After the Islanders picked up Mark Streit and Doug Weight, the majority of the Islander fans I routinely come in contact with were happy. It’s not that they don’t have faith in a youth movement, they just wanted more options on the bench and of course, depth. The amount of injuries to last season’s team alone exposed that need more than anything. Signing a plethora of AHL and college talent over the past few weeks, the Isles will have new bodies fighting for jobs at Bridgeport this season, but the appearance of Weight and Streit on the Islanders may not be enough to have this team vie for a playoff spot this season.

Enter Mathieu Schneider?

According to hockeybuzz.com, the Islanders are in the running for the defenseman. I personally think that while he could help the team on the powerplay, losing a youngster like Bruno Gervais, Chris Campoli or even a veteran like Radek Martinek, players who want to be here, for a mercenary that could care less about what the team is trying to build, is not worth it to me. Streit is in this for the long haul and Weight knows he’s in a leadership role, similar to that of Crash Davis in “Bull Durham.” Are they superstars? No, but they may play a hand in shaping the youngsters on this team so they can develop into some.

While on the topic of recent pickups and players coming to the Islanders, who’s the enforcer?

[Before I get into this more, I want to thank my old buddy and hardcore Isles fan Anthony Natoli for bringing this topic up to me last week]

For those who don’t know, according to TSN.com, Brendan Witt has been extended [no length or financial figures are known at this time] and while he has been known to drop the gloves, he’s too damn solid on defense to be picking fights all the time. Easily the MVP of the Isles last season, the guy needs to be on the ice as much as possible. I think the same thing can be said for Andy Sutton, who before a slew of injures ended his season, made significant strides in his own end and needs to be on the ice, taking the body and blocking shots, rather than in the sin-bin.

The Isles have other physical players, guys like Jon Sim and Sean Bergenheim, but they all are more agitators than anything else. Trent Hunter isn’t a fighter, as his embarrassing tussle with Darian Hatcher last season proved and Blake Comeau is the type of playing who won’t drop the gloves, even if sphered in the gonads. Kyle Okposo is supposed to have a bit of a physical game as well, but by no means will he be asked to fight this season.

So what are the Isles to do?

At this point, an enforcer on this team may be a luxury the Islanders can’t afford. I mean seriously why take a roster spot away from a youngster who may be able to give you so much more than Chris Simon, Luke Richardson, Darren McCarty, Andre Roy or the endless list of available fighters out there could. Last season the Isles played most of the season with an enforcer and while they didn’t make the playoffs, most of the time, they weren’t being pushed around much. If guys like Bill Guerin and Mike Comrie drop the gloves a few more times this season and other players play gritty hockey and stand up for themselves, the Isles may not even need one.

Guess we’ll just have to wait and see with that one.

Lastly, I just want to say that for the past few weeks, Chris Botta’s blog has been an absolute blast to read and it was an absolute shame that it had to all come to an end. At the same time though, I understand that he obviously wants to move on with his life and start a new project, away from the Ilanders. Nevertheless, I’d like to thank Mr. Botta for opening up his mind and heart to the thousands of fans out there that desperately want to know everything that is going on in Islander country.

Thank You.

Well, I definitely didn’t see that happening, but it looks like these two recent pickups may help the Islanders much more than the rest of the NHL thinks.

Mark Streit may never score 62 points again in his NHL career, but he should be a lock for at least 40 over the next five years, giving the Islanders the offensive defenseman they desperately need. Considering how bad the powerplay was last last season, Streit will be a breath of fresh air on offense and should take plenty of pressure off of Chris Campoli, who many were expecting to get significant time with the man advantage next season.

I’ve heard the scouting report that his defensive skills could need some polishing, but I’m sure it’s nothing like what Islander fans had to deal with when Marc-Andre Bergeron was around. A better skater and a bit bigger, Streit, while not much of a physical player, won’t get pushed around as much as MAB did and will be able to develop his defensive game, rather than be a detriment to his team. As of right now, it looks like he’s going to be paired with Andy Sutton, so that should mean that he can take a few chances on offense, while his behemoth defensive partner blocks a few shots and takes care of the people that get in his way.

However, the best part of this team was the money. With the Rangers and Sharks grossly over-paying for the likes of Wade Redden and Brian Campbell, the Isles got a better offensive player, who’s younger and getting paid similar to Michal Rozsival, a player he had 25 more points than.

Sounds okay so far right? Not anything to jump for joy about, but then again, when was the last time fans of this club had anything to really get excited about?

Streit is obviously looking to make sure he’s not a fluke and considering how desperate the Isles were to land a powerplay quarterback, it was a win-win situation. I personally thought Ron Hainsey, who’s a little younger and bigger would have been a better fit [and just signed with the Thrashers], but we’ll see how Streit works out. At the price the Isles got him at and his eagerness for a long-term deal, it’s hard to have a problem with the signing.

As far as the Weight signing goes, I think it’s about getting a great leader for a great price. Let’s face it, Weight is not going to notch another 45 assist season in 09, but he can give guys like Jeff Tambellini and Kyle Okposo some room on the ice and put them in a good situation to score. If he’s healthy all season, I definitely see him score a dozen goals and adding 30 helpers, while setting a great on-ice example for the youngsters.

At the very least, the Islanders have added more offense after cutting ties with Josef Vasicek, Miroslav Satan and Ruslan Fedotenko. If guys like Sean Bergenheim, Tambellini, Okposo and Blake Comeau can continue to develop offensively, the Isles may have a better group of forwards than last year. Let’s not forget that Jon Sim will be around next season as well and should be able to add about 15 goals and 40 points.

With Mike Sillinger having hip surgery this offseason as well, it may take a while until he’s back up to speed. Until that time, Weight can help take the burden off the Isles assistant captain, while Streit will upgrade the Isles powerplay. I think having Weight around can also bolster the Isles chances with the man advantage because let’s face it, even at 37, the Isles haven’t had a playmaker of his caliber in a while. All in all, the team got a few extra parts to support the youngsters that will hopefully be able to lead this team in a few years. Is it an end-all solution? Of course not. But it will make things interesting this season.

With Streit and Weight signing however, guys like Andy Hilbert, Jeremy Colliton and Frans Nielsen may be fighting for a spot on the team next year. Kind of the opposite approach the team has been proposing all off-season, but with cap room to spend and the price the Isles got these players at, they had to make these deals.

Lastly, with Weight, Sillinger, Mike Comrie, Bill Guerin and Brendan Witt all on the last years of their contracts, the Isles can get young players, prospects and draft picks in return if the team decides to go on a slide come trading deadline.

That puts this team in a situation to further the youth movement if this combination of youth and experience can’t get the job done.

For the time being, I doubt any more moves will be made, but I’ve been wrong before.

It should be fun waiting and finding out though, right?

A small part of me is hoping I’m wrong again too.

Even though the Islanders will have some money to technically spend this offseason, trying to get to the salary cap limit, don’t expect another Bill Guerin or Mike Comrie signing.

As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t go making bets on a Sean Avery signing either.

If the Islanders have their way, Guerin and Comrie, along with guys like Andy Sutton, Richard Park, Mike Sillinger and Brendan Witt will be the only established veterans on this team. With the added money the Isles will need to spend, I totally expect them to lock up guys like Sean Bergenheim, Bruno Gervais, Frans Nielsen, Jeremy Colliton, Ben Walter and Jeff Tambellini for a few years. However, that still means they’ll have some dough to throw around.

However, by no means necessary do I see this team willing to fork over the type of cash Tampa Bay, in their infinite, or shall I say, finite, wisdom, did to pay for a 20 goal scorer by the name of Ryan Malone. Eight Million for the first three years? Never going to happen on Long Island again. That is unless they get a new home and start winning with unproven players. And we all know what the chances of that are right now. Nonetheless, the Isles will be able to treat their youngsters accordingly and will be in a situation to reward them for hard work. That will put them in a better place to rebuild this team.

And that my friends is what this team really needs.

Over the next few years, I think you’re going to see this team start to take a “Money Ball” approach to hockey. Considering that most of the players they drafted fit the type of mold they are trying to promote in the organization, in the next few years, fans of this team will start to see a philosophy change that can result in a renewed vigor in the fan base and a reputation change in the league.

It worked for teams like Pittsburgh, Chicago and Philadelphia and it can work for the Islanders, even though they have a much steeper slope to fight against than any of the aforementioned teams did. With players like Kyle Okposo, Trent Hunter, Richard Park and Witt in the lineup every night for this team next year, a lover of the sport like myself will watch them and enjoy every second. Nonetheless, the competitive side of me wants to see them competitive and successful.

We’ll have to wait and see though when I can have my cake and eat it too.

When I heard the news the Islanders were extending qualifying offers to Sean Bergenheim, Bruno Gervais, Jeff Tambellini, Frans Nielsen, Jeremy Colliton and Ben Walter, I couldn’t help but smile a little bit.

Anyone that has been to this site over the past year and change knows that I am a huge believer in Bergenheim and Nielsen. I’ve said it before, but I really believe Bergenheim can develop into a 20 goal scorer and be an adequate pest. He just has so many things going for him in his game. All he has to do is be more consistent. If he does, I think he can be someone every team in the NHL would love to have in their organization.

While I haven’t seen as much of Nielsen, I think he’s a quality playmaker with good puck-handling skills. With that being said, I see him this season as someone who can score 15 goals and add 25-30 assists. I know it’s a big task, considering the Isles leading scorer had 49 points last season, but I have a lot of faith in his ability. I also think with regular ice-time, Colliton and Walter can be solid players. Colliton I see as a penalty-killer type in the mold of Richard Park with a little bit more of a physical game, while Walter is a guy I see scoring 35-40 points on a third line.

In my mind, I think these are six players that have established themselves at the AHL level and are ready to prove themselves.

Only time will tell if they can deliver.

Also, the Isles are supposedly going to announce a buyout on Shawn Bates’ contract soon. What does that mean for the team? Not much, considering the former “Lucky 7’s” line member hasn’t played in 80 games combined over the past two seasons. However, it does say that the Islanders are serious about establishing a youth movement. That, I believe is a step in the right direction. Again, many Islander fans are sick of waiting for this team to develop into a Cup contender, but this is the only way it can happen. Let’s face it, the Islanders don’t have the money of the New York Rangers and by developing quality players from within, they’ll finally be able to attract talented free agents, rather than second and third-tier players who want to try and revitalize their careers.

We’ll have to wait a while to see how that turns out too.

This was supposed to be the “can’t miss” draft. The draft where the Isles got another youngster that could have helped them escape the mediocrity that has infested the organization over the past 25 years. Instead of going after Luke Schenn or Nikita Filatov, two players that could have immediately made an impression on the Island [the thought of Schenn delivering checks or Filatov dipsy-doodling around defenders had me salivating like one of Pavlov’s dogs], the Islanders acted like an obese person who went on weight watchers instead of getting the gastric bypass they needed to finally wear a T-shirt and pair of shorts in public.

You simply don’t try to rebuild your prospect base in a draft this deep. It’s common sense. If the Islanders had decided to do something like that last season, I wouldn’t have been angry, considering they didn’t have a first round pick, but with the amount of impact players that were available in this draft, I can’t help but feel disappointed.

While I don’t have anything particular against Joshua Bailey, I get the feeling that something else was going on at the draft that made them trade down. Sure, he had 96 points this season in the OHL, but he I have the feeling he is not the young impact player this team needs right now.

I hope the Islanders seriously have inside information here and are really as high on Bailey as they say they are and aren’t drunk on incompetence. Forgive me if I’m out of line here, but it’s really hard to have faith in a team that’s drafted busts like Ryan O’Marra, Robert Nilsson and Petteri Nokalainen over the past few years. The only legitimate player to be drafted by this team over the past four years was Kyle Okposo, but that was Neil Smith’s doing, not Milbury or Snow.

From the scouting reports I’ve read, Bailey is more the Mike Peca type, a player that can play in all situations and chip in some offense. While Peca was one of my favorite Islanders when he was here and someone in that mold can help, there’s no telling when this kid is going to be ready and like most fans of this team, I’m simply sick of waiting.

I know the youth movement will take some time and I know I will have to wait, but I’m not exactly thrilled about it. Seeing guys like Bailey, Okposo, Jack Hillen and Sean Bergenheim develop into solid NHL players will hopefully worth it.

I hope.

With so many intangibles present, it seems almost impossible to guess who the Isles will have a chance at taking with the fifth pick.

For my money, I’d like to see them pick up Nikita Filatov. Sure, he has the body of Jerry Mathers circa 1960 and might not be able to be as dynamic as teams want him to be his first few years in the league, but he is a sniper who I believe can develop into a point a game player in a few years. That’s what this team needs right now.

Imagine if you will, Kyle Okposo playing with someone that didn’t score 49 points and is scheduled to make four million dollars this year. Imagine two blue chip prospects earning their stripes and developing into the types of players a perennial playoff team can depend on.

Sounds fun, right? Sounds like something you’d like to watch, doesn’t it? Sounds better than expecting Ruslan Fedotenko and Josef Vasicek to defy the hockey gods and reality and score 25 goals, right?

That’s what I thought.

The Isles defense, on the other hand, is one of the only things I’m not too worried about, with guys like Chris Campoli, Bruno Gervais, Dustin Kohn, Andrew MacDonald and Mark Katic all ready to contribute or in the wings. I‘m not saying by any means that I wouldn’t love to have Peterborough’s Zach Bogosian, Guelph’s Drew Doughty, Kelowna teammates Tyler Myers and Luke Schenn or Niagara’s Alex Pietrangelo, as these guys could prove to be the next big time defensemen in the NHL, but beggars can’t be choosers.

Simply put, the Islanders are begging for more offense.

I wouldn’t be surprised either if the Islanders traded away a veteran or two today from the blueline either, which could necessitate the need to pick up one of the aforementioned defensemen. Stuff like that happens on draft day all the time, especially with this team. Labeled the “can’t miss draft” by many hockey insiders this year, the only way the Islanders could totally screw this up is if they trade their first pick entirely.

Simply put, this team needs to get younger and more dynamic as soon as possible.

Grit, character and heart are great attributes to have and to preach, but last year they were substituted for over-paid veterans, unused youth and inescapable injuries. If this team truly wants to turn the corner, they fully adopt the youth movement and get this ship moving in the right direction… today.

Draft Filatov and pick up a solid offensive D-man this offseason, Islanders. Or better yet, keep the search for a powerplay quarterback in house. Give Chris Campoli a real opportunity to see what he can do playing 25 minutes a game in all game situations. The end result may not only surprise the Islanders, but the NHL as well.

When I first read what Greg Logan reported in his blog about a certain former Islanders captain, I literally spit the soda I was drinking out of my mouth onto my two-year old cat.

“No way,” I thought to myself. No way could this team possibly be thinking about bringing back a player that never did what everyone expected him to do. No way would this team pay a man to play for them that they are already paying NOT to play for them.

It’s the kind of logic that could kill a Vulcan.

While Alexei Yashin is probably still a sure-fire 60 point a year player in the NHL if he’s healthy, he is the complete opposite of what this team needs now. Rather than AGAIN try and find a band aid for the gaping wound on the heart and soul of this team, the Islanders need to develop the youngsters they have and let a scab form over their identity, before it heals completely.

I don’t know how the rest of Islanders country feels about this, but I feel like the team still hasn’t healed from the Yashin’s time on the Island. Sure the team made the playoffs a couple of years when he was here, but he was never the player the Islanders needed him to be. Never once did he break 90 points or be the bona fide offensive dynamo they needed. Instead, when he first got here, guys like Mark Parrish, Mike Peca and Shawn Bates developed into solid players and Adrian Aucoin became a Norris Trophy candidate. Those players were the real reason this team managed to change the hockey motif on the Island, not Yashin.

After the lockout, Miroslav Satan was brought in to finally silence the critics that said 79 needed a legitimate scorer to play with. That didn’t work either and while Satan scored a solid 35 goals, Yashin still wasn’t what the team needed. A year with Ted Nolan seemed to change Yashin at first, but injuries and a late season slump sealed his fate with the team.

Even though the Isles offense was anemic this season, bringing in Yashin will do much more harm than good. Notice that I’m not even talking about the fact that the Islanders are paying Mike Comrie four million bucks to play center next season. I mean seriously, how much could Yashin want? It has to be more than what Comrie’s making, especially given the fact that he finally learned to play in playoffs in Russia this offseason. Given that, it doesn’t make sense financially for this team to take a chance on him. With the cap space this team has and the amount of youth present, they could bring in the right people and build what could be a legitimate cup contender, given they have the patience and common sense need to do so.

Please say you do. Please.