It feels good that this team, which was picked to come in last place this season by many media outlets, held the ice for 65 minutes with the reigning NHL champs.

John Tavares looked solid enough as well, and even though it’s obvious he still has some work to do, there’s no reason why he can’t score 25-30 goals this season. All the haters out there will see during the season how sick this kid’s hands really are. Things will get tougher for him as the season wears on and his body gets used to the beating he’ll be taking, but I got a great feeling about this kid.

The same thing goes for Sean Bergenheim and Kyle Okposo, who should be in the 25 goal area as well.

For a team that didn’t have one 20-goal scorer last season, I expect to see at least three this season. Trent Hunter and Mark Streit looked great during the home opener as well and I expect those two to lead this team on the ice just as much as Doug Weight will when he gets into the lineup.

For the time being though, I loved what I saw from Tavares and Matt Moulson. That kid has excellent instincts and if he stays in the lineup, could be a threat. He’s got a few solid seasons of AHL hockey under his belt and right now, he looks like someone who can pot a few, especially if he gets special teams time.

In other news, anyone else feel weird seeing Dwayne Roloson in net? The guy is so simple, but technically sound that it’s easy to forget how solid he is. Feels good to have a legitimate goaltender in the net that doesn’t try and do too much and lets the game come to him. Reminded me of Glenn Healy back in the day. With a two year contract, we’ll be seeing him plenty over the next 163 games and the other night was a nice introduction to his style.

With Weight and Frans Neilson out of the lineup as well, the Isles have plenty of room to get better. If that wasn’t enough, having a healthy defense should make them competitive too. The whole key for them is to stay at .500 for as long as they can and stay healthy. If they can, they may sneak up on some teams. Despite the fact that expectations are low, this season looks to be a fun one for the Isles and may eventually go down as one that started the youth movement in the right direction.

Posted under 2009-10

Both Joey MacDonald and Yann Danis showed flashes of brilliance this season with the New York Islanders and played admirably behind an often battered and beaten defense. Make no mistake about it, in today’s NHL, where injuries are happenstance, it certainly means something. However, the the question remains as to how much it will mean to the Islanders this offseason.

Simply put, Danis and MacDonald still aren’t proven commodities in this league and with Rick DiPietro’s injury problems the past couple of seasons, the Islanders need not only to sign a seasoned backup, but someone who can also play at Bridgeport that is capable of backing up as well. As far as I’m concerned, Peter Mannino still needs to earn his bumps and bruises, making the Islanders forced to go shopping in the free agent pool or at the draft to solve these problems.

In my last post, I named a few goaltenders the Isles could go after in the draft, but I failed to address the message that could potentially send to DiPietro. Even if they are a few years away, it may agitate DP and make him even more of a loose cannon on the ice, giving the Islanders another disaster of a contract to deal with while they are still paying off the salaries of Alexei Yashin and Shawn Bates. Nevertheless, drafting a young goaltender who in a few years could play 30-40 games would be the best thing for the organization and something that the Islanders enigmatic goaltender will have to deal with.

In addition to signing a young goaltender, the Islanders would be smart to take a look at the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have Curtis Joseph, Olaf Kolzig and Martin Gerber entering Unrestricted Free Agency this offseason. Of the three, Gerber may be the best option. Making $1.8 million this season and coming off a less than mediocre campaign in ‘09, Gerber, who won 38 games three years ago, can be the guy to the team if DP’s hips aren’t up for the long haul and can be acquired for a reasonable price. His apparent friendship with Mark Streit should only help facilitate the process as well.

Who knows, many the Islanders can hit the Swiss jackpot two years in a row.

So I’m sure you’re all wondering, what does this have to do with Danis and MacDonald?

Well, I personally think Danis would be the better choice to play at Bridgeport considering the fact that he was the better goaltender of the two last season, with a drafted youngster earning his stripes in Utah and Bridgeport before the Islanders decide where he’s going to go next, leaving Gerber and DP with the big club.

With that being said, I believe that leaves MacDonald without a gig.

But that’s just in my bizarre world.

Photo by Patrick Hickey Jr.

Posted under Isles Thoughts 2009

With all the hoop-la lately regarding what the Islanders will do with the number one pick this upcoming draft, it’s easy to forget that they also have the 26th pick [edit] in the first round, courtesy of the trade that sent the under-achieving Mike Comrie and the unhappy Chris Campoli to the Senators.

Now, while Islanders general manager Garth Snow has kept mum on his intentions, I offer a few thoughts as to what the team should do with their picks.

Option One- Draft John Tavares and a talented blue liner. Many believe Tavares could be the player to build around, but he’ll just be one piece to the puzzle that will get the Isles back into the playoffs. A guy like Calvin De Haan, who scored 63 points in 68 games with the Oshawa Generals this past season, may be a great choice. With Campoli gone, the Islanders could use more depth on the powerplay and De Haan has the talent to be that man. I don’t know how you guys feel, but I miss the days when the Islanders had a bunch of talented defensemen who could score. Considering that, De Haan has the potential to help the Islanders offense quite a bit.

Swedish D-man David Rundblad is a little bit older and while he doesn’t have the same offensive ability, he may be the better skater of the two and has more size, making him the Andy Sutton with a better shot of the future. However, he may be spending more time abroad before jumping to the NHL, making him a tougher guy to consider drafting.

Option Two- Draft John Tavares and a goaltender. Of course, now it’s obvious what I think the Islanders should do with the first pick, but with the 29th, they may consider getting a young goaltender, just in case Rick DiPietro injures another hip. Wait, he’s already injured both of them over the past two seasons.

If Edward Pasquale is available when the Islanders go for their second pick, they should consider picking him up. Winning 32 games in the OHL this season with a solid .911 save percentage this season, Pasquale could be ready to thrive in a few seasons just in case DP doesn’t come close to finishing him record-breaking contract.

Oliver Roy is another quality goaltender the Islanders could look at. Winning 35 games in the QMJHL this season, Roy is a guy that may be able to play 40 games a season and take some of the pressure off DiPietro.

Photo by Patrick Hickey Jr.

Posted under Offseason 2009

Anyone that watches or listens to Howard Stern remembers a few years ago when former professional wrestler The Iron Shiek came on the show and bugged out, saying that he would make Paul Blair, a member of the Killer Bees, a pretty successful tag team during the 80s, “humble” for thinking he was a big shot and of course, for tampering with his cocaine.

While there was no line sniffing or camel clutches last night in Carolina, the Islanders played a solid game for 60 minutes that should have been won had it not been for a few costly turnovers, effectively humbling a Carolina team that might be heading to the playoffs.

Nevertheless, the Islanders still see the game as a step in the right direction.

“I think it shows we have a lot of potential and we can score goals,” Tim Jackman, who had two assists in his first game since signing a new contract, told the Associated Press after the game. “When we’re doing the right things, good things happen.”

Even the Carolina players thought that the Islanders came out hard and of course, being the better team that they are, they banded together and made sure they held on to their playoff spot.

“Yeah, we sat back on our heels,” LaRose told the AP after the game. “Even in the first period, they got a lot of scoring chances. We were a little upset with ourselves after the second period. We did not play well in the second, and it showed. You know, we just didn’t want to come in here with any regrets after the game.”

When I think of where this game began to take a turn for the worse, I think of Brendan Witt’s turnover that led to Erik Cole crashing the net and a goal soon thereafter. That I think deflated the team and after that, they simply hung young goaltender Peter Mannino out to dry. Was he as solid as he was in his first start last week? I don’t think so, as Carolina’s play in the third period was something he nor the Islanders defense was ready for.

Much like any young team, the Islanders earned some more bumps and bruises last night, a process that will surely continue.

However, seeing four unanswered goals and two of them coming from Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo made the game an entertaining one.

It may be hard to see right now, but I feel like this team is beginning to start to develop an identity or style of play.

Posted under 2008-2009, Post Game Rants

I have a message to all of my readers:

Peter Mannino is a god and you are not.

Well, at least until his next game.

Making 40 saves against any team in the NHL is no easy task, but against a team with nine players with over 35 points like the Chicago Blackhawks, it’s like trying to find all of Cloris Leachman’s liver spots. Seriously, the last time I saw Mannino in net, I thought he was in way over his head. He looked like Peter Griffin in the video store, trying to decide between two “Ernest” films.

But today was different. The Islanders defense was totally outmatched and Mannino did his best Yann Danis impersonation, stopping Chicago’s top players from the top of the circles, the blue line, on breakaways and in traffic.

“I felt good right away,” Mannino told the Associated Press after the game. “Chicago is an unbelievable offensive team and I wanted to get out the nerves as much as possible and stay focused. When you get a lot of shots, it helps, especially if you’re not letting them in right away.”

Well, the kid got his wish and was magnificent.

Chicago’s goaltender, Nikolai Khabibulin, making his first appearance after injuring his knee a few weeks ago however, was not. Only facing 19 shots, “The Bulin Wall” didn’t have what it took and ended up costing his team two points in the process.

It didn’t help matters that the Islanders powerplay was at its best. Mark Streit alone played a crucial role in today’s win by taking shots from the point and playing good instinctive hockey. Sometimes, when you have the ability a guy like Streit has, thinking less and just letting your instinct to score take over makes a huge difference. That’s exactly what happened today.

Another player that wasted no time helping the Isles was Richard Park. Islanders sideline reporter C.J. Papa said on the air on Saturday that the Islanders were going to take things slow with Park, who missed 11 games with busted ribs. While Papa was indeed correct, Park obviously didn’t get the message and has three points in his first two games back. Despite the fact that he got ice cold after starting the season white-hot, Park is still a more than useful player and someone that can teach the youngsters what they need to about this league while still being productive in both ends of the ice.

Players like that do not grow on trees my friends.

Posted under 2008-2009, Post Game Rants

I just want to apologize for the extra lewdness in this post; it’s all Sean Avery’s fault.

I don’t know how you guys feel, but seeing Blake Comeau finally put some fertilizer on his grapefruits and not only nail Avery near the Islanders bench in the first period, but then later blow him a kiss like he had a new man-servant, made my day.

It didn’t matter that the Rangers had the lead after the first 20 minutes, the Islanders skated hard against a much better team on paper and carried the play in the physicality and speed department. That’s what I want to see from this team the rest of the season.

The fact that the Islanders showed Avery his rear more times than my hands can count erase the bad penalties the Isles took, the mistakes they made in the neutral zone and the bad goal they gave up in the third.

Let’s face it, not many people expected the Islanders to stand much of a chance against a revamped and stacked Rangers team. Nevertheless, they kept it close for most of the game. Take away their mistakes, like running into each other and deflecting shots past their own goaltender [no sarcasm there, I swear] and I think they were the better team.

However, on special teams, it’s obvious the Islanders miss Doug Weight and have serious work to do with the man advantage next season if they are going to be a better team. Decent teams do what it takes on the powerplay and can get those extra tallies when they have to. 0 for their last 18 with the man advantage, it’s obvious the Islanders must change their approach if they are going to be a better team next season.

On a side note, I am quickly becoming a fan of both Dean McAmmond and Jesse Joensuu. Both of these guys were working their tails off last night. Aside from the play of Comeau, I think these two guys were the Islanders best players. Could McAmmond be earning himself a spot on this team for next season? Is Joensuu doing the same thing? Only time will tell with that, but overall, I think the Islanders showed tonight that they could hold the ice with a playoff team.

That in itself means a lot.

However at the same time, they are still a far way off from making themselves a team that can reach the post season in the not too distant future.

Still plenty of work to get done.

Posted under 2008-2009, Post Game Rants

I’ve been one of the few bloggers or possibly even Islander fans that have consistently stuck by Sean Bergenheim over the past two years. I’ve been called everything from crazy to stupid during that time, but last night, I looked like a genius.

Now are you guys beginning to see that this kid can be more than a checking line forward? Can you see that he can be a top six forward and score 20 goals a season? If not, then you my friends are the idiots. Damn, was he something special last night. Flying all over the ice, Bergenheim was taking the body, was the first man in on the forecheck and even finished offensively. When you combine all of that with any player on a given night, you’ll usually see the results on the scoresheet and last night, Bergenheim was no different.

While obviously not as key to the Islanders rebuilding movement as Kyle Okposo or Josh Bailey, Bergenheim’s continued stellar play will definitely be a huge boost to this team and help the Islanders find out what they want to do next season.

The same thing can be said for Yann Danis, who too was on top of his game. With Rick DiPietro coming back next season, many think the Islanders would be better off going with a more experienced goaltender to back him up, but I think either MacDonald, but preferably Danis would do a more than solid job backing him up. Better at handling his rebounds and getting the defense to come to his aid than MacDonald, I see no reason why Danis can’t play 20-25 game next season in a backup role.

He proved again last night that he can perform at a top level and I think I’m at the point where I don’t need any more convincing. Danis would be more than capable in a backup role next season.

What do you guys think?

Speaking of opinions, what do you guys think of the whole Bill Guerin situation? Could he really be on the move? Every one from Hockey Buzz to TSN believes that is the case. Guess we’ll just have to see what transpires there. I’ve already told you guys countless times this season that I like what Guerin brings to the table and every team, regardless of a youth movement or not, needs a few veteran pieces. Moving Guerin could also be the beginning of more moves to come, signaling the real beginning of the Islanders youth movement.

Stay tuned.

Posted under 2008-2009, Post Game Rants

Yann Danis is a golden god. I’m not just saying that because I’m dead sick with the flu and have watched “Almost Famous” three times in the past two days.

He’s been that good this season and last night, he was great.

However, a Petr Sykora goal late in the third was enough to ruin an otherwise spectacular night from the Isles goaltender in a 1-0 loss to the Pens.

The first period was a weird one, as neither team did much to establish a forecheck or any type of advantage. Danis did a solid job, especially of handling his rebounds, but Pittsburgh made his job way too easy. I don’t know what the book is on Danis, but the Penguins were taking shots from extremely high in the offensive zone and to no avail. It was almost like they got a tip that the guy can’t stop the shot from the point. I don’t know where they got their information and it obviously didn’t pay off for them, as both teams skated in their respective locker rooms with the game still scoreless.

The Islanders were far too timid in the first, but started to get going over the last few minutes in the first, getting several good scoring opportunities. Sean Bergenheim and Radek Martinek had great chances in the second, which was played with much more vigor, but couldn’t convert. The Islanders powerplay failed to even amount a shot on goal in the period, keeping the game scoreless. The team’s second powerplay wasn’t much better, as the Isles couldn’t get a decent shot off. As a matter of fact, they could barely stay in Pittsburgh’s zone.

Overall, while I thought the Penguins were the better team in the first, the Islanders skated much harder in the second period, making the third period an interesting one to watch. Remember, the Penguins needed this win big time, while the Islanders youngsters are doing everything they can to prove themselves. There was a lot at stake here. However, the element of desperation just wasn’t really there going into the the third period.

The beginning of the third was a bit different though, as the Islanders came out with some jam and it was there where Marc-Andre Fleury earned his paycheck for the night, making several high-quality saves. The Isles got another powerplay opportunity after a few minutes, but that was wasted once Brendan Witt was thrown on the ice as a screen in front of the net. I don’t know guys, why would Isles head coach Scott Gordon put Witt, a guy with 23 career goals on the powerplay in a 0-0 game? I know it’s not the first time he’s done it this season, but it makes as much sense as openly admitting that you enjoy listening to George Michael. Not a way to produce offense if you ask me.

Evgeni Malkin nailed a post around the midway point of the third and even had a powerplay opportunity afterwards, but they too couldn’t light the lamp, mostly due to Danis’ play rather than anything the Penguins were doing.

Things started to change soon afterwards, as the Penguins were beginning to fly on the ice. Sykora then made the Isles pay and that was enough to spoil an amazing effort by Danis.

Not fair, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles sometimes.

Posted under 2008-2009, Post Game Rants

Once the dust has settled on this win, the rest of the NHL will consider it a fluke. They’ll say that the Devils didn’t stick to their system and came out flat. Then they’ll say the Islanders, who despite having a depleted lineup after trading away two of their better players the night before, were just plain lucky.

However, we know the truth.

These youngsters on the Islanders, when they finish, are talented players, that can in fact, play with a solid team like the New Jersey Devils. The Islanders defense, when on their game, can protect whoever is in net and whoever that is, Joey MacDonald or Yann Danis, can make the big saves when they have it. The Islanders veterans too have some gas left in their tanks and last night, even Jon Sim made the most of a very small opportunity and got on the scoresheet.

It was that kind of a night.

For the entire season however, it’s been just a matter of waiting for the stars to align and these guys to find the level of consistency for 60 minutes to show the rest of the league this. Chances are the Islanders will play like this another two or three times this season, on their way to one of the worst seasons in franchise history. Nevertheless, I feel the flashes of brilliance have been there to see, you just have to look extremely close. Hopefully, next season, they won’t be so hard to see.

One thing that was rightfully apparent last night though regardless of where you stand on the poll of opinion in this league was the play of Danis. Was he something special or what? 40 saves, from a ton of different angles and in traffic. You can’t ask for more than that and luckily, the Islanders didn’t have to. I think it’s safe to say this kid has proven that he can be a more than solid backup in this league and isn’t scared to be the main guy if he has to. Any goaltender that can keep a 5-8 record, 2.63 GAA and a .922 save percentage on a team as bad as the Islanders should be given the keys to Nassau Coliseum. It’s going to make things extremely interesting next season. I mean seriously, who would you want to back up Rick DiPietro next season. I’m sure if you poll the majority of Islander fans right now, it would be right now the middle.

Like I said, things will be interesting again this offseason.

Only with this team.

Posted under 2008-2009, Post Game Rants

Not a bad game to watch overall, in spite of the fact that the Islanders took some bad penalties and couldn’t convert on the powerplay when they needed to.

Too bad Bruno Gervais has hit the goalpost more over his past 150 games than the back of the net as well.

On the whole, I liked the fact that the Isles were attempting to take shots on Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick from all angles. Tim Jackman’s goal, aside from being incredibly sneaky, proved that when you have the puck and shoot it, good things happen. For far too long this season have the Islanders tried to set up the perfect pass and take the perfect shot. Now, it at least looks like they are getting the idea that garbage goals are just as good as highlight reel ones.

Nevertheless, they were still a bit too pensive out there, especially on the powerplay.

Going 12:47 without a shot just proves that.

Speaking of highlight reel goals though, who would have thought that Bill Guerin was going to pass when he had the whole net to himself? It seemed like Doug Weight came out of nowhere. That goal got the Islanders back into the game and gave them some more confidence, but the seesaw battle continued for 60 minutes.

While he had two golden opportunities over the course of the game and couldn’t finish, I really like the spunk Bergenheim had out there tonight. The same thing goes for Andy Hilbert and Jackman, who never hurt the team when they are on the ice and somehow, someway, always do something that gives the team some kind of boost.

However, one of the reasons the Kings were able to sneak back in was because of a few bad penalties by the Isles and poor coverage in front of the crease. While he’s been much better over his past few games, Brendan Witt again was on the ice during a key moment and failed to clear the crease. I know he does a lot on the ice, but that’s what is priority should be and he hasn’t been doing it for a big chunk of the season. A lot of this has to do with the fact that he’s been forced to play much more in his own end because of youngsters like Joe Callahan and Jack Hillen

In all honesty, this game should have never went into overtime, but both teams couldn’t finish each other off. With the powerplay opportunities both of them had, this game should have ended in regulation. But when you have two teams that aren’t playoff bound [The Kings could still make it though if they get hot], things like this are bound to happen.

Then it comes down to the crap shoot and the Kings prevail courtesy of a slick move by Jack Johnson.

Game over.

It’s till a game though and a lesson learned.

Stop taking bad penalties and convert on the powerplay.

Posted under 2008-2009, Post Game Rants