2 BAD: BEAUCH & TANGUAY WOULD HELP, NOT HURT
Snow explains why he’s staying the course
UPDATED at 11:30 pm - Garth Snow re-iterates to Greg Logan why he is staying the course:
“We have the flexibility to make additions to the lineup, but I’m leery of bringing in players who are going to take ice time and compromise the development of our young players. The path we’re taking is building through the draft. The best situation for our team is if some young player comes to camp and earns a spot on our roster. I don’t think I’ve deviated from the plan we made public a year ago.”
My reaction: Fine and dandy. I just don’t think the addition of one skilled forward and one skilled defenseman - both younger than 30 - deviates from the plan or compromises the development of young players. Have Jesse Joensuu (39 points in 71 AHL games) or Trevor Smith (1 goal in 7 NHL games) shown enough? Robin Figren and Justin DiBenedetto were scratched from some games in the AHL playoffs. The Islanders’ roster has a long way to go before you could consider it bursting with young NHL-ready (or NHL-close) talent.
*
Francois Beauchemin and Alex Tanguay, the top-4 defenseman and top-6 forward Point Blank identified as smart, reasonable, affordable and perfect fits for your rebuilding Islanders, are still available. 72 96 hours after the market opened, these two 29-year old skilled performers can still be added to your team.
They may not be around for long. There are rumblings Tanguay may return to the Avs. There’s also a rumor Beauchemin has a nod and a wink with Toronto and is just waiting for the Maple Leafs to clear some cap space.
Still, we thought Tanguay was an ideal semi-reclamation project with wicked offensive skills to make John Tavares feel at home. (Look at him with his head up, threading that perfect pass!) Beauchemin could make it back-to-back summers the Islanders inked the best value defenseman.
Neither would mess up the payroll. Neither would take valuable icetime away. Beauchemin’s arrival might cost the Fantastic IVth some starts. Tanguay might move fellow finesse forward Jeff Tambellini to the 13th spot.
Did I mention Beauchemin and Tanguay are a decade younger than Doug Weight and Dwayne Roloson? Did I mention they’re younger than Mark Streit, Richard Park, Radek Martinek, Brendan Witt and Jon Sim?
Or how about this? Let’s say Tanguay ends up only getting a year or two on his contract. Heaven forbid he plays well but the Islanders are not in the playoff race. You could move him for a late first round pick. Value, people!
Look, the John Tavares coronation on Wednesday at the Coliseum will be a lovely, inspired public event. There will be plenty of press there - the Canadian crew we haven’t seen since the arrival of Ryan (Oops, Here Come Those Tears Again) Smyth will be back. Many fans will give up their lunch hours and maybe their days to be there. But you know darn well it would be a far happier place if this rebuild was nudged along a tad faster than just by the arrival of an 18-year old goal scorer.
There’s rebuilding and there’s patience. And then there’s giving your fans a little hope, your team a little skill - all without messing up the grand plan.
About That Chicago Fire: Came home late last night to a few dozen emails about the Blackhawks possibly losing Kris Versteeg, Cam Barker, Ben Eager and a few other chips because they may have screwed up some RFA paperwork. Everyone figures that if the Chicago Six become unrestricted free agents, the Islanders would have to jump all over some of them.
Let me ask you something. I know Scott Gordon coached Versteeg, who is only 23. I get that Barker (also just 23) is a real good dman and Eager (25) would add the required toughness. But Jay Bouwmeester is 25, Marian Gaborik and Mike Komisarek 27, Martin Havlat and Jordan Leopold 28.
The Islanders have not been serious players this week for any of the excellent and young UFAs because they want to provide icetime and development to the players they already have. Those are their words. So why would you think they would be among the top bidders for Versteeg, Barker and Eager?
Comments. Comment Guidelines. Happy 4th of July to all fellow Americans out there. And a huge thank you to the Point Blank readers who in June broke March’s record for daily unique visits.
147 Responses to “2 BAD: BEAUCH & TANGUAY WOULD HELP, NOT HURT
Snow explains why he’s staying the course”
Please Wait
I have always liked Tanguay, go get him.
My question is, why is Tambellini still on the team?
every team needs dead wood ..
Go get em Garth!!!!!
Sadly I agree. First time I have disagreed with one of Garth’s moves in a while. There is rebuilding and then there is playing kids for the sake of playing kids. Im not saying we should have gone out and spent the crazy money on Komisarek, but there is absolutely no justification to not put out reasonable deals to Beauchemin and Tanguay. As you noted Chris, even if its just to trade them at the deadline. Also with the most injury prone defense in the league I see no reason why going into the season with FM4 as the 7th dman is a bad thing. Do they really expect to get 60-70 games each out of Sutton, Martinek, FM, and Gervais?
The reasons I think the Isles will make a run at these guys a) they are younger, even if by a little; b) most of the big spenders have already spent a lot of their cap space; c) we don’t know if the Isles didn’t kick the tires on all the players you mentioned. Maybe they did and struck out. I personally think that if these guys do become UFAs, the Isles will be serious players for all if not some of them. If they’re not, I would really have to question Garth’s commitment to rebuilding.
CB, to answer your rhetorical question… the Isles would not be interested.
This is because it’s crystal clear that Wang will not be investing in this team (w/the exception for glaring issues like goaltending) until the Lighthouse Project is complete.
And for this reason, I will not be investing in the New York Islanders until I see management investing in the on-ice product.
No, I’m not asking for them to go and sign Marion Hossa.
I am however asking that they replace the likes of Andy Hilbert, Tim Jackman, Freddy Meyer, etc. with some more capable players and begin to support their youth instead of sending them out on the ice nightly to get blasted and walk away w/their confidence shot.
Wake up Snow, wake up Wang.
The JT thing was great. But now it’s over. You get a pass in that you won’t have to pay the young many anything substantial over the next 3 years.
Stop shopping at Walmart and go purchase something that’s formidable and makes sense (just as you said CB, Beauchamin is exactly that player).
CB, I agree with this post 1000%. Those of us who are realistic knew that there was not going to be a big splash, but this is now puzzling. When Rob Scuderi was not signed right away what was the issue? Was the phone call made? With Tanguay & Beauchamin still out there three days after the start of free agency, what is the problem? There still is a salary floor the team must hit. No one is asking for this team to act crazy, but is one or both of these players putting on an the Orange & Blue too much to ask for? I think not. If those players from Chicago do become available it will flood the market, making those players even better bargains, because there will supply.
Lets go Mr. Snow, remember, the real hockey fans understand the rebuilding, but we don’t understand the silance with good parts to fitting the rebuilding being left out there. Especially if the fact that one player is waiting another team be bullied into corecting a Toronto mistake is accurate.
How far below the salary floor are we? I assume we have to sign some players to even field a team this year. Anyone know the exact amount or even a ballpark figure? CB, you have a pretty intelligent, captive audience here. Give us some technical info regarding the salary floor so we have some financial perspective rather than judging Garth & Co. based on pure player evaluation.
Ben Eager and Kris Versteeg would be AWESOME and SMART pickups.
I think the cap floor is somewhere in the low forties. As per nhlnumbers.com the Islanders are at 35.435
It’s the difference between patience and apathy. As a franchise, we have grown apathetic… we’ve been patient for 25 years. I would give Tanguay a longer term deal, say 4-5 years, same for Beach. Then, do all I can to trade for Jack Johnson. They all add to the rebuild do to age and skill, not retard it. Plus, it takes a TON of pressure off of the JT.
CB,
I agree, they should big time players for both Francois Beauchemin and
Alex Tanguay. Give Tanguay a 2 year deal and Beachemin a 3 year deal. The only young guys that deserve ice time is of course Tavares, Bailey, Okpuso, Bergenheim and maybe Jesse J.. The jury is still out on Comeau. I’m suprised Tamby is still there. On defense, it’s Hillen and Gervais. The rest of the defense outside of Streit could be traded and we wouldn’t miss them because of most them get hurt any way.
Anything to the rumor that Jovanowski is available? I would trade Witt or Sutton for him…and I’d throw in Tamby too because I’m a nice guy…
You have to imagine that the Isles will make at least one more signing to get to the cap floor so there is always that. Then again, overpaying someone to get to the floor, and picking up someone that could be productive and on the roster for a while is another thing. Hopefully Francois or Alex could be had to help. Maybe Moen or Grier could be added for some grit. The cynics are probably right that Wanger is limiting his monetary investment this season, but Snow has to make some hockey moves for both the AHL and probably for the NHL. When last I looked, which was not so long ago, the team sat at $35 mil for payroll, so, something has to happen signing-wise doesn’t it CB?
I would be surprised if the NHL made the Chicago 6 free agents. They will call it an mix up with a fax machine or something like that and move on.
I would think the owners as a whole and the NHL don’t want a bunch of talented young players hitting the market before they should.
It would be funny if Hossa picked the wrong team again.
and don’t take Blake back…so it clears cap space for Toronto…
It’s hard to argue with CB’s point about Beauchemin and Tanguay. It’s alos hard to argue against an owner losing 20 million a season. I may be doing the same thing as Charles. The LH needs to get passed. If the LH gets passed and were still not spending money that’s a problem.
The Islanders DO NOT need to sign any of these FA to reach the cap floor. The Tavares cap hit is over 3.75 mil (confirmed on NHL.com) and they still need to sign RFA’s Comeau, Thompson, and Hillen. As mentioned earlier, Wang has clearly told Snow he cannot go above the cap floor. Can you blame him? However, when Garth comes out and says last season was “unacceptable” and then does little to nothing to improving the team, what does that say to your fans? There is not one UFA who should be pushing one of the current guys out of a job? Ridiculous. Snow and Wang will see the shine is starting to wear off of the Tavares thing for Isles fans and reality is setting back in. Happy 4th to all!!!!!
The Islanders will hit the cap floor pretty easily. They are only about $5m below it (floor is $40.8m), Tavares will take up $3m+ and Comeau, Hillen and Thompson will take up the rest.
I’d love to see Tanguay or Beauchemin on the Island, but don’t really see why either of them would sign here.
I think the floor is at $40.8.. if NHLNumbers is correct and we’re at $35.4 .. Tavares’ cap hit will probably be between $3.5 to $4.0M.. So that’ll put us almost at the floor..
Nevertheless, Tanguay would be a brilliant fit for us.
The best blog you have ever put out on here Chris. Especially the final two paragraphs. Reality of the situation is the Islanders will not be signing Tanguay Beauchemin or any of the Chicago players if the NHL rules against them (not likely) What we will continue to get from the Islanders is signings for Bridgeport and maybe one very low tier defenseman like Andrew Alberts, Greg DeVries or Phillipe Boucher.
Chris, I’m starting to think you’d make a better GM for this team. LOL
QUESTION…The Islanders have not been serious players this week for any of the excellent and young UFAs because they want to provide icetime and development to the players they already have. Those are their words. So why would you think they would be among the top bidders for Versteeg, Barker and Eager?
ANSWER… Because they only have 3 or 4 decent players ready for NHL icetime.
If we can fast forward the progress of this up and(maybe)coming team, then let’s do it.
If not… Taylor Hall… 2010 Draft Day here we come…lol.
Not that there is anything wrong with that.
But… if we don’t add some more talent then add some toughness.
I don’t mind losing the close games, but I don’t want the kids getting beat up at the same time.
They need to feel safe out there.
I like Tambellini. This is the make-or-break year for him…
well I think it’s clear this team is going to be finishing last once again this year. Well Toronto might give us a run for it. Seriously though, WTF Snow??!! These young guys need someone to play with. You think Tavares is going to have great success playing with Okposo, Bailey, or Comeau??? Come on now. A guy like Tanguay could be just what the doctor ordered. Now I know Long Island isn’t exactly the ideal place to play right now but hell, we need to lure someone to play here.
Happy 4th everyone, I heard the Hawks are looking for a big tough say at home D man, remind you of anyone.
The reason those Chicago guys are possible…. everyone else spent all their money and we have not. These are young studs, DOES NOT interfere with the rebuild if anything it accelerates it with young ProVEN players. Cant wait for Garths excuse on that one
CB: You asked why would Garth go after those guys if he did not go after some of the other younger free agents? Look at it this way: Guys like Bouwmeester, Gaborik, Mike Komisarek, Havlat and Jordan Leopold were all known free agents come july 1st. nhl gms planned accordingly and blew their cap space based on that & Snow knew it was not in rebuilding isles plans to invest $$ and yrs on those guys at this time. The Chicago six enter the market after all the big contracts have been handed out and many teams have their rosters/cap space set 09-10. The few teams who did nothing like the Isles are in a great position to award some nice contracts (probably for less $$ and yrs than the Chicago 6 would have gotten if they were known to be UFAs on July 1st).
Nothing will probably come of this though.
joedayisback (17): John Tavares cannot possibly have a confirmed cap hit yet, he hasnt even signed an NHL contract yet as far as I know. That 3.75M cap hit is probably an estimate based on the contract that Stamkos got last season from the TBL and how much a rookie can get in salary and bonuses under the CBA. On Newsday there were a number of people telling me that there is no possible way Tavares will have a cap hit like that, but we will see on that. But anyway, regardless of where the number came from, you are correct that the Isles will not be needing all these signings that people keep calling for in order to make the cap floor. The cap floor does not look like it will be a prob for them.
They really should sign some muscle and -hopefully- a scoring winger. Now that FA hysteria has died down, I doubt everyone will know who the Isles are talking to and/or considering, though.
Speaking of Tambellini, I would like to see him get more power play time this year. He doesn’t get enough. His shot would make a nice power play weapon. If he doesn’t breakout this year it time to cut ties, but give him another chance. He showed some promise at the end of last season. He also helps in the shootouts.
if barker and versteeg become ufa’s….blow them away with offers…barker is a STUD!!!
If Tambellini doesn’t produce this year…I can see him not getting renewed the following year….Although, he might come in clutch with all these shootouts….he does have a wicked wrister when he’s all alone.
I would love to see some more skill added to this line-up such as the players that Chris mentioned. But unfortunately I’m not optimistic it’ll happen. This rebuild is painfully slow and I think Snow is fine with that. I just hope he knows what he’s doing. Eventually he has to start surrounding our core players with some outside talent. We’ll never win otherwise.
And I wouldn’t be surprised to see Tanguay go to a team like the Red Wings who now have some wiggle room to add a player, possibly two.
Well that’s my last post, see you in the next thread!
CB sounds a little tired of the excuses and wants to see an effort on Garths part to put a half way NHL ready team on the ice…We will be a laughing stock again if we don’t sign someone with some skill and ability…How are these kids supposed to develop if they are getting trampled over???
I see many fans are going nuts, blaming Garth, but I truly believe it is a tough task selling a star player to play here…
I recall fans going crazy because we didn’t sign Gomez, Drury, Briere or Smyth a couple years ago but last time I checked they have all been considered bad value signings. We just got JT lets not try to rush things, when our young players prove they can play against the best players in the world and be effective then we can surround them with the right pieces.
Shame on you Chris……..the fact that you would even bring up any remaining viable quality candidate free agents for this team when you know that Charles Wang is not going to spend a penny more than he has to!
Happy 4th everyone! I think with Tavares given a good contract we’ll be around the cap floor. I agree with everyone above who figure that Wang will not invest any more in this team until the Lighthouse has approval. It is too bad because the team as currently constructed will not be a whole lot better than last years. If healthy we will win a few more games but Tanguay and Beauchamin would be nice additions. Easy for me to say since it’s not my money paying them…
Gotta agree here, CB.
There is NO WAY the Isles can go into this coming season without at least signing one quality forward (Tanguay) and one good d-man (Beauchemin).
And I’m sorry, but I don’t have any problem with anyone who says they won’t invest any money in the team this year if they don’t invest in any players in FA. We AREN’T asking for Hossa or Gaborik.
Damn it. Why can’t this team do ANYthing the right way? Why is it so easy for all of us to see, including guys like CB and BD Gallof, and our GM’s(past and present) continue to dissappoint this fanbase??? What, do they WANT to see us dwindle away to 3000 people in the building again like in the mid 90’s? Yeah, I know. Those that don’t come aren’t real fans. But that’s b.s. too. There are alot of “real fans” who just can’t take hearing have “patience”. Hearing that “next year” we will be able to sign some real FA’s. It’s been too long for most fans. 1993. 1993 was the last time we won a playoff series. C’mon. THAT’S UNACCEPTABLE, Garth!
Tanguay and a d-man are too much?
Won’t be good for our “rebuild”???!?
Cut the b.s., Isles management.
Don’t be cheap.
Give Tavares SOMEbody to play with.
I can deal with Rechlitz and Eager.
Well KO21, the players mentioned are not star players. They are solid players, but they are not household names. Kris Versteeg would be a perfect addition to the Isles team because he’s very young and a good shot.
I feel as though Garth Snow is far too confident in the players already in the system. There are definitely a handful of talented players, but not nearly enough to make a full team from. The additions of a few more AHL prospects yesterday show that the Islanders are really planning to build from the ground up, but as CB said, it won’t hurt to add young players that already have some NHL experience. They have to realize that not EVERY prospect turns into an NHL player. The Islanders can not afford another two seasons at the bottom of the standings. Yes, I KNOW that’s how Pittsburgh got to the cup, but Mario Lemieux is far more patient than Charles Wang, and us Isles fans have been waiting much longer for the cup back since Pittsburgh.
We don’t need a Marian Hossa, or a Marian Gaborik, but we need some solid young NHL players that are proven to have what it takes to develop into a quality player. Versteeg has done that last year. Kyle Okposo and Josh Bailey did it too.
As for Jeff Tambellini, the skill is there. He needs some solid people beside him, and he needs to stay motivated.
Snow realizes that building the core is important. But we’re far from having it. We have no young, quality defensemen, besides Bruno Gervais and Calvin de Haan, who might be good in several years. We can’t lose every game in the mean time. Cam Barker is 23 and very talented also, and getting better. The team that we have now will not get anywhere close to the playoffs. Not this year, not ever. We still have 2 offensive lines to fill, and 5 defensemen to find. The Islanders HAVE to spend money to get to the minimum salary, it’s not even an option, it’s a must. Might as well get the best bang for the buck.
Snow is looking at this the wrong way. I think that he believes that they are playing it safe by not spending money, but they are risking more by putting the team in the hands of 18 year olds and praying they’ll turn into pros. The Lighthouse Project will go through, Wang needs to keep his head up and have some faith. We showed our support at meetings and the Draft Party, now show us some thanks and listen to us more. Anybody regretting the Tavares choice right now?
#37 - I agree
Shame on you CB getting people worked up for more posts. You known there is no chance for either candidate.
And Chris, when I say shame on you I mean it with a hint of sarcasm, I agree with the post, and I think you know as well that these players won’t be signed, keep up the good work!!!
I hate Tanguay and feel doesnt fit in into the style of play Gordon and Snow has brought into the team. He’s not a character guy, work ethic is in question, and gets hurt a lot. I feel Snow will wait towards the end to see who else is available and pick from there. He will get his Dougie weight type of signing this year so he can trade them and get those 2010 draft pick deals at deadline.
I’m with you tool123 very soft and currently has shoulder problems a canadian player who plays as soft as a european player NO THANKS
Both guys would be good signings. It was the overpaying that made some of those previous signings head-scratchers. That, and Moen, and I’d call it a day.
CB doesnt need any extra posts … HE was the one to tell us all on June 30th NOT TO EXPECT ANYTHING, everyone else ignores that. In saying that Beauchamin and Tanguay are still out there and would fit nicely on our team he is just stating a fact and his opinion…. nothing more.
#34, great point Isles 78. I think Mtl did ok, but I expect the other big FA signings will also be seen as bad value signing in a few years (including Gaborik).
Snow is keeping it close to the vest, in the same way he did with the Taveres pick. I’m confident he is doing what he can to improve the Team, short-term and long-term.
I’m sure he is making offers. Besides, why would any quality FA really WANT to come here, unless they had to because they ran out of options with other franchises? Using a number of different metrics, the Islanders are arguably THE smallest market team in the entire NHL (we are not part of NYC, maybe half of the local hockey fan demographics are Ranger/Devil fans).
Plus, I am sure Gordon’s coaching style is seen as a huge negative within the player ranks. FAs don’t have to look to hard to see what happens when veterans do commit themselves to the Islanders (Guerin, Witt, Sim, etc.). You are dismissed and treated as fodder. I was born/raised on LI but the Isles would not be my first team choice as a FA either.
I think Snow and Wang are being smart waiting for “value” FAs to filter down the market and then pick who they want.
Both would be nice to have prowling the NVMC ice for the next few years. If it fits into financial and team structure, go for it. Also, Happy Birthday America and a special thank you to those serving in harms way today!
Good point Uncle Jr, CB knows how to push out button’s…lol
I actually watched Chicago play during the playoffs and the only guy I would consider is Eager. He can skate, fight and score a little. Did I mention he is 6′5. Barker was a liability out there and Versteeg didn’t really impress me. Tanguay and Beauchemin would be great but I can’t see why they would sign here. Go get Eager offer sheet, trade, whatever. Trust me on this one. Fan favorite!!
uncle jr, the fact and opinion he stated mirrors the fact and sentiment of many on this blog. repition is repition. we all know what he meant when he said not to expect anything. welcome to the blog. happy 4th of july too btw.
How does Tanguay even make sense for the Islanders? He made $5.375 last season and is only 29. This is the time when hockey players will historically sign the biggest contracts of their career.
He will need a minimum of 5 years/6.5 million a year, or some similar combination of more years and less annual. Does a long-term contract like on a player like Tanguay really make sense for the Isles right now?
Enough with the patience bologney. Lets be frank, what a load of crap. Tanguay would fit in real nicely with JT and KO on the top line. If he would come the Islanders should make it happen. And make it happen before someone else nabs him. Whos Ice time is he gonna take away? Tambellini? Give me a break.
Just checked out Chicago’s cap situation and we could pry Eager away from them as they are hard up against the cap and it looks as if he would be a 12 or 13th foward while we could fit in the top 9 of our fowards. Still only 25. Did I mention he can skate, hit, fight and score a little. Perfect fit for us.
Definitely want to see some necessary moves made. Not looking for big splash, but solid NHL ready additions that would be a real upgrade and aid the development of our young core.
Very disappointed about the DP situation and lack of toughness. I hope the Blackhawks become available.
Did you guys ever stop and think that these guys may not want to play here? Give it a break already.
People have to remember, signing free agents is a two way street. The rebuild plans are to start signing legit free agents when the team appears to have the necessary core of young players and are on the up and up. It also works the same for the free agents. They’re not going to want to sign with the Isles until the team appears to moving forward. We all know free agents aren’t sitting around waiting for the call from Garth.
W e can’t hold our breath for the Blckhawks 6 to become UFA’s because the changes are slim to none. However there is no reason why we should not go after F.B. & A.T. they would be excellent additions and not be a big hit on the books. Come on Garth lets go after these 2. I honestly feel we have the makings of a good solid team but we need a couple of additions.
CB is absolutely right. CB for NEW ISLES GM!
Ethan K #40,you took the words out of my mouth. Snow is either trying to create the perception he is playing it safe by dumping the whole enchilada in the hands of greenhorns or shocklingly doesn’t understand the risk of doing so. Our so called plethera of young talent haven’t proven a thing at the NHL level and there is no guarantee they will. Any successful rebuild from within is always supported by solid vets. Perhaps Garth should go back to 1976,the turnaround year leading to the dynasty years. Bill Torrey saw the need for solid veteran support and went out and acquired two 27 year olds, JP Parise and Jude Drouin and added to the wily old Eddie Westfall. Together they showed Deny Potvin,Bobby Nystrom,Bryan Trottier and later Mike Bossy how to get it done at the professional level. If you ask me there are two possible elements at work currently. 1)Snow is thinking in an anal,narrow and stubborn manner; 2)Charles Wang has instructed him to barely go above the Cap Floor,consequently tying his hands. The latter would result in disaster. It is time to build on the Tavares momentum,not sit on it. That will only build apathy from a fan perspective sooner rather than later and begin to disillusion Tavares himself. Most importantly and possibly fatally for this franchise,it may reduce fan fever and civic support for the Lighthouse Project. The only two possibilities I see resulting from the stance of management is; 1) most of the prospects jelling at the same time,showing abilities not yet seen from them at any level(Tavares excluded),which is most unlikely; 2)The continuance of the status quo on the ice and exposure of miscalculation of the young core here. Should the latter occur,the base for the rebuild will become a sinkhole rather than a concrete floor!
I think everyone is overreacting a little on here. I still think there is plenty of time for Snow to make moves. The fact that it has been so quiet makes me think that he has something in the works. Snow filled the biggest need for this team on the first day(Rolo) and I think we just need to give him time for the rest. I think he is seeing what other teams do with RFA’s, signings and trades. Snow is in a good position to strike with a lot of room under the cap. The season starts in October, not July. Be Patient.
For those that insist upon free agents not desiring to come here,that is not the only avenue Garth could travel down. There are teams with Cap problems open to trade and teams with Cap space who should welcome the opportunity to accomodate those teams. Get the drift??
Surprised cb…tanguay is a dog. He is craig janney lite and there is a reason he is still out there.
Now beauchamin(sp) from what I hear has some major upside. Unless he has an attitude I cannot understand why he isn’t an islander…
I can’t believe Tanguay is still available. What are they waiting for?
#63 wrote…”Unless he has an attitude I cannot understand why he isn’t an islander…”
Did you ever think that maybe he doesn’t want to come here? Just maybe there are other teams out there talking to him that might look more attractive than the rebuilding Islanders…come on.
Swan: Martin Havlat got $5 mill a year for 6 years. Tanguay, coming off a bad year and with a reputation (as I’ve read in Comments) for softness, is not getting anywhere near that.
On the Blackhawks thing, my point is if the Islanders are not signing ANY free agents because they like the guys they have under contract, why would they all of a sudden make room just because they’re lucky enough the Chicago 6 became available? But like a lot of you have said, I wouldn’t hold my breath anyway. The league may not make them UFAs.
As for the players “not wanting to come here,” take my word for it: four full days into free agency, if you don’t have a deal, these guys will go to whatever team offers them the most money. Mark Streit did last year and didn’t even try to pretend he knew much about the Islanders. He went where the money was.
Enjoy the rest of the day…CB
Taylor Hall will be our next big acquisition.
I couldnt agree more.Especially with Tanguay. He has a little under 200 goals/600 points in 700 games.Has almost identical CAREER PLAYOFF POINT number as Doug Weight and he is 9 yrs younger.
PLAYOFF STATS : 20 GOALS/60 POINTS 100 games.
sign him if you can especially if the team has a few young players with 2 way contracts. Sed a few guys down for extra playing time here and there and let the fowards learn from Doug Weight /Alex Tanguay now and maybe you wind up in a playoff race and still have a decent draft pick and trade him to a contender for a good pick.Please sign this guy
last years years Campoli trade turned into a number 12
Ben Eager = JT bodyguard!!!
I’m all for Beauchemin! Happy 4th to the best Islanders blogger and the best commentators on the web.
CB you are absolutely right about the factor money. I think not cause of money, but also it would be a great chance for Tanguay to redeem himself, that he can play the game. Beauchemin would be a big addition, he can skate hit fight and chip in to score. Would love that we could get a hand on both of them and Garth pulls the trigger.
you’re all wrong about tanguay i had him in my city and he stinks becareful what you wish for
Just a side note here because I hadn’t seen it mentioned. Ted Nolan took a job running the Rochester Americans of the AHL. I wonder if he’ll make a play to get Jeff Tambellini?
I have to say I’m pretty disappointed that the Isladers will be going into the 2009-10 season with an equivilent cast to 2008-09.
They may be heading in the right direction, but they had a chance to accelerate the process, and it appears that they will not. If Snow’s plan was to get three top 10 draft picks in three consecutive years it looks like he’s on the right track.
Ted Nolan… new job, probably never going to be in the NHL again. I bet he doesn’t care either.
Bill Guerin… Stanley Cup… resigned by Pens
Ruslan Fedotenko… Stanley Cup… resigned by pens
Joe Vasicek… 34 pts in 56 KHL games, 15 pts in 19 playoff games… If his checks don’t bounce I bet he’s okay with that.
Garth Snow, Scott Gordon, Jeff Tambellini, Rick DiPietro… LAST PLACE..DESTINED TO BE THERE AGAIN.
… just sayin’
Lets offer tanguay 2 yrs 8 mill. And Beauchomin 4 yrs 14 mill
Tanguay and Beauchemin will be great additions and will help the Islanders achieve at least the salary floor.
More quotes from Garth on why the Isles still have a long way to to go.
Garth Snow on signing Mike Comrie in 2007.
“We really wanted Mike Comrie because Ted Nolan, the scouts and I were unanimous in wanting to bring his offensive production, creativity and competitiveness to our team,” said Islanders general manager Garth Snow. “At 26, Mike has already produced a lot of points and still has the potential to develop into one of the best centers in the game. I know Mike had a lot of options, but he understands the kind of team we’re putting together on the Island and we’re so glad he chose to be an Islander.”
Garth Snow on re-signing Comrie in 2008 at $4 million.
“He has been everything we had hoped he would be,”
Garth, is Tanguey worth as much? I think so.
The Isles probably could get both for:
Francois Beauchemin- 4 yrs- 14.6- similiar to Scuderi;
Alex Tanguay- 1 yr. 5 Million or 2 years 9.5 Million.
That would put the Isles at around $43 -$44 Million salary cap…and still have room to pick up one or two of the Blackhawks if they became free agents. Also, there’s probably a market for Sutton and or Witt and Hunter…if you need to shed some payroll…
I can’t Imagine the Isles being a top bidder for Versteeg and Eager but I would be surprised if they didn’t try to bid for Barker. The reason, we have nothing on the ice or in our system that even resembles Cam Barker especially since he would be the # 2 right out of camp based on one full seasons play.
So many intelligent posters in here and an excellent blogger running the joint and not one person, as far as I read, came up with the most likely reason the Islanders aren’t going after anyone. Is it possible that the owner, after losing what has been reported as 20 million dollars per year and having most of his money tied up in a land development deal has told Snow to keep the team salary at the cap floor? Anyone? We have to assume that even by adding a couple of free agents the Isles aren’t going anywhere near a cup and therefore do not want to spend money for nothing.
I’m also having a hard time understanding how they are going to accelerate the process, as a few people have mentioned, by signing guys for 2-3 year deals that A. Won’t be around when the team finally gets good, B. will hurt the teams chances of getting better by making us a middle of the pack team who gets the 15th pick in the draft, and C. will force the Isles to bench or cut some of their younger players in favor of said 30 year old FA who won’t be here in 4 years. Don’t we already have enogh older players and CB why would you suggest that since they do already have older vets they should sign some more? I could’ve swore this is exactly what they’ve been doing for the past 15 years but maybe I’m wrong. Can anyone clear this up for the few of us who are onboard the ’suck for 3 years and collect top three picks for a rebuild’ train?
LouD: Charles Wang certainly has the money for the players, he’s not strapped for cash.
There is no option of picking up free agents or not, they HAVE TO. They still need to spend 5 million dollars to reach the minimum salary. They might as well get players that can make the team good.
The Islanders were a .500 team after the half this past season, with the young players getting better and better. Certainly with a few “veterans” like the 28 year old Beauchemin, they can be a pretty good team this year.
It’s an endless cycle. People want to pay to see a winning team. If the team is losing, people don’t go, Wang doesn’t want to spend money on new players, they keep losing, they keep losing money. Gotta break the cycle some time.
I find this whole money arguement bullcrap! Winning makes everything work. You spend money wisely you have a better chance to win. Even if you dont win you spend a little your team is more exciting and things start to happen. Your team gets better the fans show up. The fans show up to a better product on the ice and pressure mounts for a new arena. It all starts with owner spending money to field a competitive team. I dont care that he lost money. He hasnt spend to the cap since there has been a cap. I believe the guys running the team now are competent so let them spend what they need too and watch what happens then. If he wont spend he should sell out and leave. Its that simple. What a disadvantage it is to spend what other teams spend.
And by the way while Im at it, I watched every second of Islanders hockey last yr and we are not as far away as everyone thinks. The first half of the year we were right there with anyone in the league. The guys will be better this yr. If Ricky is healthy I believe we are right there in the playoff hunt. Last yr there were so many close games that could have gone either way. The only reason we lost was either our goaltending didnt hold up or the other teams star player just won the game for them. All I believe we need now is a Star or two to put us over the top. We need another goal scorer and another real puck moving defensemen to help Streit and thats it. In the new NHL you need goaltending and a great Power Play.
As far as the enforcer goes, I know all the other teams are loading up. Let them waste roster spots on them. A great Power Play is the answer not our team adding them too. Im fine with Jackman and Sutton. They can both take of business. Please stop calling Witt a fighter as he is not. Also Sutton gets no respect on here. I would love to see him stay healthy this yr as he is a top defensemen in my opinion. He had an amazing stretch last yr playing with Streit and I hope he can return to that form.
Who disagrees ?
I don’t wanna be the worst team in the league again and then again in 2011 with the hope of collecting the top pick all three years. That line of reasoning is garbage…a famous man said “You play to win the game!” I just want improvement each season.
Both would be great additions, in my opinion. Tanguay next to Weight and Tavares next year would be a great start. On the defensive end, Beauchemin would not require us to break the bank either. If I was trying to bring in Tanguay, I’d try for four to five years. I’d probably give the same length to Beauchemin.
Happy Fourth!
#85 Please allow me respectfully disagree with You. As an Islanders fan since 1977 I should remind You that the CLUB was there already (UFA) multiple times with no results. Nedless to remind You what happened back in 2001 when the CLUB got sedussed with big market name/s.
Remembering Islanders back in 70s I’s say - let them grow and let’s pray that management and owner would be patient and wise enough.
Also, let’s hope that the Lighthouse project will surface and sucseed.
Have a HAPPY HOLIDAY !!!!
LET’S GO ISLANDERS !!!!!!!!!!
It’s nice that Garth Snow is putting so much effort in restocking the Sound Tigers, I just wish he would concentrate on restocking the Islanders. We have a load of goalies but no enforcers. Mike Bossy took a beating WITH Clark Gilles on the ice. I am not looking forward to what’s in store for Tavares. Since he’s our only legitamate goal scorer it makes sense for teams to concentrate on him and pound him with both legal and illegal hits. Thank’s to Garth’s standing pat no one will have to answer for them.
#89 Sorry Brian Burke, but we drafted him fair and square
I dunno about everyone else but I for one cannot wait for camp to open. Hopefully in the coming days we’ll sign FB and AT. If not. Oh well
Totally agree with you CB. Both Beauchemnin and Tanguay would be perfect fits with this team. I like what Garth is doing by rebuilding through the draft, but if you don’t add some pieces through the process by free agency, you are dead!!!!
These two guys are still fairly young and productive. Unless they are demanding a ridiculous amount of money, there is no way these guys should not be offered a fair contract by this team.
One other thing, I know you have some great insiders, but who says the Isles have not offered them contract, but have been rejected? I know Garth is always looking for a bargain, but in this case I’m sure you can get them for a good deal.
You guys realize that it’s only July 4th, right? Feel worried about the line-up in September. Until then I’m going to keep on checking back to see what happens.
I’m obviously in the minority, but I’m still a Tamby fan. I would like to see Tanguay, but I believe Garth is going to wait for some of the RFA’s to slip through
So, Garth has decided he wants to build through the draft instead of sign free agents. That translates to, “we will suck this year and be in the lottery again”. I’m fine with that, because thats how stanley cup teams get built. I don’t think we have the pieces in our system that project us to be a top team. We still need top notch prospects. If we signed these guys, we’d be mediocre this year. One more year of rebuilding won’t kill us. We’ve been through worse. I just want to make sure Okposo, Bailey and Tavares have protection.
I’m not sure if Snow made these offers or not and neither is anyone else. The one thing I do know is that Snow needs to stop stating publicly that the mandate from ownership is to win the Stanley Cup. As far as taking away ice time from young players. Alot of these players could play 60mins a night for ever and we all know they will never be more than minor league players. Just be honest with the fans for a change. And a newsflash for everyone that thinks Snow is a genious for picking JT. My 8yr old would have made that pick along with everyone else in the hockey world with at least 1 live brain cell. The plan is time with the LH, nothing more, nothing less. I’ve accepted that long ago.
To Snow’s credit, he did tell fans publicly that he was going to build a team from the ground up. He has stuck to his plan and we are close to having the foundation in place. I for one think this upcoming year will be fun to watch. Some of the young players getting a bit older, Tavares, a few guys from bridgeport getting a chance, finally realizing Tamby stinks, the development of some of our good prospects. All this will go a long way in determining the near future. I’m not against signing a couple of guys, but at the same time, I’m not going to critize Snow for what he said he was going to do.
I swear, if Snow signs one or two of these guys and gets them at a “discount” shouldn’t we pool our money and get him a spot in the next world series of poker? And sorry for all of the typos in the last comment I made…was typing in a rush.
I would have to disagree with CB on this one. Signing any UFA this year that would receive significant ice time would just slow down the rebuild. One step forward, two steps back. Play the kids, get another lottery pick. The rebuild will take a minimum of 2 more season before it will shows any results. By then Sims, Weight, Witt, Park, Sutton, Martinek and Roloson would have all played out their contracts and you would have had all of the 2009/10 and 2010/11 seasons to evaluate, Tambellini, Comeau, Neilsen, Bergenheim, Gervias, Hillen, etc and develop Jounsuu, Figren, DeBenedetto, MacDonald, ect. Then other prospects like Ness, Trivino, de Haan, and Petrov will be getting closer to NHL ready and some decisions can be made about who should stay and who should go. Stand pat lose now, win later. Gordon said it in Jan. wins and loses are not important now, playing the kids is.
Pleas sign Roe-sham-beuachamin!
Snow is not doing a good job with JT. He is giving him no support or protection. Nice greeting there Garth.
The truth is that Chris Botta would make a much better GM than Snow. Botta clearly sees what needs to be done.
since we are on fa: what about the other habs fa? kovalev and koivu?
For all the negative types (I know, you’re just jaded by years of frustration…so am I), take a look at the contract status of the current roster, and you’ll start to see what Garth is doing here. Quick summary: the core guys are under (or will be under) contract, and there is plenty of room under the cap to make moves throughout the next few seasons. Golden. Opportunity. For. Advancement. Because of the number of players coming off contract, and the dearth of AHL talent, its no wonder why the draft is seen as a necessity in order to restock. Don’t blame Snow for positioning himself for this eventuality, it’s his job.
When the organization settles on who is part of the core and reaches the end of a few of the current contracts later this year, then things will start to happen via trades and free agency. Until then, it’s not worth the risk to the plan unless a can’t miss deal comes his way. It’s possible, which is why I check TSN.ca every few hours.
PS - I’m with Mike L. (#92) - still a Tamby fan, and I’m glad he’s being given an honest chance to adjust to the NHL. I hope he has a breakthrough season for us and puts up 20 goals.
I totally agree. Beauchemin and Tanguay are YOUNG - can be had CHEAP. If they were expensive, they’d have been snatched up already lol. Seriously, Beauchemin is a NO BRAINER as far as I am concerned. I mean seriously, would you rather have Martinek or Beauchemin? Martinek can’t stay on the ice for 5 minutes without getting hurt. Hell, the guy pulls his hamstring taking out the trash, how much longer do you need this guy around? You can argue that Tanguay isn’t worth it, but still these guys aren’t going to impede the rebuild as Snow makes it out.
And so far, Joensuu, Smith and Figren types are not even good players at Bridgeport - let them stay there and improve before claiming they are the next wave.
quick question, where are all the skaters snow drafted this year that we nhl ready in 2 to 4 years..oh yeah thats right he didnt draft any. snow is a joke
So, let me get this straight.
It would be good if we signed Tanguay and Beauchemin so we can draft in the 10-15 range for the next couple of years? Thus we would be half-assing the rebuild and become a perennial contender for 6-8th place, again.
Awesome!
99 It would be good to sign Tanguay so someone can actually help John Tavares develop in the NHL like Ovechkin and Crosby have. The Jesse Jonessu’s and Trevor Smith’s of the world are not what Taveras needs and Okposo need that mentoring too. Young talent doesn’t develop by playing with other young talent or less developed young talent (JJ) or with average players (hunter) or with minor leaguers (Smith). Tanguay or Sykora or even Kovalev is the kind of talent Taveras and Okposo could use. Look at Bailey he has Doug Weight.
C.J. - This is because it’s crystal clear that Wang will not be investing in this team (w/the exception for glaring issues like goaltending) until the Lighthouse Project is complete.
i think CJ has it right. wang made a decision 2 seasons ago now not to spend big dough for UFA’s unless and until the LH is approved (rather than “complete”). this has seemed clear to me for some time, and i think you can’t blame the man for that. in the meantime, they’ve done a decent job with the ground work to go forward if a deal gets done.
Exactly Tond24, Snow talks about building through the draft. Yeah ok when you trade down to #12 and pick a guy projected to go in the 20’s and pass on all those good prospects, then draft 2 goalies in the 2nd round, how is that building through the draft? If you are building through the draft, you actually have to have a clue and know what you are doing.
I agree w/ Snow stayin the course but u have to add some veterens to the mix.Every other team that is in the rebuilding stage has added some free agent signings…Tavares doesnt count and as far as im concerned niether does roloson cause hes just insurance for the always hurt DP.This team has so many holes and there isnt enough young nhl ready talent on this team to be competetive against the rest of the nhl.we will be lucky to finish 10th or 11th in the conference! Come on snow get a winger for tavares to play w/ already,tambellini inst the answer !!
With all the talked the Islanders said back when they won the lottery about how, it’s nice to have the chance of drafting 1st, but we didn’t like how we got to this situation. We hope to not be here again next year. You have to be kidding me. You must truly love how you got there because thats exactly what you are working for again. The 1st overall pick in 2010. How else can you explain, the reasons for not trying to pick up a couple of NHL ready players to help the young ones along. Rebuild is one thing but it seems to me that the Islanders are trying to be the Sound Tigers playing in the NVMC.
IMHO the roster should look something like this:
XXXXXXXXXX-WEIGHT-HUNTER
BERGENHIEM-TAVARES-OKPOSO
COMEAU-NIELSEN-PARK
RECHLICZ-THOMPSON-JACKMAN
Streit-Sutton
Witt-Martinek
XXXXXXXXXX-Gervais
Bailey and Hillen need time to devolop in the AHL. those two spots need to be filled by quality NHL Players.
Bailey, Joensuu, Hillen, Smith, Kohn,
Sim(?) and Tambellini should be used if there are injury emergencies, players aren’t working out and deadline deal replacements.
Put an NHL product on the ice, and let the players develop and mature at a reasonable pace. That’s how you “rebuild”
Bailey is probably mature enough to understand that he needs to physically and mentally grow into a second line NHL center. Snow could have saved a year of salary and let him play in Juniors another year… hindsight is 20/20, but a more mature and confident GM would have seen that.
Tavares probably needs another year of development, but a top pick is RARELY going to get that. He’ll be rushed into important minutes, but I won’t blame Snow for getting him in an Islander Uniform as soon as possible.
Fortunately Bill Torrey was willing to add an old pro like Butch Goring, even at the risk of taking time away from his young players.
This is absolute stupidity on Snow’s part. I’m not sure why everyone was willing to crown him a genius for using the number 1 pick to choose the guy who has been the consensus number 1 for 4 years, but this latest “plan” should put that thought to rest.
Come on. Tanguay would be nice, but he isn’t the answer. He is a soft player that will pluck in 60 points. And we’d have to overpay for him to come to the island. I wouldn’t be disappointed if we got him, but I sure won’t lose sleep if we didn’t.
Also, it makes you wonder how quick it looks like the Avalanche’s turnaround is going to be, and why we have to wait so long.
However, I stand by this: the move Snow needs to make is to trade for Kessel.
Born83:
So Weight can mentor Bailey but not mentor Tavares too. What? is he too busy?
DOC
Another thing that most of you are forgetting, this team played .500 hockey for most of the second half last season, with two 3rd string goalies. They added a 1A goalie in case DP isn’t ready, and added a scoring center. Okposo and Bailey will improve and if Gordon would stop screwing with Bergenheim’s ice time, he’d flourish. Plus a healthy Sutton, Meyer…i think this team could be ready for 8th place THIS year.
Then you make the splash next year with som UFA’s with another relatively high draft pick…and we challenge for the division in ‘10-’11.
I like the idea of trying to aquire a guy like Ben Eager from the Hawks
he’s a big boy who can drop the gloves yet play a regular shift
Following the Isles, Oilers, Pens, Avs and Wings……success brings success, instills success and creates success.
Garth is following the Florida Panthers model, though. Some great rookies will become young vets and leave a team that never gets anywhere.
If I were John Tavares’ father, I would be on the phone with Snow and Wang asking what they’re doing to facilitate my son’s development as a player in the NHL and what they’re doing to protect him in the most physical division in the NHL.
the ranjerks are smack against the cap, they qualified an offer to dubinski for 700K. give him a 1.5 offer sheet and they cant match it and all we lose is a 2nd round pick. he is young and CERTAINLY will fit in with rebuild
Call me crazy but I really do believe that this team could be in the hunt for that eight spot in the Eastern conference next year if we stay relatively healthy.
I’m not so concerned about adding a scoring winger because adding JT, along with expected advancement of the kids, should improve our offense. However, I would like to add Beauchemin because you have to realize that Sutton and Martinek will get hurt. I’d be surprised if they both made it out of training camp healthy. I’m also concerned about getting some beef to guard JT’s back. It’ll be open season on Taveras if there isn’t a price to pay for taking runs at him.
CB- can you give us any information on what kind of players guys like Figren, DiBenedetto, Corey Trivino, Hamonic and Dustin Kohn ultimately project to be? Is there any REAL bonafide NHL talent coming through the pipeline? All this talk about Snow “restocking” the system doesn’t make sense because whenever I see organizational “report cards” or rankings, we’re at or near the bottom.
I’ll be the first to congratulate Snow if Calvin De Haan ends up being the type of player they think he’ll be. For now though, it AGAIN appears that (after JT) Garth overreached at the draft table. Jesus, why can’t the Isles go with the general consensus picks (give or take a spot up or down)
Back on topic, who’s playing with the kids? One can only guess what type of AHL delights that the Isles will roll out and still charge major league prices.
CB should be the new GM
The best way to get tougher on the wing is to go after Todd Bertuzzi
(123) I agree…Bertuzzi could be a good fit…
There is a nice interview on NHL.Com about general manager of the LA King’s rebuilding process. All should check it out. One line that stuck out to me, that we’ve all indentified, including you CB is “Lombardi admitted there’s a right way to build — and that starts with your own hand-picked players through the draft. But that is the long road to success, and you have to make other moves in the meantime.” After reading this, I basically did the hand slap to forehead and said, what is Garth doing. Drafting has been nothing but success in my eyes since the start of the rebuild. However, we are in Year 2. Add a player that can be helpful and lead a group of young guys to maybe some victories they couldn’t do on they’re on. I know I’m beating a dead horse, but come on. I know we can spend smart and get a decent player in orange and blue.
Sorry, this one stuck out too.
“”You have to buy time for your team by bringing in a few free agents until you see that your team is ready to stand on its own feet,” he said. ”
I’m done for the day.
Billy Jaffe is the Man:
Lombardi didn’t bring much more to his organization in terms of talent than Garth did by bringing in Streit and Weight. Lombardi brought in Handzus and Preissing. Only this summer did he bite the bullet and traded for Smyth and signed Scuderi. Only after about 4-5 years of drafting in the top 5 or so.
You guys will eat up anything Botta says and crap all over Garth any chance you get. I love Botta’s work but I like I said earlier; you stunt the rebuild by bringing in too much in terms of talent too quickly. If the Islanders signed Tanguay and Beauchemin they would still likely not make the playoffs but would be close. So, they end up picking in the 8-12 range (or even worse) for the next couple of years. That is not how you build the team core.
And the person who brought up Torrey being smart enough to bring in Goring for the kids, c’mon man. The Islanders were a cup contender when Goring was brought in, not in year 2 of the rebuild.
isles 72 is right.
ben eager is tough hard skater who can play and fight.
CB: Regarding Garth’s comment, do you think that Garth really does think the Islanders’ roster is already bursting with young NHL-ready (or NHL-close) talent? What is your personal opinion (of how he feels)?
CB
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Now maybe the fans who hang on your every word will see the light. It is inarguable that in a rebuild you must also upgrade when you can. And the islanders have more upgrading then anyone. Right now the islanders are following the Pittsburgh Pirates model of rebuild.
MAJOR curiosity- Why are the Islanders not involved with the Swedish free agent goalie negotiations Gustavsen? Young talented and a free agaent?
I’ll try not to repeat previous comments. I think Snow as almost no power to follow any of the excellent suggestions that have been written. Snow is like a kid in an icecreme shop begging is father (Wang) to buy him some treats. The kid has no money and his Dad says in effect, improve your school work and grades and finish your meals and I will buy you some tasty desert. Problem is with iSLES present line up they will never win games and they need good new additions to avoid another last place desertless finish. Which comes first the chicken or the egg in Isles development? The answer in the NYI case is neither. Our team is going to be a last place team that will not fill the seats here and that means full seat in KC the following season. Hope I’m wrong!
Regarding the blog on July 4th, I feel that the Islanders should definetly make a run for Tanguay and Beauchamin. Maybe offer Tanguay a 3yr $15m deal, and Beauchamin a 3 yr $12m deal. They need another $5.4m to fill the cap floor, why not try and approach or make an offer to both free agents while they are still out there to take some pressure off of Tavares while most likely, all they would do is help him. Why not make an offer to Blair Betts?
If one of those Blackhawks are available, then it’s a no brainer, make them an offer. They are all young enough to become a huge part in the stage of the Islanders rebuilding. The Islanders have the most cap left to spend, why not spend it on young talent rather then 2 or three veterans. That’s just my opinion.
If Chicago made such a mistake we better jump on it quickly and agressively. Age wise, these players fit the “youth” movement requirements and they are NHL ready!
Sign them to long years at aggressive numbers so they will seriously consider Long Island.
This could be a BIG, BIG jump in the development phase thrown into our laps and potentially reconfigure our development agenda!
Column is absolutely right. Snow sounds like a bloody fool, stay the course without adding free agents… Iditoic.
Hey Garth, Let me educate you. Just because they are kids doesn’t mean they’re all good. There’s a difference between having a blueprint and being neglegible to the franchise whom you’re supposed to make better. The more I see the less confident I am in Garth’s ability to make this team a winner. I really hope I’m wrong but the fact he won’t try to sign a 20 something nhl proven talent to give playing time to a young guy who may not even be in the nhl in 2 years is doing the franchise a great disservice.
I can understand not signing Tanguay because we have some promising wingers in development like Jonesuu and Smith that need the ice time but our defense doesn’t have any real prospects ready for the big club except for MacDonald. Also our defense is terrible and often injured I think Beuchemin would be a nice addition to the blue line.
I think Snow is looking at the trade market; if so, I would suggest the Flyers. They’re up hard against the cap and Snow and Holmgren have dealt before. I would try to get Asham back along with Cote, for Martinek, Sim and Meyer. We take care of Sim’s salary, giving them a winger back with some edge. Philly gets some depth on “D”, and they have Carcillo, Pronger and Hartnell already for grit.
Asham would be the perfect middle-weight to skate with Tavares.
Not sure how all the salary ramnifications would shake out; but just a thought on how a couple of teams could maybe help each other out.
We then sign Beauchemin to fill the hole on our D-line.
Toronto Maple Leafs (34-35-13) sign:
D Francois Beauchemin 20 GP, 4 G, 1 A, 12 PIM
Length of contract: 3 years
sportsnet.ca says the leafs signed Beauchemin to a 3 year deal in the range of 10 million dollars.
Well id say this is the first one where id say “I would have given more years/$” Not to say that FB would have taken it from us as opposed to an O6 team like the Leafs who also happen to have his old boss steering the ship. Good value signing by the leafs. Fun thought: He is only making 300k more than Jeff Finger lol
about 5 Million to get up to the cap floor - they will not go much over that
Also subtract these estimates off the cap:
Tavares = 3.7 (875,000 salary plus bonus - look at Stamkos salary as a ref.)
2 way contracts:
Comeau = 775,000
T. Smith = 700,000
Thompson = 525,000
Hillen = 800,000
UFA Canidates still available:
D
Seidenberg - 3 years - 3.3 per
Morris - 1 year - 2.2
McKee - 1 year - 750
W/C
RW - Kotalik - 1 year - 1.7
LW - Moen - 2 years - 1.6 per
RW - Grier - 1 yr - 1.3
C/W - D. Moore - 1 yr - 1.3
C/W - Goc - 1 yr - 700
If Anton Stralman cant crack TO’s blue line now maybe Garth should give Burke a call
dude the players of the blackhawks filed grievance THEIR UP FOR SALE! lol even though we probly won’t try to get em hey maybe we get lucky?
The fledgling Islanders of the early and mid-1970’s brought in players like Bert Marshall, J.P. Parise and Jude Drouin to hold the fort until the young guys were ready. Why can’t this team do the same?
the grievance only applies to barker and versteeg, the others resigned either one or two year deals with the hawks.