DiPIETRO SHUT DOWN FOR THE SEASON
Doctor says left knee needs more time to heal
5:20 pm - Conference call ended. Updated with notes and DiPietro statement
5:10 pm - The Islanders have announced that Rick DiPietro will be out for the remainder of the season.
Making an exception from team policy, the Islanders made team orthopedist Dr. Elliott Hershman available on a conference call with reporters. Also on the call was general manager Garth Snow.
Dr. Hershman provided an extensive review of DiPietro’s hip and knee surgeries and said that the goaltender’s problems this season have been with his left knee. “He has progessed slowly,” said Hershman. “He has had swelling in the knee.”
Hershman revealed that DiPietro recently consulted with the noted Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Alabama, along with Dr. William Clancy in Birmingham. After that consultation, it was decided to shut down DiPietro for the season.
“At this time, we are not anticipating any further surgery,” said Hershman. “Right now he will have a period of rest and rehabilitation, and our hope is that he will be ready for training camp.”
Additional notes:
- Hershman defined that period of “rest and rehabilitation” as 6-8 weeks before they may be able to make a determination if additional surgery is required.
- Hershman said DiPietro is a “diligent and dedicated player” but would not blame the goaltender’s insistence on getting back in the lineup for any setbacks. The doctor said that even if the Islanders were in the playoff hunt, he would have shut down DiPietro for the season.
- On the call, there was some questioning over the issue of DiPietro being “medically cleared to play” at points during the season. (Greg Logan is all over it). Dr. Hershman defended team staff, saying the staff was not second-guessing itself and was “cautious” throughout.
- Snow said “I don’t have any concerns at all” about DiPietro’s long-term prognosis and his ability to fulfill his 15-year contract.
- In a statement released by the team, DiPietro said, “This has been one of the most frustrating situations I have ever had to deal with, but this is the right decision for me and the team. I am confident this will allow me to make a complete recovery, be ready in time for next season and compete to my highest ability for many years to come. I’d like to thank Islanders fans for their patience and I look forward to playing in front of them next season.”
*
On a related note, the Edmonton Oilers have waived goaltender Dany Sabourin. The 28-year old Sabourin has some NHL experience with Vancouver and Pittsburgh. Like Wade Dubielewicz, he is regarded as a solid No. 2-3 depth goalie. If the Islanders want him, all they have to do is put in a claim. As the team with the worst record in the NHL, the Islanders have preference on the waiver wire.
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118 Responses to “DiPIETRO SHUT DOWN FOR THE SEASON
Doctor says left knee needs more time to heal”
Please Wait
“Our hope is he will be ready for training camp…”. Uh oh.
You said it best jon
What is “uh oh” about THAT? Do you want them to NOT hope that he is ready for training camp? Honestly…
As long as it doesn’t get as bad as Brady’s we’ll be fine Sabourin’s going to come here I can see it happening and now its basically free.
No Chris, I think that hearing that they “hope” that he’ll be ready six months from now is pretty scary. I think you’d rather have heard “we’re shutting down Rick so that he can rest up and be 100% healthy for training camp next year”.
Long time first time, CB. This news comes as no shock. It is good to see he consulted with Dr. Andrews. I am pretty sure I always hear his name with baseball players and other pro athletes. The guy seems to be DR to the star athletes in this country. The best we can do is hope DP is healthy next year.
No new news on Sillys status?
While I would never root for serious injury, especially in the case of a guy on my own team, this could be a positive short term development in the quest for Tavares.
However, I have to admit that I am very concerned for DiPietro’s long term future. He is consistently (sp?) hurt,
and while he definitely has not yet reached his ceiling… will his health ever allow him to? I’m beginning to get worried that the 15 year investment was made on a goaltender who simply cannot stay on the ice.
All that said, I wish him the best and hope for as quick a recovery as possible.
Nice of them to confirm what we all knew?
Now, when will they address the coaching issue?
Gordon is not an NHL caliber coach.
Ok… I guess Snow’s not concerned. Well, I am, and I bet i’m not the only one!
Cahoward28,
Thank you for defending my “uh oh”…you’re exactly correct in your perception, unlike Chris TMC. I am not at all convinced by these statements that they know what is going on.
Just Pick up Sabourin and play him tomorrow night - Danis is terrible, he looks so shaky and is always looking behind himself after a shot is on goal. How does A GM or Scout say let’s sign this guy, Danis should be in the ECHL. Let the audition for next year’s roster spots begin - Guerin just looks like he is going through the motions….just package him & weight in a trade. He missed the net 7 times yesterday.
#12: Is that you Coach Gordon? Danis has done just fine. Give the guy a break.
BTW…Good PR Job by the Isles coming out with this store on a day when its going to be buried underneath the OBAMANIA headlines
No problem, I defended it because I was thinking the same thing and had already emailed friends saying the exact same thing. To me, this knee swelling from a routine surgery is scary. I’m not sure what to think with this team anymore, but anyone who didn’t see this announcement coming has been living in a different world.
Islanders…Obama….my guess is that the Isles would have been buried regardless of what happened.
Good luck to Rick and I also “hope” he’s ready for training camp.
I also “hope” we pick up a goalie in the meantime. (NOT putting down any of the ones we have now!)
Get that #1 pick?
YES, WE CAN!
in a lost season, this is the right thing to do.
I hope they always have an NHL battle tested goalie around to back Ricky up.
Jon…My point is that they waited to release this news to today….they want this story buried
good news. i hope they pick up sabourin. hopefully this is the last of dp’s injuries. next year we should be a decent team. take it how you want. okposo and bailey and our number pick are going to be really good and dp will most likely be at full strength. i wish they could shut him down for an extra year so we can get hall and dominate. dominate in LI that is
Come on Garth! Those pads are somewhere in that basement of yours. Dust ‘em off! I’m sure the one who hurts the most right now is actually Rick.
They didn’t pick up Sanford… of course, that was before Dubie was snitched by Columbus. They need Sabourin. And if your team NEEDS Dany Sabourin, then your team is really up against it.
It’s about time they made it official. Best thing to do. Let him rest up like Manny Fernandez did with the Bruins last year. This season is a wash anyways…
we should sign Sabourin or wait until Ottawa calls up Gerber. Either one can hold us over until next year.
mark striet will go up against chara and others for the hardest shot in th eskills competition. he does have a helluva shot and a hard one too
Get well soon DP, we miss ya!!!
Please let summer 2009 shine a bright light on this team.
Glad Ricky consulted Drs. Andrews and Clancy they are the best, sometimes time is the best healer, he should feel no pressure to get on the ice. He should get into meditation to help the healing and deal with the frustration.
Get well #39. Hope to see you 100% for 50 games next year with a solid 1A backing you up.
Isn’t Dr. Andrews the one who performs Tommy John on all the pitchers? If it is the guy I think it is, you can be pretty much gaurenteed that a ball player is having (additional) surgery when you hear his name. Don’t know how that apply to Dipi knee though.
Dear 7th woman - nice try but Garth’s pads are illegal:)
So much for Kevin Gorman’s 15 minutes…
Dr. James Andrews does everyone, he is really good. I am a bit surprised he didn’t do Rick’s knee the first time.
From this point on Andrews needs to be the main doctor in charge of Rick’s recovery.
I am glad the Islanders did the right thing in allowing Rick to get healthy. I am hoping Snow’s “hopeful” comment is just because nothing in life is certain but it is time they allow Ricky to get fully healthy. GOOD LUCK RICK YOUR ONE OF THE BEST GOALIES OUT THERE AND WE CAN’T WAIT FOR YOU TO COME BACK 100%
Now, Mr. Snow, stop being a stubborn jerk and get a big mean team so your goalies don’t take so much abuse and get some d-men who can actually play the game. What you keep shoving down our throats is pathetic.
we knew dp was out for the year…JT LI
Regardless of whether DP needs additional surgery after the 6-8 week rest period, I would think he’s going to need a minimum of 1-2 months of live action to get back to top form next season. And even with the #1 pick in this year’s draft, I don’t see the Islanders becoming a playoff contender next year either. I’m willing to accept another terrible year next season for this rebuild and then hopefully things will begin to turn around in year three. But everyone on this thread is correct - no need for DP to play more than 50 or so games per season prospectively.
“hope”….its all this team can really hope for.
we should have traded DP when we had the chance. this guy is finished.
Does this make it a 14 year contract.
Ron this guy is not finished! Support Ricky! Swelling in the knee doesn’t end anyone’s career or even diminish level of play. Is it possible his career could be over….not really but nothing in life is certain but let’s not speak evil over Ricky.
The key here people is the Islanders must have gets themselves a quality Medical, conditioning, and training staff. Life is about results and it is an honest assesment from the past two seasons that the ones currently employed by the Isles are not getting the desired results. They might be nice guys but they aren’t getting the job done and therefore they need to be replaced. Too much is at stake.
If the Isles had a good staff it is fair to say they might not be in the playoffs and not in the Tavares sweepstakes. They would be much better then they are now and would not be leading the league in man games lost to injury, especially with very preventable injuries.
I have had it. Hit the reset button. It has only been 6 months, but I have no desire to see the Snow/Gordon era continue. I am all for patience for a rebuild if I had an just an little bit of faith in people handing it. The handling of this situiation is just inexcusable (can u ever see the Red Wings in a situation like this..even the Hershey Bears). If this is the way the rebuild is going to get managed, forget it, I am out. I don’t care what anyone says, Gordon lost this team when he did not stick up for Frans after hit from Motteau (he lost me). We are joking to think any vertern is going to change the entire way they are used to playing a game for a coach that won’t even send out an enforcer to defend a player. As a result, of that, pretty sure no young guy will respect him either.
Garth lost the fans with the way Ricky has been handled. That was last straw with him. He is a goalie, he should have stepped up and shut him down. If he can’t control his players, he should not be up there. The inmates should not be running the isylum. Look what is happening with the Cowboys.
get well rick. see you next season.
I love this quote: “I am all for patience in a rebuild” after conceding that the rebuild has been going on for all of six months.
How fast do you think rebuilds should get done, Makela24?
I have a question for you Gordon haters … Which of the Isles’ young players has regressed since Gordon’s arrival? Okposo looks like a stud, Bailey is improving and getting more playing time, Hunter is one goal shy of matching last season’s total output, Nielsen was looking good until the injury. … The man was hired to develop the young players. He’s doing a great job, if you ask me. Al Arbour couldn’t win with this current group.
Im back!! I found it intresting on Logans blog that after 6-8 weeks of rest additional surgery may be a possibility. It also stated when asked if the injury was career threatining At this time NO. at this time leaves the door wide open, as does the most optomistic outlook is that he is ready for training camp. I can see this lasting well into next year!!! As for Makela post 39 (nice number) This franchise is just an absolute mess. Gordon was hired not because he was the best coach out there but because he was Snow’s college buddy and comes with a cheap contract. The best coaches out there….do you think they want to come to this mess of a franchise?? No way that was obvious (see Joel Quenville) Our beloved CW hires people he has total control over. Patty LaFontaine ditched this outfit as fast as he could that speaks volumes. I am just so sick of pathetic management. I can see this in the future…The Lighthouse development group has named Tim Jackman president of the Grand Hotel…almost as ridiculous as hiring a goalie with no expierance to run your hockey operations
Clearly this is what’s best for all involved …
Good luck Rick on your long road to recovery …we’ll be here (hopefully!) when you’re ready to play again…
What are the chances that Rick shows up to camp “out of shape” and gets shipped off by Snow? LOL
AIM: Gordon and Snow were not college buddies. They did meet briefly in a training camp many years ago but they were not friends prior to Gordon being hired. They hadn’t communicated since they were both in that camp.
You might be thinking of Mike Dunham the goalie coach who was Snow’s college buddy.
Glad to see them make a decision on DP and I look forward to a full recovery and seeing him play next season at 100%. We are going nowhere and there is no sense in playing him in front of this team at this point. at the guy who is convinced Gordon can’t coach based on what he has seen while watching Scotty coach a minor league team against a bunch of pros. How many coaches would win with this bunch? IMO not too many.
Also love all of the posters who like to point out all of the people who left or were fired like Neil Smith etc. What is missing in these statements is a little update on how their mgmt carreers are going now that they’re not with the Islanders. Maybe they should’ve stayed with the team because no one else apparently wants them.
Snow can not fire Gordon since he already played the coach card by firing Nolan.
With Nolan, the team overachieved, with Gordon the team is underachieving.
Steve S. (#42) - I’m not a Gordon hater but to answer your question about which Isles’ young player has regressed since Gordon’s arrival … I give you Mitch Fritz! His fighting capabilities did not impress compared to the reputation he built in the minors and I think even his skating slowed during his tenure with the team. I don’t think I ever saw him make a pass or shoot so I can’t rate those qualities. What the heck is Gordon doing out there if he can’t develop 6′9″ talent like that!
Actually I miss Fritzy - he was painful to watch but he’s one heck of an intimidating force!
Jerky, Are you serious? Please tell me you’re joking. Mitch Fritz is NOT an NHL player. First of all, the guy will be 29 this year. I said young players. There’s a reason why he’s bounced around the minors since 2000.
Sure, Fritz is 6-8. So is Elton Brand. Should the Isles sign him?
Claim Sabourin! Please!! Mannino is not ready for prime time, and Gordon doesn’t seem to have an overabundance of confidence in Danis. At least this will allow the D to play their game and not compensate for an AHL goalie in net. Just IMO, of course.
To poster #41 calling me out. No problem if this takes 3-4 years if I had confidence in those running the show.the issue is that in my mind this is ruderless ship, which ricky events proved. And I don’t see players going to mat for this coach…I just don’t see it. Hopefully I am wrong. Also, excuse me if I don’t jump for joy at “stability” argument we sometimes try and make. Detroit had that with Matt Millen.it is all about getting right people…whether the ones they are replacing have been here 2 months (tampa getting rid of melrose), years (carolina and pl), or decades (broncos and shanahan). All about constantly putting you team in best position. Plus no one should care about perception of org if we changed course…I am pretty sure our reputation can’t get much lower. One might make the argument if you switched from snow/gordon, that the team finally woke up and gets it.
Steve - yes totally joking. Had to throw in some comedy to brighten the thread. Although I wouldn’t mind him brought up for the game against the Devils to inflict some pain on Mottau, Clarkson and some of the others on the Devils.
Who is this Elton Brand guy? If we sign him, pick up Oliwa and bring back Fritz we could have the largest 4th line ever in the history of the game! Of course it would be like being in a 5 on 2 penalty kill but I figure not more than 3 seconds would run off the clock at any point without the whistle blowing for a fight.
Based on the relatively quick “recovery” of Rick’s surgery, it seems that he had a meniscectomy versus a meniscal repair that sidelined osi umenyiora for a the year. The fact that D.P. has such abnormal swelling and pain (I’m assuming) is very ominous. It’s extremely likely that he’s going to need another procedure whether it’s another meniscectomy or meniscal repair. If it’s a repair, folks, he won’t be back for a while. Down the line, if the pain persists, other than cortisone shots/alternative therapies, the dreaded total knee replacement may be down the line. There is NO way this guy is going to play professional sports for another 13 years. Truly sad.
i have faith in this org. do not see too many probs here. you put in an all-star coach and maybe we have between 2 more wins and 13th place in the east. and thats stretching it. like a fifth overall pick will help this place more than tavares. say it was another luke schenn. just him will not get this place bumping like the playoffs against the leafs. not to mention all of the kids are playing great. gordo is doing great in my books. how did you expect him to do? 8th seed? what are you smoking? as for garth, josh bailey is playing good. has not made 1 bad trade that i can think of. do not even say smyth. we were in the playoff hunt that year and were set until dp got hurt. or not trading satan last year. were we not 2 pts out of playoff contention? it was not till after that that we were falling.and i support the trading down. we have bailey and great depth now. that was needed badly
kevin, the zhitnik trade for which philly got coburn? zednik for a 2nd rounder? Grebeshkov for M.A.B.?
Haha OK, Jerky. I feel better now. Was ready to call the Coliseum and have you banned from the arena (not exactly a punishment, though).
the zednik one is questionable but we never had coburn so idk what that means and M.A.B. did not get too many complaints when he bolstered the blue line and he and poti got many points together on the pp. it only looks bad now because we are rebuilding. at the time not so much
yeah coburn was on atlanta in that trade…good thing you know whatyour talking about. we traded him to philly for meyer and a third rounder. they traded him to a desperate atlanta for coburn..
Get well, DP. We need you next season.
We also need bigger size Defenceman to help you stay healthy. I guess “goaltender interference” call do not work for Isles in this league…
Any chance of us getting some goalie help from Denis Lemieux ??! … I heard he was good.
What? I said for which Philly eventually got Coburn. Kevin, that’s the last time I respond to your retarded post. No one cares about a 9 year old’s opinion on the isles anyway.
you never said eventually….good call
haha someone getting mad. your opinions are more retarded since they dont make sense and there wrong. no one cares about you gettin all pissy because a high schooler knows more than you
I predict DP will not play for the Islanders ever again. His career is over before it ever really got started. Sad but most likely true.
Tony post 66…
DiPietro has not played his last game. He has swelling in his knee and 8 months of rest and rehab will be just what he needs.
This is sad…I’ll somewhat agree with post 66..I think DiP will try to get on the ice again, but I don; tthink he wil ever play a full year.
He has not made it through a full year in three seasons now. We hope he will be ready for training camp? Not good
I have no idea what people are getting so upset about and why they are attacking each other.
The team has done alright this season handeling DP. He needs a break. His first three seasons this guy must have gotten run about six times a game. Not many goalies are gonna be healthy throughout there entire careers having to battle that night after night.
I’m relieved DP is coming back next year.
Look, as far as the season goes, you can be as dissapointed as you like. Don’t act as if you’ve been sold a lie as far as what this season was gonna be like. Most of us already knew that this was necasary to rebuild like this and this is what it was gonna look like.
YOu wanna get on the franchise over all the kids they’ve traded and given up on?
Fine.
You contradict yourselves when you complain about this team trying rebuild the right way. No UFAs are coming in here to fix this mess and in a sense we are done a favor. Teams that rebuild with UFAs rarely have success.
Team that make the hard decisions to stand pat and build with kids often find themselves going on a good run and contend for the cup at some point. This franchise needs to rebuild from the farm all the way up.
It’s gonna be rough.
I might be dreaming here, but i’m hoping this is all some scam. Management knows that if DP plays this season, we could be a .500 team, and that does us no good in the draft. This feels like tank for Tavares…remember, there is a good chance we lose the team to K.C. if we don’t get a young super star. See you next year DP!
This is not a scam. DP is held together with duct tape. We’re not tanking for Tavares. We’re just fortunate to be the worst team in tne NHL by a country mile.
I don’t think we are the worst team in the NHL, but we could be the most injured team in the NHL!!!
Who’s walking around the locker room with a ball-peen hammer this season? Yikes… injuries!
If i may add one last thing, I don’t believe DP’s injuries are that serious, but when you sign a player to a 15 year deal(and your last in the league), you are going to be extremely cautious with him.
How can Snow have no concerns about DP!?!? WTF? Is DP gonna get a BIONIC TORSO?! Or maybe METAL LEGS like the guy in Grandmas Boy!? Pick up Dany Sabourin and cruise to the #1 pick JOHN TAVERAS. As far as DP, I think all Isles fans should be VERY CONCERNED with DP and his career status. VERY CONCERNED. You cannot have a goalie with bad knees and hips!!! Buy him out and move on.
Isles need to go out and use a 2nd rounder on a goalie and also bring in a reliable UFA as there is no way right now the Isles can think they can rely on DP for anything next year. The guy has not survived the last 2 years he played and has responded well to the many surguries this guy has gone through this year.
How can you rely on this guy to play 50 or so games and I’ll even throw it our there as it may happen in the next 5 years take the grind of anytype of playoff run. Just don’t see it happening.
A goaltender with hipe and knee surgeries reminds me of a pitcher with elbow and shoulder problems. Not good. My guess is DiPietro returns at some point without the needed quickness and lateral movement to be a top-flight goalie.
Mike, what would you like him to say? I’m sure he’s concerned but it’s not like he can come right out and say that …
Strummer #46 ha ha good point knowing that go go is about 6 years older that would make the college thing a bit rough. However I did hear from someone a little in the know is that they did have some kind of relationship prior to his hiring. What that is I will try to find out. Thanks for the correction!!
Will the Islanders make the postseason?
Yes: 9.07 % No: 90.93 %
lol
On Nhl.com
We took Dube so may as well take Slab-o-win
Is anyone surprised?
Guys: There is really no reason to root for the Isles to lose any longer. They are clearly the worst team in the sport and will finish with the worst record. so I invite this blog to join your fellow Isles fans in rooting for this team again. Not only is Garth managing the worst team in the sport, he is managing the worst team of the decade. Nice job!
hey cb, how do gm’s around the league look at what columbus did in claiming dubie after the isles signed him? hockey has a lot of unwritten rules,did columbus violate one?and would this preclude garth from dealing with them?kind of a hard feelings thing
thanks
Glad they shut him down. Now we can get on to the serious business of winning the Taveras derby and getting some serious ice time for our younger players.
Pat
I think we can all agree that DP will not play the remaining 13 years of his contract.
The question remains, if it is an injury and he can’t fulfill his contract. I’m sure their is insurance for that.
But.. does that salary stay on the books.
Let’s say he has 7 yrs left on his contract, and retires. Do the Isles have to take the hit on the cap.
BCarroll25 - Great question, I hope we get a response.
Et al - If you did not know before today that the DP would be out for the season, it was obvious when the team signed Dubie. They also would not have done that if DP was returning. Also folks it was obvious that the management did not have any confidence in Danis. You can see that by how much JMac started before he got hurt.
Regarding any cap hit a retired DP would cause, is it really that much of a concern? I mean do we actually expect the Isles to bump up against the cap at some point?
MAYBE WANG WILL LEARN NOT TO SIGN GOALIES OR ANYONE ELSE TO 15YR CONTRACTS.
matt on Jan 20th, 2009 21:34:58 said:
MAYBE WANG WILL LEARN NOT TO SIGN GOALIES OR ANYONE ELSE TO 15YR CONTRACTS.
What that’s not normal?
The rebuilding has been going on for 8 seasons! Wang has been promising a better, more competitive team since 2000! We’ve rebuilt several times since with the same pathetic results. Wang’s the one that has to go and let him take his 30th place team, his goalie for life, his backup goalie/GM and his AHL coach of the year with him.
I think it is important to note that all finishing last does is give us either pick 1 or 2…its not a slam dunk we get the #1 pick
I like Sabourin. I would be very happy with him. As far as the rest of the team cant wait to trade all the vets when we can. Looking forward to a faster younger team next yr.
CB:
Reconsidering your comments that the fans were foolish to suggest shutting down DP for the year? A franchise can not handle a situation any worse up until today. Another black eye for the Isles. If a goalie can not stay healthy in his mid 20’s, what will happen when he reaches his 30’s? Sign a co-#1 goalie in the offseason like Manny Fernandez so we don’t have to go through this again!
(post 43) patty loafontaine sat on his ass after he signed a contract to play for this team - and we bring him back in a mgmt role and act surprised when he bails - fool us twice shame on us. i dont understand why no one brings this point up when patty almighty is being discussed.
my hope is that Wang gets fed up and sells….he is a joke and knows nothing about building an organization. Chris, I dont know how you worked for this clown.
11 jon on Jan 20th, 2009 17:24:52 said:
“Thank you for defending my “uh oh”…you’re exactly correct in your perception, unlike Chris TMC. I am not at all convinced by these statements that they know what is going on.”
Um, Jon… if you would like to ask a question to clarify something, like I did, by all means go right ahead. But please do not tell others what you believe I am and am not convinced of- you do not know me, and I am happy to speak for myself. OK?
My sentiments exactly polishprince.
Matt, you figured we would’ve learned something after yashin’s 10 year deal, but no. Not wang. He was so stubborn wanting to prove everyone wrong, he signed his poster child for not 10 but 15 years. Brilliant.
I hope we get tavares as a consolation prize for this wreck of a season. I also hope Snow isn’t around if this team ever gets respectable. Mr. “I don’t have any concerns at all”. What a tool.
DocDuke on Jan 20th, 2009 20:18:06 said:
I don’t think we are the worst team in the NHL, but we could be the most injured team in the NHL!!!
Yup- there is no “could be” on that, the Islanders have lost the most mangames to injury bar none… and that point is only emphasized when one considers the relative importance of the players whose mangames have been lost to this team.
the most injury prone’d goalie ever
Atlanta / Ottawa win .. magic number 63 to last overall.
why would kc ever want this team anyway? we are the worst team right now in the nhl. they havent had hockey in a long time. i’d laugh if wang decides to move the team kc and kc didnt want them.
We have never been rebuilt properly since Wang bought the team. Never. We had the opportunities to rebuild on several occasions, but MM and/or Wang were always too impatient. Hopefully they do it right this time.
CB- Is it safe to call it the Tavhed watch now?
10 point lead in the race for last! !!!!!
I don’t see how anyone cannot call DP a gigantic bust right now. We made colossal moves in 2000 to make way for him. It’s been 9 years now and what are the results. No matter how much you want to believe this guy is or ever was the franchise, the numbers prove he is not by any means. Saying he is overrated now is being kind. This is a GIGANTIC BUST.
why bother claiming anyone…ride out danis and mcdonald….finish last…hope for the lottery…do it all over again next year with another bottom 3 pick…then maybe we have a shot 5 years from now
One point Id like to make: I am pleased with the Islanders decision to be open and honest about this. Im glad that they made that choice… its the best thing they could have possibly done in this unfortunate situation.
Does anyone know the prevailing theory these days for obtaining a franchise goalie? Is it as important as it used to be? Does the team with the best goalie still usually win the cup?
Am I the only one who feels bad for Ricky? It just seems wrong. Ok so I’m being dramatic but things like this should happen to guys like Sean Avery and Jarkko Ruutu. Not our Ricky. Is that mean?
Like Mr. Hermman said in Newsday time for CW to stop treating DP like he is Gretzky. In his years he has shown to be a marginal goalie at best. To call this guy an elite goalie is a farce. What is the thrill with him?? Has he ever been close to a top 5 goalie? Going into next season he will be what 28 years old? All I see is a goalie who has had some above average games, is very inconsistint, puts his team in trouble game after game by wandering out of the net, and now has major health issues! Put his ego into the mix and the 15 years we are stuck with him. The nightmare never ends. even when healthy DP was not an elite goalie!
does the term ‘build from the goal out’ even apply anymore?
Ricky is such a competitor that you know this must be absolutely killing him. The Isles have to be smart this summer and sign a backup who has proven he can handle being a #1, just in case DP is not ready. I’m thinking of a guy like Manny Legace. The other smart move would be to draft a goalie with one of their multiple 2d or 3d rd picks so that we have some future insurance. A guy like Scott Stajcer of Owen Sound (OHL) should be available. He’s big, talented, and competitive.
we need to move on from DP as the foundation of the franchise. Hockey is a business and the business is winning. We need to draft another goalie early for insurance. Best game i ever saw DP play was when he stood on his head and stopped 40+ shots against the rags a couple of years ago. Thanks for everything DP. Enjoy the remaining 12 years and 4.5 mil on your contract. Holy smokes what a bad deal that is…lol
Been away from PB for several days, but too many comments here had me shaking my head and/or yelling at my computer. To wit:
- The Isles scheduled yesterday’s announcement so it would get “buried” under the Presidential Inauguration. Right. Because political news routinely takes over the sports section. Why the hell does everything that happens with this team have to be a freaking conspiracy? Are they selling tinfoil hats at the team store these days?
- The way he’s playing this year, we can only HOPE that DP’s injury responds as well as Fernandez’s did with the time off.
- This team is “underachieving”…? Seriously? Please look up the definition of the word.
- Why the trade of Alexei Zhitnik is still being brought up is beyond me. Get this through your heads, people: just because Atlanta was willing to trade Coburn to Philly AT THE TRADE DEADLINE does NOT mean they were willing to trade him to the Islanders TWO MONTHS EARLIER. The two deals were NOT identical. Would that deal (Zhitnik/Coburn) have been there for the Isles two months later? Maybe, maybe not. Something we don’t know about, yet gets discussed around here as if it were an absolute. Par for the course. FYI: Isles got a 3rd rd pick for Zhitnik (along w/F. Meyer) which was used on D Mark Katic - presently 19 y/o and CB’s #7 non-pro Isles prospect (right here on this very site). How about we see what becomes of him before we declare this such a lousy trade?
- So Snow and Gordon had “some kind of relationship” before Gordon was hired? Oooh, juicy. Because GM’s NEVER have any kind of prior relationship with someone before they hire them as coach. Do tell us what you find when you get to the bottom of that mystery.
- Finally, to CB (and apologies for the long post - just figured better than several smaller ones) re: Columbus claiming Dubie - could you explore further, along the lines of “unwritten rules?” I know Bobby Clarke was on record as being against the rule that allowed that claim, but have you spoken w/any other hockey “insider” types about this?
Get well soon, Rick.
Get Danny Sabourin!!! He is a solid backup for Rick and can finish the season this year. Then he can fight for the backup job next year.
When healthy Ricky D is an elite goaltender. Stress the word when healthy. Of course Snow and the team say all the right things about not being worried about him long term. How can they not be worried? As an Islander fanatic since 1995 (I know, alot of disappointing seasons in that time frame) I am worried. We all need to pray for the good health of Ricky next season !!! And the immediate future. The long term contract scares the bejesus out of me because I’m pretty sure even if the bought him out like Yashin or if he retired prematurely they are on the books cap-wise for a major chunk of his salary. That may not hurt now or next year or even the year after that-but someday Islander fans this team should improve (lets hope) and they will need that moey for other players
I am a Giants fan from Argentina. Very nice Giants information.
I miss the days of Lawrence Taylor and Phil Simms.
I hope to be in Chicago for a game this fall.