QUICKIE
Man, by the time Friday finally arrives, the Islanders are going to look awfully brilliant for coming in last place in the league, winning the lottery and drafting John Tavares, the consensus best player available, first overall.
Comments.
 |
Point Blank aims to provide alternative and independent Islanders coverage for hockey fans. |
| The blog is run by managing editor Chris Botta, the team's former longtime media relations VP. Botta's opinion pieces, breaking news, rumors, rankings and feature stories are not subject to approval by team management. Email Chris at cb@islanderspointblank.com Advertisers: To become a sponsor of Point Blank and reach the thousands of hockey fans who hit the site several times daily, please contact us at cb@islanderspointblank.com  |
|
Man, by the time Friday finally arrives, the Islanders are going to look awfully brilliant for coming in last place in the league, winning the lottery and drafting John Tavares, the consensus best player available, first overall.
Comments.
Identity Theft Protection
click here
Great post. hopefully this about sums it up.
LOL
but how do you really feel Chris? awesome
CB, Are you trying to tell us something? Did a lttle bird happen to land on your shoulder? Happy Fathers day everyone!!!
best post ever!
CB i hope you are right about this i really do but if the isles do not take tavares i will stand and clap for whoever they do take because it is a win win situation for us. But as i say that im still hoping that garth says John Tavares’s name next friday
Happy Fathers Day Chris!!! Can’t wait to see you at the draft party. Seth told me you’ll be there…lookin forward to it.
Happy Father’s Day Chris (and to Islander Dads everywhere!). And man, I sure hope you’re right.
A lot of people don’t agree ith this wait it out and see who they pick process….I love it.
I compare it to the difference between winning a 6-0 game or a 2-1 game….you dont know what’s going to happen but you do know it is very exciting and keeps you interested. I didnt even realize baseball season started, I have to so wrapped up in this.
Brilliance huh?
Duchene all the way
do you know somthing we don’t CB…..happy fathers day big gguy
sounds like the pick will be tavares if i’m reading this right. hopefully this post calms people down a bit.
CB,
Do all of us a favor and interview Garth and tell him to stop being a Richard aka PeePee and do the right thing and draft Tavares. Tell him what most of us are saying and how he gave most of us ashida for what he did last year, having a top 5 pick and moving to 9th. Thank god Bailey shows some promise. Dont do that poopoo again this year! This team needs excitement and Tavares by himself 1 against 3 sounds better and will bring fans up on there seat than Jackman on a breakaway.
AMEN!
Maybe they can repeat the same trick next year.
I hope your right. I will be the first one to cancel my tickets if they take Duchene 1st overall
not getting my hopes up.
im scared of snow.
everyday it seems like he is leaning to duchene.
tavares will be the pick tho
LOL, CB keepin the faith!
Pittsbugh is now being lauded for doing the exact same thing.
nyi need TAVARES.
Hope your right…
I don’t care who they pick. They’re my team, and I’m sticking with them. If I lived anywhere near Long Island, I wouldn’t drop my season tickets like a hot potato (can’t believe real fans would do that). Snow could be an automatic genius, but I still think he might take the path less travelled. Either way, they are my team no matter who they take. Unless, of course, they trade down lower than third pick!
There is no way on earth Isles aren’t taking Tavares. I’d bet anything the banner for the top of the Isles website is already made and it’s got a big pic of JT on it. Garth is doing a good job keeping this a guessing game so the Isles continue to remain in the news. If they had said Tavares after the lottery, no one would be talking about it anymore. Wang is a businessman. He knows who’s going to put people in the seats and who may land them on network tv a little more, sell more merchandise, etc. Heck, the team store may even have a crowd. More importantly, Wang knows one player MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE will generate A LOT of buzz about the Isles in the hockey world and also on LI, which will only help the lighthouse project. Isles need goals…the whole world knows it. They also need Tavares…Wang and Snow know it.
Paul
This update would sound great read by Norm Macdonald.
Just ordered my draft party tickets, hopefully you are right about Tavares CB, although I believe you are I can’t see how they wouldn’t take him. I’m real curious to see what they do with that 26th. Friday couldn’t come soon enough.
is it friday yet?….no?… how about now?
I hateeeeeeee the fact I m gonna be at the met/yankee game friday night…does anyone have any suggestions how I can get real time data on the draft while I am at the game? Once I find out that Isles drafted JT, I am getting black out drunk!!
#24 prioritize my friend…go the draft party friday night and the yankee met game saturday
I think the excitement will be huge now when they draft Tavares. Much greater than if they had announced it when they won the draft lottery. After all this suspense…WOW!
I think it also takes that pressure off of Tavares to start the season. It lets him adjust to the NHL without that extra pressure. The Isles learned from what Tampa did with the Stamkos situation. Tavares also doesn’t have Vinnie and Marty to help prop him up in the beginning.
Even if it isn’t Tavares, we’ll get a great player. Can’t worry about what you don’t have.
ok, now that tavares will be in the fold, snow go out and get either leblanc, ferraro, glennie with the 26th pick…i cant wait till friday
#29
on the isles website, signup for real time update texts on who they draft
#33
I wonder how many cell phones will be destroyed after receiving that text…
Haha..great attitude!
CB, what made your write this post? It’s not like what you usually write at all? So, any info or anything make you put that up?
Awesome thought there CB!!! Just the medicine this manic Islander fan base needed … LOL!!!
I just have an inner gut hunch that you are right … I myself have discected the top 3 backwards and forwards the last 2 months and it only seems logical to pick Tavares … I was actually looking for a good reason to take Hedman and see what the fuss was about Duchene … but I beleive part of being great is sustainance … and Tavares has maintained great offensive numbers while sacrificing to improve his defensive game.
Happy Dad’s Day CB!!!
#29 you could go on nhl.com and sign up for mobile updates of all the teams
OMG, i had a dream last night that the islanders selected someone first overall that wasn’t even in the top 3. Scary. CB, hope to see you at draft party…i’ll be working all day there.
TELL US MORE CHRIS!!! Sounds like someone found a leak!!!!!!!!!!!!!
imagine islanders select like kane or someone else not in top 3 lol
Ha, for all the drama, it really is that simple.
I just read about this scenario in Newsday. I’d love to see the Isles somehow grab Landon Ferraro, yes son of Ray, with their 26 pick in rd 1. Perhaps by trading up afew.
I’d also like to know, with all the fuss and hype, is there a JT fan club yet?!!? LOL
Chick Parm Jr at #26!!!! Trade up to get Landon Ferraro!!!!
Lets Go Isles!
Why don’t we trade our #37 for Colorado’s #33, and swap #1 for #3 (maybe do the same in the third) just so we don’t have to make this decision. This has been fun, yet nerve racking for sure.
I think one of the big teasers is Dan Martin’s article in the Post with the mention of seeing an Islander Jersey with Duchene’s name on the back … but then saying well .. there also was one with Tavares’ name under that … and Hedman’s at the bottom. Hopefully they aren’t stacked in any particular order. :-\
I still say Garth makes the easy logical choice and picks Tavares … His prime focus is and should be on moving up from 26th without getting pocket picked in order to get another potential blue chipper.
Now can someone explain to me if the Isles select Tav or Dutch #1 (both centers) why they would then select another center at 26 or worse yet trade up to get one when they have young centers in Bailey, Trevino, Nielsen, Ullstrom, Marchinko etc? The first three alone not getting the first overall pick will occupy the center spots for years. We also don’t have to draft a kid just because his Dad played a few seasons here or has LI roots. Just select the BPA.
THere are alot of people saying drastic things like “Will cancel my tickets if they choose Duchene”…If Duchene is the player that can bring us cups, why is that a bad choice? You people are really closing your minds to what may be best to win cups here. You cannot win cups without a 2 way center or a big time defenceman. From all accounts, Tavares will score. Am I to understand that everyone would rather lead the league in goals scored than win a cup? Is that correct? If Snow choses Duchene and you people “BOO” him on stage, shame on you. You have now started this poor guy’s pro career off with an extreme negative
Boo Yaa!
Friday, the Islanders are Bring’n Sexy Back to Long Island.
JT will be sporting the blue and orange.
CB: I haven’t sat on the edge of my seat at the coliseum for some time now. I’m looking forward to doing it next Friday at precisely 7:15. Dont ruin it for us now.
seriously folks, it’s about winning cups, not selecting the player that simply may score more goals.
tood i have seen all 3 of these players play and let me tell you duchene will not win you a cup he is a solid player but he is not even in tavare’s leauge but i believe it will be tavares and if it isnt
FIRE GARTH AND CO. AND NO MORE TICKETS
TAVARES OR BUST
I have no inside view, no tips. Just staying consistent with Tavares.
As for Landon Ferraro, I’ve written this at least once before. He’s a good prospect, but the NYI have huge needs just about everywhere except at the role Landon plays. The only way I see the Islanders drafting him is if he slips deep into the second round. So in other words, I wouldn’t break out those old Ferraro jerseys…CB
Todd (52): I would like to know who the genius is that stated that Duchene will win a team Cups and Tavares won’t. That to me is the silliest thing I’ve ever heard. Was it Duchene or Tavares that LED his team to a Gold Medal at the World Jrs? It was JT, and Duchene was at home during that tournament. It’s one thing to have an opinion. It’s another to keep repeating somebody else’s absurd statement like it’s gospel just to prove your own arguement.
Yeah and Tavares has no leadership qualities either….LOL
No one talked about the needs in Gordon’s system …
TAVARES !
Even from the other side of the ocean it’s clear to see that the Isles are taking Tavares. Can’t wait til next Friday!!
Anyone ever see that great old movie “The Candidate”? When this is over they’ll make a movie about how a prospect was marketed all the way to the top of the draft called “The Prospect” starring Matt Duchene.
lets blow the roof of the old barn in a GOOD way friday night:
With the first pick in the 2009 nhl entry draft, the new york islanders are proud to selct JOHN TAVARES of the london knights!!
I’m wondering if CB forward theses post on Tavares to Snow…
Just like Garth Snow planned it.
CB.. does Snow or anyone in the organization read these posts daily?
i hope so lets go get JT
Aside from disapointing the fans, the isles management cant really mess this up. from what has been said about these top 3, there isnt a dud in the bunch. The names these guys have been compared to are pretty special players- ill be happy to have any of them. Snojanks (or whatever theyre called) get paid ridiculous salaries to make these picks, and they have much more intel on these kids. keep the faith isles fans… oh and just dont boo if they do select duchene, if he turns out to be a “yzerman” we’ll all be thrilled
Good for the “true” fans who won’t jump ship if they draft anyone besides JT.Fact of the matter is a majority of us are gone if they don’t do the right thing, listen to their fans, scouts and concensus of the hockey world and not try to pick the player who may down the road be a “piece” of a championship team.
we have the best pick=we should pic kthe best player. enough already.
#60 that sounds like music to my long suffering ears!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.i have’nt had an islander jersey since my bob bourne.if they draft jt .i think it might be time for a new one!
it has to be tavares he put up way better numbers last year then MD and he was playing against the others team best players while MD was playing against teams second lines. also tavares was the mvp in the world juniors on the team that MD didnt even make this is all a big joke and if they draft MD it will just show why we always suck and why we always are the joke of the league
The only way that it makes alot of sense for Snow to be pumping up the prospects of Duchene, is if they’re planning to pick Hedman..
If Islanders fans are going ballistic because they believe Duch will be the pick, then when Hedman is announced it’ll be a huge wave of relief..
It won’t be JT, but the consensus will be: Well. Atleast we weren’t THAT stupid!
@steve K….If they don’t pick JT I am gone, just sick of years of mismanagement.
Here’s a new better quote:
Duchene may get you 1st place in a speed skating race, but Tavares will get you Gold !
CB, something tells me that you will find stuff for the next few days…we are all in a frenzy, so…I am sure that you can find something, if nothing else but linking to crazy Canadian news stories about the draft, especially if they say the Isles are not taking Tavares.
Agreed CB that this is what should happen. I’m just a bit gun shy about getting my hopes up that the Isles would do the clearly logical thing and not go against the grain. Fingers and toes crossed for JT here.
Dear Garth
We want Tavares not some guy(MD) who cant even make team canada.
From
90% of all New York Islander fans
PS. If you dont take Tavares and he out plays whoever you pick you will hear Fire Garth chants in your sleep until we get you fired
So whos this kid who broke Gretzky’s scoring records….yeah you know the best player EVER to play the game……yeah I think you draft that guy…..
I believe that Garth’s reason for leaving everybody in the dark for so long is purely business rather than him truly not knowing who he was going to take when he won the lottery.
A huge number of pieces have been written by many different writers predicting who the Islanders will draft. If they named their guy at the lottery, the Islanders would barely be mentioned, and the Lightning, Avalanche, etc would have gotten the publicity.
While I am not 100% confident they will take Tavares, who I think they should, I feel that many signs may point to Tavares.
1. I do feel that Snow stating that he knew since the lottery points to either Tavares or Hedman.
2. He seemingly has made no attempts to drop back to 2 or 3. Similar to last year, he could have dropped to 3 if he truly wants Duchene, the fact that he is not may point to he wants Tavares or Hedman.
3. Snow was quoted saying that the “committee” making the decision had a pretty much unanimous decision. I honestly do not think that all 4 or 5 guys making this decision would all think that Duchene is the guy they will take.
Anyway, that is just my opinion
Matt Duchene in today’s Ottawa Sun:
“I’m not an overly big or strong guy, I just try to be all-around and I love to show up for the playoffs. That’s usually where I excel, in the OHL or in minor hockey. Hopefully, that’s pretty attractive when it comes to being scouted by the NHL.”
Uggh.
I am an Islanders fan. In a draft where we have the first pick and two consensus can’t-miss prospects, I fully expect the Islanders to pick the third best guy available. I’m exaggerating of course and I know that Duchene is now considered on the same level as the other two. I’m not excited about the pick in the least and I now fully expect that Duchene will be our choice.
For a team starving for attention and headlines, expect a huge yawn from the rest of the league and the public when the Isles select Duchene.
# 76 i totally agree, Snow said he had an idea by the lottery which pretty much runs it to Hedmen or Tavares, and he stated he just needed re-enforcement in that belief which probably meant he wasn’t sure with all the talk that Tavares should hold out. When Johnny came to the Island and they talked, that pretty much sealed the deal. Its going to be Tavares
It would be a public relations nightmare if they don’t draft JT. The place is not exciting, JT brings the excitement with him. We do not have a 20 goal scorer on the team. So why would we draft anyone other than a natural scorer. The only thing you cannot teach a hockey player is how to score. For the high level guys it innate. Secondly, why pump up the draft party #’s (18,000) knowing that 90% of us want JT and not take him. Have the jerseys ready to sell after the pick is made. BTW (check # of hits on Youtube for JT ) and decide who brings the fire with them to the old barn.
I think I’m going to the draft party. If we take Taveras, there will be an actual riot.
John Tavares picture will be on either the front or back cover of Newsday on Saturday with the headline “The New Kid in Town, Isles draft Junior Superstar!”. There is no other way or choice! The entire Islander org. knows this! He will probably throw out a pitch at the Yankees-Mets next W/E! 5 days till John Tavares is an Islander!!!
rb 77- Sounds like Max Talbot lol
CB, hope you are right! First Tavares, a healthy DiPietro (hopefully!?), and approval of the Lighthouse Project (in some form). The rebirth and re-emergence of the New York Islanders will be underway. Get on board or get out of the way, baby!
PS - Happy Father’s Day to CB and all the other dads out there.
I like how a 5′11 198 JT is “injury prone” and “needs to fill out” while a 6′ 200 MD is “built like a bull”. Yeah that extra 2 pounds makes all the difference in the world.
Polish Prince, JT is 6′ 198lbs, MD is 5′11″ 200, but point well made.
“From your blog to Gods eyes”
Let us pray….
Dear Lord, I pray for you to watch over our GM and keep him humble so he can choose the man we all are looking for to represent the NY Islanders!
We’re all Islanders
Amen
#86. . . Fact of the matter is, all of these kids are barely 18 and still have at least 4 more years to grow into a man. Keep in mind, as good as these kids are, they are kids still.
Being that the average coach in the NHL lasts less than 3 seasons … and for an Islander coach … it is even less … (Was Arbour the last coach to last more than 3 consecutive seasons?) It is reasonable to say that drafting a Gordon type player is pointness since odds are that Gordon will not see the end of the Entry contract for Tavares… so it doesn’t matter if Tavares is Gordon type player or not … or Duchene for that matter.
Oh and CB pretty much laid it out perfectly in the previous thread… I couldn’t care less if Bossy spent his summers in Anchorage Alaska … as long as he was playing on LI in May.
17,000, Isles faithfuls, are crawling out of the woodwork, to pack the the Ole Barn, only to witness the pick of a possible stud finisher for our beloved hockey team…So much for the Isles not having allot of fans…We are just looking for a reason to get excited again….
If 17,000 are packing the place only for the draft of this kid, imagine how many fans will be going to games now if Garth makes the smart choice…If he goes with Duch or Hedman, those people will not be packing the arena…
17,000 is a direct indicator that Tavaras will bring immediate fanny’s to the seats and immediate revenues to the struggling franchise…It would be s horrible business decision to do choose someone other than JT…
Relax and be assured, Garth is taking JT…Its the only choice, really…
Three things:
1). It will be very interesting to find out what kind of deals were in play 72 hours prior to the draft. CB - hopefully you can get the scoop when all is done.
2)Garth’s biggest challenge starts the last few days leading up to draft day and the day of. It sounds like they are all waiting until they “see the whites of their eyes”.
3)It will be exciting when we hear that the Islanders have “moved up” and to see what they gave up and who they pick!
Don’t forget everyone, only days after the draft is over July 1 is in front of us. I will be checking out all the sites as often as possible for any news.
Will Wang open the door and raise the budget and pick up a top player (or two)?
Man, this is exciting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh, don’t forget we might pick up a talent because of the cap !!!!
Snow must be bursting with scenarios about now!!!!!!
Im tired of hearing about this system. Enough already with this stupid system and classifying players to fit it. For the most part a star is a star in any “system.” I am not saying I am against scott gordon’s system. I have to see it another year to really evaluate, hopefully with a lot less man games missed and decent goaltending. Then we can really see however a player like zetterberg, crosby, Iginla will play good on any team. Tavares is suppose to be a player that is good on any team and not a character player that fits a system. With that said I would rather Have Duchene over Hedman. I want nothing to do with Hedman, but I REALLY WANT TAVARES!
No need to slander Garth, he has done nothing to deserve the ire of the massess. I am sure he will do the right thing after he is finished playing the power game and draft Tavares and then truly put his skills to the test with #26.
Remember the Bush-Williams controversy in the NFL Draft. The right choice still cost the Houston GM his job within a week.
It really is hard to say who the right decision will be. The history books will tell us that in 20 years. Without the benefit of a crystal ball, it would be suicide for the organization to invite 17,000 people to a party and not pick JT. JT is pretty much the consensus pick and has never lost his top seeding from Central Scouting. (As for MDs OHL scholastic award, he had an 85 average, that’s a freaking joke right. If you want brains, look at Drew Shore, he is going to Harvard.) If he doesn’t pan out, it will take 5 yrs for this to come to light and Snowie (if not even the Islanders) are gone at that point.
The only other viable option I can see is if they can parlay 1, 26 & one of the seconds (maybe throw in any Bridgeport prospect) for #2 or 3 plus anyone of #3-7. You would still get one of the sure things plus another highly likely can’t miss.
Moving down to #26 and beyond, big wings and large defenseman are they key. The Islanders have consistently drafted solid NHL defenseman over the years. If we could only get a few guys like Langevin and Lane, that would be great. It is great seeing Chynoweth being brought back into the organization, someone to teach a little more toughness in front of the crease.
Short of my previous wich, let’s hope the Islanders have the good fortune to move up the line a bit to get a blueliner like deHaan or Ekman or a big wing like Ashton.
Size definitely matters.
The Snow comments from Newsday were interesting but the more I thought about it the more it makes sense that this is just more posturing to see what deals may be out there. So Snow let’s everyone think he’s taking Hedman a few weeks back and the CA media runs with it. Snow gets a few calls from teams trying to maneuver. Nothing he likes so he makes another comment about taking the guy they wanted all along. Everyone assumes it’s Tavares and Snow takes a few more calls. Nothing really interesting there so now he makes some comments to let everyone think it’s Duchene. We’ll see if Snow gets some calls or deals he likes now. So he’s basically thrown every possible option out there and fielded every call and offer he can take. Nothing looking good so now we go w/ the #1 choice the whole time, JT. I hope this is right.
#96 - I hope you are right and all these comments by Snow and others have just been one big oily chumslick to get the sharks circling. No big trophy circling the boat? Take JT and run.
It makes sense that sNOw gm and his scouts all think Duchene is the best player!
What a joke! Do the right thing and draft Tavares!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Does Snow realize this is about putting people in the seats. Hedman won’t put people in seats. Face it, did any of the d-men drafted last year do anything? I don’t see why he would take duchene because he didn’t even make the canadian wjc team. Let me remind you that Tavares won MVP in this tournament and a gold medal. Snow knows what will happen to him if he doesn’t take tavares.