TAVHEDUCH WATCH: Day After April Fools’ Edition
NYI: 59 pts (6 GR), COL: 64 pts (5), TBL 65 pts (5)
1:35 pm - The Lanche, brutal and beaten down by injuries, may not win again. Smytty done in ‘rado, Vinny down for the season in Tampa. NYI over .500 for a long stretch now. The Bolts come to the NVMC on Saturday. It’s fairly simple. The lead may look comfy this afternoon, but if Callahan, Benti, Trevor, Yann and Gordon’s gritty-gutties beat Montreal tonight, Watch out.
Comments.
82 Responses to TAVHEDUCH WATCH: Day After April Fools’ Edition
NYI: 59 pts (6 GR), COL: 64 pts (5), TBL 65 pts (5)
-
bcarey says:
we’ll have a top-4 pick. that much is certain. nothing wrong with that. i want to win out.
-
We need a top 2 pick. Plain and simple. The top 2 are much better than the rest. We need a franchise player.
-
admin says:
(2) Wow…CB
-
-Big Van Vader says:
(2) lol
-
Steve K. says:
(2)I will kill myself if that happens. you can not be serious.
-
Patrick Flatleaver says:
CB, we know the players want to win out, that’s obvious (and very respected). What does MANAGEMENT want right now? Do you think Garth is hoping they lose, and lock up top 2 pick?
-
d-man says:
steve k.: a choice between death and a top 4 pick? i think most of us would choose top 4. kate murray on the other hand would put off a decision, avoid commitment and in a backroom sort of way create a committee to figure out the best way possible to put off the decision until 2016
-
Gloobenberg says:
ugh..i feel sick.
Way too much up-in-the-airedness right now. I know that’s not a real word. Leave me alone!
-
Frank James says:
Watched the Avs last night. They are a disgrace. Montoya with a shutout in his first game. Ryan Smyth is a good player but THANK GOD we didn’t sign him to a multi year deal. His game and increasing age will take a toll on him.
-
Macch says:
Its never easy when you’re an Islander fan
-
kevin fitz says:
Of course number 2 is not serious. He is just trying to get a rise out of people. I am now officially rooting against the Islanders because I can no longer watch the games. I was getting the Center Ice package free all season, but they must have caught on last week because it got turned off. Now since I don’t have to watch them I can root against them!
-
Froggy says:
Tonight’s the biggie. Figure we win on Sat and then hopefully lose the two on the road and I see the Philly game as a toss up. I would be shocked if we lost to the Bruins. They won’t play anybody and the barn will be packed. Just gotta hope that the Avs and Lightning can pick up a point or three along the way.
-
Spartiarti - RVC says:
Ryan Smyth left us b/c he wanted to go to winner. Ha. Good riddens. I always feel things happen for reason.
Tampa, Atl, isles are clearly not tanking. Lanche are. they have plenty of scorers on team. As much as i want to see isles win tonight when i go. only way we going to guarantee finishing last is to lose all remaining games.
-
Joey303 says:
Lets go 2-4 – Beat Philly and Boston last 2 games. Colorado is not winning again, and Tampa must win Sat. Play Mannino, bring up Fritz, put him on the first line, and make sure Park has a tummy ache.
-
bergie20 says:
i think we’ll lose tonight in regulation. the habs are desperate and have been playing better lately. no streit or okposo will help our cause a lot. on the other hand saturday night could be a problem.
-
Brian G says:
If there is a shootout tonight the shooters will be:
Witt, Rechlicz, & Jackman (why not, there are no rules who can be in the shootout right)…maybe the Isles will be the first team to ever use a Goalie…that would be funny. -
Chris M says:
I love seeing this team win but for the best interest of the team they really do need to get the #1 pick.
The kids we have are good and I think KO is an all-star in the making. What the Islanders lack though is a name, a guy with the it factor that when you say his name to anyone who is a fan of hockey theyll know who he is and that hes an Islander. We’ve lacked that for a long time and I think its important for the rebuilding of this club that we get a guy of that stature
-
Mike from Philly says:
Tavares or bust!!
-
lovin lethbridge says:
Maybe the Isles should shut KO down for the season so he doesnt end up with a chronic groin issue like that of Marian Gaborik.
-
bf51 says:
We all the know how this will play out. The Isles are gonna win the last game of the season which will end up depriving them of the top pick.
-
Jackie from Monticello says:
Let them play well and lose close, hard fought games. Seriously, to come this far and NOT get the 1 or 2 would be the continuation of the nightmare.
-
Islander505 says:
If there is a shootout tonight I say Martinek, Danis and Mcdonald
-
Brian – heh – actually I don’t think you’re allowed, because a goalie is not permitted to play the puck beyond the red line. That rule holds in shootouts. I’d love to see a guy in full pads rolling in with the puck, though – by rule he’d have to have the blocker and trapper too, though he could technically have a player’s stick instead of the paddle.
That should be an All-Star Event – goalie on goalie shootouts.
-
The Mick says:
Just lose baby.
-
Rich Humeedo says:
I can’t believe the Av’s are tanking this bad, what a farce. Ryan Symth can go peddle his fish for all I care.
-
isles316 says:
#7 at the Lighthouse meeting last week someone mentioned the first overall pick and Charles Wang said “God I hope so” or something to that effect. So he is aware and I’m sure the team wants that too.
Also, the Avs and Tampa should be eliminated from the league. They both have too much talent to suck that bad.
-
JP39 says:
Everyone needs to realize that things are gonna turn out the way they’re gonna turn out, no matter what. Believe me, I want that #1 pick as much as everyone else, but just let the season play out and that’s it. There’s too much analysis and thought going into something that none of us have any control over. If we finish 29th instead of 30th, so be it. We still have a good shot at the #1 pick if that’s the case. Finishing 30th actually hasn’t worked out well for that team since the inception of the draft lottery. I think the stat is that out of 13 lotteries that have taken place, the 30th team has only retained that #1 pick 5 times. That’s less than 50% of the time. So let’s just let things happen as they may. If we finish 30th, then great. We’d be guaranteed JT or Hedman. If we finish 29th, we’d probably still get one of those two and still could end up with the #1 pick. Lets Go Isles!
-
This is my last post on the subject until we “clinch” last overall (please please please). 95% of us die-hards always want to see the team do well. We all love to watch the kids, the great saves, the goals, etc. We have Islander blood in our veins, and for me, since 1974. We all NEVER want to see them lose. Except for 4 of the next 6 games. SIX GAMES from out of our Islander lives to watch them lose 4 of them….Whats the big deal?? To be guaranteed 1 of the the top 2 stud muffins will do wonders for the future of this franchise. I beg of you fellow Isles fans……….Root for 4 losses in regulation. Just 4 losses in the rest of our Islander rooting lives
-
hey…I was cursing richard park last night and we blew that one…we’re not winning tonight.
No Okposo.No Streit.No Chance.
We will go 2-3-1.Finish tied with the Avs and win(lose?) the tie-breaker with fewest wins.
Wins-Tampa Bay,Bruins
Losses-Habs,Pens,Canes
OT/SO Loss-Flyers
-
JP39, I think you hit the nail on the head that if we come in last we are guarenteed JT or VH. I think a lot of Islanders fans are looking for that guarentee because we lack positive news usually.
-
Michael says:
Screw Tampa and Colorado. What a freaking joke. I would kill for Stastny, Hedjuk, St. Louis, Lecavalier and Stamkos.
They can all go FOFF.
Islanders need this top 2 pick. If one of these two loser organizations come in and take it, I will be irate.
BTW, Hows Colorado Smyth? Crybaby BITCH.
-
StevieL says:
Ryan Smyth out for the year!! Broken hand! Sakic not coming back. Lecavy out for year with TB. The league is really going to make the Isles earn that #1. I say, sit Streit and Okposo for the reat of the year. nothing to gain, a lot to lose. The Bolts and Av’s are assuring themselves of a shot at #1 or #2. We are helping them out!!
-
isles72 says:
I watched colorado’s last few games and they are not tanking -the lunch bucket crew they are icing are actually working their asses off but theres just no talent there as its all on the IR .
-
Brooks Simpson (Joy's brother) says:
I want DP in the shootout lineup. Now!
-
beatlebailey says:
i would rest kyle and streit and comeau and bailey and danis…and….for the reaminder!!..focus on the prize boys!! tavares will speed up the rebuild by at least one season!! Go habs
-
Are all the Avs injuries real? can anyone list em?
-
McLovin21 says:
JP39(28) I agree with you, but I cant help but be sickened by the thought of finishing 29th, then watching the 28th place team win the lottery, bumping us to 3rd. I know that picking in the top 2 doesnt guarantee that the player that we pick will be a superstar, but the chances seem to be a hell of a lot better that we’ll get a great player if we are picking first or second.
-
Joey (#29) I agree with you 100000000000000000000000000000%!
-
All right all you OFFENSE first guys….lets speculate and say Taveres is off the table and we have a choice between Hedman and Duschene. Who do you pick?
-
Matt says:
Chris, do you know if the Islanders have tried to lock up Andy Hilbert yet? He is a fantastic player who I hope spends many years on Long Island helping us win Cup #5.
-
C.J. says:
We need to be OVERLY cautious with Streit and Okposo.
Let McAmmond rest as well. Goon it up. Plenty of penalties against and power plays for the other team.
Oh… and give Pock top dman minutes.
-
Joe says:
If they keep hitting and fighting, they are going down with some pride, Im MORE than okay to lose the next 6 in a row, or 4/5 out of 6. A top 2 pick is a must, we didnt watch this crappy season so that we could get the fifth pick, no, we need a top two. I agree 100 percent with Joey303. Have Fritz center the first line, we already have Witt on the shoot out. At this point, they put an entertaining product on the ice, its definitely time to think of the future.
The second post on here is hilarious.
-
Jerky says:
If the TAVHEDUCH race goes down to the final game of the season, it’ll be interesting to see the ratio of fans who root for/against the Isles (both on this site and at the Coliseum) for the 30th place finish!
-
It’s been a lot of fun watching the kids develop over the last 3 months…but the ONLY thing that will make this season a success (term used very loosely) is a 30th place finish. Win or lose the lottery, we get a blue chip prospect.
-
Scott D. says:
Barring any additional help, a 2-3-1 finish is needed, which means tonight is huge. in fact, tonight may be the game that decides the outcome. Not the game vs. Tampa. If they lose tonight, beat Tampa, then lose the two road games, we’d need to lose just one point the last two home games. That’s reasonable. As CB said though, a win tonight would make it difficult. Tonight’s key.
-
Schultz39 says:
I agree with one of the earlier posters, shut down Okposo and Streit for the rest of the year if they have groin strains. If we go to a shoot out tonight, I think we should have Rechlicz, Pock, Jackman take the shots. And tell Danis to not stress himself….
-
Mike says:
To Blizzard: The pro-Taveres people are not necessarily “offense” first, just “best talent” first, with which you can agree or disagree. To answer your question, its got to be Hedman over Duschene (by almost any measure according to so-called experts) because he is the “best talent” of the two.
-
UIF says:
Eh, let’s just see how it plays out. Maybe we’ll end up with Magnus Svensson-Paajarvi (?), who may not be the most talented in the draft, but by far has the coolest name out of everyone.
-
God it is exhausting being an Islander fan!! Do I root for a win or loss! What are the ratio’s and percentages that will assure
us of finishing last/Who do we draft? Play the kids or don’t play the kids? Who we getting at the trade deadline? Who are we dumping! What about the Lighthouse? Do you support it or not? What’s going on with Queens? What did kate Murray send out in her letter? Will Wang scale back? Are we going to be sold? Are we moving to KC? Who do the Av’s and Bolts have left on the schedule?Are they tanking? Are we tanking? Should we rest our stars? What about Bridgeport? Are you going to the Calder Cup playoffs at NVMC! What is our salary Cap space? Will DP come back? Who likes our goal song? Our third jerseys rule! Will we use them as our main jersey? Jaffee and Howie suck! What radio station are we on? What cable channel did Dolan put us on? Will Gordons system work in the NHL?etc. etc.
I am so jealous of Hockey fans who just have to figure out if they have a shot at the Cup or not! It has to be exciting getting ready for the playoffs and not dealing with half the crap an Islander fan has to deal with! Then again it might be a little boring!!6 games to go!! Have you ever rooted for a season to end before? -
Steve says:
Who is Benti?
-
Eric W. says:
When does the NHL have the lottery? Is it on TV?
-
BringtheReign says:
We wont beat Boston of Philly or even Pitts or Carolina. So 4 point between Tampa who we could beat and Montral who i want to beat tn will give us what 63 pts by seasons end?
-
Stevie L #50 – AMEN!!! Great post
-
Coach B says:
Break out the Tums!
-
Willis says:
I am totally enjoying the suspense of it all right now. Let the chips fall where they may, its not like we haven’t dealt with “hardship” before……I think we’ll survive. Here’s hoping the LONG ISLAND home of our team does too.
-
Nightfly..
“actually I don’t think you’re allowed, because a goalie is not permitted to play the puck beyond the red line.”Who says he can’t shoot the puck from behind the red line?
-
The lottery is April 14th.
-
#51 – StevieL, that has to one of the funniest posts ever on PB. Great Post !!
-
NYICHAMP39 says:
Everyone who needs any type of medical attention should take it now!!! Its so obvious that that is whats happening in CO and Tampa. Everyone ALL OF A SUDDEN needs this arthroscopic surgery or needs to sit out the rest of the season. Sure.
So Streit…rest up buddy, take your time.
Witt…if you feel a tweek in your baby toe dont be a warrior…take the time.
Anyone else with a scrape or bruise? Yeah its ok stay home and rest up.
Lets bring the Sound tigers team up for the Tavheduch push!!
-
Ps i find it hard to believe that the AVS cant at least squeeze out an OTL in their final 6 games or whatever they have left. Even that would be huge for us. Or maybe they will surprise us all and actually win a game…
-
Original Rob says:
I watched the lottery last year on NHL.com’s website, I doubt it’s available on cable television, at least in the US.
Let’s go Habs tonight!!
-
miketee says:
We need to lose and keep losing. Not too many years ago, an Uwe Krupp goal put us in the playoffs on the last day of the season. The cost was Jaromir Jagr who was selected one pick ahead of Scott Scissons.
Please let’s not let that type of history be repeated.
-
VS. should have the draft lottery.
-
MikeF says:
Ok, I love the fact this is probably one of the best last place teams in any sport in the history of sports to be watching, and no one will ever be able to say they tanked their way into that pick, but this us BRUTAL. 6 more games like last night and I’ll be a happy camper.
-
Draft Lottery is on the NHL Network in the States.
-
Will Teese says:
The lottery should also be on VS. I just can’t wait for draft day, especially if wwe have the first pick. The Draft party will be awesome.
-
Joe in Massapequa says:
Here’s to hoping the Isles are rewarded for not tanking this season and having those ping pong balls in place for them rather than some bush league tanking by a select few teams!!
-
West Coast Fan says:
(64) We probably would have picked Scissons anyway…
-
TIM says:
with SMYTH,SAKIC,STASHNY out and now LECAVIER out with the lightning i don’t like our chances of getting the top pick or even the second pick we need those teams to win a few games or the isle’s to lose my thoughts….
-
the bomber says:
you think the fans in TB or COL are not up in arms with us not having Kyle, Streit, Bergy, etc tonight?? im sure they think we are tanking just as much as we think they are….
and i hope we are…i think our GM is smart enough to make sure we dont come this far and blow it. i can see that tampa game being 0-0 with no shots on goal, and into the 30th round of the shootout with not one guy shooting it on net…
-
the draft party will be awesome….right up to the point where the Isles trade down the third time in the first round…
-
Central Scouting will release it final draft rankings on April 14th, the day of the lottery.
-
rob says:
Cant help but feel the 3rd pick, possibly 4th will be ours. Chris- how confident are you in Kane, or Duchene? Can these guys step in next year and play a important role. I’m hearing Kane is quite the scorer. Him on one side, and Okposo on the other, with Bailey in the middle would not be terrible. And people lets not get crazy with the 1st and 2nd pick. Both of the top guys will step in and make a huge difference, but Mike Bossy was the 15th overall pick. I will take my chances with number 3 overall, if the chips fall that way. Go Isles.
-
19 ISLE in NJ 22 says:
I think the Isles’ losing out in the next 6 games will not kill their long term development .. on the contrary it will enhance it with a shot at a much more talented prospect … I doubt very much that losing the last 6 will mute any development … Sept. camp presents a fresh new start for our prospects … so those that are concerned that losing will hurt the kids’ development have no fear.
-
My fear is drafting another good prospect at 3rd or 4th that requires a couple of years of junior / AHL development & maybe even physical maturity vs. can’t miss blue chippers like Tavares or Hedman … if that’s the case … we’ll be on the outside looking in at new super stars on Tampa or Colorado.
Just saying: If Tavares and Hedman are 9.0 / 9.5 type players … may be an 8.0; Kane, Schenn & Magnus possibly a 7.0 or 7.5 …
-
Edit … insert .. Duchene at maybe an 8.0
-
jim says:
(#64) i remember being at that last game of the season and they showed the end of that Buffalo game on the big board and when Krupp scored we were all so damn happy (who knew at the time that we shouldn’t have been). as (70) wrote we probably would have screwed it up anyway and picked Scissons (not that the guy deserves the hate, im sure he was considered a great prospect at the time).
-
Jim Clark says: Mon Dieu, that was an ugly game to go to tonight. It figured to have a high probability of a clinker: back-to-back and belly-to-belly game, top two players out. I was one of about 5 Islanders fans to stick it out with the Montreal fans who made the announced attendance of 15,000 not a highly exaggerated figure. Maybe the Wanger should offer Gillete the option of playing of playing all four 2009-10 games in the Bell Centre so their fans don’t have to travel 400 miles (643 kilometers)to go OLeOleOleOleOle.
The thing of it is the Habs started out flat for the first 10 minutes. The Fishsticks couldn’t do anything on the two power plays and ex-Ranger stiff Kovalev decided to play and get three assists.
The thing of it is the
-
JZimm says:
Not too long ago, Miketee? That was 19 years ago this past Tuesday. Almost a generation ago.
I agree, getting Tavares is more important than getting Hedman, but getting one of them is most important. To play their way out of 30th, the Islanders have to gain 5 points on Co. and 6 points on TB. Saturday’s game is important. The Islanders have to lose. After Saturday’s game against TB, it should be losses for the remainder. They play Carolina, Pittsburgh, Philidelphia, and Boston. Colorado plays a very winnable game against Dallas. I don’t recall TB’s schedule, but I don’t think the Islanders will catch them. Hang tight, it’s going to be a hell of a ride. Hopefully we’ll all wake up happy on Wednesday, April 15.
-
Miketee – it wouldn’t have made a difference if we’d just taken Brodeur with the sixth pick instead of Scissons. You can’t blame making the playoffs on the bad draft choice.
Also, my brain just started bleeding. Thanks for the reminder of 1990!
**airkiss**
thats damn skippy CB! WE NEED TO LOSE TO tonight (nix that game in hand) and Saturday…virtually eliminating TB from Taveduch contention. Colorado can suck it, bunch of pansies.