Comments on: THE DOWNSIDE OF SASKATOON: What happens ifthe NYI win the lottery? Plus: Wash 2, NYI 1 (OT)

By: Brad

Brad — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 22:40:01 +0000

good points on most things.K.O. still needs to be more selfish. I feel like he might be buying into the “don’t try to do to much” mentality a little too much. Kyle needs to try to make some plays on his own once and a while instead of defering. I thought the same thing about the anthem.

By: Isles4cups

Isles4cups — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 20:31:56 +0000

I for one was happy to hear that the Islanders were coming to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan for training camp and to play exhibition games against Calgary and Edmonton. Being from Manitoba, will give me and my son the opportunity to go for a road trip and catch the Islanders live.

By: Chris TMC

Chris TMC — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:25:52 +0000

bcarroll25 on Jan 20th, 2009 08:24:39 said: “bailey needs a summer in the weight room”
Id spend my summer there if he wasnt married.

By: DW

DW — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:44:09 +0000

Saskatoon is a very poor move PR wise for the Islanders. While the Rangers and Devils train at home [and get coverage for the cost of a train or car ride] and have their home preseason games on tv, the Islanders will be thousands of miles away, with minimal coverage, if at all. They had the same problem when in Nova Scotia.
Why not train at home in Syosset as is usual during the season, and open the Mausoleum early for preseason action?

By: bystander

bystander — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:29:37 +0000

61 chickendirt on Jan 20th, 2009 02:35:55 said:
DonK
Those Islanders teams had a good mix of talent AND hard workers.

What made them REALLY special is that their talented guys also were the most hard working. totally driven.

By: Dave

Dave — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:20:05 +0000

Glad training camp is in Saskatoon. Been an Islanders fan since they drafted Clark Gillies from my home town Regina Pats.

Pre-season tickets go on sale this Saturday for the Sept 19, 20 games. It’s a 2.5 hour drive for me and hope to get tickets to both games … but who knows, they will sell out very fast.

Ties to Saskatchewan and the WHL run deep in the Islanders and this is a great move!

By: Coach B

Coach B — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 18:02:33 +0000

If the Islanders get the first pick and get Tavares, fans would get to see him at the rookie camp after the draft. The Islanders need him to put excitement into the frachise and he would do it. In Canada the fans have heard the name Tavares since he was 13 years old.

By: UIF

UIF — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 16:59:19 +0000

Uh, Gordon…wrt reasons why the Isles aren’t winning, I’d say “never scoring” > “Yann Danis”

Blaming a third-string goalie for letting in 1 goal in 60 minutes? That’s pretty lame.

By: Brian From Jersey

Brian From Jersey — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 16:23:53 +0000

I wouldn’t worry about losing those 10 days .. Tavares will be out with a groin injury…

By: nightfly

nightfly — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 15:54:03 +0000

Hmph. I think Gordon isn’t satisfied with Danis because, like many have said, he gives up an awful lot of rebounds in dangerous areas – it’s one thing to kick shots to the corner, and quite another to send them into the slot. Even when the shot hits his chest, it bounces away… you’d expect that from a duffer but not from an NHL-quality guy.

As far as yesterday’s game, I think that the real reason Gordon was angry was that Danis had two horrible giveaways in the third period – first to Ovechkin, who thankfully hit the side of the net from a tight angle; second one while Danis was behind the net. They were lucky to escape with the point after that.

Witt deserved his two minutes. He was beaten on the play, and the slash that put him in the box was the THIRD – the first was a chop at AO’s skates and then the second caught him in the leg/midsection area. (I don’t know how “talky” NHL refs are, but in my league the refs will tell a guy if he’s right on the border – “watch the stick” or something – because they don’t want to put a guy in the box in OT. Would the ref have said anything to Witt?)

The effort is still there for these guys. That much is encouraging. I only worry that a full quarter-season with precious little results will hurt them mentally. Taveduch Watch or not, this club needs a win or two to show them that they’re heading in the right direction. At the end of the year I hope to see them at 20-22 wins. Whether they’re last by a little or a lot doesn’t change the odds at the first pick, right?

By: Chris TMC

Chris TMC — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 15:07:13 +0000

MJS on Jan 20th, 2009 01:30:07 said:
“…what if he has a transition to the NHL like Stamkos has had in Tampa? He has thus far put up 17 points, a -9, and 13:00 minutes of ice time par game. These are respectable numbers for a prospect and are marginally better than, say, Kyle Okposo’s…”

I wouldnt say that Stamkos numbers are marginally better than those of Kyle Okposo, actually. Check it out: http://i41.tinypic.com/20qnxpc.jpg

I would say that the two of them are essentially equal… but, if you had to make a case that one of them has been marginally better than the other in the NHL so far, at this point in time it looks like it would actually be Kyle.

-Same number of career points (18) except Okposo (41) played 3 fewer games than Stamkos (44)
-Okposo has a marginally better +/-
-Okposo has a better SH%.
-Stamkos has double the PIM.

I still say equal, but there you go!

By: JP39

JP39 — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 14:45:16 +0000

My take on this homestand is that it has been a complete success. We’ve played four, count ‘em, FOUR of the BEST teams in the Eastern Conference, closer and tighter than MANY other teams can say that they have throughout this season. 2-1 losses to Boston (the best team in the entire NHL on the night that we played them – I’m not 100% sure if they still have the most amount of points right now), the Rangers, and Washington (and Ovechkin scored both goals, so you tip your cap to the best player in the world)…and a 3-1 loss to the Devils, and to me that adds up to success for a VERY young and inexperienced team that is decimated with injuries and in a complete 100% rebuild. I don’t think the boys and Gordon are getting enough credit for what they’re doing right now. Everyone LOVES to focus on the negative, how about the positive for once? This season is clearly all about preparing for next season and beyond, and I think that it is going EXACTLY as it should be. Call me crazy. Lets Go Islanders!