December is almost over. The Islanders are 5-7-1 in December, far below what they needed to be to return to any assemblance of a playoff race.
There is one game left tonight in Detroit. Win or lose December has not been good enough.
The Islanders front office has seemingly written off this season by trading James Wisniewski to the Montreal Canadiens for draft picks.
I appreciate the rebuild an the commitment to stockpiling draft picks.
The question is when does the rebuild start to show progress?
Wisniewski is 26 years old and was leading the defense corps in every way.
Why trade him at this point? Why not try and sign the guy? Why not wait until the deadline?
It sends a clear message to the fans and the players. This season is over and has become a 40+ game training camp for next season.
The Islanders are 16 points out of a playoff spot with 45 games to play. That's over half a season and trading your best defenseman at this point does not make a whole lot of sense. Striet and Okposo could be back very soon and the team would have looked better with "The Wiz" in the lineup instead of in Montreal.
The focus would now seem to turn to the teams many prospects.
Travis Hamonic and Andrew MacDonald have impressed a lot of people with their steady play as of late.
Jesse Joensuu will get the long look at the NHL level that so many have been waiting for.
It is time to bring everyone up and have a look at what the Islanders have.
If the team is not going to make a serious run for the playoffs then see what you have prospect wise and try to turn your prospects into players.
Its also time to get Krill Petrov over here from Russia. Have his buddy and fellow Islander prospect Krill Kabanov get him on the phone and get them both on the Islanders and lets see what the Islanders have here.
The Islanders last game against the Penguins had a lot of things. Excitement, drama, a decent crowd at the Coliseum and exactly what the people needed to see. The Islanders win a game at home and Sydney Crosby's point streak snapped.
Hopefully Crosby will now abandon his horribly hysterical attempt at a mustache.
I will look forward to seeing the Islanders on 24/7 on HBO.
If Striet comes back healthy, do the Islanders trade him before the deadline?
Mark is 33 years old and has two years left on his deal after this season so that is very unlikely.
Fun Fact - Alexei Yashin is the Islanders highest plaid player this season.
Who will the Islanders trade and what is the likelihood of it happening?
1 - Matt Moulson - He is an unrestricted free agent and is great around the net. He has proven that last season was not a fluke and could help any number of teams.
Would the Islanders trade John Tavares' best friend?
Sign him now or watch him walk for nothing.
Odds: 3-1 - I'm sure there are a number of teams that will make offers.
2 - P.A. Parenteau - He has carved out a nice little season so far playing with Moulson and Tavares with 21 points in 34 games. Could he help someone? Probably.
Odds: 7-1. After all, it is P.A. Parenteau.
3 - Mark Striet - Coming back from major surgery mid season is never easy and he would have to prove healthy before any team would take on 8.2 million in salary for the next two seasons.
Plus the Islanders have a salary cap floor to meet.
Odds: 15-1 - Is not happening. He will be back.
4 - Radek Martinek - He is an unrestricted free agent also. In my mind the guy is over rated and injury prone and the entire league knows it. He is Europe bound next season.
Odds: 25-1 because i don't think anyone wants him.
5 - Milan Jurcina - The guy has been a force when in the lineup and is the best trade chip the Islanders have if they are not going to sign him. I would not let him walk and give him a 3 year contract for around 5 million total value.
Odds: 7-5 - He nets the Islanders another 3rd round pick.
Who do you think could be next on the Islanders trade list?
Post your comments below.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
New York Islanders Season Goes from Bad to Worse
This was the year the Islanders were supposed to take a step forward. Instead, they have taken 2 steps back. Maybe 3.
Granted no one can predict injury but what has happened this season is like a kick in the rear after someone burned your house down and shot your dog.
The Injury Train has decimated the Islanders starting with Streit and Okposo and has not stopped even to blink plowing through every defenseman on the team except James Wisniewski.
I dont care what team you are that is going to kill your chances at being competitive.
I stated in my last article that the Islanders had to go 10-4 in December to save the season. They have started the month 0-6 and have found ways to lose games ranging from the bizarre against Atlanta to blowouts like the one suffered against Nashville.
The season is most probably lost. The Islanders record is 5-18-5 and they have 15 points. the only team even close to them in futility is remarkably the New Jersey Devils with 18 points.
Being 21 points out of a playoff spot before Christmas is simply unfathomable to think about turning the season around and making a run at the playoffs.
Is it impossible? No.
Is it probable? No.
So where do we go from here?
It is to early to think about who the Islanders could draft this off season but the Islanders will add another top prospect to their roster on the upcoming off season.
That is not going to help matters much.
Just when you think it can't get any worse it does. Every fan base has a breaking point and the Islander fans have reached theirs. Very few people want to go see the team at this point and barring a remarkable mid season turn around the Islanders have another 25 plus home games to try and sell seats to.
New York is a hard market as it is and if you don't win it gets harder.
Add to the mix just how awful the team's record is to this point and you have a perfect storm of negativity.
Winning would solve most of the teams problems and most around the team believed this was the season it would happen but that is something that the Islanders just cannot seem to do with any regularity.
It has been said that if new coach Jack Capuano could not wave a magic wand and heal the injured that Garth Snow should be the next to go.
In firing a coach the GM basically says its your fault we are losing to the outgoing coach. When the incoming coach does no better the blame falls squarely on the GM.
Assuming a house cleaning is coming, and that is a big assumption what established NHL executive would want to come on in and run this franchise? The worst move would be to fire Snow and then hire another unproven NHL executive.
I do not think Garth Snow has done a bad job. I think he has been hit with more bad luck than most other GM's but SOMEONE has to be held accountable for the teams current record.
The last time the Islanders hired an established NHL executive he was fired in 40 days for disagreeing with ownership on Rick Dipietro's 15 year contract.
I will not state the obvious and tell you who was right about that one.
That would make any established GM think twice about wanting to work for Charles Wang.
I am a Charles Wang fan. What he has done is nothing short of saving this team and has invested tens of - probably hundreds of millions of dollars of his own money into trying to turn the team around as well as develop the area around the Coliseum.
It has not worked. The reins of this team need to be handed to someone who has a pedigree in the NHL and experience of building a winner - quickly.
Who that could possibly be is anyones guess.
No one on this island deserves a winning successful Islanders franchise than its current owner after what he has invested and what he continues to invest.
Do you think Garth Snow should get the pass he didn't give Scott Gordon and get the benefit of the doubt because of the teams injury woes?
Please place your thoughts below.
Granted no one can predict injury but what has happened this season is like a kick in the rear after someone burned your house down and shot your dog.
The Injury Train has decimated the Islanders starting with Streit and Okposo and has not stopped even to blink plowing through every defenseman on the team except James Wisniewski.
I dont care what team you are that is going to kill your chances at being competitive.
I stated in my last article that the Islanders had to go 10-4 in December to save the season. They have started the month 0-6 and have found ways to lose games ranging from the bizarre against Atlanta to blowouts like the one suffered against Nashville.
The season is most probably lost. The Islanders record is 5-18-5 and they have 15 points. the only team even close to them in futility is remarkably the New Jersey Devils with 18 points.
Being 21 points out of a playoff spot before Christmas is simply unfathomable to think about turning the season around and making a run at the playoffs.
Is it impossible? No.
Is it probable? No.
So where do we go from here?
It is to early to think about who the Islanders could draft this off season but the Islanders will add another top prospect to their roster on the upcoming off season.
That is not going to help matters much.
Just when you think it can't get any worse it does. Every fan base has a breaking point and the Islander fans have reached theirs. Very few people want to go see the team at this point and barring a remarkable mid season turn around the Islanders have another 25 plus home games to try and sell seats to.
New York is a hard market as it is and if you don't win it gets harder.
Add to the mix just how awful the team's record is to this point and you have a perfect storm of negativity.
Winning would solve most of the teams problems and most around the team believed this was the season it would happen but that is something that the Islanders just cannot seem to do with any regularity.
It has been said that if new coach Jack Capuano could not wave a magic wand and heal the injured that Garth Snow should be the next to go.
In firing a coach the GM basically says its your fault we are losing to the outgoing coach. When the incoming coach does no better the blame falls squarely on the GM.
Assuming a house cleaning is coming, and that is a big assumption what established NHL executive would want to come on in and run this franchise? The worst move would be to fire Snow and then hire another unproven NHL executive.
I do not think Garth Snow has done a bad job. I think he has been hit with more bad luck than most other GM's but SOMEONE has to be held accountable for the teams current record.
The last time the Islanders hired an established NHL executive he was fired in 40 days for disagreeing with ownership on Rick Dipietro's 15 year contract.
I will not state the obvious and tell you who was right about that one.
That would make any established GM think twice about wanting to work for Charles Wang.
I am a Charles Wang fan. What he has done is nothing short of saving this team and has invested tens of - probably hundreds of millions of dollars of his own money into trying to turn the team around as well as develop the area around the Coliseum.
It has not worked. The reins of this team need to be handed to someone who has a pedigree in the NHL and experience of building a winner - quickly.
Who that could possibly be is anyones guess.
No one on this island deserves a winning successful Islanders franchise than its current owner after what he has invested and what he continues to invest.
Do you think Garth Snow should get the pass he didn't give Scott Gordon and get the benefit of the doubt because of the teams injury woes?
Please place your thoughts below.
Monday, November 29, 2010
New York Islanders: Capuano Results Mixed & Attendance
Jack Capuano has coached 5 games for the Islanders and while the effort has been there for the most part the results have been mixed.
The Islanders are injury riddled. Out right now -
Mark Streit
Kyle Okposo
Milan Jurcina
Andrew MacDonald
Jack Hillen
Also, Trent Hunter, Doug Weight and Mike Mottau are all dinged up.
Capuano so far has "simplified" the Gordon system which was said was high on situational coaching and given the team more freedom to be creative.
What exactly this means is a matter of opinion. Capuano has been called a players coach while Gordon is an X's and O's coach. That's the best way it can be explained.
Under Gordon the Islanders were not getting out shot by wide margins like they are now but that issue can be traced to the expanded responsibilities of two players - Bruno Gervais and Radek Martinek.
Both players came through the Islanders system and seem to be able to keep their jobs despite their porous defensive play.
You can put Columbus' overtime winner directly on Martinek's shoulders who was faked out so bad on the rush that his pants and jockstrap were in the opposite corner while he sat there wondering what just happened as the Jackets celebrated around him.
Sitting in the press box makes it easier to see who is in the right and wrong positions and who is hurting the team.
Gervais and Martinek are hurting the team and need to go. Who takes their place?
There has to be someone better in Bridgeport that has more sense defensively.
Mark Katic? Dustin Kohn? They cannot be any worse and should fill those gaps until Jurcina and MacDonald get back.
Dylan Reese has not embarrassed himself in his call up and Travis Hamonic has played brilliantly in his own end and came within a whisker of winning the Columbus game.
When Jurcina and MacDonald get back they should not replace Reese and Hamonic, they should replace Gervais and Martinek.
They can't get back soon enough.
Rick Dipetro has stepped up his game and is showing that he has something left other than befuddled looks and poor positioning.
Rick may never be as acrobatic as he once was and that's probably a good thing as his acrobatics no doubt contributed to his injuries. The last few games he has rarely been caught out of position. Its amazing the saves you can make when you don't have to dive across the crease every other shot.
Dipetro has seemingly shaken off the 2 years worth of rust and settled into a nice groove here and I look forward to seeing him continue his resurgence.
The fans have had doubts about Rick but at the same time most Islander fans are rooting hard for him.
The offense continues to struggle. That is not going to change unless the Islanders can trade Gervais and Martinek for Malkin and Ovechkin.
They will have to continue to throw the puck at the net and see what happens. Okposo is still 2 weeks away and how much he helps when he returns is a huge question mark.
The biggest thing the Islanders have to do is get healthy to fill the monstrous holes on defense and try to find ways to score goals. The goaltending has to remain solid.
The attendance at the Coliseum against the Blue Jackets was announced at over 8,000.
If there were over 3,500 people there I would be shocked. Support has always been a hard thing to attain for any team that isn't performing.
Look at Yankee Stadium in the late 80's and early 90's. They were drawing 15,000 a game and everyone was talking about how the area and stadium would never draw big crowds back to the Bronx.
Look what success brings and it shows that no matter where you play, if you win people will come.
Teams that don't win do not get crowds especially in New York. Not in this economy or in any economy.
Unless the Islanders start winning hockey games they will play in front of empty seats.
Its an ugly cycle isn't it?
You don't win, people don't go, the politicians see no one and wont budge on the building, so you can't improve the team through free agency.
There is one cure for all of the Islanders ills. Winning. Can they save this season and still challenge for that playoff spot?
They have 14 games before new years. I do not think that its crazy to say the team needs at least 20 points out of those 14 games. Some of the Injured Islanders including Okposo will return in December.
The season isn't over but the Islanders have to turn it around NOW. December is the Islanders chance to turn it around starting with 2 games against the Rangers. If at the end of the month the teams record is 15-16-5 or better the team will be in business for an exciting second half.
Leave your comments below.
The Islanders are injury riddled. Out right now -
Mark Streit
Kyle Okposo
Milan Jurcina
Andrew MacDonald
Jack Hillen
Also, Trent Hunter, Doug Weight and Mike Mottau are all dinged up.
Capuano so far has "simplified" the Gordon system which was said was high on situational coaching and given the team more freedom to be creative.
What exactly this means is a matter of opinion. Capuano has been called a players coach while Gordon is an X's and O's coach. That's the best way it can be explained.
Under Gordon the Islanders were not getting out shot by wide margins like they are now but that issue can be traced to the expanded responsibilities of two players - Bruno Gervais and Radek Martinek.
Both players came through the Islanders system and seem to be able to keep their jobs despite their porous defensive play.
You can put Columbus' overtime winner directly on Martinek's shoulders who was faked out so bad on the rush that his pants and jockstrap were in the opposite corner while he sat there wondering what just happened as the Jackets celebrated around him.
Sitting in the press box makes it easier to see who is in the right and wrong positions and who is hurting the team.
Gervais and Martinek are hurting the team and need to go. Who takes their place?
There has to be someone better in Bridgeport that has more sense defensively.
Mark Katic? Dustin Kohn? They cannot be any worse and should fill those gaps until Jurcina and MacDonald get back.
Dylan Reese has not embarrassed himself in his call up and Travis Hamonic has played brilliantly in his own end and came within a whisker of winning the Columbus game.
When Jurcina and MacDonald get back they should not replace Reese and Hamonic, they should replace Gervais and Martinek.
They can't get back soon enough.
Rick Dipetro has stepped up his game and is showing that he has something left other than befuddled looks and poor positioning.
Rick may never be as acrobatic as he once was and that's probably a good thing as his acrobatics no doubt contributed to his injuries. The last few games he has rarely been caught out of position. Its amazing the saves you can make when you don't have to dive across the crease every other shot.
Dipetro has seemingly shaken off the 2 years worth of rust and settled into a nice groove here and I look forward to seeing him continue his resurgence.
The fans have had doubts about Rick but at the same time most Islander fans are rooting hard for him.
The offense continues to struggle. That is not going to change unless the Islanders can trade Gervais and Martinek for Malkin and Ovechkin.
They will have to continue to throw the puck at the net and see what happens. Okposo is still 2 weeks away and how much he helps when he returns is a huge question mark.
The biggest thing the Islanders have to do is get healthy to fill the monstrous holes on defense and try to find ways to score goals. The goaltending has to remain solid.
The attendance at the Coliseum against the Blue Jackets was announced at over 8,000.
If there were over 3,500 people there I would be shocked. Support has always been a hard thing to attain for any team that isn't performing.
Look at Yankee Stadium in the late 80's and early 90's. They were drawing 15,000 a game and everyone was talking about how the area and stadium would never draw big crowds back to the Bronx.
Look what success brings and it shows that no matter where you play, if you win people will come.
Teams that don't win do not get crowds especially in New York. Not in this economy or in any economy.
Unless the Islanders start winning hockey games they will play in front of empty seats.
Its an ugly cycle isn't it?
You don't win, people don't go, the politicians see no one and wont budge on the building, so you can't improve the team through free agency.
There is one cure for all of the Islanders ills. Winning. Can they save this season and still challenge for that playoff spot?
They have 14 games before new years. I do not think that its crazy to say the team needs at least 20 points out of those 14 games. Some of the Injured Islanders including Okposo will return in December.
The season isn't over but the Islanders have to turn it around NOW. December is the Islanders chance to turn it around starting with 2 games against the Rangers. If at the end of the month the teams record is 15-16-5 or better the team will be in business for an exciting second half.
Leave your comments below.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
New York Islanders: Scott Gordon is Fall Guy - For Now
The Islanders fired coach Scott Gordon Monday.
I only ask one question: What difference is this going to make?
Does Jack Capuano have a magic wand that is going to heal the Islanders injury problems?
Is he going to make Rick DiPietro regain the ability to stop a puck?
Is he going to make the Islanders a puck moving goal scoring sensation?
I can give you those answers right now. No, no and no.
This may have been the most pointless firing in the history of the NHL. If the Islanders are going to go somewhere this season its not because Scott Gordon failed the team and Jack Capuano is the answer.
There is no coach short of some Al Arbour - Scotty Bowman - Dick Irvin - Toe Blake mashed together super coach that can by himself make players score more goals, play better between the pipes and play better defense.
Scott Gordon did nothing wrong except maybe set a record for coaching a team with the most man games lost to injury during his tenure.
I am so sick and tired of people saying injuries can't be used as an excuse for poor play.
When you lose 3 of your best defenseman - news flash - its going to effect your defense.
When you lose your top winger - news flash - its going to effect your offense.
When Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau suffer injuries and come back and play half the game they did then before they got hurt - news flash its going to effect your play.
When Rick DiPietro has two hip operations and three knee surgeries - news flash - its going to effect your play.
Get the point? Injuries are a part of the game this is true and as long as players get hurt their absence will effect whatever team they play for negatively.
It would serve me great pleasure for Scott Gordon to leave the Islanders with his dignity in tact and become the next Peter Laviolette.
I like Scott Gordon and I think he will be a successful coach in this league if given another opportunity. The only problem for him is it looks like he is taking the token "assistant to Garth Snow" job.
What happens if the negative trend continues and the Islanders finish at or near the bottom of the NHL again? Does Garth Snow come out un-scathed or does he follow Gordon to the unemployment line?
This reeks of desperation. This stinks of placing blame. There is no one at fault except fate and if there is some sort of evil injury fairy cursing the Islanders.
Two weeks ago the Islanders were 4-1-2 and playing excellent hockey. Now they are at the bottom of the league and looking really bad doing it.
If Scott Gordon is going to be fired for this, then if Jack Capuano does not turn the season around and the team make a run at the playoffs then Garth Snow should be fired also.
Add coaching uncertainty to the list of reasons top free agents will not consider the Islanders as a destination.
If the Islanders bomb out and Capuano joins Gordon as a "special assistant" within the organization then that creates a coaching search at the end of the season. Another black eye on the team where free agents are concerned.
This firing was pointless unless the Islanders are over .500 by new years and if that does not happen Garth Snow should follow Gordon out the door.
Place your comments below.
I only ask one question: What difference is this going to make?
Does Jack Capuano have a magic wand that is going to heal the Islanders injury problems?
Is he going to make Rick DiPietro regain the ability to stop a puck?
Is he going to make the Islanders a puck moving goal scoring sensation?
I can give you those answers right now. No, no and no.
This may have been the most pointless firing in the history of the NHL. If the Islanders are going to go somewhere this season its not because Scott Gordon failed the team and Jack Capuano is the answer.
There is no coach short of some Al Arbour - Scotty Bowman - Dick Irvin - Toe Blake mashed together super coach that can by himself make players score more goals, play better between the pipes and play better defense.
Scott Gordon did nothing wrong except maybe set a record for coaching a team with the most man games lost to injury during his tenure.
I am so sick and tired of people saying injuries can't be used as an excuse for poor play.
When you lose 3 of your best defenseman - news flash - its going to effect your defense.
When you lose your top winger - news flash - its going to effect your offense.
When Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau suffer injuries and come back and play half the game they did then before they got hurt - news flash its going to effect your play.
When Rick DiPietro has two hip operations and three knee surgeries - news flash - its going to effect your play.
Get the point? Injuries are a part of the game this is true and as long as players get hurt their absence will effect whatever team they play for negatively.
It would serve me great pleasure for Scott Gordon to leave the Islanders with his dignity in tact and become the next Peter Laviolette.
I like Scott Gordon and I think he will be a successful coach in this league if given another opportunity. The only problem for him is it looks like he is taking the token "assistant to Garth Snow" job.
What happens if the negative trend continues and the Islanders finish at or near the bottom of the NHL again? Does Garth Snow come out un-scathed or does he follow Gordon to the unemployment line?
This reeks of desperation. This stinks of placing blame. There is no one at fault except fate and if there is some sort of evil injury fairy cursing the Islanders.
Two weeks ago the Islanders were 4-1-2 and playing excellent hockey. Now they are at the bottom of the league and looking really bad doing it.
If Scott Gordon is going to be fired for this, then if Jack Capuano does not turn the season around and the team make a run at the playoffs then Garth Snow should be fired also.
Add coaching uncertainty to the list of reasons top free agents will not consider the Islanders as a destination.
If the Islanders bomb out and Capuano joins Gordon as a "special assistant" within the organization then that creates a coaching search at the end of the season. Another black eye on the team where free agents are concerned.
This firing was pointless unless the Islanders are over .500 by new years and if that does not happen Garth Snow should follow Gordon out the door.
Place your comments below.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
New York Islanders: What the Heck Happened?
The Islanders were 4-1-2 and could have easily been 7-0 in their first seven games. Seven games later they are 4-8-2 and look like the team that the so called experts predicted we would all see.
What are the reasons the Islanders have taken a seven game nose dive? Let us examine.
1) Injuries.
Who says you cant use injuries as an excuse for losing?
This may be the most stupid, un-true sporting cliche in the history of organized sport.
So if the Indianapolis Colts are 7-0 with Peyton Manning and he gets injured and the Colts then proceed to go 0-7 without him can you blame injuries then?
What if Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Mark Tiexiera, CC Sabathia and Andy Pettitte
Yes Injuries are a part of the game and all teams have them but the Islanders seem to be snake bitten and have been at the top or in the top 5 in man games to injury over the last 4 years than any team in the league.
Back to the current Islanders we are not talking about the obvious injuries to Okposo and Streit. No the ones to Andy MacDonald, Milan Jurcina, Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau.
Yes I know Comeau and Bailey are back but has anyone seen the fire in them we saw before they got hurt?
Nope. Neither have I.
It can not be overstated how much the injuries to Jurcina and MacDonald have hurt the team. Mostly because the team has had to depend on the ridiculously over-rated Radek Martinek who seems to be on the ice for every bad goal against and Bruno Gervais who you can sum up in one word - soft.
Martinek and Gervais are left overs from a time in Islanders history where all you had to do is show a little bit of talent on an awful team then that means you belong as a top 4 defenseman.
In both cases they are 6th and 7th defenseman at best and are proving it on a nightly basis.
2) Goaltending.
It was supposed to be a strong point for the team with a healthy Rick DiPietro and a solid back up in Roloson and neither has come close to expectation. I said in an earlier blog article that the biggest thing the Islanders had to do to make themselves a playoff team was improve their horriffic goals against totals froma year ago. This has not happened because of shoddy defense and bad goaltending. The Islanders sit at 29th in Goals Against.
3) Effort.
How did the team go from working hard every shift on the ice to a team that looked like it was skating with shoes on against the Flyers and Hurricanes? You can only blame the coach, but I wont place the blame entirely on the coach.
Play hard or your out has to be the team's mantra. If the team does not improve and the good thing is there is plenty of time for them to straighten it out Gordon will be fired and the team can only look inward for its lack of effort.
The good news is it is really early in the season and the Islanders have plenty of time to right the ship as they say.
Hopefully they will not dig themselves in such a big hole to get out of because playing .500 hockey the rest of the way will not get the team to the playoffs.
Post your comments below.
What are the reasons the Islanders have taken a seven game nose dive? Let us examine.
1) Injuries.
Who says you cant use injuries as an excuse for losing?
This may be the most stupid, un-true sporting cliche in the history of organized sport.
So if the Indianapolis Colts are 7-0 with Peyton Manning and he gets injured and the Colts then proceed to go 0-7 without him can you blame injuries then?
What if Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Mark Tiexiera, CC Sabathia and Andy Pettitte
Yes Injuries are a part of the game and all teams have them but the Islanders seem to be snake bitten and have been at the top or in the top 5 in man games to injury over the last 4 years than any team in the league.
Back to the current Islanders we are not talking about the obvious injuries to Okposo and Streit. No the ones to Andy MacDonald, Milan Jurcina, Josh Bailey and Blake Comeau.
Yes I know Comeau and Bailey are back but has anyone seen the fire in them we saw before they got hurt?
Nope. Neither have I.
It can not be overstated how much the injuries to Jurcina and MacDonald have hurt the team. Mostly because the team has had to depend on the ridiculously over-rated Radek Martinek who seems to be on the ice for every bad goal against and Bruno Gervais who you can sum up in one word - soft.
Martinek and Gervais are left overs from a time in Islanders history where all you had to do is show a little bit of talent on an awful team then that means you belong as a top 4 defenseman.
In both cases they are 6th and 7th defenseman at best and are proving it on a nightly basis.
2) Goaltending.
It was supposed to be a strong point for the team with a healthy Rick DiPietro and a solid back up in Roloson and neither has come close to expectation. I said in an earlier blog article that the biggest thing the Islanders had to do to make themselves a playoff team was improve their horriffic goals against totals froma year ago. This has not happened because of shoddy defense and bad goaltending. The Islanders sit at 29th in Goals Against.
3) Effort.
How did the team go from working hard every shift on the ice to a team that looked like it was skating with shoes on against the Flyers and Hurricanes? You can only blame the coach, but I wont place the blame entirely on the coach.
Play hard or your out has to be the team's mantra. If the team does not improve and the good thing is there is plenty of time for them to straighten it out Gordon will be fired and the team can only look inward for its lack of effort.
The good news is it is really early in the season and the Islanders have plenty of time to right the ship as they say.
Hopefully they will not dig themselves in such a big hole to get out of because playing .500 hockey the rest of the way will not get the team to the playoffs.
Post your comments below.
Monday, November 1, 2010
New York Islanders: Which Team is the Real Islanders
Is it the team that gave the best in the NHL fits or is it the team that got blown away in Philadelphia?
Is it the 4-1-2 Islanders in the first 7 games?
Or is it the 0-4 Islanders of the last 4?
Let's take a look at both side of the coin with the first glance at the 0-4 Islanders:
1) True Colors - The Islanders are young and its showing. Experience is something this team does not have short of its Captain and its something that will only be gained through one thing and thats years playing in the NHL.
2) DiPietro a shell of himself - Rick is back and apparently healthy. That's where the positives end. DP is 2-2-2 with an abysmal 3.75 GAA and an even worse .867 save percentage. Those kind of numbers would get most goaltenders drummed out of the NHL.
3) Inconsistency Kills - The first 7 games the Islanders masked their deficiencies with hard work. Without this aspect of their game more results like the 6-1 drubbing by Philadelphia will not be the last time.
Ladies and Gentlemen here is the case that the 4-1-2 Islanders are the real Islanders -
1) DP will even out - Sure Rick's numbers are sub par but as long as he remains healthy he will shake the rust off. Rick has not played with full health in almost 2 years and it will take him some time to get back to any resemblance of his former self.
As long as he remains healthy he will improve. Rick is better than this everyone knows it.
2) Defense still strong despite bad game - The Islanders defense was not good against Philadelphia. Everyone has bad games. The Red Wings have allowed 6 goals in a game from time to time. Against Montreal the Islanders ran into a buzz saw. The Habs are playing excellent hockey right now and all it will take to turn it around is one win.
3) Philly game was not nearly as bad as score indicated - Sergei Bobrovsky had an excellent game for the Flyers or the score would have been a lot closer. The Islanders probably would not have won but he made 3 or 4 saves that easily could have made the TSN highlight reels.
Which Islanders team is the real Islanders team? Leave your comments below.
Is it the 4-1-2 Islanders in the first 7 games?
Or is it the 0-4 Islanders of the last 4?
Let's take a look at both side of the coin with the first glance at the 0-4 Islanders:
1) True Colors - The Islanders are young and its showing. Experience is something this team does not have short of its Captain and its something that will only be gained through one thing and thats years playing in the NHL.
2) DiPietro a shell of himself - Rick is back and apparently healthy. That's where the positives end. DP is 2-2-2 with an abysmal 3.75 GAA and an even worse .867 save percentage. Those kind of numbers would get most goaltenders drummed out of the NHL.
3) Inconsistency Kills - The first 7 games the Islanders masked their deficiencies with hard work. Without this aspect of their game more results like the 6-1 drubbing by Philadelphia will not be the last time.
Ladies and Gentlemen here is the case that the 4-1-2 Islanders are the real Islanders -
1) DP will even out - Sure Rick's numbers are sub par but as long as he remains healthy he will shake the rust off. Rick has not played with full health in almost 2 years and it will take him some time to get back to any resemblance of his former self.
As long as he remains healthy he will improve. Rick is better than this everyone knows it.
2) Defense still strong despite bad game - The Islanders defense was not good against Philadelphia. Everyone has bad games. The Red Wings have allowed 6 goals in a game from time to time. Against Montreal the Islanders ran into a buzz saw. The Habs are playing excellent hockey right now and all it will take to turn it around is one win.
3) Philly game was not nearly as bad as score indicated - Sergei Bobrovsky had an excellent game for the Flyers or the score would have been a lot closer. The Islanders probably would not have won but he made 3 or 4 saves that easily could have made the TSN highlight reels.
Which Islanders team is the real Islanders team? Leave your comments below.
Friday, October 29, 2010
New York Islanders: Lighthouse Project Still Dark
It has been 4 months since Kate Murray essentially blew up Charles Wang's plans for his mega project in Uniondale.
See - http://bleacherreport.com/articles/419121-ny-islanders-murray-drops-bomb-on-lighthouse
Since then we have heard the following.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
For 5 years Charles Wang waited for an answer. He did all of the public relations, open town hall meetings started an entire corporation around his dream project.
One obstacle has brought any plans he had to a screeching halt. The Town of Hempstead and its grand leader Kate Murray.
So whats next?
Charles Wang made news this week when he entered into a contract partnering with developer Michael Dubb on his 144 acre property in Plainview.
Both Wang and Dubb have said nothing about relocating Mr. Wang's Lighthouse project to this site. All they have said is the want to "Create a Lifestyle community that will be an asset to the neighborhood."
Interesting words that mean essentially nothing.
Its no secret that this site is one of the handful that the Shinnecock Nation Indian Tribe was looking at as a possible Casino site.
Its also no secret that the Coliseum site was another high on the Shinnecock's wish list.
Maybe this site in Plainview will be what it appears. Or maybe its Charles Wang's Plan B.
Partnering with the Shinnecock Nation would allow any developer to bypass any local Town boards authority over the project. That prospect in of itself has to have Mr. Wang interested in a possible partnership with the tribe.
The Islanders lease is up in 2015. You can no longer say "well they have a long term lease, so they can't go anywhere."
Every year that goes by the lease gets less and less expensive for a possible buy out.
This does not mean the Islanders are bolting for Kansas City because no one would walk away from the Islanders cable contract unless absolutely necessary.
What it means is Charles Wang no longer has all his eggs in Kate Murray's basket.
You don't think the Town of Oyster Bay's Supervisor John Venditto would want the Islanders in his Town?
It would take 2-3 years to actually build an arena start to finish. Add planning to that, engineering, political red tape, union problems, protests, hearings, zoning problems, variances and government approvals could push this whole process if started today to 4-5 years.
Which means that if the Lighthouse project is in fact dead Mr. Wang has to be looking at alternate plans. Is this site in Plainview Plan B?
Charles Wang tried the public route to get his Lighthouse and ultimately failed because of the Town of Hempstead's road blocks.
Maybe he is trying the subtle route this time. Maybe he is waiting for the Shinnecock Nation to finally get its federal recognition.
Charles Wang has a plan. The Long Island community and the New York Islander fans would love to know what it is.
Only time will tell.
Post Your comments below.
See - http://bleacherreport.com/articles/419121-ny-islanders-murray-drops-bomb-on-lighthouse
Since then we have heard the following.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
For 5 years Charles Wang waited for an answer. He did all of the public relations, open town hall meetings started an entire corporation around his dream project.
One obstacle has brought any plans he had to a screeching halt. The Town of Hempstead and its grand leader Kate Murray.
So whats next?
Charles Wang made news this week when he entered into a contract partnering with developer Michael Dubb on his 144 acre property in Plainview.
Both Wang and Dubb have said nothing about relocating Mr. Wang's Lighthouse project to this site. All they have said is the want to "Create a Lifestyle community that will be an asset to the neighborhood."
Interesting words that mean essentially nothing.
Its no secret that this site is one of the handful that the Shinnecock Nation Indian Tribe was looking at as a possible Casino site.
Its also no secret that the Coliseum site was another high on the Shinnecock's wish list.
Maybe this site in Plainview will be what it appears. Or maybe its Charles Wang's Plan B.
Partnering with the Shinnecock Nation would allow any developer to bypass any local Town boards authority over the project. That prospect in of itself has to have Mr. Wang interested in a possible partnership with the tribe.
The Islanders lease is up in 2015. You can no longer say "well they have a long term lease, so they can't go anywhere."
Every year that goes by the lease gets less and less expensive for a possible buy out.
This does not mean the Islanders are bolting for Kansas City because no one would walk away from the Islanders cable contract unless absolutely necessary.
What it means is Charles Wang no longer has all his eggs in Kate Murray's basket.
You don't think the Town of Oyster Bay's Supervisor John Venditto would want the Islanders in his Town?
It would take 2-3 years to actually build an arena start to finish. Add planning to that, engineering, political red tape, union problems, protests, hearings, zoning problems, variances and government approvals could push this whole process if started today to 4-5 years.
Which means that if the Lighthouse project is in fact dead Mr. Wang has to be looking at alternate plans. Is this site in Plainview Plan B?
Charles Wang tried the public route to get his Lighthouse and ultimately failed because of the Town of Hempstead's road blocks.
Maybe he is trying the subtle route this time. Maybe he is waiting for the Shinnecock Nation to finally get its federal recognition.
Charles Wang has a plan. The Long Island community and the New York Islander fans would love to know what it is.
Only time will tell.
Post Your comments below.
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