This time of the year can get insanely crazy and the fact that the comings, goings and rumors have continued to surface at a breakneck pace, only prove it more so.

Last week, Eklund of HockeyBuzz.com reported that the Maple Leafs, who have some extra cash this summer,  are eyeing Islanders leading goal scorer , Jason Blake, with the Predators showing some interest as well. In all honesty, I believe that the Islanders should sign Blake and while asking for a five-year deal at 34 is a bit unorthodox, the $18 million he’s asking for isn’t outrageous by any stretch of the imagination.

Let’s face it, this team hasn’t done things the easy way for quite some time now. Between signing Yashin for as much money as they did and signing DP for 15-years, they’ve made it obvious that they do things their own way. Nevertheless, when a 40-goal scorer who has been consistently getting better for the past five seasons only asks for a little over three million smackers a season and has shown a willingness to stay loyal to the team, I don’t see why you don’t just give the guy what he wants. With the physical condition Blake is in and the work ethic he has, I think he can play another five seasons and score at least 25 goals in all of them, making the deal a pretty damn good one if you ask me.

All season long, the guy was hustling his tail off and was putting the puck in the net, regardless of who he was playing with. Sure, his little tiff at the trading deadline was annoying and his attitude in the locker room and with the press has been questionable at times, that doesn’t take anything away from his play on the ice. Simply put, this guy was an emotional leader on the ice for the team and stood up for himself, regardless of who was sending him down.

When someone asks me what the Islanders stand for, someone like Jason Blake, Trent Hunter, Brendan Witt or Richard Park immediately come to mind. Guys that will do whatever it takes on the ice to put their team in a situation to win. With that being said, as long as Yashin is still on the team and with the Smyth negotiations still at a standstill, the Isles need to keep at least one of the two, [or preferably both, if that is even possible at this point] or else it’s going to be a long season next year.

As well on the hot stove, former Islanders first-round pick Petteri Nokalainen has reportedly started negotiating a contract with Luleå (SEL). If he signs there, it is supposedly to fill the spot of former NHL standout and Legion of Doom member Mikael Renberg. With his knee injury slowing him down last season with the Isles and his numbers at Bridgeport not being that spectacular, maybe the young Finn needs a change of scenery.

In addition, the Islanders signed sixth-round pick Andrew McDonald and free-agent Sean Bentivoglio to contracts and signed an affiliation deal with the Grizzlies…again. Both McDonald and Bentivoglio look to add some depth at Bridgeport, but I think McDonald may have a chance to see some ice-time at the NHL level if someone gets injured. Looking at his stats, it seems like the guy is a pretty solid two-way defenseman, scoring 58 points last season in the QMJHL. Maybe he can turn a few heads the same way that Bruno Gervais and Chris Campoli have, which would make replacing Sean Hill that much easier and will give us some young depth at defense, which is always a good thing.

At any rate, it looks like things are only going to get more interesting as this offseason rolls on.

Posted under Isles Rumors 2007