With plodders like Brendan Witt, Trent Hunter, Andy Sutton and a host of veterans such as Bill Guerin, Doug Weight and Mike Sillinger that were either never fast in the first place, or lost a step due to their age, on the Islanders roster, I was originally pretty worried about how new head coach Scott Gordon’s philosophy of “OverSpeed” was going to work.

From the look of it so far, it looks like the team is diggin’ it.

“The essence of the style is to be constantly moving and getting the puck up the ice quickly. It’s all about high speed with and without the puck and putting pressure on the opposition. “It was a long night for the wingers when we played against Providence in the past,” said Tambellini on the team’s official website on Sunday. “The defensemen sat right up on the wingers when we tried to get the puck out. It’s a very fluid system that Gordon implements. It keeps the opposition from having too much time with the puck. We’re all going to have to be skating at top speed.”

Sounds to me that every player on this team is going to have pest-like characteristics then. With a lack of a true first-line center and a first line in general, this may work out well. Again however, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about guys like Hunter, Guerin and Weight getting comfortable. Over the years, I’ve seen guys [take Markus Naslund for instance] get their style cramped when a new coach came in with a new style, so I really don’t want to see guys games get hurt to their point where they are ineffective.

On the other hand, you’d have to think that after the relatively mediocre offensive production this team had last season, that a guy like Hunter or Guerin that have the talent to score 25 to 30 goals in this league if they get hot, are willing to try anything.

With that being said, I think this system to tailor-made for getting the most out of players like Richard Park, Sean Bergenheim, Frans Neilsen, Andy Hilbert and Jon Sim. I even feel that Mike Comrie and Kyle Okposo can benefit from it as well. Let’s face it, teams that skate hard and keep moving every night usually win hockey games. If not, they’re fun to watch. Look at the Sabres team that beat the Islanders in the playoffs a few seasons ago as an example. Many of those players work their tails off in both ends and keep the puck moving, which makes them hard to defend against. I don’t know if it’ll work with the Islanders this season, but it should be fun to watch.

Posted under Offseason 2008

Since I got such a good reception from the last article I wrote [thanks for all the E-mails guys], I figured I’d attack the defense today. Just for the record, this has absolutely nothing to with the fact that there’s nothing to report in Islander Country right now or that NHL 09 is coming out in a few days and I’m playing the hell out of this game before it becomes a dust collector later this week.

Here we go:

Defense Combo 1

Brendan Witt and Radek Martinek- Absolute no-brainer here. These guys in my mind are one of the top defensive pairings in the league when it comes to shutting down top lines. They play smart hockey and get the absolute most out of their ability. They had a bit of trouble against some of the faster teams in the league that I played, but with Martinek’s puck moving ability and Witt’s toughness, they were a blast to play with and guys that I know will be solid this season. I wish Martinek was more of an offensive threat, especially on the powerplay, but beggars can’t be choosers right? Overall, these guys were on the ice for 28-30 minutes a game for me and I don’t see any reason why they won’t get that type of ice time this season.

Defense Combo 2

Mark Streit and Chris Campoli- I know I may catch a little bit of flack for this, but I love this combination. Both have offensive ability and Campoli’s toughness and growing ability as a well-rounded defenseman in this league make this work for me. Campoli is ready for more responsibility and I think covering up for Streit on defense will allow him to grow as a player. Streit also benefits by having Campoli around because defenses will also have to watch Campo at the blue line, which gives him more room to skate and create. They were also very solid on the powerplay and it was fun to see them both take shots from the point.

Defense Combo 3

Bruno Gervais and Andy Sutton- Well-rounded and steady. That’s what comes to mind when I think of these guys. Both of these guys have more grit and offensive ability than they get credit for and in the video game world, or in a perfect world ha-ha, this completely shows. They block shots, take the body and can make the first pass out of the zone. They can also kill penalties pretty well too. However, inconsistency isn’t prevalent in the make-believe world of NHL 08 and while I think these guys can and will be solid, they will have to both be on top of their games this season or they’ll be in smaller roles.

Photo by Gamespot.com

Posted under Offseason 2008

You wouldn’t expect a guy that led his team in points last season to have this much uncertainty about their game this year, but Islanders center Mike Comrie’s game is that unpredictable to understand.

At times, Comrie can be a potent finisher, capable of being a leader on a team and despite his size, is willing to drop the gloves if he has to. For those reasons, he’s a guy that many teams would like to have in a second or third line role. However, considering the combination of the Islanders rebuilding plan and a lack of solid free agents wanting to go there, Comrie was slotted as the team’s number one center.

While starting off 2008 like he was ready to score 70-80 points and proving he was more than a depth player, Comrie faded down the stretch. When the Islanders resigned him for 2009, I was originally happy because his numbers weren’t that bad, with 47 points in 55 games. Over his next 11 games though, Comrie only had two points and soon after got the flu and missed the rest of the season. Because of the way the Islanders handle injuries with the media, it’s hard to really know if Comrie was indeed sick or if he had other injuries plaguing his performance on the ice.

If he wasn’t hurt, his overuse of the toe-drag had to have played an influential part in his slide towards the end of the season. After the first 10 games of the season, the entire league had him scouted and was ready for his little move, making him look silly numerous times. The only teams that it wound up working against later in the season were the Western Conference teams that didn’t see much of him. In order for Comrie to effectively take his game to the next level, he’s going to have to add a few more moves to his arsenal. Otherwise, he’ll continue to be a solid secondary player and will never be a true superstar.

Another way Comrie could improve his play this season is by redefining his defensive game. How many times last season did Comrie cough the puck in his own end? Way too many times for many fans likings and my own. If he steps up his play in the defensive end, he’ll get more ice-time and will be able to get more of an opportunity to produce. He’ll also make himself more attractive to other teams in the league, which could nab the Isles a few prospects or a high draft pick if they decide to trade him at some point in the season.

The other variable with Comrie is where he fits in with the team’s offense. For my money, I’d like to see Doug Weight play with youngsters Jeff Tambellini and Kyle Okposo. The coaching staff however, may want to reunite Bill Guerin and Weight. That leaves Comrie kind of up in the air. Not having steady linemates may prove to be beneficial for him, considering how his play dipped on the same line with Ruslan Fedotenko and Guerin for most of the season.

However, it may limit his production and leave him on a line he’s not comfortable on.

The waiting game begins…

Photo by NHL Media

Posted under Offseason 2008

When Trent Hunter finished his first full season in the NHL, I, among many other Islander fans expected him to be someone who could score 25-30 goals a season and lead the league in hits, while becoming a leader in the locker room.

Well, as Meat Loaf once sang, “Two out of Three Ain’t Bad.”

Despite not scoring the amount of goals many people think he is capable of, Hunter has consistently been in the top ten in hits every season and is quietly becoming a leader on the Islanders. As a matter of fact, when Bill Guerin retires or signs somewhere else, I see either Brendan Witt or him becoming the next captain of this team.

Not the best skater in the world or the most flashy, Hunter is exactly what the Islanders claim to be in ads online and in the posters all over the Nassau Coliseum. Every night, he personifies, grit, character and heart. However, like most of the players on the team last season, Hunter had problems putting the puck in the net and despite playing hard all season and setting a new career-high in assists, many were disappointed in his overall play.

Others however feel that Hunter falls into the category of players like Richard Park, who work so hard on the ice that their offensive production is simply a benefit and that they should not be counted on for points. I however feel that the day Hunter is put into the same category as Park, it’s a sad one for Trent Hunter.

Nothing against Park, who had a great season last year, but he doesn’t have the size and potential of Hunter. With his strength and nose for the net, he should be scoring 20-25 goals a season. Park is a guy that kills penalties, buzzes around the ice all night long and takes advantage of mistakes by the opposition, He also takes a lot of shots for a fourth liner, hence his amount of goals last season.

Hunter, on the other hand, has the ability of taking his game to the next level if he continues to take the body and more importantly, finishes offensively. His shooting percentage was a deplorable 5.4 percent last season, meaning if he shot 10.8, which could still be considered average, he would have scored 24 goals. His rookie season, he shot 13.4 percent, which induced a 25-goal season. If he would have got that last season, he would have been around the 30-goal mark.

Also, he’s shown some kind of pattern in his game that every other year, his shooting percentage gets cut in half and he can’t get to 20 goals, where he belongs. In order for him to take his game to the next level, Hunter is also going to have to try and find a level of consistency. Otherwise, he like the Islanders, will be forced to revel in mediocrity.

Photo by NHL Media

Posted under Offseason 2008

Just like the Islanders forward situation, the defense is a place filled with a simultaneous depth and youth. However, unlike the forward lines, the defense looks much more prepared for the upcoming season and alongside solid goaltending from Rick DiPietro, should be the strength of the team. Nevertheless, there are a few players worth watching that could sneak their way into the top six.

Freddy Meyer- He may look like Bill Pullman, but he was no nonsense last year when he finally got an opportunity to play. After his first season in the NHL, many thought he could be a decent option on the powerplay, but after two seasons with the Islanders, it looks like he’s more of a puck-moving defenseman, who can play physically or against a top or second line when needed.

However, those attributes are those that are pretty much taken care of on the Islanders front with guys like Andy Sutton, Brendan Witt and Radek Martinek being able to play the shutdown defense the team needs and with the exception of Martinek, take the body. With that being said, it looks like either Gervais or Meyer is going to be the sixth defenseman on this team and it’s too early to tell who. For my money, I see Myer as a seventh defenseman, not for a lack of ability, but because of a lack of versatility. If he can get his game going offensively and be even more physical, he’ll be a top six d-man in this league.

Jack Hillen- I think he falls into the same category as Meyer because he does a lot of things that players on the Isles can do. However, given his track record in college, I think he’ll get a very long look in training camp as well. If Gervais and Meyer come into camp with an attitude or out of shape, I fully expect Hillen to be able to jump in and provide the type of play that will get him noticed as a top six-D man.

Overall, while not as good a skater as Gervais and not as physical as Meyer, Hillen has the best offensive game of the three and plays very solid defense. That type of versatility is something neither Gervais or Meyer have and it could go a long way in deciding his fate this season.

Dustin Kohn- I’ve been hearing this kid’s name for years on message boards and on the team’s official site and while I don’t know much about his game, it appears like he too could be a candidate for the final spot if he comes into camp with the right mindset. A second round pick in 2005, Kohn isn’t 18 anymore and this may be the camp when he starts to really open up some eyes.

Photo by NHL Media

Posted under Offseason 2008

Last week, I talked about what I expected from the likes of Kyle Okposo, Jeff Tambellini and Blake Comeau. This week I’ll discuss a few other players, who despite a few more years under their belts than the aforementioned above, can still be considered youngsters.

Bruno Gervais

Predicted Stats- three goals, 15 assists, 22 :00 ATOI.

Last season, Gervais averaged 20 minutes a game of ice time and while it looked like he was in the good graces of Ted Nolan most of the time, he never really got a chance to break out of his shell offensively or play big time minutes in close games. Preferring to go with the likes of Brendan Witt and Radek Martinek on defense most of the time in tight contests, I believe Gervais was limited to mop up duty and only got a chance on the powerplay when there were little or no options left. A solid offensive D-man in juniors, I think Gervais can produce a little more than he has been over the past few seasons if given a real opportunity. At times, Gervais has led the rush on offense and seemingly, doesn’t look out of place at all. With a little more work, he can be a solid number four or five D-man that can contribute on both sides of the puck.

Chris Campoli

Predicted Stats- 12 goals, 22 assists.

Another player with a lot of room to grow, Campoli looked like he had it all figured out before a nasty shoulder injury ruined his season in 08. Combining the physical play he’s been getting a reputation for, while developing already good offensive skills, I see Campoli as someone who would look great with Mark Streit on the powerplay at some point in the season. It’s just a matter of staying healthy and in the good graces of the whoever coaches this team in 09, something the youngster has had a few problems with over the past few seasons.

Frans Nielsen

Predicted Stats- 10 goals, 20 assists.

Before Doug Weight was signed, I may have considered bumping his stats up just a little bit. However, on a fourth line with guys like Blake Comeau and Richard Park, I see Nielson playing a crucial role as a sparkplug and someone who can help on the powerplay and the penalty kill. Some may be turned off by his lack of size, but I believe his ability in the face-off circle, combined with his speed and quick release will make him a solid fourth liner and someone Isles fans will love by the end of the season.

Photo by Pete Borriello

Posted under Offseason 2008

Over the next few weeks, I’m going to be giving you guys my take on what the Islanders should do with the bevy of free agents they’ll have on their team after the season is officially over.

Here we go:

Tom Poti.

I don’t know how you guys feel about him, but I think he was easily the Islanders best defenseman last season and was extremely under-appreciated and didn’t get nearly as much praise as he should have. However, at the same time, he wasn’t booed every single time he touched the puck when he was on the Rangers. That I think might have been what Poti wanted all along, just to be able to play his game and in the end, his game really benefited from it. Make no mistakes about the guy, Tom Poti was everything the Islanders could have ever asked for this season.

Basically combining the solid defensive play he showed the NHL during his last year with the Rangers and being the consistent offensive defenseman many scouts thought he was eventually going to be during his days in college, Poti was excellent on both sides of puck. In all honesty, he reminds me a lot of Adrian Aucoin [at least when he was on the Isles] because not only can he eat up minutes, but he’s not scared to block shots and take the body when he has to. The only thing I think I’d really change about Poti’s game is that I’d make him take some more shots from the point. He’s got way too good of a shot to be passing to Marc-Andre Bergeron ALL the time.

Poti shooting a bit more would also make Bergeron less on a target on the powerplay and penalty-killing units would have to worry about both of their shots and not just Bergeron’s. At any rate, Poti, if signed, could continue to be a huge contributor to the team.

The only question is, do we keep him?

With Sean Hill’s Islanders career most likely over, I think Poti has to stay. I love Bruno Gervais and Chris Campoli, but I don’t think their ready to be 25-minute a game defenseman yet. In addition, Poti is more adept on the power play than both of them and as we saw in the Islanders playoff series against Buffalo, they don’t have many options at the point when they’re on the man advantage. Radek Martinek coming back healthy and strong will help, but having Poti around as both a leader and a mentor to Gervais, Campoli and whoever else might be around next season will be extremely important for the Islanders and their defense core.

Keep ‘em.

Posted under Offseason 2006-07

On my way to school today, I decided to take my Islanders media guide with me and after skimming through it on the bus, I can honestly say that there were a few lines in there that really touched me and made me think about the state of this great sport more than I have in years.

One quote in particular, by Mike Lupica, after the Islanders lost to the Rangers in the playoffs in 1979 [four years before I was born] really made me think about how far this sport has deviated from what made it so great and thrust me to the keyboard faster than Rosie O’Donnell to a nearby White Castle at lunchtime.

After that series in ‘79, Lupica wrote, “New York has been spoiled. They will never forget these hockey teams.”

Sadly almost 30 years later, Lupica was wrong, but I’d almost do anything in my power to make him right on this one.

After the Rangers won the Cup in ’94 and after two strikes in 95 and 2004, this sport has paled in comparison to what it used to be. When I first started watching hockey, it didn’t matter who was playing. The passion, grit and energy that was hockey in the early 90’s and before was absolutely astonishing to me and glued my young Rickey Schroeder- looking self to the television . As I’ve mentioned before in previous columns, I would watch Rangers, Devils and Islanders games as a youngster because I loved the game so much and just wanted to see guys out there competing. That’s how amazing the sport was to me then.

Nowadays, despite seeing all three local teams make the playoffs for the first time since ’94, I feel that the game has changed drastically and the things that made it so great may be gone forever. Gone forever are the personalities like Clark Gillies and Bob Probert, tough guys who could put the puck in the net as often as they dropped the gloves, to only be replaced by uber-talented youngsters like Sidney Crosby, Dany Heatley and Evgeni Malkin. It’s not that that’s a bad thing, it’s just not the same.

I know I’m deviating from my point here, but 30 years after that amazing playoff series that Lupica spoke about, are there any remnants of that kind of play left in the game today? Sadly, I’d have to say there aren’t nearly enough.

However, I’d be out of my mind to say that I still don’t love the game, it’s just in a different way.

Like a long, loving relationship, over a long period of time, things change and the reason why you originally fell in love with someone may not be present anymore; despite that however, the person can name a myriad of other reasons why they stay connected with that person and still harbor feelings for them, making the relationship stand the test of time and provide memories that make life itself worth living.

While hockey doesn’t feature the same type of hitting, grit and toughness that made me a lifelong fan 15 years ago, the speed added to the game over the past few years are exciting and great to watch in their own way and have continued to spark my interest and keep me watching.

But that’s just me. Like the thousands of marriage that end up in divorce every year, hockey fans will continue to watch something else if their needs aren’t met and they aren’t satisfied. Let’s face it, not everyone is a hardcore fan or capable of being in a loving, long-lasting relationship and it’s those people that have the ability to change the way the world looks at things.

Right now, the NHL needs to find a way to keep the hardcore fan involved with the game and bring in the casual one, without altering the game to the point where it’s barely recognizable anymore.

Otherwise, the rich and nostalgic history this sport has will be gone forever.

It’s already started.

Now it’s time to stop it.

Posted under Isles 2006-07, Random Rant

The first time you guys threw stuff on the ice, I was a little pissed off. This time, while I still disagree with what you guys did, I can understand why.

This team didn’t play their best hockey last night, but there are huge questions still surrounding the game as we speak.

I know what most of you are thinking; “Why did Mike Leggo blow the whistle?”

Well, Rule 69.3 in the 2006-07 NHL rule book states:

“If an attacking player initiates contact with a goalkeeper, incidental or otherwise, while the goalkeeper is in his crease, and a goal is scored, the goal will be disallowed.

“If a goalkeeper, in the act of establishing his position within his goal crease, initiates contact with an attacking player who is in the goal crease, and this results in an impairment of the goalkeeper’s ability to defend his goal, and a goal is scored, the goal will be disallowed.”

Now the question is this, does the goal the Isles almost scored last night fall into one of those categories? Well, I guess you guys are going to going to have to be the judge on that.

At this point, it has to be either that or in an even more unfortunate situation for Leggo and Islander fans, he just lost sight of the puck.

If you guys want even more information on what happened, hear it straight from the horse’s mouth: http://www.newyorkislanders.com/pressbox/archive.asp?id=1576. By the way, it only gets more provocative from there, so be warned.

All I know is if that goal stands, then the Islanders have a totally different game on our hands. Instead, what happens is that the Isles find themselves down a goal and had no more momentum. It was like someone stepped on the garden hose when the water was on full boar. The energy was there, but after that goal wasn’t allowed, there was no way the Islanders were going to come out victorious against a team like the Sabres.

It almost felt like the deck was totally stacked against them. It was bad enough that for the past three games the team hasn’t gotten enough shots on goal, but to have a goal not counted like that had to be absolutely devastating.

As well, what was the deal with the Teppo Numminen boarding call? The guy went out of his way to take Jason Blake into the boards head first, so why not give him a double minor? The way these referees are calling this series, you’d have to think that the NHL is going to have to seriously reevaluate the way they call the game this offseason.

Let’s face it, this sport changes drastically when a team gets the opportunity on the power play and when there are really no clear cut penalties anymore and a variety of things are left up to the referees, things get really dangerous.

In addition, why didn’t the Islanders respond physically after their leading goal scorer was hit like that in the corner? Where was Arron Asham or Brendan Witt on that play? Why wasn’t Numminen taught a lesson? I don’t know about you guys, but I think Chris Simon could have been an extremely important factor in this series if he wasn’t suspended.

This whole series the Islanders have lacked the type of physical play that could have stifled the Buffalo attack. Rather than take the body on guys like Chris Drury, Daniel Briere and the myriad of other offensive threats on the Sabres, the Isles have given them room to skate and have allowed them to get in front of the net without paying the price.
Over the offseason, I’d really like this team to try and get some more power guys, more people in the mold of Trent Hunter and Ryan Smyth.

All that aside, the bottom line is that the Islanders still didn’t get enough shots on Miller. Sure, the power play looked much better, but they still shanked way too shots and missed the net more times than I can count. While the Isles have been in every game in this series, they missed a golden opportunity to keep the Sabres in check and live to fight another day. Instead, now they find themselves on the brink of oblivion with no room for error.

With the next game on Friday, the Isles will have to empty out their tanks and give everything they got. Otherwise, they’ll have to watch the rest of the playoffs at home with their families. My heart wants to say that this team still has a shot at taking this series, but my brain says that Friday will be the season finale for this team. I can’t say that I’m disappointed in this team however, because in all honesty, they kept me on the edge of my seat all season long.

Despite being on the brink of elimination, I’m not ready to give up on them yet; there’s still 60 minutes of hockey left to play at the very least and you guys can rest assured that I’ll be watching. I’ve refused to give up on them all season and I’m not about to start now.

Because in the end, no one loves a Cinderella story more than I do.

However, can the Islanders miraculously turn this series around and beat the Sabres?

There’s only one way to find out.

Guess we’ll have to wait until Friday.

Posted under Isles 2006-07, Post Game Rants

This is go time. No more excuses. The Islanders need to come out and show the Sabres that they’re not going to go down without a fight. As a matter of fact, they need to show the Sabres they’re not going to go down at all.

Like I said yesterday, the Islanders need to get back to the gritty, blue-collared and physical game that got them into the playoffs and have to stop trying to beat the Sabres at their own game. That means that guys like Sean Hill, Brendan Witt, Trent Hunter, Arron Asham and Chris Campoli need to start throwing their bodies around more.

I still don’t understand why this team looked so pensive against Buffalo, were they scared to make huge mistakes and get down early?

Were they intimated by the Sabres skating ability?

Was Buffalo just that damn good on Thursday?

Why I disagree with the later, I do think that the Islanders didn’t want to put themselves in the same situation with the Sabres that they were in on March 30, when they lost 6-4 and found themselves down early. As well, the Sabres are one of the best skating teams in the league and it’s easy to just stand there and watch when a team can do the things on offense that they can do. If the Islanders are going to have any chance at making it to the next round, they have to find a way of stopping the flashy Sabres from finding open ice.
One way of doing that is to start taking the body.

Another way for the Isles to stifle Buffalo’s offensive attack is to have every Islander skate hard, in an effort to outwork the Sabres. How many times this season have we seen guys like Alexei Yashin, Viktor Kozlov and Ryan Smyth draw penalties in the corners because they kept their heads down and kept fighting for the puck? If the Islanders can keep skating, they’ll draw penalties and keep the play in the Buffalo zone, which would give whoever’s playing goal for the Isles a break.

I’ve said it a thousand times this season and I find myself forced to say it again, the Islanders defense needs to try and limit how many shots the opposition takes. I still can’t believe they managed to get this far facing easily over 30 shots a game and if there going to make it further, they have to start playing more aggressively on defense and need to clear the front of the net and not botch any assignments.

If they don’t do that, it doesn’t matter who’s in net.

Posted under Isles 2006-07, Pregame Musings