFL, NBA and NHL, no GM reveals his exact strategy or every detail of his negotiations. Conversations are so far-reaching among GMs that half the players on every roster probably are discussed in trades at some point. It doesn't mean anything is close to happening. It means people are feeling each other out, and they might share a tidbit here and there that gets out. But what is the real significance? Sometimes, if something gets out, it's because a GM might want to float a trial balloon to see if it stirs interest around the league or gets a negative reaction from the fans. In the end, the trade deadline is really is more of a surprise party. You just have to wait and see what actually happens when everyone stops bluffing and gets down to making the deals they really had in mind.

360: Job responsibilities aside, are you a hockey fan? If so, do you find it at all difficult to separate professionalism from the emotional response of a fan?

Logan: I'm a sports fan. I have to be objective in determining the news angle for whatever story I'm covering and in asking the hard questions. But I couldn't do this job if I didn't get excited by the action in the games. Many people asked if I was a hockey fan when I was assigned to the Islanders, and in my first blog, I tried to answer that question by offering details of my background covering hockey, including my exposure to the great Islanders teams that won four straight Cups. I think I forgot to mention that I interviewed Dale Hunter after his hit on Pierre Turgeon in 1993, too. I never played hockey, so, that puts me at a bit of a disadvantage, but I first covered the Flyers in 1977-79 for the Trenton Times and have covered hundreds of games since then. It's like anything else I cover. I get caught up in the games. When you cover any team and get to know the players a little bit, it's hard not to feel a personal connection to what's going on. Most reporters say they root for the story, but keep in mind that the story for all of us is how the home team is doing. If it's doing well, that's usually a better story. One exception might be the Knicks, who seem to be a bigger story the worse they do these days.

360: Slightly off-topic, what are your feelings on the proposed Lighthouse Project? Do you believe that the team's future on Long Island is directly tied to its approval, or do you think there is hope even if the project is rejected? Is there anything fans can do to help secure the team's future on LI?

Logan: As for the Lighthouse Project, I'll leave the opinion on that to Newsday's editorial board, which has supported it as a progressive use of the parcel on which Nassau Coliseum sits. But when Charles Wang and Scott Rechler submitted their plans to the Town of Hempstead, I focused my story on the fact that survival of the Islanders long-term on Long Island really is dependent on this project. Wang didn't want to emphasize that because he's not using threats to move the team as part of his strategy. But I don't care how rich you are, no one can sustain the losses he's faced indefinitely. What does the owner have to look forward to if the Lighthouse Project is rejected or scaled down to the point where it eliminates his financial incentive? Yes, he cares about the Long Island community, which is why he bought the team in the first place. But the LI market lacks the level of corporate support available in Manhattan and other major cities throughout the NHL. So, I believe Wang has to have the Lighthouse Project succeed for the islanders to continue as a viable franchise in this market. As for what the fans can do, I guess they can start showing up in greater numbers at games, and they can lobby the Hempstead Town Board I suppose. As much as they might appreciate the "old barn" that housed the dynasty of their youth, when you travel around in any sport, you see how nearly every city's teams are playing in new arenas and stadiums. Wang can't reasonably be expected to compete without a new arena and the commercial development to sustain the Lighthouse Project. And even though the money in the contract has to be there, general manager Garth Snow can't be expected to win the recruiting battles for top players until the Islanders have a place to play that compares to those around the NHL.

Thanks again to Greg for taking the time to answer these questions, and for the all the good work he's done for Islander fans.

Resetting Expectations

2007-12-13T13:10:00.000-05:00

The so-called "self help" industry has grown tremendously over the past few year. It's a trend I despise. People relying on the likes of Dr. Phil to tell them what to think and how to live their lives. But now I'm ready to admit it - I need help! Someone please tell me what to think about this team! Someone tell me how to resist the urge to throw my remote through the TV screen!!

I'm at a loss right now. For the last few weeks I've been an Islanders apologist. Telling people (myself primarily) that they still have a game or two in hand on most teams in the conference, that they are 5 points out of the division lead and the #3 seed in the playoff race, that they just need one great game to end the scoring drought and gather some momentum.

All of these things are still true. Yet for some reason, after last night's loss to Buffalo I can no longer find ways to defend the team. Let's be honest, we all knew coming into the season that talent alone wasn't going to get us very far. But the notion of the "Ted Nolan Type" work ethic gave us all enough hope to be, at the very least, cautiously optimistic. And the first month of the season only emboldened that optimism. But at this point, I almost wish we didn't have that early season success, because it has only made the current situation all the more maddening. How can the team we have been watching over the last few weeks be the same group we cheered for in October? It just doesn't add up.

The question now is, which represents the real Islanders? All this time I've had the notion that the team just needs to regain "early season form". The underlying assumption in that is that the early-season version of the team is who they really are. But what if that's not the case? What if October was the aberration and the last month has been the true barometer of this team? These might seem like basic concepts, but for someone like me who has tried his best to defend this team they are close to revelations.

Along with these new thoughts o' mine, I've started to realize that the culture of losing we've experienced over the last 25 years has really taken it's toll on me. At this point, my definition of success would be a single playoff series win. Actually, if I'm being honest it would probably be pushing round 1 to a seventh game. Sure, I know everyone talks a good game and winning The Cup is everyone's stated goal. But I can't help get the feeling that most of the team's personnel would define success the same way as me.

When I calculate the number of hours I've spent in my life watching, discussing, and now blogging this team it really puts things in perspective. I'm ready to reset my expectations. I want things to change. I need things to change. Or soon, even those of us that love hockey and love this team will run out of reasons to keep supporting them with our time, money, and hearts.

Free Agent Forward Update #2

2007-12-03T13:15:00.000-05:00

Following up on my post from 10/24, here's part 2 of my periodic comparison of free agent forwards that were associated with the Islanders during this past offseason. The purpose is to evaluate the common perception that the Rangers, Avs...etc. were the most successful players in free agency, while the Isles settled for the "leftovers".

A few changes from Update #1...I added Josef Vasicek to the analysis, and I changed the financial side to show each player's cap hit rather than annual salary. While this makes the Rangers stats much more favorable, it's the more meaningful way to evaluate the situation.

The following shows goals, assists, and each player's cap hit for the '07-'08 season:

Additions:
Bill Guerin = 5G, 6A, $4.5M
Mike Comrie = 8G, 11A, $3.375M
Ruslan Fedotenko = 6G, 8A, $2.9M
Josef Vasicek = 9G, 3A $0.750M
Total = 28G, 28A, $11.525M
Stats = 14 points per player; 4.9 points per million against the cap

Subtractions:
Jason Blake = 3G, 16A, $5.0M
Ryan Smyth = 8G, 9A, $7.5M
Vistor Kozlov = 3G, 12A, $2.5M
Total = 14G, 37A, $15.0M
Stats = 17 points per player; 3.4 points per million against the cap

Opted to go to NYR:
Scott Gomez = 5G, 14A, $7.357M
Chris Drury = 6G, 11A, $7.05M
Total = 11G, 25A, $14.407M
Stats = 18 points per player; 2.5 points per million against the cap

So what does all this mean? Well, it confirms what I think most Islanders fans know. We're getting good value from our players, but not a lot of production. That may sound contradictory, but it's not. If we assume each player signed for fair market value, here's another way to say it - our players are outperforming expectations, but they're not as good as the guys that "got away".

The best news in all of this is that, as Greg Logan recently reported, the team has some nice room under the cap. Will that enable us to add some proven scoring later in the season? That remains to be seen, and there are too many moving parts now to even justify spending a lot of brainpower dreaming of the possibilities. But one thing's for sure - the trend of these stats from my first update in October is not what any Islanders fan wants to see, and it's 100% indicative of our struggles on the power play and (obviously) our inability to score more than 2 goals in a game. If our guys can't find a way to generate more offense, we may find ourselves sellers rather than buyers at the trade deadline.

A Festivus for the Rest of Us

2007-11-29T14:27:00.000-05:00

I'm still not convinced that I'm not hallucinating, that I'm not still in my food-induced coma from the Thanksgiving holiday. First, the much ridiculed Andy Hilbert (sorry for my current poll, Andy!) scores his first goal (and point) of the season against the Bruins on Saturday night. The only thing above that on the things-I-never-expected-to-see-happen list was a win against Ottawa. Keep in mind we've been riding an 8 game losing streak to the Sens, dating back almost 4 years (remember that great day of Jan 19, 2004 when we last beat them?...me either). Add to that a 4-29-9 record over our last 42 games against them, and I gave the Isles about as good a chance as seeing Sean Avery win the Lady Byng.

So needless to say I was pretty excited to see the Isles earn two points last night. It would have been sweeter to hang on for the win in regulation, but beggars can't be choosers. The cherry on top of the week will be another victory against the Evil Empire tonight in the Garden. To go 4-0 this year, and 9-1-2 over the last two seasons, against our most hated rival would surely put a smile on my face that would last until Christmas.

But still, what true hockey fan doesn't have a list of complaints even during the best of times? So even though Festivus is several weeks away, I thought now would be a good time to engage in the customary "airing of grievances". So in the true spirit of Frank Costanza, here we go...

- Why is Chris Simon playing on our top line, and getting power play time to go along with it? I understand Simon is one of Nolan's favorite guys, and I understand he is a great presence in the locker room, but neither of those things earns him a spot on the top line! The guy has as many points this season as Mr. A. Hilbert. Can you imagine the uproar if Andy was put on our #1 line? Seriously, how many other teams have a guy that jumps from the fourth line to the first line without showing any offensive prowess whatsoever? He's not a scorer, not a playmaker, and he's not clearing space for Comrie and Guerin to make things happen. I'm not saying Guerin's recent slump is directly related to Simon, but it certainly isn't helping matters.

- Where's the offense? After our 6 goal outpouring on opening night, I was all set for an explosive season. Or at least the ability to score 3 goals in a game! Last night was our tenth game in a row where we've scored two or fewer goals (excluding the goal awarded for the shoot-out win). Thanks to DP and some solid defensive play, we've managed to earn a respectable 11 points over that stretch, but you can't expect to survive like this forever. A big contributor to our scoring drought has been...

- Our anemic power play. Even though I'm a big stats guy, I'm not going to bore you with the numbers. Just watch the games! When we have a man advantage, no one is skating, no one is getting to the front of the net, and the shots they choose to take are (to put it mildly) of the low percentage variety. It's night and day from earlier in the season. What happened?!?

- Finally, everyone's favorite target...the officiating. It's becoming more and more frustrating to be a hockey fan. The inconsistency of the refs is reaching new heights of lunacy. Let's ignore the fact that I feel like the Isles generally get the short end of the stick, I just want to see a consistently called game. I understand there is always the human element at play, but things have to get better. Serenity now!

Despite all these gripes, I still love the game and I'm still proud of this team. We've made it more than a quarter of the way through the season, and we're continuing to silence the critics and play solid hockey. As always, Let's Go Islanders!

Live Blog - 11/21/07 - Isles vs. Habs

2007-11-21T18:50:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my first foray into live blogging. After 7 straight divisional games, the Isles host Montreal, led by a resurgent Alex Kovalev. After a very successful 5-2 run over those last 7, the Isles look to keep it going against a strong divisional opponent.

A few keys to the game...

- Will the Power Play return to the level of success achieved earlier in the season?

- Can DiPietro raise his game to the same level that he did playing opposite Brodeur and Lundqvist, two of his favorite counterparts?

- Will Hilbert shock the world and put one in the net?

We're about 7 minutes from gametime...back in a few...

First observation from the night is the very disappointing crowd. Those that are here seem into it, but the numbers are not what you'd expect for the night before a holiday. Where are all the college kids home from school?? A couple minutes from the opening face-off and I'm estimating around 10,000.

Fun fact - the Isles are going for the 1200th win in franchise history tonight.

Maybe a bit premature on the crowd estimate. It's filling in nicely now as the anthem is finished...not a sell-out but looking more like 14,000.

Time for the opening face-off, with the Sillinger line starting things off.

Terrible turnover behind the net less than a minute in by the Isles costs them a 1-0 deficit. Both teams have come out skating, but a costly mistake allows Montreal to capitalize first on Steve Begin's second of the year.

Kostopoulos gets dumped into the Isles net, falling over DP in the process. Watch the head Ricky!! We've got 14 more years riding on it!

Hilbert almost did it! Of course, that is what Hilbert does...ALMOST scores. At least he set up a nice flurry of chances by the Isles with his five-hole attempt.

The whistle with 15:17 to play in the first reminds me of a recent gripe I've had. Is it me, or does it seem like days pass before we get a whistle when DiPietro is covering a puck, allowing the opposition plenty of free shots at him. Meanwhile, the whistle seems to blow a nanosecond after the opposing goalie even thinks about covering up. Maybe I'm biased, but it seems to happen game in and game out.

Witt takes the first penalty of the game, for tripping. Can we stop the #1PP in the league?? Well, one minute in and a deflection in front skims off the crossbar. A fortunate bounce for the Isles.

Chalk up another one for the Isles PK, with a successful kill of Witt's minor.

Just over halfway through the first, the fourth line of Simon, Park and Jackman generate a lot of offense and a few near misses. Unfortunately, still a 1-0 game.

Whistle with 8:24 to play and the Isles get their first PP of the night, a holding-the-stick minor on Latendresse. Time to test my #1 key to the game...getting the PP back on track.

AWFUL! After allowing Montreal a short-handed break, Comrie takes a tripping penalty to negate the team's first oddman chance of the game. The team has so far looked a little uncomfortable in their own end, and at this point I'd feel almost fortunate to escape the period down only one.

They're auctioning off game used sticks tonight. I'm tempted to buy Hilbert's so I can guarantee that I am the first to score a goal using it.

2:21 to play in the first and the Isles will get a chance to redeem themselves on the power play...

Good puck control, they were in the offensive zone for most of the 2 minutes, but no goals and the period ends with the Isles trailing 1-0.

Back at the start of the second...the Isles look like they have a little more jump to their steps, and they're cycling the puck very well. Breaking the momentum, Hunter gets called for a very questionable tripping call. Looked to me like the guy tripped over the net, but hey I'm not a ref. Another chance to boost the PK stats.

The PK is successful, but seconds later Montreal pokes one past Ricky and the lead is 2-0. While there's still over half a game to play, for some reason I have the feeling that a comeback is a longshot. This is the polar opposite of how I felt during Arbour's 15ooth game, when they fell behind 2-0 and I still felt very confident the team had a comeback in them.

And just like that it's 3-0 off a nice wrist shot from the top left circle. I'm worried this game could get out of hand, but I really hope I'm wrong. A comeback at this point would be all the more sweet. In fact, as I'm typing those words, Satan blasts a shot right off the crossbar....that close to cutting the deficit back to 2.

10:57 to go and another Isles penalty...not what the team needs. I'm going to give my fingers a rest for a bit, back when there is some good news to report.

Back sooner than expected...not a goal, but a good scrum in front of Huet, with Witt dropping the gloves and ultimately scoring a takedown against Komisarek. Hopefully that'll get the team re-energized and back into the game.

Not likely as the hit Simon with 4 minutes for roughing and unsportsmanlike conduct, on top of Witt's 5 minute matching major for fighting.

I think this blogging night is almost over. Montreal is now up 4-0 and they still have 2 minutes on Simon's penalty. Call me unprofessional, but hey this isn't my profession! Unless things start to turn around, I am going to bury my head in my keyboard and watch highlights from our win over the Rangers on Monday night.

Live In-Game Blog 11-21-07!

2007-11-20T16:26:00.001-05:00

Technology permitting, I will be doing a live in-game blog for Wednesday's game vs. Montreal. Check back here during the game for regular updates.

Battle for New York, Part II

2007-11-07T08:34:00.000-05:00

At the first Islanders/Rangers game back on 10/10, the energy in the Coliseum was lacking, despite the full house. The often the case with this rivalry, where the early games tend to lack the sense of urgency that builds later in the season. In fact when the schedule was released, I was disappointed that the first two games between the teams were being played at home, where a raucous crowd can give the team an edge.

Tonight's game had a very different feel to it. Before the puck was dropped, I commented to Tom from Tiger Track that we should set an over/under on crowd fights. The night just had that type of feel to it. The teams gave the fans no reason to settle down, playing fast-paced hockey uninterrupted by a whistle for almost 9 minutes to open the game.

But before that, one of the night's big questions was answered when, about 6 minutes in, DP flashed his right pad to make a great save, easing the minds of many who were concerned about the condition of his injured eye.

Most of the first period continued with a lot of end-to-end action but few quality scoring chances. Things started to get a little chippy late, with Sutton laying a strong open-ice check on Prucha, followed by Prucha taking a retaliatory penalty on Richard Park with 1:26 to go. The Isles could get the PP going and the period ended scoreless.

The second period started all Islanders. New faces Ben Walter and Tim Jackman made their presence known early. In his little ice time so far, Walter has shown a good nose for the puck, and Jackman introduced himself with a big hit, followed immediately by charging to the net for a great scoring chance.

Shortly after the Chicken Dance (yes, the Rangers DO suck), the Isles took their first penalty of the game. The PK looked great, limiting the Rangers to just one late shot on goal. Unfortunately, that one (a point shot from Drury), found its way through DPs pads. I'm sure it's one he would like to have back.

That's how the period ended. Normally a 1-0 deficit would be little reason for concern. But the Rangers have started to build a reputation as a team that wins this type of game.

Early in the third, as I was watching a rowdy Rangers fan get escorted out by security, the Isles tied it up with a nice goal by Hunter (his 4th). Unfortunately, a few minutes later Mara was left alone near the right post, and he put an easy one away to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead. Not helping the momentum swing, Jackman took a bad penalty behind the play to give the Rangers PP #2. Unlike the first power play, the Rangers had a lot of great chances but weren't able to capitalize.

The next PP chance went to the Isles who took advantage to even the game up at 2, on Fedotenko's 5th of the year. With 10 minutes to go, the tension was really starting to build.

Now the Isles are buzzing, and before I know it Satan scores the go-ahead goal, his third in the last two games. The crowd is starting to take a more active role, and I count crowd fight #4. The pace of the game grows more and more frantic. DP makes a series of PHENOMENAL saves, and we finally get a whistle with 3:05 to go in the game.

With 2:05 to play, Rozsival takes a penalty for holding the stick. Kill this penalty and the 2 points are ours...0:36 to go..."YOU CAN'T BEAT US!" chants everywhere...maybe premature and Lundvist heads for the bench and Hunter takes a penalty with 0:18 to go...Rangers will have a 5-on-4 skater advantage with an offensive zone draw...finally time expires and DP stabs his stick into the air in victory.

Another great game in this heated rivalry. Let's hope the "Rangers hangover" doesn't affect us on Saturday against the Devils. After the 10/10 game, I predicted the days of experiencing this let-down were behind us, and we proceeded to lose to Toronto 8-1 the next night. Hopefully that's an experience they learned from, and they'll continue winning these all important divisional games.

Thanks to Tim Jackman for taking time to answer our questions after the game. Unfortunately most of our questions focused on what happened in the locker room between the second and third period...he missed everything since he was in the training room getting stitched up.

1500

2007-11-04T19:52:00.000-05:00

The Islanders are often criticized as an organization that holds on to the past with too firm a grip, relying too heavily on promoting its "Dynasty Years" at the expense of the here and now. So I understood when some categorized the decision to invite Al Arbour back to coach his 1500th game with the team as a mere publicity move, another attempt to capitalize on the rich history of the Islanders. Personally, I took no exception to the decision, but honestly figured it would just be another game with a nice little post-game ceremony to remind us all of greater times.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

Within the 60 minutes of the game, the team played with greater intensity than I've seen in a while. Everyone was skating (even ignoring of his two goals, when is the last time we saw Satan hustle like that?), finishing their checks, and playing with what can only be defined using the greatest of sports cliches - heart. I heard several people sitting near me echo my own thoughts, that the game had a playoff-like feeling to it. Even when the Isles were trailing 2-0, I felt like the team was playing great hockey. I felt like they were going to win the game. After Satan scored the go ahead goal and the final 2:41 ticked off the clock, it felt like the perfect ending to a fantastic game. Who knew that the real excitement hadn't even begun.

The post game ceremony was executed perfectly. I've been in attendance for many similar tributes over the years, but none came close to the feeling in the Coliseum on Saturday night. In speaking to a few people who watched it on TV, I'm glad to hear that it translated well even for those who weren't there for the live experience. It was also great to see the vast majority of the sell-out crowd stay for the ceremony. I doubt that many, if any, regretted staying.

At the conclusion of the ceremony we made our way down the tunnel to the press conference room. The atmosphere around the locker room was one I've never experienced before. Certainly part of that was due to the number of all time greats and fan favorites around every corner - Bossy, Lafontaine, Trottier, Gillies, Cairns, Webb, and Torrey to name a few. But more than that, it was the reaction of all of these men to the night. To a man, they all had huge smiles and could be heard sharing stories about Arbour and their feelings on the night.

If there was still any doubt as to what the night meant to these guys, Clark Gillies, Jean Potvin, and Ted Nolan erased it. As I walking to the press conference room, Gillies walked up next to me and announced to no one in particular that he absolutely needed to go watch Arbour's conference. He was smiling like a kid on Christmas morning standing amidst the media watching Al talk about the night. Not to be outdone, Jean Potvin (who entered the room a bit later) started climbing across folding chairs, ultimately settling with one leg on a chair and one on a locker bench to ensure he had a great view of his old coach. When Nolan entered the room, he was smiling wider than I've seen after a game. Normally extremely quiet during his post game comments, after this particular game he could be heard even by those standing in the back of the room.

When I finally left, over an hour after the game had ended, there were still dozens of hockey legends in the hallways sharing stories and talking about Al Arbour. Let the critics say what they will, THIS is how you honor tradition.

Free Agent Forward Update #1

2007-10-24T09:28:00.000-04:00

I thought it would be fun to periodically track the performance of the key free agent forwards that were associated with the Islanders during this past offseason. The list isn't comprehensive (e.g. no Vasicek), but represents the key names discussed by fans and the media prior to the start of the season.

We'll see if the common perception is correct - that the Rangers, Avs...etc. were the most successful players in free agency, while the Isles had to settle for the "leftovers".

The following shows goals, assists, and each player's salary for the '07-'08 season:

Additions:
Bill Guerin = 4G, 6A, $4.5M
Mike Comrie = 5G, 5A, $3.375M
Ruslan Fedotenko = 2G, 5A, $2.9M
Total = 11G, 16A, $10.775M
Stats = 9 points per player; 2.5 points per million spent

Subtractions:
Jason Blake = 2G, 9A, $5.0M
Ryan Smyth = 3G, 3A, $7.5M
Victor Kozlov = 2G, 1A, $2.5M
Total = 7G, 13A, $15.0M
Stats = 7 points per player; 1.3 points per million spent

Opted to go to NYR:
Scott Gomez = 2G, 1A, $10.0M
Chris Drury = 1G, 5A, $7.1M
Total = 3G, 6A, $17.1M
Stats = 4.5 points per player; 0.5 points per million spent

Three weeks into the season, and so far it's looking like Garth Snow's patience is paying off. I will update this as we progress through the season - whether the results are good or bad.

Impact of Special Teams Play

2007-10-19T10:30:00.000-04:00

It was great to see the Isles get a win on the road vs. the Caps, considering the relatively long layoff since their previous game in Philly. After getting off to a very slow start, they began to get their legs back under them midway through the first period and dominated the majority of play from that point forward. With only two games in the next 13 days, the team's ability to get going early is going to be particularly important.

The aspect of last night's game (and really the whole season thus far) that took precedence for me was the special teams play. I know it's still early, but the team's success on the PP and PK is what is giving me the greatest confidence that we can sustain success for the season.

As of today, our penalty kill is ranked fourth in the league. We've killed off 90% of our penalties overall - 18 of 19 at home (95%) and 18 of 21 on the road (86%). Whether fairly or not, the Isles seem to get called for a disproportionate number of penalties - we are currently seventh is the league in terms of times shorthanded - so dominance on the PK becomes even more critical. Beyond the numbers, I've been very impressed thus far with the aggressiveness and positioning of our PK'ers. Beyond the usual suspects (Witt, Sutton) we have a lot of guys that are willing to sacrifice their body to keep the puck from reaching the net. And speaking of the net, your goaltender always has to be your best penalty killer, and DP has been great so far.

On the flip side, our power play is now ranked third in the league at 25.8%. Unlike the PK, at this point the team is doing a far better job on the road (7 of 17) than at home (1 of 14). Berard has clearly had an impact on the PP, and so far he's not been a liability in 5-on-5 situations (unlike "healthy scratch" MAB). Under the direction of Coach Gallant, the team worked extensively on the PP during camp. Honestly, I can't define exactly what is different from last year, but the results have been impressive so far.

I hate to trend out early season performance (did anyone else have them at 82-0 after they swept Buffalo in the home-and-home to start the year?) but continued success on special teams will certainly go a long way to ensuring a return to the post-season.

Sports Business Journal Covers the Blog Box

2007-10-17T16:18:00.000-04:00

Following si.com's coverage of the Blog Box, here is the Sports Business Journal's take on things...

Click here to read all about it.

The Good, The Bad, and The Bruno

2007-10-11T09:34:00.000-04:00

There's just something about beating the Rangers that makes all seem right in the world. Particularly these '07-'08 Rangers, the team that - according to hockey "experts" - has been predetermined to win the Cup ever since Drury and Gomez put pen to paper and joined hockey's version of "The Evil Empire". Ted Nolan did a great job last year erasing the term "Rangers Hangover" from the team's vocabulary, so hopefully they can keep the good times rolling on Thursday in Toronto. In the meantime, here are my thoughts from the 2-1 victory...

The Good

- Let's start with a big Welcome Back to Bryan Berard. In a previous post, I talked about being skeptical about the decision to bring him back to the Island. Those feelings haven't changed (yet), but regardless of my personal opinions it's impossible not to feel good to see #4 back where he started, after all he's been through.

- DP was outstanding. You can tell that he savors the rivalry with the Rangers, and it's no coincidence that he's played some of his best games against them. It wouldn't be fair to say he stole the game - that would do a disservice to the 18 guys playing in front of him - but he was rock solid from start to finish and did all the team could ask for and more.

- The penalty kill was very effective. The team was short-handed for just over 9 minutes, and for almost all of that time they were well-positioned, aggressive, and responsible. Just thinking about the intra-divisional games we play against high powered offenses (PITT, NYR), a strong PK is going to be a key ingredient in our success this season.

The Bad

- Indications are the Jon Sim may well be out for the entire season. This is certainly a disappointment, as I felt his style of play was a great complement to the Sillinger-Hunter line. The silver-lining is that this will give Tambellini the opportunity to prove what he can do at the NHL level.

- Nolan essentially only rolled 3 lines last night. Bergenheim played a total of 2:35 for the entire game, despite the fact that (according to Nolan himself) Bergy has been playing a strong game thus far this year. I don't have a problem with this in and of itself, I just worry that relying on three lines can take its toll over the course of the season and we risk having a group of very tired players come April.

After the game we had an opportunity to speak with Bruno Gervais before the team left for the airport to make the trip to Toronto. As a brief aside, let me say that he seems to genuinely be one of the nicest people I've ever met in professional sports. Now, on to his responses...

- Speaking about how the addition of Berard and playing 7 defensemen impacts his ability to time his shifts: "You don't really notice a difference. When [Coach Nolan] says your name, you just jump out there and do a good job. Bryan played a great game tonight. You just go out there and do whatever it takes to get a win."

- On how all the new players have come together as a team - "It's been tremendous, it's been unreal. All the guys we brought in are just great guys, so much fun to be around. First thing we noticed during training camp in the first week is that we felt like we've been together for 10 years. Guys clicked right away and we have so much fun in the locker room, so much fun at every team event, you just love to be on the ice together. That's the best way to work."

- On whether he feels added pressure with 7 defensmen currently on the team - "Not really, because you have a lot of different types of defensemen. Witter and Martinek are really good defensively, they block shots. The you've got Bergeron and Berard and Campoli who are good with the puck and try to get some chances. So we each have a different personality, things we do on the ice."

- On focusing on containing Jagr - paraphrasing...All we focus on is our game. Every team we play we focus on playing our game. You need to make sure you're aware of where he is on the ice, but our guys played a great game tonight.

- If the high number of back-to-back games this season affects his preparation - "To be honest, I didn't even notice that. We've got a great strength coach right now, he's doing a great job...the schedule is something I don't control."

Thanks again to Bruno for spending some time with us.

Sports Illustrated Coverage of NYI Blog Box

2007-10-09T09:02:00.000-04:00

Please click here to read Richard Deitsch's piece from SI.com on the NYI Blog Box.

Somehow, this grand experiment seems all the more real now. I'm proud to be able to go along for the ride...

Opening Weekend / Benefits of Blogging

2007-10-07T18:45:00.000-04:00

On Friday night, the team posted a great win with more offense than I ever would have imagined for a season opener. We enjoyed a tighter but equally exhilarating win at home on Saturday to open the season 2-0 for the first time since Peca and Yashin were fresh faces on the Island.

Just when I thought opening weekend couldn't get any better, it did.

Immediately after the game, those of of lucky enough to be contributing to the NYI Blog Box were escorted from our seats above Section 201 down to the Isles tunnel. That feeling in and of itself was surreal. I'd been in there once before, but never with the buzz of a just concluded game still in the air. For a hockey fan, it was a great experience. In the short walk to Ted Nolan's press conference room, we got see DP riding the stationary bike while enjoying some playoff baseball on the TV, Bergenheim and Sutton chatting to some friends and family, and equipment being shuttled out for the Sabres.

In the room, Chris Botta of the Islanders was nice enough to arrange for Chris Campoli to come in and answer questions exclusively for the bloggers. Among the highlights:

On the prospect of Berard's signing looming over his head - "Just go play the game". Chris was clear that he worries about only the things in his control. He said he prepares every night to do his job, which is to play the game. If for any reason he doesn't play, it means he needs to work harder to get back into the lineup.
On being paired with Gervais - "We know each other well, on and off the ice". He indicated they've developed good communication with each other and have been moving the puck well so far this year. He said that as a couple of young players, they don't always get respect from other teams, especially their best players.
On the questionable officiating - "I think no matter where you play or who you play for, you always think the referees are against you". Basically he said that they understand that not every call will go their way, so they need to do what they can by playing smart. He referenced last season's questionable video reviews and concluded the only solution is to "put it in so everyone can see it".
On his early season offensive contributions - "Shooting the puck...I got away from that last year a little bit". He indicated that contributing offensively is a big part of his game, and his confidence in his shot is high at this point in the season.

After our time with Chris, we were able to stay and watch Coach Nolan's press conference in the midst of all the "legitimate" press on hand. From there, we took a quick trip to the locker room. All the while, players (MAB, Dubie), coaches (Nolan, Ruff), and staff were all in our midst. Like I said before, an amazing experience for a hockey fan.

On the way out, Deb Kaufman was nice enough to stop and chat for a bit. She clued us in on where to get the best snacks next time we are "behind the scenes". Thanks to Deb for being so gracious and giving us some of her time.

As a final note, thanks to Chris Botta and Corey Witt for organizing everything for us. The treatment was great and I look forward to doing it again soon! Also, it was a pleasure meeting all my fellow bloggers and hope to see you all again at future games.

Roster Backlash

2007-10-03T13:37:00.000-04:00

The most controversial aspect of yesterday's roster announcement for most Islanders fans was the inclusion of Andy Hilbert over Jeff Tambellini. I'll admit that I too was hoping to get a better taste of Tambellini's offensive potential on our second line this season. And I'm not convinced we still won't see that at some point this year. But for now, let's get down from the ledge and put everything into perspective.

Everyone is quick to point to the numbers and say that it took 25 games for Hilbert to score his first goal last year, and that he finished the full NHL season with only 28 points. What people are quick to forget is that he was a key member of what was our consistently best line. Granted, Hunter and Sillinger played more integral roles towards that success, but Hilbert was a big part of it. He's a solid two-way player and was often matched up against the opposition's top line. His perceived lack of offense should not overshadow these less tangible contributions. This year his defensive skills will come into play even more, now that he's on as line with the offensive-minded Satan and Vasicek.

On the other end, you have Tambellini and his 30 goals in 50 games for Bridgeport. Obviously these are good numbers, but AHL success doesn't always translate to the big show. If you were to trend out his stats from his 23 NHL games last year into a full season, he would end up with 32 points. Let's keep that in mind before we all get too crazy with the decisions that were made. It's not like we sent down a guy that was averaging a point-per-game at the NHL level.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Tambellini and from a goal-scoring perspective I have little doubt he can produce more than Hilbert. But there's more to the game than just scoring, and Hilbert brings more of those intangibles. At this point, before the first puck is dropped on the 2007-2008 season, I trust Nolan and Snow to make the right decision for the team. Hopefully as we get into the season, I won't have reason to question their judgment. Hope to see everyone out at the Coliseum on Saturday. Let's go Islanders!

Next One's For Real

2007-10-02T08:47:00.000-04:00

From guest blogger Brian Carey...

The Islanders took on the Bruins yesterday afternoon in their final exhibition game before they kick off the season in Buffalo on Friday. The lineup was just about what we can expect for the regular season. One surprise though was the absence of Sean Bergenheim and the presence of Darryl Bootland. I won't speculate too much but it's possible that Tambellini was getting one last shot to crack the lineup. I would have expected both Tambellini and Bergenheim to get roster sports until Chris Simon is back from suspension but it may be possible that Nolan wants some added toughness to start the season, hence, Bootland. It will be interesting to see when the final roster is announced.

Defensively, the pairings were pretty much what I expected, but Gervais got the nod over Campoli, Meyer and Johnson for the last spot. Will this hold up when the team arrives in Buffalo? Will they carry an extra defenseman or risk losing Campoli or Meyers to waivers?

Isles won the game 4-2 on two goals from Satan, one from Comrie and the last from Sim. The game displayed both the strengths and weaknesses of the Islanders.

Isles had a tough time containing the speed of the Bruin's forwards at times but simply outworked Boston to create scoring chances, especially the Isles first line. The Isles played a physical game which cost them a few penalties but which they'll have to keep up to slow down fast teams.

I don't see any reason why the Isles can't compete for a playoff spot this year. Criticism of this team is fair, and team speed could make or break them. If they can limit their penalties and maintain their physical style, they should have a shot.

Side Note: In my blog from Lowell, I mentioned that Ted Nolan did not make the trip. As we have all learned, this is due to the death of his brother. My condolences to Ted and his family. Looking forward to seeing him behind the bench soon.

Bad Night in Lowell

2007-09-27T09:12:00.000-04:00

From guest blogger Brian Carey...

Perhaps it was the all too familiar post-Rangers hangover or the sparse Lowell crowd, but right from the drop of the puck, you had that feeling it was going to be a long night, ultimately leading to a 6-1 defeat. The Islanders left most of their veterans home, leaving the job of facing the Devils to those players mostly destined for Bridgeport. In fact, Ted Nolan didn't even make the trip, leaving the coaching duties to his assistants. That should have been a clear indication that the Isles attention was focused elsewhere (MSG anyone?).

Not surprisingly. the Isles came out sluggish in the opening 5 minutes and it was 3-0 before I was halfway through my first beer. Because you had very few players that were really playing for jobs with the big club, no one seemed intent on making a real run at a comeback. Tim Jackman did his best by dropping the gloves twice, but couldn't spark his teammates to any action.

There was some solid play by veterans Park and Sim, and Hunter stood out as well. As you might expect given the score, there were no particular defensive standouts, and I'd be hard pressed to make a choice between Berard, Campoli and Gervais. Hopefully there will be some more inspired play the last few exhibition games and someone will stand out.

On a personal note, had a chance to meet Garth Snow, as well as Chris King and Steve Mears. All were very friendly and took a few minutes out for some hockey conversation.

Fight Night in the Old Barn

2007-09-25T13:56:00.000-04:00

Wow. Without a doubt the best preseason game I've ever been to. Granted, if you're only interested in crisp passing, pretty goals, and stellar goaltending, perhaps you were less than satisfied. But for pure entertainment value, it's hard to beat our first and only home preseason game of the year.

For those that missed it - a comeback from a 4-1 deficit, a win in OT, 45 penalties totaling 165 minutes, 6 game misconducts, and the return of the chicken dance. Yes, I did just say 165 penalty minutes in a "meaningless" game. Plus we all became more familiar with our new faces, with goals being scored by Comrie (2), Guerin, Fedotenko, and Vasicek (plus three assists from Berard).

This is the kind of game that can really bring a team together. With so many new faces, the ability of our guys to gel as a "team" was a big question mark entering the season. Time will tell, but this one game may have done more for team chemistry than any training camp team-building exercise ever could. It was great seeing our guys stick up for each other, and battle to get back into the game. It was the kind of game, meaningless or not, that makes you proud to be an Islanders fan.

Camp Opens Tomorrow!

2007-09-13T10:56:00.000-04:00

The team will be arriving in Moncton later today, with camp officially starting tomorrow. It was an eventful summer and we had a lot of Isles news to hold us over, but nothing can match the start of camp and, in less than a month, the season. Here are some of the key questions that will finally be answered over the coming weeks...

Will Berard make the team? Or will Gervais and Campoli have a solid camp and prove they deserve to be on the roster? Maybe there will be a surprise and we'll see a new face (Johnson, Fata, McDonald) step up and make the decision even tougher for Snow and Nolan. I have a top 6 in mind at this point, but a lot can happen during camp to change opinions.

Which young forwards will we will see in orange and blue? Ok, so Bridgeport is wearing orange and blue too this year, but you know what I mean. Anyone who's been following this team or who's read the "Countdown to Camp" series on the Isles official site knows that we have a lot of forwards competing in camp. And there's simply not enough room for everyone. The "locks" to make the team are - Guerin, Comrie, Satan, Hunter, Sillinger, Fedotenko, Vasicek, Sim, and Bergenheim. I would assume Simon is close to a lock as well, once his suspension is complete. That leaves two spots to be filled, with a lot of familiar and new faces in the mix - Bates, Park, Hilbert, Tambellini, Nielsen, Comeau, Regier, Walter...etc. Frankly, I have no idea at this point how it is all going to shake out. For me, this is the biggest story I'll be following during camp.

Will DP stay healthy and continue his rise towards being an elite NHL goalie? I was hugely impressed by DPs development last year, and continue to think he is the key to our success in '07-'08. I love Dubie, but our success clearly rides on Ricky's shoulders.

Will Ted Nolan once again defy ALL prognosticators and lead this team back to the playoffs? I only get angry looking at so-called "expert" predictions for the coming season, but I guess I'm a glutton for punishment. We continue to get no respect throughout the hockey world. Lucky for us, they still play the games. I believe we will have a better team than we did last year. Not dramatically, but enough to be in the mix come playoff time once again. From there, anything can happen.

The last question is for us - can hockey once again thrive on Long Island? Sure, winning cures all, and will bring back all the fair weather fans. But in the meantime, can we as fans help to build support for our team? The team has done a lot to help connect fans with the team - ITV, the Blog Box, the marketing campaigns - but no one can help build support better than the fans. Go to the games and demand better coverage from our local media. It's a start. Like I've said to many people, I love being able to get in and out of the Coliseum lot on game nights, but nothing is better than a game with 16,234 loud fans supporting our team. Let's go Islanders!

Berard to Tryout

2007-08-28T12:31:00.000-04:00

There are reports out of Canada that Bryan Berard has accepted an invitation to Islanders camp to win a job through an open tryout. With a handful of notable names around the league still unsigned, I would expect to hear about more cases of this happening with other teams. But for this team and this particular player, I really don't understand the motivation.

The only logic that makes any sense is that his veteran presence will provide good motivation for the young guys (Gervais and Campoli) to step up during camp. It always helps to have someone ready to earn your spot to provide that extra little spark. Beyond that, the benefits are unclear.

Taking for granted that Witt, Sutton, Bergeron and Martinek have already earned spots (and that Nolan will not keep more than 6 D-men on the team) we now have 4 guys - Gervais, Campoli, Meyer, and Berard - competing for two spots. I've mentioned in previous posts that I don't see Meyer being more than a depth defenseman waiting in the wings in Bridgeport. Given Martinek's penchant for injury and Witt/Sutton's aggressive natures, depth is something this team needs and likely will rely on at some point during the year. So that leaves three players for two spots, and I'm assuming Berard wouldn't accept a contract if he was going to be in the minors.

So that leaves the question - who's the best duo for the team? And if Berard makes the team, will the development of the player sent down be hindered in the minors? To me the answer is simple - we've seen enough from Gervais and Campoli to justify their continued development at the NHL level. Campoli had a rock-solid rookie year, and I believe that a contributing factor to his slow start last year was a lack of confidence. Remember, going into the year he was a lock for a starting job. Then he got hurt, and when he was ready to rejoin the team they kept him in the minors for quite some time, until a spot opened for him. Gervais is a guy that I think improved little-by-little over the course of last season, and was one of our better defenseman during our brief playoff run. Both guys are young and have a lot of upside. Despite my highest hopes for the team this year, we're not favorites for the Cup right now. Let's continue to let these guys develop and see if they can become fixtures on our blue line for many years to come.

The alternative to is to give a spot to a guy that has one bad eye and two back surgeries on his resume. Over the least three seasons, he's only been healthy enough to play in 113 games. And over that period he offers a plus/minus of -57. For a stat like that, I would have preferred to pay for Souray and gotten all of his offensive upside. This team already has too many "spare parts" in their roster of forwards, no need to muddy things with one more on the defensive end.

In With the New

2007-08-17T12:27:00.000-04:00

Mid-August is not usually a hot time for hockey news, but we've had a few items to satisfy our appetites over the last couple of weeks.

First came the signing of big 6'6" defender Andy Sutton to a 3 year deal, seemingly ending Snow's quest for blue-line help for the upcoming season. While a 3-year, $9M deal seems a bit steep to me (although who came at a bargain during this wild off-season?) he fills a need for a big, strong defensive-minded defenseman. I view him as a significant upgrade to what Hill brought to the team last year. He is +19 over his last two seasons with Atlanta, and adds a little offensive punch with over 20 points in 3 of his last 4 seasons. With someone of his size, speed is always a concern. But it may help to know that he was a forward most of his life, until he made the switch to D during college.

Next, Snow addressed the need for additional help at center by signing Josef Vasicek to a 1-year deal. Not a big name signing, but given what was available I think it was a smart move. He's been to the Cup Finals twice in his short career, including one win. You can't underestimate the value in the locker room of having players with good playoff experience. He's got good size and has shown real offensive potential. Here's hoping that Nolan is able to get the most of him and get him back to the 40+ point level.

My primary concern with the roster at this point is that we have a number of guys signed to short-term deals. This is great in that it gives us flexibility to be major players in future FA markets, but it begs an important question. If we achieve the kind of success we are all hoping for, what are the odds we'll be able to keep this team together beyond this year? Comrie, Vasicek, Bergenheim, Hunter, Satan...none of these guys are locked beyond this season. It's an interesting position to be in, and time will tell what our roster will look like next season and beyond.

This brings us to the last news item, the new jerseys debuting this season. Accepting that a change was mandatory, I like the jerseys, particularly the home blue style. I'm glad they kept it relatively traditional. I would have been fine keeping the jerseys the same, but they didn't do much for fans to hate. After the fisherman debacle, that is saying a lot. For fans looking to buy a new jersey, the only question is - whose name and number can you get and feel comfortable it won't be outdated in the next season or two? Aside from DP, that's a tough one to answer.

Asham to NJ

2007-08-07T15:04:00.000-04:00

There are reports today indicating that Aaron Asham has signed with the Devils. At this point, terms of the deal haven't been disclosed. Certainly, the fact that he's no longer an Islander isn't a big surprise. It's become clear over the past month that he wasn't in Snow's plans, especially after Chris Simon was re-signed. But in today's NHL, where the Isles roster seems to go through major turnover every year, it's worth noting that Asham has been a mainstay on the team for 4 good seasons.

To me, he's always been a guy that is this close to having a breakout year. He has one of the better slapshots I've seen, he's arguably the best middle-weight fighter in the league, and he plays with a good edge to his game. But it never quite all came together well enough for him to post a 20-goal season, or physically dominate night in and night out. All that said, I'm not too happy to see that he'll be staying in the division, where we'll have to face him 8 times next year. With our luck, now that he's moved on he'll finally put it all together and have the break-out season we all were hoping for while he was on the Island.

The Captain Question

2007-07-30T16:13:00.000-04:00

When I first heard that Bill Guerin was named captain, I assumed it was something that was negotiated and agreed to before he chose to sign here. Basically a prerequisite for coming to the Island. Later that day, I read that he was completely shocked by the move. I was skeptical at first, assuming that it was just a PR move and he really knew all along it was going to happen. But then I watched the video from the press conference, and I believe he was genuinely surprised. While I think Guerin will be a good captain and provide solid leadership, it does pose a few interesting questions.

First, does it make sense to give the "C" to a guy who hasn't spent any time, let alone met, most of the team? He's a veteran player that seems to be well respected, but there's no guarantee how he'll fit in with the team or if he's our best option for leadership in a locker room with other veteran leaders. How does it affect guys like Witt or Sillinger, who have an established presence with the team, to not be given the opportunity to earn the captaincy in camp? If the team doesn't feel Guerin's earned it, will it make it harder for him to command the respect he needs as captain?

Second, being a captain is an honor that most players take seriously. We've seen situations where players have turned down the "C" because they either felt unworthy or unwilling to take on the responsibility (see Jagr, Jonsson). Shouldn't the idea have been discussed with Guerin before the introductory press conference? Maybe he would have felt more comfortable earning it at the end of camp. Either way, he would have had input into how it was done.

My feeling is, there's no real benefit to handing out the "C" the way the Isles did. If you believe Guerin is your guy, give it to him during or after camp. That way, there is a sense that it is earned. Plus, if you learn during camp that he is not the right leader for this team, you have other candidates to choose from. I'm confident it will all work out. Let's hope it does, because after the last few years of Yashin's mismatched leadership we need a new face for the franchise.

State of the Roster

2007-07-19T08:43:00.000-04:00

So here we are in late July. The frenzy from the free agency period has quieted, and we have a few months to go before camp opens. Let's evaluate the state of the team as it stands now.
Ted Nolan's philosophy is that you build a championship team from the back-end forward. So that's how I'll look at the roster...

Goaltending
Our goaltending situation is straighforward...if DP stays healthy, we are in great shape. Last season, he established himself as a top 10 goalie in the league. With better defensive help, he can enter the top 5. Think back to all of the games last year where he single-handedly stole 1 or 2 points for this team (56 saves vs. the Rangers, anyone?). The logic of a 15 year deal notwithstanding, goaltending is the least of our concerns entering the 2007-2008 season. Behind Ricky, I am so happy to see Dubie get his shot in the NHL. I've been a fan since his first call-up back in the 2003-2004 season. I love his passion and attitude, not to mention the guy's got solid numbers (2.34 GAA, .921 save % in 17 regular season NHL games). I won't lose any confidence when Dipietro needs a rest and we see Yoda between the pipes.

Defense
Given the importance of defense to this coaching staff (and to any successful team), I'm a bit surprised we haven't done more to solidify the D unit. Of course, it's only July so it's premature to assume the D corps we have now will be the same that we see on the ice on October 5. There are still some attractive free agents available (Markov, Sutton, Tanabe), with various rumors potentially tying any and all of them to the Isles. Then again, one thing I've learned since the July 1 free agency kick-off is that 95% of rumors turn out to be false (I'm looking at you, hockeybuzz). So looking at our current roster, Witt (toughness/grit) and Bergeron (scoring) fill much needed prototypical roles. I love Martinek and think he is a well rounded defensemen, but I question his ability to stay healthy for a full season. Campoli was great two years back but regressed a bit last year. I think he needs to add size and will develop into a strong NHL player, but for the purposes of our season I hope that development happens sooner rather than later. As for Gervais, I watched his play evolve over the course of last season, and am confident he will be a solid D-man for years to come. Unlike many fans, I want to see both of these young players continue to perform at the NHL level rather than Bridgeport. There might be some growing pains, but it's in the best long-term interest of the team. As for Meyer, I personally don't see how he fits in well with this team. He is a good depth defenseman, but I don't love him as a starter. I'd like to see us bring in one of the top remaining FAs to fill that spot. Poti will be missed, but I think adding a FA, coupled with the development of Campoli/Gervais, will sufficiently offset his production.

Offense
Obviously, next year's team will have a very different look to it. Rather than go player-by-player, let's focus on some of the changes for next year. First the departures. The buyout of Yashin is definite addition by subtraction. He has an amazing shot, but his lack of effort clearly had a negative impact on the team. Just look at the team's record of success without him in the lineup. He always seemed like a nice guy and I wish him luck wherever he plays next. As for Blake, clearly his loss will be felt. I agree with the decision to not resign him given the terms he ultimately got from Toronto (although I'd like a refund for the Blake jersey I bought my wife last year), but you don't easily replace 40 goals. Despite what some called "selfish play", I'll miss Blake and the hustle he showed every game. I was a fan of Kozlov but see his departure as a chance to redefine the type of team the Islanders are. Finally, Smyth. I was and continue to be in favor of the move to bring him to the Island. Snow made a bold move to "win today", which we have rarely seen in our recent history. Unfortunately he opted to go to Colorado. I would have like to see him in orange and blue next year, but relative to last year's team (and his limited time/impact with us) I don't think we are worse off without him. Now, the additions. I like what Snow did, bringing in some quality players under good terms (aka short-term deals). This will give us flexibility to allow our young players to develop and crack the roster, and be active in the free agent market in subsequent years. Guerin is a great leader, gritty player, and quality goal scorer. A great signing. I became a fan of Comrie's play last year, watching him with Ottawa. More accurately, I was a Comrie hater...but now that he's on my side I am loving it. I think Fedotenko will have a breakout year and could net around 25 goals given the extra ice time, although I do think we overpaid a bit for him. If those guys form our top line, I think we can be successful. I know little about Jon Sim and don't recall having noticed his play, so I'll hold off on judgment until the season starts. As for other "new" faces, I'm excited about the return of Bergenheim to the team. He showed flashes of greatness in his previous stint with the team, and I think he has the potential to become the rare Isles prospect to develop into a premier forward in the league. Add to these guys the returning players (Sillinger, Hunter, Satan...etc.), I think we have the potential to have 7 or 8 20+ goals scorers. If this is the case and we can roll 4 solid lines, we will win a lot of hockey games.

Coaching
I'm a big Ted Nolan fan. I know it's become cliche, but I think he can bring the best out of our players and have the team continue to perform beyond the expectations of the so-called "experts" in the hockey media.

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading through my first (lengthy) blog. Future entries will be shorter, I promise. I'm looking forward to reading your comments and hope that you'll come back to this page for Isles talk throughout the season. Let's go Islanders!!

Welcome!

2007-07-19T08:40:00.001-04:00

Thanks for visiting my blog. I am a lifelong Islanders fan and look forward to discussing the team throughout the season. I'll do my best to make this a great source for Islanders information and hope we can have some great discussions throughout the year. Let's go Islanders!!