Monthly Archives: November 2008
- (Corey Trivino, No. 3)
Before we unveil our list of the Islanders’ top prospects not currently with the big club or playing in Bridgeport, a few notes:
- The list was compiled with our knowledge of the prospects combined with the views of three NHL amateur scouts.
- The key word is here “upside.” It is very possible some lower-ranked players could make the NHL while some of the more highly-ranked never get here. This list is of the players with the most potential.
- No, we did not forget anyone (Blake Kessel, Jason Gregoire, David Toews, Jyri Niemi, Justin DiBenedetto). There is still plenty of time to move up the chart for our next ranking.
- That said, based on need and timing – and ability, naturally - it’s possible the Islanders could sign a player or two not on this list before they sign a player on it.
Here goes.
10. LW DAVID ULLSTROM, 19 years old
Drafted: 4th round, 2008
Now Playing: Boras HC, Swedish Elite League
NHL Upside: Second or third-line forward with high-end skill and speed
Scout: “A real sleeper. Great value in the fourth round.”
9. G STEFAN RIDDERWALL, 20 years old
Drafted: 6th round, 2006
Now Playing: Djurgardens, Swedish Elite League
NHL Upside: No. 2 goalie with an outside chance of pushing for No. 1
Scout: “If he wants to be in the NHL, he should come over in a year or two and start in the American League. Definitely has the talent.”
8. LW MATT MARTIN, 19 years old
Drafted: 5th round, 2008
Now Playing: Sarnia, Ontario Hockey League
NHL Upside: Leadership, character, toughness
Scout: “Keeps on getting better. Probably not much more than a third-line player, maybe fourth line, but I think he’s a winner. Every team wants a kid like this.”
7. D MARK KATIC, 19 years old
Drafted: 3rd round, 2007
Now Playing: Sarnia, Ontario Hockey League
NHL Upside: No. 3-4 defenseman
Scout: “Still has to show more. The skills are there. I think the Islanders will sign him and I think he’ll play, but he has to show more consistency to make it as a top-4.”
6. D TRAVIS HAMONIC, 18 years old
Drafted: 2nd round, 2008
Now Playing: Moose Jaw, Western Hockey League
NHL Upside: No. 2-3 shutdown defenseman
Scout: “Solid. Could he be special? I don’t know. Just a real good stay-at-home defenseman who should have a long career.”
5. RW RHETT RAKHSHANI, 20 years old
Drafted: 4th round, 2006
Now Playing: University of Denver
NHL Upside: competitive and skilled second-line right wing
Scout: “Skating is not great, but makes up for it with playmaking ability and work ethic.”
4. LW ROBIN FIGREN, 20 years old
Drafted: 3rd round, 2006
Now Playing: Djurgardens, Swedish Elite League
NHL Upside: same as Rakhshani, but on the left side
Scout: “Should be an excellent fit in Scott Gordon’s system when he returns from Sweden. A very good all-around player with intangibles.”
3. C COREY TRIVINO, 18 years old
Drafted: 2nd round, 2008
Now Playing: Boston University
NHL Upside: same as Figren and Rakhshani, but down the middle and with blazing speed
Scout: “Kid can fly. If he can put it all together…”
2. D AARON NESS, 18 years old
Drafted: 2nd round, 2008
Now Playing: University of Minnesota
NHL Upside: No. 2, Rafalski-like defenseman
Scout: “Only went in the second round because of size (5-10, 160). The Islanders may have lucked into this one.”
1. RW KIRILL PETROV, 18 years old
Drafted: 3rd round, 2008
Now Playing: Kazan Ak Bars, Kontinental Hockey League
NHL Upside: First-line wing
Scout: “The ultimate wild card. Don’t know when he’ll come over. Probably won’t be for another year or two at the earliest. But for a team with all those early round picks, the Islanders were smart to grab him. Too much skill to ignore.”
Comments.
(Read Part 1 about Maharaj’s childhood in Trinidad, his family’s move to Toronto and his playing career in Europe)
Conclusion
In the summer of 2005, many of hockey’s best teachers were invited to lecture at the legendary Roger Neilson Hockey School. E.J. McGuire from the NHL’s Central Scouting Bureau was there, as was Cup-winning coach Marc Crawford and Sabres mainstay Lindy Ruff. Dave Lewis gave a talk on the “Practical and Philosophical Approach to Defense,” rising star Peter DeBoer a speech on playoff preparation.
And presenting a lecture entitled “Goaltending: How Do I Coach Them if I Don’t Understand Them?” was Sudarshan Maharaj, the goalie coach from Trinidad. It is a subject he is literally educated in.
During his six-year playing career in Sweden, Maharaj would come home in the summer and continue his studies at York University – in part to continue his pursuit of a degree but just as much “to keep my mom and dad off my back.” He drove a truck for G & K Workware to make some money while taking a double major of Physical Education and English at York.
“I really wanted to coach, but I needed a backup plan,” says Maharaj. “I didn’t play in the NHL and I don’t look like most people’s idea of a hockey guy. There were going to be some obstacles.”
While satisfying his hockey jones by conducting goaltending clinics, Maharaj earned his degree and began volunteer-teaching so he could earn enough hours to get into teachers’ college. He taught fourth grade for four years and then found his niche mentoring children with behavioral issues at an inner-city school in West Toronto. Certified, he directed a program that assisted troubled children grades 1 -8 throughout 32 schools in his district. “I loved it,” he says. “Maybe it wasn’t my ultimate dream, but it was tremendously satisfying being a part of a team that worked on helping so many kids.”
(Maharaj's first NHL student, Steve Valiquette)
While chasing that ultimate dream by teaching at hockey schools, he was introduced to a teenager from Etobicoke with pro-caliber skills and a 6-foot-6 frame that was a blessing and a curse. Stephen Valiquette was getting a look in goal with the Dayton Bombers of the East Coast Hockey League when a mutual friend suggested this guy in Toronto named Sudsie could help. They hit it off immediately. Less than three years later, “Big Vali” made his NHL debut with the New York Islanders.
During an Islanders practice, Valiquette was going through a series of drills prescribed by Maharaj. His counterpart in goal, Kevin Weekes, took notice and asked what it was all about. “Just some stuff from a coach in Toronto who’s helped me out a lot,” said Valiquette. As if he was asking for his girlfriend’s phone number, Weekes gingerly asked Valiquette if he would arrange a meeting with his goalie guru. Maharaj had his second NHL client, and this time it was a black man born in Barbados. When he heard Valiquette’s coach lived in Toronto but was born in Trinidad, Weekes thought it was in the stars.
(In Kevin Weekes, Maharaj had a client with much in common)
“Sudsie was a godsend for me,” says Weekes, now with the New Jersey Devils and in his 12th NHL season. Weekes had been sharing the Islanders net with a prodigy named Roberto Luongo and could not believe how far he was behind him technically.
“Of course Roberto has world-class talent and a work ethic to match, but watching him every day made me realize what little coaching I had,” said Weekes. “From the time he was a kid, Roberto had been working with many of the masters in Quebec, like the Allaire brothers. I had athletic ability and it brought me to the NHL, but technically I had so much to learn. That’s where Sudsie came in and made a dramatic difference. I was a different goalie than Vali, but Suds found ways to get the best out of both of us.”
Says Maharaj, “In my lectures like the one at the Neilson School, my emphasis is ‘Coach the person, not the goalie.’ Some of that comes from my background in education, no doubt. You cannot teach every goaltender the same way. Look at when I first came to the Islanders – we had Garth Snow at 6-4, Rick DiPietro at 6-foot and Wade Dubielewicz at around 5-8 and the three of them had contrasting styles. You have to teach goalies individually.”
Starting with the Islanders as a part-time coach, he also had to be innovative. Only on Long Island ten days each month, Maharaj was faced with the challenge of adding a personal touch to his coaching, even from his Toronto home. He devised a system in which he took game tape, isolated clips, added his analysis to a voice track and emailed the package back to DiPietro so the goalie had it on his computer within minutes post-game.
Asked to define his method of coaching, Maharaj declines to get into specifics but says “very detail-oriented. I insist on it with my goalies, that they stay on top of every detail in their play. I’m the same way in my coaching.”
Peter Mannino, signed to be the No. 2 goalie in Bridgeport but up with the Islanders now as Joey MacDonald’s backup, says he has improved so much in his first few months of pro thanks to his coaches Mike Dunham and Sudsie Maharaj. “Sudsie is all over the smallest details, and I needed that,” said Mannino. “The difference he’s made with my footwork and my side-to-side movement has been night and day.”
Maharaj’s approach has made him more than just a popular guest lecturer at hockey schools but a coach to several NHL, AHL, collegiate and junior goalies. When Hockey Canada created the first National Goaltending Camp in 2006, Maharaj was named co-director. As a consultant and scout for the Islanders, his Swedish experience continues to pay dividends; as an added bonus, he’s a translator at combines.
Maharaj claims his biggest challenge is usually convincing world-class talents from juniors to the pros how good they are. “There’s a native saying: ‘the longest journey is from the heart to the head.’ So many skilled goaltenders just don’t know how good they really are. For me the essential core of being a top goaltender is belief.”
It’s also the story of how a man from Trinidad made a name for himself in the National Hockey League.
(image borrowed from 2MA)
(UPDATED, 7:00 pm) - Frans Nielsen out 8-12 weeks with “multiple leg injuries.” Howie Rose reports that Colin Campbell told Garth Snow that Mottau’s hit was not to Nielsen’s head. If I have that correctly, that would be cause to call for Campbell’s resignation. No word if the Islanders are going to respond.
Just got back from the radio show, where I said Mike Mottau deserved 5 games but warned Islanders fans they might be disappointed by the NHL.
But actually, I guess the NHL did not disappoint. Two games for Mottau. Laughable.
The Islanders did the we’re-1-of-30 thing last week with their warm acceptance of the 5-game suspension of Thomas Pock. Now let’s see if they release another kind of statement.
To all you Brent Sutter haters out there, you’re looking in the wrong direction. Sutter did what all the top head coaches in contact sports do: at the risk of stretching the truth or coming off like a hypocrite, he established an organizational culture. Sutter is the rare Devils coach who didn’t learn it from Lou Lamoriello. He learned at the hand of Al Arbour.
You’re either on our team or you’re not on our team. The Devils’ culture runs so wide, even Doc and Chico said Mottau’s hit deserved a minor at worst.
Brent Sutter’s loyalty is to the New Jersey Devils. There’s a reason after the hit on his son Brandon you didn’t hear him say “Doug Weight is not that kind of player,” even though you, me and Brent know Weight is not that kind of player. (Maybe Sutter views his team like family). Dump on Brent’s Islanders legacy now all you want. If he was coaching the Islanders, you’d have the chills over how he defends the crest.
The Islanders, on the other hand, prefaced their comments with the poetry of “I know Mike Mottau and Mike Mottau is not a dirty player…” Please. As Don La Greca said so eloquently on our radio show, “What a bunch of garbage. He is now”!
Would you ever hear Arbour say that? Would you ever hear the Red Wings, Devils or Bob Gainey’s Canadiens testify for the character of a player who ran down one of their players? What NHL team would have gone away as quietly as the Islanders did last night? I’m the first to admit I’ve never fully grasped the enforcer concept, but I can also tell you I never saw what I saw in the final ten minutes in New Jersey last night.
Scott Gordon made a mistake. He’ll learn, just as he learned when he got booed for going with Bill Guerin and Doug Weight in one shootout loss, then heard the arena roar when he sent out Nielsen and Josh Bailey the next time he had a chance.
The Islanders have a way to go. But while they’re getting there, they should use the time to act like a team. You don’t need goal-scoring ability or Jay Bouwmeester to do that. Just an attitude throughout the franchise.
I wonder if Scott Gordon or Bill Guerin noticed Mottau yukking it up with the Devils penalty box attendant while their battered teammate was being scraped off the ice? On the broadcast, Billy Jaffe said when Mottau returned to the ice, he was going to pay a price. Uh, nevermind.
“Mike Mottau is not a dirty player…” He is now. A two-game wrist slap for a flying elbow.
You’re either on the New York Islanders or you’re not on the New York Islanders.
Start acting like it.
PB Reader Notice: Call it bloggititis-CB, Colie Campbell-itis, the flu or some bad popcorn at The Rock, but after almost two months of obsessive blogging I have to shut down for about 24 hours. Barely made it through the radio show, so thanks to Mike Sillinger and Steve Zipay for carrying segments.
Like Mike Comrie, I’m day-to-day. Maybe Sunday. My regrets. Let me know – in PG-rated language – how tonight’s game goes.
Comments
Jeremy Colliton.
From what I saw and heard in Bridgeport, the kid earned it.
Off to “NY Hockey This Week” on 1050 ESPN Radio from 1:30 – 2:30 pm. We’ll be taking your calls. Have a feeling the Mottau misdemeanor will come up. Talk to you then.
Comments.
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.
9:08 pm, The Rock - At 3:32 of the third period, Devils defenseman Mike Mottau nailed Islanders center Frans Nielsen with a hit to the head. Nielsen fell awkwardly and hit his head on the ice. He left the game with what appeared to be a head injury, and possibly a lower-body injury as well.
For the hit, Mottau received two minutes for elbowing. But it seemed like the kind of hit Colin Campbell addressed in his recent memo about head-hunting.
We would expect Colin Campbell to consider supplementary discipline.
In less important matters, Jeremy Colliton and all the other Sound Tigers centers - start stretching.
You make the call. Comments.
1:25 pm, The Rock - Hello from the press room of the Prudential Center. Nice place the Devils have here. As I may have mentioned before, best thing about The Rock is that wherever you go you know it’s the home of the New Jersey Devils. It’s their place; they are the primary tenant. The franchise and its partners did a wonderful job with the joint. Not a bad place to spend the day and night, as we are today. Let’s begin…
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Scott Gordon knows the recall of enforcer Mitch Fritz means he will not roll four lines tonight, and he is okay with that. The Islanders coach did not hide the fact he plans on double shifting a few of his deserving forwards and in fact seemed to relish the opportunity. Trent Hunter? Sean Bergenheim? Andy Hilbert?
The Islanders are in Buffalo tomorrow and Montreal on Monday, but the busy slate also doesn’t appear to alter Gordon’s thinking. Hey, the guy’s won three games in a row – he gets the benefit of the doubt for at least 24 hours.
Thomas Pock is the lone healthy scratch for the Islanders tonight. We estimate the icetime of the returning Brendan Witt to be 16:32.
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Know this also about the Mitch Fritz recall: it is the final proof of how far prospect Blake Comeau has fallen down the Islanders’ depth chart.
This latest opening wasn’t created by an injury to the bruising Tim Jackman, but to young forward Kyle Okposo. The Islanders play three games in four nights and in a perfect world could use a skating wing to sub for Okposo. Yet Comeau didn’t get the call and likely received little consideration.
If Comeau doesn’t turn around his game in the eyes of management and the coaching staff soon, there’s little reason to think you’ll see him before March – if at all.
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The Mitch Fritz story is a very happy one on a family level. When Mitch signed with the Islanders over the summer, his mom Dena noticed her son’s new team would have an off-day on November 23 in Montreal, the site of the Grey Cup. Mrs. Fritz declared right then that her entire family would be there to see Luke Fritz play in the Canadian Football League championship game.
For that to happen, Mitch Fritz – who has spent the majority of his career in the minors – would have to be on the Islanders roster. There was also the little detail of Luke Fritz’s team, the Montreal Alouettes, you know – actually making it to the Grey Cup.
“Luke has been in five Grey Cups and I’ve missed them all,” said Mitch after the morning skate. “It’s just an unbelievable set of circumstances. Mom called it.”
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Brent Sutter with a minor surprise after today’s morning skate: despite Scott Clemmensen’s 3-1 win last night, it will be Kevin Weekes in goal tonight for the Devils. The gritty Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond was sent to Lowell (AHL) yesterday.
Devils still without Brian Rolston (ankle), Bobby Holik (broken pinkie), Andy Greene (broken hand) and the Best Goalie We’ve Ever Seen (elbow).
Brent told the press today that he was happy with his team’s first and third period last night against the Panthers, but not the second. Oh, let’s just be realistic: how many teams in the league are dominating for 60 minutes straight?
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The stars are aligned for the Islanders to have a no-excuses win tonight. In a unique scheduling quirk, the Devils played Florida here last night and won, 3-1. The Devils have some key injuries – like the NYI, starting with the big guy in goal – and worked hard for their two points against the Panthers. The Islanders are rested. They also have Brendan Witt and some confidence back.
4-3 Islanders.
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A must-read from Greg Logan of Newsday today in his weekly Islanders Insider. Greg has Islanders GM Garth Snow‘s first comments since the start of the season (must be the three-game winning streak!).
The most news-worthy item in Greg’s lengthy conversation with Snow comes at the very end. The GM makes it clear that if Josh Bailey is still an Islander after 9 games, the kid is not going to the World Junior Championships to represent Canada. “The way I look at it,” said Snow, “if that scenario plays out he’s a New York Islander and that’s where I’d want him.”
I feel a “Islanders Bratty American GM Snubs Team Canada” headline coming on. Love it!
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A fascinating assortment of more than 70 Comments on my Q & A with the Suozz, Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi. Some of you wrote it was the same old politics and didn’t break any new ground, and I hear you on that. Prior to the interview, the point had been made that it’s really the turn of Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray to be heard on the Lighthouse Project.
Still, Suozzi did advance the story a bit with his discussion of public transportation, acknowledgement that the property development around the Coliseum is as important to him as it is to Charles Wang and Scott Rechler and his frank admission that the thing can’t get done soon enough.
And when you consider PB is done off a laptop in my dining room, as opposed to the deluxe headquarters of Long Island’s newspaper in Melville, give some credit to the Nassau County Executive for taking the time to speak directly to hockey fans. Fact is, by guiding the vote on the Lighthouse Project to a landslide approval, Suozzi has completed a major portion of his work.
I left a message on Wednesday with one of Kate Murray’s top aides. As a resident of the Town of Hempstead, I’m really looking forward to a conversation.
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Mats Sundin? Not coming here. Brendan Shanahan? No interest on either side. Marian Gaborik? Don’t have the pieces or the desire to pay the Wild price.
Let’s say it again so you can crush me if I’m wrong: the Islanders will not make any major roster moves between now and the NHL holiday trade moratorium which begins around December 22.
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“NY Hockey This Week” returns on Saturday from 1:30 – 2:30 pm on 1050 ESPN Radio with Don La Greca and his amateur sidekick.
Among our guests will be Mike Sillinger, on the eve of the first game of his AHL conditioning stint in Bridgeport, his first game in the minors in more than 15 years. Besides asking Mike about that, I hope to have some fun with some career views like his toughest opponents in the faceoff circle.
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“Hockey Night Live” is soon to be dead. Amazing. I watched it on replay last Saturday and it was on my schedule this week to praise MSG Network’s efforts with its one-hour show with analysts Butch Goring, Ken Daneyko and Ron Duguay. Now, along with “MSG, NY” it’s gone at the end of the calendar year.
From what I understand, Goring will not be gone from the MSG airwaves. Although he loses the “HNL” gig in six weeks, the final piece to the dynasty will receive more airtime on upcoming Islanders broadcasts on The Plus. That’s a good thing.
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For you Deb KaufmanPlacey fans, Deb will be one of the main hosts of the “MSG, NY” successor, which Newsday Cablevision-sponsored media blogger Neil Best described as a “less news-dependent, more Madison Square Garden-oriented version of the old ‘SportsDesk.” There you have it!
And speaking of Newsday bloggers, Baumbach and Rieber had a giggle over my note last week that the Islanders needed to go 16 games over .500 the rest of the way to make the playoffs and my suggestion that it was not 100% a mission impossible. Go-Go’s boys are 2-0 since. Now they only have to play 14 over, punks!
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In writing a few times about the Islanders’ lack of a full-time defensive assistant – and noting every time Ken Morrow comes in for his tutorials – I may have been callous and implied the team’s defensemen go uncoached. This was most certainly not a slight to Islanders’ assistant coaches Dan Lacroix and John Chabot.
Lacroix calls out the D pairings behind the bench during games and spends a lot of time in video sessions with the blueliners. Although Lacroix and Chabot were NHL centers, they work with the defensemen as much as the forwards.
The Islanders are far from the only team in the NHL without a defensive assistant. The Canadiens have a pair of former forwards – Kirk Muller and Doug Jarvis – and they seem to be getting by. Should the Islanders add a full-timer by next training camp? Absolutely. But it was unfair if I ever gave the impression Campoli, Gervais and Co. were without mentors.
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