DEVILS 5, ISLANDERS 2
List-less loss, List-full blog
10:25 pm - In our continuing attempts to break up the repetition of our game recaps, tonight it’s List Night as New Jersey beats the Islanders, 5-2.
TWO BURNING QUESTIONS
How is Frans Nielsen after the high hit by Mike Mottau?
The Islanders announced that Nielsen suffered leg and head injuries. His status for the rest of the trip is unclear. On a positive note, Nielsen briefly chatted with a pair of reporters on his way out. He seemed to be feeling better although walking with a slight limp. “We’ll see,” he said.
Scott Gordon said Mottau deserves a suspension. Bill Guerin let out a rant about how he’s tired of hearing how the PA must get involved. Guerin said it should be a league-wide effort. The captain also said, “Mike Mottau is not a dirty player, but that was a dirty hit - just as Thomas Pock is not a dirty player, but he gave a dirty hit.”
Why didn’t Gordon play Mitch Fritz in the aftermath of the Mike Mottau hit on Nielsen?
You can’t say Gordon is traditional. “I don’t think that’s the right thing to do,” the coach said. “You jeopardize your own players’ safety.” He pointed out that the roster was taking another major hit with the potential loss of Nielsen and “we’ve got a game tomorrow.”
Asked about Gordon’s unconventional decision, Guerin replied, “That was Gordo’s call. He has his reasons, and that’s good enough for me.”
Brendan Witt had an Wittian response. Asked by Greg Logan if he was surprised Fritz didn’t play at the end of the game, Witt said it was a “coach’s decision” and immediately veered into a discussion of how his team played in the first period.
POSSIBLE REASONS WHY THE NYI LOST TONIGHT
Three days off after three wins + playing on the road = sluggish out of the gate.
The Devils consistently went hard to the net all night and as a result scored more crazy-scramble goals than the Islanders.
Joey MacDonald uncharacteristically wandering far out of his net twice in the first period had an unsettling effect.
The Devils were better.
The Devils had Zach Parise, who made something out of nothing on Brian Gionta’s back-breaking goal to make it 4-2 with 15 seconds left in the second period.
BUTCH GORING’S PLAYERS OF THE GAME
We asked the Islanders dynasty final piece and TV analyst to list the standouts in tonight’s game:
Zach Parise
Jamie Langenbrunner
Paul Martin
Bryce Salvador
Brian Gionta
Sean Bergenheim
Patrik Elias
Travis Zajac
Frans Nielsen
Andy Hilbert
BILL GUERIN’S DEVILS INFLUENCES
These teammates had a profound impact on Bill Guerin when his NHL career began in New Jersey in the early ’90s. “I was young and impressionable, and these were the guys I looked up to,” said Guerin before the game. “Their influence is still with me today.”
John MacLean
Randy McKay
Scott Stevens
Bruce Driver
Ken Daneyko
MITCH FRITZ’S MOST RESPECTED FOE
1. Georges Laraque
We asked the Islanders enforcer for a list of respected opponents and he immediately said, “Georges.” After all his years in the minors, Fritz was proud of going toe-to-toe with the veteran heavyweight and of Laraque telling him when it was all over, “Good job.”
“I saw in the papers he said something good about our battle,” said Fritz. “I’d be lying if I said that didn’t mean a lot to me.”
THE BEST OF THE ROCK
We asked Devils Radio play-by-play announcer Matt Loughlin, a New Jersey native, for some of the Prudential Center’s best attributes.
Fan Amenities: For the high-end customer at places like the Fire & Ice club and everyone else, the arena is first-class. “I’ve also heard nothing but raves for the staff here,” said Loughlin. “The customer relations are exceptional.”
A Place to Call Their Own: “It is the Devils’ building and you know it the moment you first see it outside. The logos, color scheme, everything says Devils.” Even the plumbing features the Devils logo.
Access to Mass Transit: “For a large section of Devils fans, the Rock is much easier to get to now.”
Gold Bar: It’s exclusive before and during games, but open to everyone after. “It’s become the gathering place for hockey fans post-game.”
Concessions: The building has incorporated many of Newark’s food places like Hobby’s Deli and has a wide variety of choices. ”Great food,” says Loughlin. “Just ask Chico.”
CHICO’S UNDERRATED ISLANDERS TEAMMATES
Former Islanders Cup-winning goalie and current Devils TV color commentator Glenn “Chico” Resch on some of his favorite unsung teammates.
Garry Howatt: “Howie was our little policeman on and off the ice. If you were messing up or were out of line, Howie called you out. He brought accountability to our team.
Bert Marshall, Gerry Hart, Billy MacMillan: “Teachers, pros. We learned so much from them. They were a big part of the growth of a team that became a dynasty.”
Dave Langevin: “Toughness, presence. We were a different team after we Bammer arrived.”
NEIL SMITH’S UFA SIGNINGS
With Neil Smith in The Rock press box tonight, a list of his free agent signings during his time as general manager of the Islanders.
1. Brendan Witt
2. Mike Sillinger
3. Andy Hilbert
4. Tom Poti
5. Chris Simon
TEAMS WATCHING TONIGHT’S GAME
The following NHL teams were represented by at least one scout in the press box tonight:
Rangers
Columbus
Carolina
Tampa Bay (That’s Ryan Malone, whose father Greg was here. That’s all.)
Chicago
POINT BLANK’S FAVORITE SONS OF JERSEY
1. Bruce Springsteen
2. Jack Nicholson
3. Dan Federici (may he rest in peace)
4. Frank Sinatra (for my dad, may he rest in peace)
5. Steven Van Zandt
6. Meryl Streep
7. Max Weinberg
8. Abbott & Costello
9. Gary Tallent
10. Kevin Spacey, although we forgive him for Beyond the Sea
***Clarence Clemons (Norfolk, Virginia) and Roy Bittan (Rockaway Beach) ineligible. Not a big Bon Jovi fan.
We’ll hold back one list for another day: an expert’s view of the Islanders’ top prospects not currently in Bridgeport or New York.
Talk about the game and anything else hockey-related in Comments.
111 Responses to “DEVILS 5, ISLANDERS 2
List-less loss, List-full blog”
Please Wait
Is it time to start thinking about firing Gordon? Let’s hope Comeau or Smith get called up…
Gotta retaliate and let NJ know they cannot run our players. Because they did.
“We cannot and will not tolerate blows to the head that are deliberate, avoidable and illegal. Furthermore, both the history and status of the offender (first time versus repeat) and the nature of the injury caused (if any) will be taken into consideration as they have been in the past. The length of suspensions for illegal blows to the head will be increased if these incidents persist across the League. Taking steps to maintain the safest on-ice environment possible for the Players remains our most important priority.” - Colin Campbell 11/17/08
The Clock Is Ticking Colin….
Tale of two broadcasts -
Billy Jaffe and Howie are hanging Mottou for 5 games.
Chico and Dan-O saying ” its inadvertent”.
NJD fans will be surprised to see this guy get 3 games ( only Isles players get full sentences)
Pat
What the hell was that crap? Gordon is a freakin’ idiot for not getting the Devs back after the massively dirty hit. NO one say Hunter got them because he sure as hell didn’t. They beat up Jackman, they give Neilsen head and what looks like a potentially horrific knee or ankle injury, and then they beat up Hunter and Gordon can’t be bothered to play Fritz or unleash the boys on the Devs?
For those of you who wondered if Sutter was serious in his comments after the CLEAN hit on his son tonight showed you he was dead serious. The DIRTY hit on Nielsen was Sutter’s response. Did you also notice how he put his fighters out there on the PP to close the game out but no Gordon wouldn’t answer and the Isles were skating around scared.
That was a pathetic effort all the way around tonight but nothing sadder then Gordon’s decesion not to respond to that. In the last two games we have our top 2 prospects attacked and injured and NO RESPONSE. I thought this crap would stop when Fritz got called up but the coach made an idiot choice. MacDonald obviously lost his mental focus and needed a day off but the former goalie didn’t catch it. They come in there with several days off and several day of practice against a team that played last night and they get destroyed in every way possible. GARBAGE COACHING JOB TONIGHT GORDON.
Since everyone loves talking about uniforms so much how about they go to an all white uniform because they are as soft as cream cheese, it also works because they often are invisisble on the ice.
If Colin Campbell doesn’t hand out at least a 5 game suspension (I think it was dirtier then Pock’s) then he needs to lose his job.
Sucks having to read the comments of guys like Guerin and Witt who obviously wanted to respond. Cream freakin’ cheese.
Man. Conspiracy theorists of the world unite.
No, Sutter didn’t send out Mottau to kill Nielsen. No, other teams aren’t constantly targeting our players and getting away with it. No, the Isles physical ability isn’t particularly inferior to other teams. As for the two last incidents that are being blown completely out of proportion (Okposo’s spearing and the Nielsen hit), hockey is played at a very high speed and decisions are made within a split second all the time. Mottau wasn’t going after Nielsen more than Pock was going after that Ottawa player. Accidents happen, that isn’t to say Mottau shouldn’t be suspended for the elbow. He must know when to keep his arms down and let the opposing player pass him (when he’s coming in too late).
I’m not going to bring out the jury on bringing up Fritz for this weekend yet, but I agree with a lot that has been said here. If he’s not being sent out to fight, why play with one player less for 55 mins? He’s not even getting enough ice time to fight. I can see only one good reason to carry a pure enforcer on a rebuilding team; to protect younger players. Mitch Fritz didn’t do that today, and it’s not even his fault.
As for the Tim Jackman bashing. Who cares if he gets cut up when fighting? The most important thing is that he’s willing to drop ‘em. Plus, he’s a 2nd round draft pick and doesn’t need to learn basic skating skills…
Scott Gordon NEEDS to use Fritz if he is gonna call him up. Obviously, he should not play more than 5-7 minutes but he is called up to enforce and protect the other players. Franz Nielsen goes down on a very dirty hit. That is the perfect time to use Fritz. Bring him in after that. Also Gordon was not talking to the refs after the decision. He needs to be more proactive as a coach. At this point I want him to be let go ASAP
Coach Gordon on why no Fritz: “You jeopardize your own players’ safety.”
Excuse me? Say what? Then what do you call what happened to Nielsen. You jeopardize your players’ safety if you don’t retaliate because it just encourages more cheap shots.
It was a bad game, we can’t act like toronto media after one bad game out of the last three that were pretty good. yeah they got spanked around, yeah they got beat to the puck, yeah they were outskated…But I applaud the team that went out on the ice after a loss and apologized to thier goaltender for letting him down. Game is forgotten in my eyes…let’s look to tomorrow in Buffalo.
I lost all respect for Gordon tonite and I think his team did to. What a fn wussy, you think Al Arbour would ever turtle like that. NO WAY!!! FIRE GORDON!!! GET RID OF ALL THESE BOSTON LOOOOOOSSSERS!!!
My favorite line from Gordon was that he didnt want to put Fritz on the ice because he was cold from not playing. lets face it, the guy is a liar (remember his excuse for not pulling Mac in the 8-1 rout vs the Sabres)
contradictions aside by some whose opnions change like the day to day weather!
Remove the instigator
(or at least raise it to 5 games)
Why. again common sense in looking at how the league is playing the game this year!
The players have begun discussing this issue, as quoted on CBC Hockey Night In Canada last saturday!
lets gO Isles!
Badger I 100% disagree with the first half of what you wrote. Yes, the Isles physical ability is inferior to most of the NHL if not all of it. This is the smallest and softest team in the NHL. Not just in fighting but the way Bruno Geravis gets pushed aside like nothing on one of the goals. He so easily could have knocked the Devs player off the puck if not down but Bruno is allergic to contact. Crap I think of the idiot photo of Bruno and Campolli dressed up in fire fighter equipment with the fire fighter wearing the Isles jersey I mean it looks like the guy took his two kids to work with him.
mrlbern I agree with everything you said. Gordon’s comment was STUPID and made no sense except for a coach trying to cover up for himself and already knowing he pissed of his players.
How appropriate… a Toy Tiger reference on a night like this. I wonder how Al Arbour would have handled this… hmmmm…
I wonder if Clark Gillies had to crack open a second bottle of Boby Nystrom Chardonnay to handle watching this one…
Agreed 100% .. Strummer and others please for a decent look into what i feel happened read my last 2 postings on the NYI Versus NJ Devils Pre game blog by botta..
i think its Honest & fair appraisal on tonights game & those who continue to single me out as a problem for some reason?
ThankYou!
lets go Isles Lets go Islanders!
P.S.
I’m not looking for validation, just common respect, as i have showed to others.. no cheapshots are telling on people, mommy & daddy style.
or*.. ty again .
Mike… you said a mouthful… Dump the whole bunch of lobster licking liberals…
Start with Snow, then gordon, then captain hip replacement, first base andy… and if there’s anybody working in the ticket office from new England… can his/her a$$ as well…
At least Milbury had good taste in shoes… to beat ranger fans with!
They always say that the severity of the injury will determine the length of the suspension. We’ll just have to wait and see what good ol’ Collie will do…. between the elbow and clothesline it should be a lengthly suspension. I also think Fritz should have been out there the next shift after that fiasco…. but Gordon said he didn’t think that was the right move in his postgame comments…..
Tamby, Gervais, and Hunter all looked terrible out there tonight. I know Hunter sticked up for Frans, but he did absolutely nothing else in the game. I’m sick of Tamby missing the net and Gervais getting skated around like he is standing still and not even looking to throw his body around. The same with Hunter….the game has SKATED right by him. Jackman, although he got his face pounded, looks a hell of alot better than Hunter with 1/4 of the ice time…..what gives?
Big Mac looked as good as he could be, no help in front cuz the refs blew to many calls and the deflections were to good. Get em tomorrow Joey!!!
On to Buffalo….looking for a better effort from those mentioned…… INCLUDING THE COACH!!!!!
LETS GO ISLANDERS!! !!!
Would take a team full of Hunter, before I took one Jackman, one tough game aside.
Do not believe the Hunter Compared to Jackman comment is a viable one.
Lets GO Isles!
Man I cannot get Gordon’s face and the Kenny Rogers song “Coward of The County” out of my mind. The Coward of Nassau County”. Perhaps you’ve been spending too much time at your wife’s ballett studio….this is hockey not ballett! COWARD!
Let’s calm down. This is getting ridiculous.
P-n-P…..what game are u watching? Hunter hasn’t learned how to skate since he got herein 2002. Jackman SKATES hard every shift, drops the gloves for his teammates, and puts the puck in the net with 1/4 of the ice time Hunter gets. A team full of Hunters ove Jackmans? Shirley, u can’t be serious? And yes,I did call u Shirley…… hahahahah
Come on…..is it cuz u have a #7 Isles jersey with Hunter on the back????
Dear Scott Gordon (cc:garth Snow)
This is when you know you have a TEAM:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhcomfug3ZE&NR=1
You had an opportunity to find out tonight… and you let Brent Sutter SPIT IN YOUR FACE!
Have a nice sleep tonight!
This team is gonna resent their coach for the rest of the year. Man, I wanna be there when Gordon tries to look at Guerin and address him MAN TO MAN… I bet Nolan never had that problem…
I’ve been watching hockey for 30 years and that hit on Nielsen — leaving your feet to butt end a guy in the head — was as dirty any hit I’ve seen.
Should’ve been a 5 minute major and a game misconduct. Refs were idiots for not calling it that way.
Time to respond is NEXT time Isles play Devils when Isles have last line change and you can put Fritz on against Motteau at a face-off early in the game — and hope Fritz pounds his head into the ice.
And can some please knock Parise on his butt? Nothing dirty, but he cannot be allowed to go to the net with impunity as constantly does against Isles.
And Tambellini — it is really past waiver time. He’s got 4 goals in 95 games over parts of four NHL seasons. He’s not a player. And if you waive him and he does anything marginal somewhere else, so be it. Maybe he’s needs different scenery because he certainly ain’t getting it done here.
Really sucks for Isles and Neilsen - the kid was really starting to break out big time. One of the best players on the ice tonight.
Apparently all of us fans were a lot angrier at Mottau then Gordon was. . I was ready to jump on the ice myself to get at Mottau. . especially after seeing him smirking it up in the penalty box after the hit! Such a joke. . Where was Fritz? Why was he even here?
Retribution hit. Period.
And as for the officiating here. . just a travesty. If Pock’s hit was worth 5 games - this better get at least that! Though knowing Campbell he’ll probably suspend Hunter for being 3rd man in.
And as for Tambellini - enough already. It just ain’t happening.
There is no way veterans like Witt, Weight, Sutton, Guerin, Park etc. can like Gordon when he pulls a stunt like he did tonight. When he loses the respect of the veterans, soon the youngsters will follow suit. Also Tambellini needs to do something soon.
guy first point.. I wear the Jersey for the front the Crest not the name on the backl, yet to saty in touch with trendy style of Life that is now a days.. I decided On Buying an Authentic, so to make it a full one.. Picked Hunter…
why simple…
Displays a workman like effort almost every night Heart n Sould with better hands then park , tambellini, Jackman, hilbert, gervais, sim,
Hes a current day Pat Flately, plays in the corners wins many one on one battles..
Personifies what to me Should be a
NYIslander!
Hes he the most skilled on the team, heck no.. yet does he lead by example in many ways.. YES!
As for calling me shirley, whatever you now have the benefit of knowing who i am at these games…np
make sure you come up to me and chat & maybe even call me Shirley… Just make sure i’m not there with my wife because i do not want to embarass her,
I’m at the beer tent for an occasional cold one now & Then… some times with friends sometimes here have respect go about it the right way & i’m sure we can chat on the subject of hockey man to man
cheap shots aside!
Hunter Plays the Game fine, with no need to pay attention to your comparison to Jackman… a less then fair judgment…
jackman is a decent player, yet hes no Hunter!
remember what i said ebz.
I lack no courage or commitment to my beliefs! later
Lets gO isles.. lets Go Islanders!
Joey wandered from the net? Did anyone see DiPietro talk to him before the game?
Flatley* forgive me Pat! lol
BST, et al - Fire Gordon? Why? Did you not get the memo about the rebuild?
Protest, et al - Wait and there will be a suspension on Mottau
Strummer - Sutter conspriracy? Strummer is a conspiracy theorist? Really? I will admit I am perplexed and upset about Fritz’ absence after the Nielsen hit
Mike - I don’t remember the Isles under Arbour having a player like Fritz. Keep that in mind. It was a different game then. It was more a team responsibility to stand up for each other.
A side note to all - Had a long rough day and watched the game on delay and finished watching at 11:10. These are my opinions, not personal attacks. We’re All Islanders……right?
For some time I have thought that there was a move by some team members to upserp the coach. Not the younger members. Although with 3 wins a row it looked as if all were buying in to the system that did not suit all of the team.
At the same time it is clear that there is no real “youth” movement when Fritz, Jackman etc are brought into the team instead of Comeau, Smith and Colliton. As a season ticket holder I feel “cheated” when Fritz is brought in for 2 minutes and not used as an enforcer and 4 lines can not be used.
I do appreciate Jackman’s play.
Garth must look at the real objectives for this year. Youth! not bench warmers such as Fritz, and a coach that really supports one of our best players. (Neilson)
There is no place for enforcers unless they are used in that capacity. (Grimson..I was a Whaler season ticket Holder).
Memo? What you need to keep the same coach during a “rebuild”? that’s absurd. I wouldn’t be surprised if Gordon lost some players respect tonight…
Hey - I just voted for J-Mac for the All Star Team (regardless of tonight which was not his fault). Has anyone else done so?
Gordon hopefully learns from tonight. He is a first year NHL coach. Think the Sabres watched tonight’s game and Peters is licking his chops to take out our guys?
Better see more guts from our guys and OUR COACH tomorrow.
BST - Your comment was first and you never indicated why you thought Gordon should be fired (until now), you just put it out there. My response was just based upon the fact that they lost tonight. I assumed that was your beef. Give the man some time. I believe there will be “pay back” at an appropriate time. If Fritzie was sent out there with “search and destroy” mission, this team would be in worse shape than it already is.
Need to start a lottery of some kind to see when Tambellini will get his first goal. My guess is in Bridgeport sometime in January.
CB, et al - In reference to your Fritz story, Fritzie seemed very content with his Georges Laraque battle when I met him after the French Invasion of NVMC. I asked him if his ‘under the eye bruise’ was from the fight and he chuckled and said that “yeah he got me with a good one”.
P-n-P……where do I start?
#1. I would love to meet you and talk hockey, for the most part I like what you write. No need to get pissy….cheap shots aside.
#2. Ha! I knew you had a Hunter jersey ;)don’t be a sensitive Sally….
#3. Take a chill pill brother, you took the first shot at me…..can’t take the heat…..stay out the kitchen;)
#4. Displays a workman like effort almost every night……”almost” doesn’t cut it….know what I mean?
#5. Has he ever heard the word backcheck?
Jury is still out on Jackman, it’s just my opinion….
Lets Go Islanders! ! !!!
p.s. I should of quoted Leslie Neilson with that Shirley comment….shame on me:(
I’m probably exceeding my comment ratio, but nice one Jon!
Lost in all this eye for an eye stuff is the fact that we could possibly have won this game if Tambellini had not taken that terrible penalty when we were on the power play and down a goal. That my friends was the turning point of the game. There are a lot of people who make excuses for this guy, but the fact of the matter is that he is not pulling his weight, and IMHO, needs to start producing something in the next 5 games, or should be sent down or benched.
Tambellini is one way, so if he is sent down we might lose him….(as I duck rotten fruit)…. I know a lot of you will say “good riddance”
Brian from Mass, if Fritz was sent out there on a search and destroy mission how would the team have ended up worse of then it already is?
Also, someone wrote that Arbour never employed a player like Fritz and that it was done by team toughness. That is totally 100% untrue. Gillies and Nystrom were top enforcers during their time. Later he would employ the likes of Vukota, Baumgartner, Curran, and numerous others. One night at the Garden (toilet bowl)you may remember the Rangers giving Isles star young center Pat LaFontaine a dirty hit. With just a few seconds left in the game and the Rangers not wanting a fight Arbour didn’t care. He unleashed Vukota and Baumgartner on their asses, which was the appropriate responses. No other team in the NHL would allow this crap on ANY of their players and the Isles should not either.
Jeez- talk about misplaced anger.
Instead of being angry at the guy who actually performed the sheap hit, or the refs who let it happen with practically no retribution, what are some of you the most angry about? Not that, youre angry because your thirst for revenge wasnt immediately quenched. Well newsflash- whether Fritz went out and punched the guy, this still happened and Frans is still hurt. Everything would be exactly the same right now. How about getting mad at the ones that caused this problem instead of completely flipping out on the coach? Perspective, people… perspective. Look at the big picture here. If there really is a bias against this team (which I honestly think is a possibility) going for blood or in turn taking out one of their players is the last thing the Isles should be doing. The only way they have even a CHANCE of getting someone to look at this kind of a problem seriously is for them to not take the spotlight off of it with other penalties/fights/hits/problems. Dont you see the logic in that?
Tambelleni doesn’t need to be waived he has value to the rest of the NHL. Chicago was there tonight I can think of a huge, talented, mean, d-man they have from Minn who probably is good friends with Kyle and would really help our PP, Size and toughness issues that Chicago has. No it isn’t Baker.
32 BST18 on Nov 21st, 2008 23:57:58 said:
“Memo? What you need to keep the same coach during a “rebuild”? that’s absurd. I wouldn’t be surprised if Gordon lost some players respect tonight…”
You really think players are THAT childish and silly? If anyone on our team is that much of a blockhead then I hope they are the ones shown the door!
Missing from all this was the justification that many of you gave for putting Fritz on the active roster would by itself stop teams from taking any liberties and cheap shots. Obviously not true, whether he should have been sent out after the fact is besides the point, the cheap shot and damage was already done. If we need more tough guys please let them be hockey players as well not the freak show that is Mitch Fritz. Kudos to Hunter for sticking up for his teammate.
And Strummer, Jeff Tambellini has no trade value. None. Nada. Zilch. He would be lucky to be picked up on waivers at this point, and even then it would probably only be his daddy that does it.
Chris I understand what your saying but I don’t believe your seeing the entire picture. Teams look at the Isles and know that the worst thing that is going to happen to them if they attack any Islander in a dirty manner is that Trent Hunter is going to skate up to you so you can beat his ass. I like Hunter very much and admire him for jumping in. Sutton is clearly still injured and cannot fight because you could tell he wanted to. Interestingly Streit and Hilbert who stood around and did nothing during the Buf brawl were there on the ice again doing nothing.
Everyone here is mad at the Devs and their coach, everyone here is upset at the refs, everyone here is thinking Colin Campbell is gonna take this opportunity to be unfair to the Isles again and neither Snow or Wang will raise protest for the league and go after this man’s job who constantly goes after the Isles.
The part of the picture your not seeing is if the Isles dismantled the Devs after the dirty hit then the rest of the league would look at that and understand the price for taking a liberties with the Isles is too expensive.
Again right now their hear Gordon’s sissy comments about not wanting to get his guys hurt and they see the Devs beat up Jackman and Hunter and that the Isles got so intimitaded by these things that even their simple passes got messed up because guys were looking at the Devs players and they are thinking it is open season on the Isles. Until the Isles show the rest of the NHL they aren’t gonna be messed with this stuff will continue.
All Good… though if my first shot of not a viable comparison compulsed you to call me Shirley? (naked gun aside)..
then know i was only protecting my myself!
glad we argee on Islander Tough Guy points
and last thing with all due respect ebz, I’m a pretty chilled guy these days.. matured much over my time…
though always lived by the motto….
Make love, not war.
Yet be prepared for both.
thanks for the compliment on my postings , i guess your not one who cries to botta about me..
last point you really do not think Hunter is better then jackman?
lol, i dont know about that….
Hmmm lets see how the season goes.
Good night ebz…
lets go Isles Lets Go Islanders!
I’m sorry Chris TMC which team are you currently the GM for that you know Tambelleni has no trade value?
Joe Strummer - I said both. If Fritzie was sent out on a search and destroy mission, he would have received a lengthy suspension and Gordon would too. Firtzie would then have been unavailable for a lengthy period of time (yes I know this will not kill our goal scoring output). As for the Arbour statement, Gillies and Nystrom were much more dynamic player than Fritz (as much as I like him). During the later years of the Arbour era, I was much more interested in sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll. My bad!
C-TMC - I think we are on the same page regarding the response.
Strum - Nobody is taking Tambs right now for more than a 4th round pick.
God this wine is good…..
Nite buddy
You guys that are saying “what is the point of sending Fritz out” are outta your fu@$ing minds! Just finished watching the game on DVR. I like Gordon but that was some bad decision making there. What is the point of having the guy up. He is there for THAT reason. Can’t wait to hear what midget Campbell has to say about it. Wow we looked like a bunch of pu$$ies out there, my GOD!!!!
God damn Kevin Weekes sucks we couldn’t get anything going on him and we lose one of if not our most promising player and our reaction was to get our a$$ kicked more! That was bad! Real bad. Christ, send Fritz down if you aren’t let him do his thing. I’m still getting over this one because I like Gordon but that was some moronic thought process. Islanders the pu$$ies of the NHL!
Brian a 4th round pick is value….ya no what I mean?
Gordon chose not to take a stand against the physical mistreatment of the Islanders tonight. I ask you when is he going to? Who else has to get hurt before he allows the team to protect itself?
Fritz is the thoughness we have. I have several times advocated and named players in the mold of Gillies and Nystrom (who can play the game and fight at a high level) but Mr. Snow in his two years on the job has made no effort to obtain any of these types of players (except Matt Martin in the draft who is several years away). Please no one say he got Thompson because he isn’t a good fighter. So until the time that Snow starts getting guys who can do it all (and I wish he’d hurry up) we will make do with what we have.
Sometimes the suspension and fines are worth it.
And nice for catching the Joe Strummer ref.
Tambellini needs to be sent a message, whether that’s a trade, a benching, release, whatever, the guy is not getting it. If it’s true that he would need to pass through waivers to go down, sit him for about 6 games, and then send him down on a “conditioning stint.”
It happens all the time Brian! You think any other team wouldn’t have sent him out? Lengthy suspension for fighting? Isn’t this
hockey? Man, we are a bunch of pu$$ies!
I am with ya Matt the team looks like and is treated like a bunch of sissys and Gordon made a huge mistake by not responding.
Matt - Chill bro! Though I do understand your frustration. Do you have the Allman Brothers Band - Eat a Peach album handy? Well put that on
Buffalo has lost 4 straight and Ruff has started benching regulars. Expect that team to come out very hard tomorrow night. I’d be surprised if the Isles can stay close.
And once again Bruno Gervais is the worst fing thing I’ve ever seem!
Matt- I think Gervais may be B-port/waiver bound when Meyer the IV gets back. He is pretty much a “non-person”
Everyone is entitled to their opinion but come on man. Put down the bong and lets kick some a$$! LOL. Sorry getting a bit excited Brian, just hard to watch us get our nuts kicked in. Wrong reaction, really wrong reaction. Sends a really bad message to the rest of the teams in the NHL.
Gervais has gotta go. I’ll take a six of Meister for him we would’t even get a bag of pucks. I was whincing when he was on the power play.
HA! HA! HA! LAUGHING MY ASS OFF!! NICE ONE MATT “PUT DOWN THE BONG AND LET’S KICK SOME ASS!” I couldn’t agree with you more. Nice to see some red blooded people in here. Reality is in life and hockey sometimes ya need to kick some ass!
Geravis totally sucks. I couldn’t agree more.
Wow, just watched the Devs post game and now I am really pissed!!! Why did I do that!!!
Not only did Sutter get away with everything he wanted to do in the game he also put out his tough guys at the end because he wanted more of Gordon and Gordon wouldn’t accept the challenge. Sends a message the Isles don’t like the rough stuff (even when they have a guy on the bench who beat the NHL’s best fighter in his first game) and won’t respond no matter what ya do to them.
That was a dirty hit no question. Impulse reaction fine. But the guy was beat so he got his elbow up. 5 MINUTE MAJOR!!! What the hell was that. If that wasn’t intent to injure I don’t know what is. Sucks to, Nielson has been the best player on the ice for a while now. Thats our luck isn’t it!
Nice Logan has already ripped into Gordon on the blog.
Yeah I agree strummer. Bad choice. Just kidding around Brian. Man that was hard to watch. Looking fwd to watching that all day!!! Hate when that happens. Don’t mind losing but when we look like that(pu$$ies) I have a serious problem with that. I could just hear them laughing in Canada when Campbell gives him a game!
there are some on this site who can’t connect Sutter’s comments following the hit on his young star center son and what happened to our star young center Nielsen tonight.
Apparently if someone attacks you now your suppossed to take it like a coward.
Matt, do I know you?…LOL
I too was looking forward all day and couldn’t stand watching a no effort and worse no response game from the Isles. While I agree when they play the system it is entertaining hockey, they didn’t tonight and I get no enjoyment from seeing the players attacked, injured, intimitated and beaten up. I was gonna say some people here should start watching women’s hockey but that gets pretty mean so they might have to start looking overseas but I for one want the Islanders to simply play the way every other team in the NHL is. With character and courage.
Well get used to it cause thats where this country is going. It’s the new vougue thing to do. That was a disgrace and anybody who thinks that should be watching a different kind of hockey, its played on a field.
Oh Joe Strum…I don’t think anyone is saying that!
woops sorry for the politics
maybe. don’t know
Matt, just got your bong reference. I was paraphrasing a very old skit of Dan Aykroyd impersonating Jimmy Carter. Great SNL skit!!!
Good debating tonight.
Agree with some and disagree with others.
Tambellini really has not earned his continued stay on the Island. I vote him off.
Fritz is not very useful. He’s off.
MacDonald played his A$$ off tonight. Regardless of the score.
Neilsen was the Islanders best player not named MacDonald. 2nd was Bergenheim.
Comeau better be recalled now!
And Trevor Smith or Iggulden. Why not?
I don’t think the Islanders effort was bad… but a lot of bad breaks, weird bounces and really bad officiating.
That’s hockey…
Motteau = at least 5 game suspension.
Has there been a Mark Streit sighting in the 3-5 games? As good as he had been… he seems to have disappeared a little… NO?
DOC
Wow, I’m tired. In the skit Aykroyd (Carter), while on the phone, tries to talk some kid down from a bad acid trip and tells him to put on “Eat a Peach”
Yeah Streit been less noticeable. Didn’t seem like he got as much ice time as normal.
Fritz is worhtless when you don’t let him do his job. If he kicked some a$$ he would’ve had a good game as far as I’m concerned. Gordon had the worst game as far as I’m concerned. Before all you peace and happiness people start attacking me I like him. I just think he had a REALLY BAD GAME!
I’ve been thinking the same on Streit Doc.
I loved Logan’s blog tonight. He took Gordon to task and he took Sutter to task. I was a Sutter fan until the crap he had to say about Weight’s clean hit, hearing the story the other night here about how he wouldn’t sign a kid’s book, and his actions for tonight and his flat out lies he made after the game.
Matt I agree this political correctness and this other stuff that is going on and poisoning our culture is just making the country week.
I think I remember that one Brian, but its vague. LOL. He was good on SNL.
50 Strummer’s Army on Nov 22nd, 2008 00:24:57 said: “I’m sorry Chris TMC which team are you currently the GM for that you know Tambelleni has no trade value?”
People always want to believe that their team can get something for nothing. I dont have to be a GM to know that Tambellini has less than 20 points in nearly 100 games played. He has not done anything in the NHL- ever. Better players than Tambellini pass through waivers where teams could get someone for nothing. So why in the world would someone give this team something for him when he has never ever proved anything at this level? Derek King was a 30-40 goal scorer for years and the Isles only got a 5th round pick for him!
A 5th round pick is something. Tambelleni is young, very fast and only last year was 1st or 2nd in AHL scoring. GM’s know the kid needs a change of scenary and a different system. He is the kind of player who’d do very well out West, so because his AHL success is yet to transfer to the NHL (even though you see progress in other areas) the Isles can get something of value for him even if it is just packaging him with something else for a player who can make an impact here.
You don’t let go of any asset for nothing until you have to.
I don’t think things will work out for him here. I do think he should stay until we get value.
Obama had a school named after him. He hasn’t even done anything yet! Gotta love Newsday! Bordering on facist paper. Love Logan, great blog!!! Guy is right on the money! Going to bed so all you liberals can attack me! Just kidding(kind of) people have a good night and hopefully better game tommorow!
Matt, I saw the same thing on the LI school being named for Obama. That is nuts. I hope he turns out to the best president America ever had but didn’t vote for him but schools and airports etc are usually named after people who have accomplished great things and provided great service, he hasn’t even started on the job yet. That is what I am saying is so messed up about this country, everyone has a short attention span and the mentality of sheep.
If you could get a 5th round pick for Tamby you would be lucky at this point…As for Gordon not sending Fritz out in the dying minutes..(i’m going to get blasted) What’s the point??? To prove Fritz can beat up Rupp or Clarkson? Does that really prove a point?? I agree that Motteau should be suspended yet I really don’t think he meant any harm as much as Pock meant any harm, so why send Fritz out to try and beat some up…I don’t even think Fritz should be here, I’d rather see Iggulden or Smith
See most teams don’t tolerate what the Isles do. Lucic put a hit on a FL player tonight. It was a clean hit not even that hard but Boyton jumped in and fought him. With the Isles you can hit them with a baseball bat and sleep with their wives and nothing happens. Reading the arrogant Brent Sutter lies tonight really ticked me off.
Tonight I’m ashamed to be an islander fan. Gordon’s rep in my eyes takes a serious hit tonight. I still can’t believe Gordon just sat back and let this happen. I’m at a loss for words. It’s getting harder and hardr to pull for this team. It really is. BTW Neilson is done for the year. Torn ACL (or something like that) guarantee it. What a shame he was really blossoming.
Maybe next time we play Carolina the Isles need to put baby Sutter out for the year and then destroy the Devils.
I guess I didn’t really see Trent Hunter stand up for Robert
what???
who’s robert?
if colin campbell doesn’t suspend mottau for 10-20 games then i think the conspiracy theories about him hating us are confirmed, especially after he suspended pock for 5 games for a hit that wasn’t nearly as bad as mottau’s. i’m still in shock that he only got 2 minutes. why does this stuff only seem to happen to us?
Tonights game was a joke. I lost a ton of respect for Gordon, the team looked like a big group of fairies. “Per Game Need” about the enforcer, GOrdon said, well, I saw a need and why wasnt he used? Joke.
P.S. Lets not overreact, Motteau should only get 3-5 games, 10-20 is crazy.
Ryan, thats the old school mentality. I dont like ice capades, I like hard hitting hockey and not seeing my team being rocked.
I only watched bits and pieces of the game so I cant comment on gordo’s decisions
say goodbye to Nielsen for the season though -that looked like a nasty high ankle sprain + probably some knee damage to boot
maybe we go after sutters son when we play canes again
Snow’s comments on Frtiz’s role prior to the game last night: By no means do we want to get pushed around,” Snow said of the enforcer role. “Yeah, I think it’s an important role. You see a guy like Tim Jackman come up and play physical and stand up for his teammates. We see a guy like Sean Bergenheim or Jackman as physical players who have had success for us. I think Tim Jackman has flourished playing for Scott.”
Hey Garth do you call your coach up and ask him what he was thiking???…Gordon is a &ussy in the eyes of this season tix holder..and you know Witt and Guerin feel the same way…
Not to downplay the entire thing, but didn’t it look like Frans’s skate got stuck in a rut in the ice, kind of like the same thing that happened to John Sim last year? What happened to him was garbage and he should get a 5 game min, but if he didn’t have a ‘lower body’ injury don’t you think the league would give less? I am all in favor for 5 games but I can also see the league saying that injury was caused by the ice more so than the hit. Ugh….
probably a concussion to, but that’s okay, Gordon message was received loud and clear, run our skilled finesse guys and we will turtle like little girls so no one else gets hurt, what an embarrassment!!! FIRE THE LIAR GORDON!!!!
didn’t see the game last night, but I’m sure I’ll catch a replay of the play tonight during the broadcast.
You guys calling for the on ice brawl are right. I mean why have a guy on the bench who is going to goon it up when he doesn’t do it in a perfect situation. Gordon is getting ripped on this one left and right today from what I’ve read so far.
This brings me to my other argument, which I’ve been saying for post lockout - the role of the enforcer is GONE in this game. To play, you have to have some level of hockey skill and be able to contribute. Or at least skate with the play. Fritz can’t do either. Why is he up with the big club? So he can play a whopping two minutes (on the first night of a back to back road trip) and shorten your bench? Get into one fight, sit in the box for five minutes of playing time and sitting the rest of the night?
These guys are totally USELESS!! They bring NOTHING to your roster. They have ZERO benefits.
The real reason Gordon didn’t send out Fritz is an easy one - Gordon would have been suspended. With under five minutes to play, if Fritz went out there and tore it up, Gordon gets a suspension and most likely a fine to boot. The league doesn’t want to see a goon out there in garbage time trying to mess players up.
The most important thing here is that something happened that we haven’t seen on the Isles in a long time and that’s teammates standing up for each other. It didn’t matter who went after Mottau, as long as SOMEBODY did. That’s why Trent Hunter will wear a “C” on his Islanders jersey before his career is over.
Witt, Sutton, Guerin, maybe you can consider Hunter now, Jackman when he’s here… these are your tough guys and they can do your house cleaning and play solid minutes a night. Some worthless goon who is going to do nothing but play 2 minutes a night is a waste.
So you mean to tell me there’s no one left in Bridgeport who deserved a promotion and could’ve played 6-9 minutes in a fourth line role last night? Nobody but Fritz?
Now you have a shorthanded Isles team going to play a very speedy Sabres team. You’ll still have Fritz to play his three minutes tonight and now you’ll have to find someone else to fill a void assuming Nielsen isn’t back, and from what I read isn’t very likely.
So let’s all thank Garth we signed Mitch Fritz. Love the story on the blog here about he was honored to be in a fight with Georges Laraque. Because being able to handle Laraque is what’s going to win you a Stanley Cup down the line. Right…
OK, just saw the clip on TSN. Sorry, I thought it was towards the end of the game, so maybe there wouldn’t have been a suspension on Gordon’s part.
But the hit is definitely what the league is trying to get away from. I don’t believe there was any malicious intent on Mottau’s part, but the guy has his arms way up. That’s dangerous. If you keep your arms (and elbows down), it turns into a clean shoulder hit and no one complains.
That’s worth 5 games, at least, if the league is serious about cracking down on this problem.
Well said KP but it took 100 comments before 1 sane argument?
Must be a lucky number. Can you play 1-0-0 in the Lotto??
The hit was dirty, there’s no doubt about it. Sutter can say whatever he wants, it doesn’t change the fact that Mottau took a cheap shot because, well, he’s a talentless player and really has no place on an NHL roster to begin with. Now hopefully Campbell will do what he has been saying and suspend Mottau for 5 games, just like Pock got. But I have no faith that he’ll actually suspend Mottau at all. Campbell has a vendetta against the Islanders, and his inaction on this one will solidify that theory.
That being said, Scott Gordon better be careful how he goes about things going forward. It’s great that he has this ’system’ and his ’style’, but guys like Witt, Guerin, Weight - you know they wanted nothing more then to see Mottau get hit hard & hit often after that. Not to put Mitch Fritz out there, to say what Gordon said, is a cop out and an embarrassment. Gordon could start to lose the vets if he keeps taking his ball & going home instead of standing up to the bully.
there was a comment before the game that said when Fritz was recalled that Gordon couldn’t roll 4 lines. Is’nt this season for the “kids” to learn. if your not going to play him then don’t recall him. this theory is beyond redicules. in the ’90s the Isles sucked. they had one maybe two legit goal scorers. but yet teams still hated playing us, with players like Pilon, Vikota, Delgarno,and other hard hitting players. this organization puts no fear (scoring or physical) into other teams. WOW, we can put a good forcheck on for maybe 40 minutes…… oooo scary.
same ol’ same old
Absolutely. Disgusted. There. Was. No. Retaliation. In the old days, Smitty alone would have chopped of eight Devils legs with Arbor’s blessing. Nystrom and Gilles and Potvin would’ve crushed the rest of that filthy team to a bleeding pulp. Scott Gordon should resign. Today. Period.
The excuse of not wanting to roll less lines because we had a game today (and of course risk players getting hurt) for his reason not to retaliate is just that. Its funny how Gordon is on record (read the morning blog) as saying he knows we’re playing 3 games in 4 nights but, still had no problem dressing Fritz even though that meant rolling 3 lines and double shifting a few players.
Didn’t catch the third last night, but FYI, MSG+ is replaying the game right now from 12pm to 2pm. I’ve got my DVR set so I can see this hit.
KP they NHL can’t suspend a coach for sending out his tough guys and engaging in fights
KP, His job is to enforce not to score. We arent going to make post season this year anyway, end that thought quickly. It is a fine if there is blatent goonery at the end of the game, Gordon had a few minutes till the 5 minute mark so nothing would’ve happened.
I hope he brings his pride to Buffalo.