Monthly Archives: March 2009
Today we finally learned where Kate Murray stands on the Lighthouse Project developed by Charles Wang and Scott Rechler and approved by Nassau County.
The Town of Hempstead Supervisor wants no part of it.
This may not seem like a revelation to most of you after all her stalling, but today Murray made it official. She sent out a press release. A petition in the form of a direct mail piece is also going out to Town of Hempstead residents this week (as a resident, I wonder who’s paying for that). I saw the piece today. It’s sad in every way.
Murray is attempting to sell Long Islanders on her idea of only renovating the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Shamelessly, she even played the veterans card in her press release.
Murray is “rallying all Long Islanders to support her efforts to convince county officials to pursue federal stimulus funds to renovate the Coliseum in Uniondale,” begins the press release. In an Eden Laikin article in Newsday tonight, Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi calls Murray’s actions, “Very silly and amateurish. We don’t need petitions. We need Kate Murray and the town to help get this thing moving.”
The Town Supervisor, whatever big shots are pulling her strings (Mr. Mondello, is that you? Let me know) and her advisors clearly put a lot of time and effort into their press release. I believe they are owed the chance for you to read it in its entirety. The release follows after I make a few first-glance observations:
- As for her rallying cry of receiving stimulus funds to renovate the Coliseum, I really hope Murray did her homework. I don’t think she’ll get federal stimulus funds to renovate a sports arena. I hope she’s making a promise she can keep. I don’t believe she is.
- If you subscribe to my theory that the whole basis of her direct mail piece is misleading, then there is only one conclusion: Murray is trying to scare off residents on this “massive development” (her words) so she can push off a decision on the project.
- Why push off a decision? Because Murray thinks it will help her win the election for Town Supervisor in November.
- Saddest of all, it’s just more politics. No one wants to rise above it. For all of our community leaders, this is one giant fail they have to live with.
- Do not minimize Murray’s shot across the bow today. Whether you agree with her position or not, this is monumental.
- I’ve held back an opinion on this until now. If I’m Charles Wang, I don’t wait until October 1. If I’m Wang, I schedule a meeting in Queens for Wednesday.
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As a matter of equal time, here’s the release. Could they at least get the year of the Islanders’ last Stanley Cup championship right?
PETITION DRIVE IS “STIMULUS”
TO “SCORE” FEDERAL FUNDS TO RENOVATE NASSAU
COLISEUM AND SAVE HOMETOWN ISLANDERS
Supervisor Kate Murray is rallying all Long Islanders to support her efforts to convince county officials to pursue federal stimulus funds to renovate the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale. “Built to memorialize those heroic veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice and home to a treasured hockey franchise that has inspired regional pride and fostered a strong Long Island identity, the Coliseum is a “shovel-ready” project clearly eligible for stimulus funding,” commented Murray.
The focal piece of a massive development project proposed by the Lighthouse Development Group, the Coliseum’s future has been tied to the adoption of the entire multi-billion dollar proposal. With a unique opportunity to provide Long Island with an economic shot in the arm and create desperately needed construction jobs, Murray is urging the county to score the Coliseum’s biggest victory since the Islanders 1984 Stanley Cup Championship.
“It’s about hockey, but it’s not a game,” stated Supervisor Murray. “Long Islanders should not be held hostage and our beloved hockey team should not be used as a pawn in a high stakes game of profit-driven development. I call upon county officials to team up with the Lighthouse Group to give Islander fans the hope for a bright future in a magnificent arena.”
Lighthouse Development Group founder and principal Charles Wang has raised the specter of relocating the Islanders franchise if his massive Lighthouse Project is not given a green light. The project includes two 35-40 story office buildings, 17 apartment buildings, 2,306 apartment units, one million square feet of office space, 500,000 square feet of retail space and 612 new hotel rooms. The Lighthouse Group is presently seeking a “shortcut” through state-mandated environmental reviews covering the largest commercial development in Long Island history.
“Drawing upon available and applicable stimulus funds, we can pursue a prospective remedy to the logistical and financial impediments to both the Coliseum renovation and the grandiose Lighthouse proposal,” added Supervisor Murray. “By using stimulus funds to renovate the aging Coliseum, we can relieve the cost/benefit pressures cited by Islanders’ ownership.”
“Let’s replace the rhetoric of demands and deadlines with the realities of jobs and growth. We can put hundreds, if not thousands, of people to work right now, at a time when families are struggling and unemployment numbers rising. I call upon all Long Islanders to team up in a wave of public support to get to work now, to renovate the Coliseum, create jobs, stimulate the economy and keep our hockey team at home where they belong.”
“To demonstrate and articulate the public’s support for an immediate pursuit of stimulus funds to renovate the Coliseum and rescue our hockey team, I have organized a petition drive to encourage County Executive Tom Suozzi to pursue available federal monies. I know the County Executive shares my commitment to saving the Islanders. Together we can take bold and purposeful steps towards achieving that goal.”
“I call upon Mr. Suozzi and Mr. Wang to put Long Islanders first, put hockey fans first and put the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum first,” concluded Murray. “And first things first, let’s pursue the federal stimulus money immediately and allow state-mandated environmental reviews to continue on course for the remainder of the Lighthouse Project. Let’s win this thing together, for a better Long Island and a brighter future.”
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UPDATED at 7:05 pm: You can’t make this up: Mark Streit out day-to-day with groin strain. Okay, now on to our injury story…CB.
Scott Gordon was talking to a trio of reporters today about the hurdles of teaching with so many players missing games and practices in the first half. He specifically mentioned the season-opening setbacks for Rick DiPietro, Mike Sillinger and Mike Comrie and then the run of injuries to Frans Nielsen, Trent Hunter, Nate Thompson, Freddy Meyer, Andy Sutton, Kyle Okposo and on and on and on.
Referring to the lack of anything close to a consistent lineup, Gordon said, “The first half of the season, to me, was a waste. There was no development of chemistry because we didn’t have our full team.”
Not even close. Joining the media scrum in the coach’s office mid-way through, I saw an opportunity to broach a much-debated topic on this blog. You know, the one about the Islanders’ off-the-charts man-games lost to injuries in recent seasons.
The Islanders will undoubtedly monitor the troubling trend. But Gordon today said that most of the Islanders’ injuries “were the stuff you can’t control.”
As for the proliferation of groin and hip injuries, Gordon said very few NHL teams have been fortunate to not get the bug. “It’s happening almost everywhere around the league,” he said. The quality of ice and the new models of skates are other factors being looked at. “The new skates,” Gordon said, “there’s absolutely no give to them at all.” (I can confirm hearing the same from dozens of players, coaches, trainers and scouts the last few years).
I told the Islanders head coach directly about many of the Comments on this blog questioning the effectiveness of the team’s training and strength and conditioning staff. Gordon said he understood the fans’ frustration over the lengthy injury list and he was right there with them.
Then he mentioned the more than 200 man-games lost by DiPietro, Sillinger and Sutton combined, plus the injuries of Joey MacDonald, Thompson, Hunter, Sutton and Nielsen (broken ankle after hitting a rut in the ice while absorbing an elbow to the head by Mike Mottau).
“There’s not one strength coach or trainer who could have prevented the majority of our injuries,” Gordon said. “If there was, I can tell you he’d be a really rich man.”
Comments.
[First in a series over the next week on road roommates].
Jeff Tambellini has enjoyed the last few weeks having Jack Hillen as his roommate on Islanders road trips. In his first full season as a pro, Hillen says, ”I just follow the crowd and try to be easy about everything.” As a result, Tambellini calls Hillen, “The lowest-maintenance roommate I’ve ever had in my hockey life.”
Okay Jeff, so tell us about some of your more challenging roommates.
“Yash (Alexei Yashin) is one of the nicest guys around. Everyone knows that,” Tambellini said today before boarding the Islanders 2:30 pm charter out of Farmingdale for Washington. “But…well, put it this way: we were on completely different schedules.
“On the night before a game, Yash would go to sleep at 10:15. I’m his roommate, and I’m a rookie at the time, so what am I gonna do or say”? Tambellini laughs. “The lights in our room would be out at 10:15, the TV is off, and I’m just sitting there like, what am I going to do for the next two hours?”
Any current teammates, Jeff?
“Frans Nielsen. Great friend. As a roommate? Good luck.
“One night, Fransy is snoring his brains out. I yell over to him. No movement. I throw a pillow at him. He doesn’t wake up. We’re in one of those great hotels we stay in where they over-do it with the pillows so I throw another one and another one. The snoring never stops.
“I nail him with a book. I throw a clock. I’m totally serious: his bed looks like a convenience store. Finally, I realize the only way I’m going to wake him up. I’m going to call his cell phone. He’s got a loud song and all the bells and whistles for his ringtone. He’s conditioned to not miss a call because he thinks it’s going to be his girlfriend. So I get out of bed, grab my phone, and actually call my own roommate!
“Fransy’s phone goes off and he jumps right out of bed in a panic to answer it. It’s me, the guy on the bed next to him. I ask him to please stop snoring.”
ETC: Sean Bergenheim still has not been cleared to play, meaning the Islanders will most likely have to call up a forward from Bridgeport for tomorrow’s game in Washington. Greg Logan reports that Joel Rechlicz will play against the Capitals and Joey MacDonald gets the start. Greg and I were at the same practice, but I didn’t get that info! Once again, the veteran journalist teaches the rookie blogger a lesson. That’s what I get for doing a story on road roommates…
Comments.
[Editor's Note: Please forgive the potential Tavares-Hedman overload. The way the Islanders competed this weekend, and the way Colorado has not the last two weeks, prompts me to publish any of these stories immediately. If I hold on to any articles too long, they could be completely worthless].
Tim Burke has been the Director of Scouting for the San Jose Sharks for the last 12 years. He is widely hailed by his peers as one of the best talent evaluators in the game. The Sharks lead the NHL with a record of 50-15-11. The team is loaded with home-grown players drafted by Burke and his staff.
In 2001, the Sharks made six draft selections. All of them made the NHL, including ace defenseman forward Ryane Clowe, taken 175th overall. Ten years ago, he even found a Swedish kid playing at Portledge on Long Island. Douglas Murray turned into a 6-3, 240-pound defenseman for the Sharks.
I received a note over the weeked from John Kreiser, a hockey writer I’ve known a long time. John and the staff at nhl.com were putting together a Tavares-Hedman poll of their own. In an email, Burke made his pick to Kreiser:
“Hedman. A team must build goal out and this kid can play a lot of minutes. World Juniors will be a small % of the decision. Hedman is ahead as he is a D and has unlimited upside.”
We won’t know where the NYI will draft until the lottery on April 14. No one knows who the Islanders will select if they’re fortunate enough to get the No. 1. This view from Burke, educated from 1987-1992 at the University of Lou Lamoriello, is presented solely as a public service.
Comments.
[All this talk of Matt Gilroy and Tyler Bozak and this year's hot collegiate free agents made me want to track down Jack Hillen. A year ago, the Islanders signed the defenseman immediately after his college career at Colorado ended. He took part in one practice and played the final two games of the NHL season, both against the New York Rangers].
One day you were in college and the next you were in the NHL, and a lot of people could not believe how poised you were.
To be honest with you, I don’t think I really took the time to think about how momentous it was. If I did, it probably would have been a different story.
Any advice to college players like Gilroy and Bozak, who could make the jump in the next week?
Nothing from my two games with the Islanders at the end of last season, but I definitely learned a lot this year. My message to any player going from college to the pros would be to remember how fun the game is.
At the start of this season, I spent way too much time thinking about this as my profession and worrying about whether I’d have a job at the NHL level and icetime and everything else. For a short time, it wasn’t fun. My experience in Bridgey was a blast. I started getting back to why I love the game so much. I’ve kept that attitude ever since and I plan on keeping it that way. You play a lot better when you’re approaching it with passion and fun and not worrying about things out of your control.
In your four years at Colorado College you played 30, 42, 38 and 41 games. This season you’ll play more than 70 in the regular season and more when you rejoin the Sound Tigers for the playoffs. Yet you don’t seem to be wearing down. What’s the secret?
I think the issue of games played can be a bit overrated. I didn’t find the transition so rough. In college you play fewer games, but you’re on the ice just as much. We practiced Monday-Thursday and played Friday and Saturday. I think if you polled any hockey player, they’d tell you they’ll take a game over a practice any time.
What was the best advice you got when you came into the NHL?
Billy Guerin said to me, “Kid, listen to your body. If you’re tired, sleep.”
What was a typical practice week at Colorado?
You practice all week for two games on Friday and Saturday. Monday was kind of a flow day, getting back after your one day off on Sunday. Tuesday was the hardest practice of the week. They could last for more than two hours and be intense from start to finish. Wednesday was all about systems and Thursday was special teams. On Monday and Wednesday, we lifted after practice.
An NHLer was telling me the other day about learning to get used to all the downtime. How is it different than college?
In college you don’t have any. It’s class and hockey. In the pros, the key is finding things to do after practice on non-game days. When we have weeks like last week without a game between Sunday in Chicago and Thursday at home, you can go a little crazy. You have to find a hobby.
What’s yours?
Guitar. I picked it up about a year ago and I’m glad I did. It’s perfect for all the down time. I play constantly.
If the Islanders had a talent show or made you perform as part of some rookie hazing, what’s the one song you’d play?
I don’t play for anybody but myself. And I don’t sing. My fiancee suggests I move into another room the moment I start playing. I play Dave Matthews the most, but if I was forced to do a song, it would probably be something by Collective Soul. Maybe “Shine.”
Comments.
All those images of Citi Field could make an NHL team owner without a development deal salivate. Today’s story from Nick Hershon of the Daily News may not, uh, break much ground, but Charles Wang does not rule out joining the Wilpons in Queens if Nassau and the TOH don’t meet the timeline.
By the way, no matter the location, is it really too much to ask for the Islanders and their fans to get a brand-new rink instead of a renovated very old building? The offseason reno plan never moved me, nor can I picture SMG loving it (“Sorry Bruce, sorry Britney, no concert. We’re re-doing the floors”!). Finally – if you’re keeping score – yes, the Daily News has now done more stories on the Islanders franchise moving to Queens than they’ve done this season on the Islanders hockey team. Deal with it, Pete Botte.
Comments. Learn about the NYI youth hockey program (free gear!) below.
For information on this youth hockey outreach, to sign up for the next session or to become a sponsor, email michelle.winter@newyorkislanders.com
When you’re on the writer/blogger side, you’re often pitched stories by people in my former profession about a company’s programs in the community.
Once in a while, the program is so good you don’t need to be pitched. You’re happy to help get the word out.
With the hockey team not playing til Wednesday, let’s take a moment to sing the praises of the Islanders Spring Hockey League. While its title makes it sound like it could be a beer league, the ISHL is a creative, progressive initiative by the Islanders to give children ages 6-14 their first exposure to the game of ice hockey.
Here are the basics of the deal…
How You Support It:
In the Islanders’ version of Girl Scout Cookies, you are asked to sell 20 vouchers for Islanders tickets at $25. Considering each $25 voucher gets you the equivalent of one $50 ticket, that’s a reasonable commitment.
What Your Child Receives:
1. Six weekly, one-hour ice hockey sessions focused on fundamentals at either Islanders Iceworks in Syosset, Newbridge Arena in Bellmore or The Rinx in Hauppauge. But of equal importance and even greater value…
2. A complete set of hockey equipment. Seriously.
Full disclosure: Luke Botta, 8-year old son of the team-sponsored blogger, is signed up for the Islanders Spring Hockey League. When I first saw that commercial on the Coliseum scoreboard where Bailey and Okposo talk about the program, unlike Ms. Murray I didn’t give a hoot about conflict of interest. As someone who knows how expensive youth sports can be, I only wanted to know if the Islanders’ offer was for real.
On Saturday, Luke picked up his equipment at Iceworks. In his Islanders bag was the following:
- Islanders ice hockey skates
- A stick, taped up and cut for his size
- A youth-hockey certified Bauer helmet with full cage
- Hockey pants, chest and shoulder protector, elbow and leg pads, gloves and socks
All of the equipment is Islanders-branded and top-notch. Luke first played two years ago. I would estimate the brand-new equipment he received from the Islanders Spring Hockey League as valued at $400 minimum. That’s if you shopped really hard and were friends with the guys at Play It Again Sports.
Now add on the value of the icetime and instruction, expensive wherever your child may play.
To the best of my knowledge, only the Pittsburgh Penguins – under the Sidney Crosby/Reebok umbrella – have a program that rivals this one. By asking only that participants sell 20 tickets at $25 each to their relatives and friends, that’s not just a great deal. By introducing kids to the game and putting more fans in the seats – and perhaps winning new ones – the Islanders have devised a youth hockey outreach that is generous and smart. That’s good community relations and marketing. Everyone, especially the children, benefits.
Appropriately, the first children invited to join the program were from the team’s charity initiative Islanders Inspire. But the progam is open to everyone, and 400 
signed up for the Spring season. Attendance in the next session could more than double. Maybe some of these kids could be the next Richie Hansen, Northport’s own who 30 years ago became the first Long Islander to play for the Islanders. Maybe they can be the next Komisarek or Higgins or Nystrom or Scuderi.
I’m told that the ISHL for this season is booked solid, but is such a success the Islanders will have a version in the fall (hmmm, maybe the Kyle Okposo or __________ Autumn Academy). If you are interested in signing up your child, contact my former colleague Michelle at the email address below. A percentage of the tickets sold goes to underwrite and expand the program and services for next season. That said, if you’re interested in becoming a sponsor of the program, send a note to Michelle.
If you are new to the youth hockey game, as the parent of a player I can tell you I’m not aware of a better deal in New York than this.
For information on this Islanders youth hockey outreach, sign up for the next session or become a sponsor, contact Michelle Winter at michelle.winter@newyorkislanders.com.
Share your interest and feedback on the Islanders youth hockey program in this thread.
Tavares/Hedman/Duchene, those Tampa and Colorado juggernauts and hockey talk continues below. A Jack Hillen story is up next. Comments.
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