LISTEN UP: CHARLES WANG ON WFAN
Plus: James Mirtle on the top 50 goalies (Biron #10)
UPDATED at 8:45 pm - Here’s Charles Wang’s 38-minute sitdown with Mike Francesa, primarily on the Lighthouse and what happens if he doesn’t get certainty from the Town of Hempstead by October 3.
And here’s a Moneypuck story from James Mirtle on the game’s top goalies. Based on his list, Martin Biron at 1.4 is an even greater steal. Depends on how much you value save percentage. One of Mirtle’s readers had this fun fact: the Islanders are paying Biron and Dwayne Roloson combined less (3.9) than what the Oilers are paying Nikolai Khabibulin and Jeff-Drouin-Parise-Deslauriers (4.45). Comments.
143 Responses to LISTEN UP: CHARLES WANG ON WFAN
Plus: James Mirtle on the top 50 goalies (Biron #10)
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kevin fitz says:
well hopefully it’s 100% real estate development. That is the most important issue right now with this team. Not weather they get some enforcer who will play 4 minutes a game on s separate line from Tavares, but will somehow protect him.
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Pete M says:
What are the odds that that fat windbag Francesa actually does his homework, asks relevant questions and doesn’t inject unsubstantiated rumor and innuendo? If history is any indication, I say not good.
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Brian G says:
It will be a lighthouse fest – and maybe 3 min about John tavares….Spend some money on free agents Wang.
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Vukota says:
Without the real estate development there is no more Islanders, so let him chat away about it..
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Isles1982 says:
Cant wait to hear what he has to say.
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Dooks94 says:
Biron-great signing. Makes me really worry about the future of Ricky D though. But the Biron-Roloson combo will be excellent-I’m giving us 7 more wins than last year on the goaltending upgrade alone. Let’s hope our defense can stay healthy in front of them. We may not be half bad if we don’t have to resort to guys like Pock and Callahan
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Mikey says:
Who wants to bet that Francesca brings up the Garden City light rail again? This supposed light rail is a figment of his imagination. He’s also probably going to say that ToH should (illegally) shoot down the project because it’s hard for Wang to get financing now. The guy is completely uninformed about the lighthouse, Long Island politics, and hockey. It’s a disgrace.
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art says:
This interview could be huge in the sense of what of course is actually said by Wang what is left unanswered and what might be implied by his responces. Franssesca is not a big hockey guy but a tough interviewer. I think that an overview of Wangs persona meaning his general mood will be important in gageing the way he is thinking and the chances of the Lighthouse being approved and therefore the future of the NYI on the Island. Good luck to all of us!!!
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UIF says:
Kevin Fitz said it best. If the Lighthouse moves forward, maybe next year the wallet will be open a bit more and we won’t be talking about how we can best scrape the bottom of the FA barrel. Hopefully Wang is considerably more optimistic in this interview and doesn’t give us another “regret buying team” type quote.
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orngfan says:
i wish mike f. would take callers for his guests.. thatd be awesome.
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TM says:
Mike should mention the lousy radio coverage for Wang’s response. If they can’t afford to pay 2 radio announcers and be heard on AM, how will they finance the Lighthouse project if approved?
It’ll be 99% Lighthouse chat, 1% NYI and Wang will say we have a “GREAT” team like he did last time when he said he regretted buying.
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Pauly G says:
Hey CB, Is Rickys contract insured? If so what kind of insurance and would he have to retire to kick it in?
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Strummer's Army says:
Snow does a great job in managing the cap and financial matters, he’s putting his MBA to work.
Does it amaze anyone else the Isles website has Tavares listed on the roster but they don’t seem to know what number he’s wearing yet? LOL
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JayK says:
Tom — #12 — these two things have nothing to do with each other. The Lighthouse project, like any large capital project, is going to be funded by debt and repaid by the revenue provided by the various projects at the site. That has nothing to do with whether they’ve decided that the current operating budget of the hockey team can or can not afford radio announcers.
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#12 – in addition, everyone’s twisting that comment around. It seems that Charles Wang bought the team in 2000 after hearing positive noises from Al D’Amato that the arena would be re-done quickly. I believe the exact quote was, knowing now that it would be 9 years later and still no deal, he probably wouldn’t have bought the team. Honestly, would you?
Kevin Fitz is also dead right. We all wish we could talk exclusively about hockey (yes, even me). However, the Lighthouse is the only important thing to the Islanders’ long-term viability.
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Jay 15, so Wang will go into more debt for the LH project yet now we have a cap minimum payroll, no FA’s of worth signed, no radio coverage, Isles Illustrated gone etc. With that logic, NYI will be run bare bones for many years until he gets out of debt from the LH if approved. Wonderful.
Strummer 14, Snow has done a good job managing the cap minimum and poor financial matters. It must be tough to work under those conditions.
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#17 – no, you deliberately twisted JayK’s words. There are other revenue streams that will come in from the Lighthouse that you can’t get from just an arena. That pays the debt service and makes the arena a viable investment.
It amazes me the extent to which people hear what they want to hear.
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nystrom23 says:
Does anyone have the link to listen online to Wang speak at 4?
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Joe in Massapequa says:
Nystrom (19), go to http://www.aolradio.com and then click the Sports category and then select WFAN, of I think you can have direct access to it via http://www.wfan.com
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IslesPassion21 says:
This interview has been a “long time coming”…
Francesca has no interest in the sport of hockey, which pi$$es me off to no end, and thats why this is an important move for Wang, to get the facts out there regarding the state of the LHP and the Isles organization as a whole…
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Fellas, It should be playing live, on “YES Network”…
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Francesca reported. “Charles Wang is in traffic and should be arriving in 10 – 15 minutes”…Joe Girardis on @ 5
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Mr. Bill says:
Damn, I forgot how painful it is to listen to WFAN. It’s the sports equivalent of listening in on trekkies debate which was the best episode.
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Paul says:
Charles Wang pitched a perfect game.
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D-man says:
good thing wang is late… he woulda been interrupted with the perfect game stuff… and franscesa woulda had him talking baseball
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bonzo says:
big wang in da house…
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Islesin2010 says:
Typical Islanders management. No airtime of any sort ever…finally get an hour on a popular radio/TV show, and the owner runs into traffic and is 20 minutes late. Is he trying to make this organization look like a bigger joke?
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Are you serious 2010? He got stuck in traffic. BFD.
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bergie20 says:
probably better that he ran late b/c he would have gotten bumped for buerhle’s perfect game.
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Lord, you would think Francesca would at least make a minimal effort to actually educate himself about a subject he is going to interview someone about.
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Dancing Bear says:
Lighthouse or bust, I mean hello
Kansas City -
Is it me or is Francesca repeating himself with every question?
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WOW A DP Question!
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Jon Mac says:
Mike Franscesa is a terrible, terrible interviewer!
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Iron Islander 77 says:
Apparenlty the traffic in Uniondale is an issue!
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why is francesca pushing for just a new building?
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Apparently the traffic in Uniondale is an issue!
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Nystrom23.. You are right. Francesca is asking the same questions 20 differant ways
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D-man, to be fair, it’s not widely known why the Lighthouse is on the table instead of just an arena. I’m thrilled it’s out there for the general public now.
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DP?!?!?
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What news is there on DiPietro? HAHA! GO GET ‘EM WANGER!
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It’s amazing that someone who makes a living as a radio host media guy could actually be such a bad interviewer.
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La-vo-let. Idiot.
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i like fransesca but this is a bad interview. i mysterious article on dp being out all season? asking the same questions over and over again. he seems totally lost
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Madchef says:
at least it is an on air interview
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Do you think Wang sounds like Hyman Roth from the Godfather??
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are you waiting to invest i the team on oct. 3rd? what the hell is he talking about? who are you going to sign in october?
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I think the 3rd is the real vote from the town on the Lighthouse Pojext
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I turned it off after that first softball question.
So I hear my coworker laughing and I turn it back on to hear Francesa call Laviolette, “LAVA-let”.
Then Wang calls Kyle Okposo, “COW POSO”.
Suffice it to say, I turned it off again. I cannot take more of this. -
Does Wang have a pr person? How can his people allow him to say some of the things he says? “Do Garth and Scott Gordon have a long leash?”
Wang’s Response “Well he has a two year contract…”
Are you kidding?
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billy harris says:
if wang is hyman roth does that mean garth is really johnny ola?
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he does it again? what the hell is going on?
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I’m a Long Islander. Howz that Charles?
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hale says:
francesa is an idiot..watching him do a hockey interview is like asking the pope about hindu
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Whoever set up the meeting between Francesca and Wang is the Traitor!!!
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this interview is a disaster
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I had enough, now he is building at Citi Field!!!
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Willis says:
now I wish I had listened, lol
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Alan says:
This is OUTRAGEOUS — he is saying “we’ll go somewhere where they love us” – we love them, and that’s all that matters.
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islanderbill says:
I’ve come to the conlusion ….
I HATE MIKE FRANCESCA
I may have spelled his name wrong but what the hell he said Laviolette’s name wrong
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he shoulda gone on mad dogs show… wherever the hell that is. sorry i’ve gone over my 3 posts but man this is so funny and bad i can’t help myself. mike sounds so disinterested and like he’s struggling to fill the entire hour. good thing he was late
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who’s “this kid”? does wang even know the name tavares? i know mike has no clue.
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Jim Clark says: Mike did his research on the Biron signing by directly reading from the paper.
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20 years without any success. JESUS he gets me mad. And arguing with Charles when he says that Kyle Okposo is a special player? Mike, you just said you “know nothing about hockey players” but now you are arguing like you do? JESUS. And stop asking Charles the exact same quesitons over and over.
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it’s over. thank god
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Scott says:
Francessa is obviously against this lighthouse project. Wang should ask Boomer to speak at the hearing. Francessa is such a pessimist and doesn’t care about hockey. Everyone should start calling his show and give him your two cents.
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Wang said ” what do you want them to do KILL ALL THE BABIES” LOL
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TimQ says:
Francesa is such a self absorbed load. I stopped listening to him years ago and just patted myself on the back for making such a wise decision
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Wang said even if he got a new or upgraded Coliseum all paid for by the County with no $ by him, he has no interest in it. As all along it’s been LH real estate or nothing for him. The team means nothing to him. Just a maeans to an end. Great.
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avolp55turgeonfichaud says:
As a reporter, it is your job to not sound clueless. Mike doesn’t need to be the biggest hockey fan in the world, but at least come to the table with something other than “MartEn BYron” and “3.7 BILLION dollars???”. I can’t help but think Charles Wang is 100% genuine in his hope and support for this team.. but Francessa is a d**k.
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I was told he was all for a new arena funded by the county??? At least that’s what I was told by somebody who listened to the interview
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west coast isles fan says:
Learn to listen TM, he said he would be open if Nassau County funded it
which makes sense, since a stand alone arena is a losing asset for charles. No net increase in $$$
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dose says:
whoa.
i got a different impression of the whole thing than all this vitriole (if that’s spelled right). -
TM, #72, that’s because the lease will still make it impossible for him to turn an operating profit. He doesn’t own the Coliseum now; what difference would it make if you suddenly could snap your fingers and have it turn into a magical new building? The Islanders can not make it in the existing or a future building unless there are other revenue streams…like the Lighthouse. So this nonsense that “all he cares about is the real estate….” is baloney. He cares about the real estate because it’s necessary to keep the Isles here.
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you are correct west isles fan. I believe Wang made it crystal clear he is willing to listen to an offer of a county-funded new coliseum. He said several times in the interview, it has been years and nobody has offered that.
Just curious but hasn’t Kate Murray “claimed” to have offered to re-build the Coliseum instead of the entire LH project? Or was that offer intended for Wang/Rechler to split the bill with the county or town? Thanks for clarification if anyone can provide it.
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avolp55turgeonfichaud (76): Neither… she claimed that the approval could be done a lot speedier if it was for an arena only… but she was still expecting them to pay for ALL of it! Wouldnt that have been nice of her lol?
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This project is going to fail due to the NIMBY crowd who will continue to spew lies to disinterested or ignorant county citizens, who will somehow be “duped” into thinking that “visionary charles” somehow was going to “Raise their taxes through the use of 3.4 billion dollars of their tax dollars”
Mike and his “whats wrong with being NYC’s suburbia” crowd will be left with their saggy boddies in 2020, with no economy, all the young folks having moved out of the county (that way mike can be content with less people ) and plenty of space to take a nice little leisurely stroll to that asphalt park known as NVMC.
Maybe the goats will still be there as well, for them to feed.
I lol’ed at charles’s “what do you want to do, kill the kids” comment.
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Tavares #1 says:
I hope that they do move to Citifield. Long Island clearly does not care about the Islanders. Screw em.
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Did Wang really need to be in Studio for that????? Bad interview on both sides
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19 ISLE in NJ 22 says:
I’m going to have to catch the replays.
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Brooks Simpson says:
Last time I checked, CitiField was on Long Island, 81.
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I didn’t hear it but Newsday already ripped Francesca a new one.
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asher says:
Queens. But close enough that a lot of fans living in Nassau County wouldn’t be that heavily inconvenienced, especially if they have access to public transportation
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Craig says:
Frances sounded clueless and did a terrible interview…I will agree with everyone here on that. However, no matter how bad that went the fact of the matter is that Wang was able to get on the most listened to sports radio program in the tri-state area and talk about the Lighthouse Project. Any media coverage is better than no media coverage at all. We should all try and call Boomer though and get him to come and speak about the project with Carton. We should push for them to broadcast from on-site at Hofstra (since they do have that capability at Hofstra to produce the radio show), and let them help push this through the bs partisan politics being played by Murray.
BTW, did anyone notice that Murray only started accepting the Lighthouse Idea when it came out that she had a legitimate challenger for her office from Garden City who was willing to push through this Project. Yes, I know it’s not Murray’s decision, but instead the board’s, but we all know that Murray has the ability to persuade the board to vote any which way she chooses.
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What a shock. Francesa uninformed and obviously pushing an agenda. He sounds like a perfect candidate for a position on Kate Murray’s staff. Some journalism. Walter Cronkite must be spinning in his grave.
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Nick 18, even if approved, the LH would take 10 years to cpmplete and the upgraded arena would take 3-4 years per Wang. So for 3-10 years there’s not much additional revenue coming in until the later years so Wang could keep a bare bones payroll for many years. He said today payroll was based on revenue. Who is to say even if he has the revenue he’d spend it on NYI? (maybe he wants to recoup his losses) Francessa said he thought Wang has lost heart in spending on NYI.
Botta, you seemed genuinely sad and frustrated on XM about the 2 radio guys leaving. For the first time IMO you seemed disappointed with NYI management. I was impressed. Maybe you know now how some fans feel when no FA’s of worth are gotten, minimum payroll, Wang not to be always praised and when we complain about the radio situation as in the past. Between that and saying NYI hasn’t done enough FA/trade wise to address their needs was good stuff to hear from you.
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#84….No that is called Flushing Queens.
Citi Field
123-01 Roosevelt Ave
Flushing, NY 11368 -
Jay 77 – how is it other teams survive just fine without big real estate deals and just arenas? The lease ends in 5 years just around the time when a new or upgraded building could be done. The arena situation is just an excuse by Wang to get the real estate.
Last post for me as per the limit Botta.
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Dyingfour#5 says:
That interview was hysterical. For starters, does Mike know the name of anyone on the team besides DP. “MartEn BYron” and “This young kid” had me rofl. Nothing was said about Ted Nolan but yet FAT FRAN was all over Laviolette’s jock. F**K Laviolette and lets talk about the 09-10 NYI. Maybe talk about addressing the needs of the current team. Such as toughness, and a top 4 defenseman. Bottom line, that interview addressed nothing that we already knew. Oct3rd is D DAY! Everyone needs to show their support and make it out that morning. Being 22, and just missing the dynasty years, I live for the days of seeing a 5th cup rise to rafters. GO ISLES
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Willy Shea says:
If you truly listen to that sub par interview, it is very clear. If Wang does not get his way with the lighthouse project, say goodbye to this franchise. They are going to KC !
Plain to see Wang is in this for nothing but the Lighthouse Project.
How about his line about if you are going to be bad, STINK. Basically saying he is going to keep tanking this team until he keeps getting more and more good draft picks. He is lost.
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You guys are insane if you think for one second Francesa didn’t do his homework on this issue. He didn’t give Wang any softballs. He did his job, asked tough questions and Wang did a very good job answering them. I work in the industry. Francesa is about as good at interviewing people on air as anyone.
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Tavares- Queens is part of Long Island!!!!
I live in Ridge, NY not Ridge, LI. And Ridge is on Long Island
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Section 320 rocks!!!!!! says:
#91 I think your wrong
If there is no Lighthouse that doesn’t automatically mean KC. There Queens, Brooklyn, another project Mike mentioned I forgot about.
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Patrick says:
I thought Mike came across as having an obvious agenda to make sure his taxes don’t go up and that his friends in Garden City are not inconvenienced. The history of LI development is to kowtow to the concerns of the very small wealthy minority. No mention of how much the added revenue will help the surrounding communities. The people in Uniondale and Hempstead are not worth considering to Mike and company. He’s only worried about his buddies from the Country Club and his own bottom line. He is not objective.
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leviticus says:
Unfortunately TM and others like him just don’t and won’t get it…just anger at Wang (and probably other successful people). Very sad…
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okpososcores21 says:
hate to say it but the team ive grown up with and loved is going to kansas city
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AngryPete says:
Agreed … I live in BAY RIDGE …. and even that’s still on Long Island, lol.
The lease with SMG is what kills the Isles. If they got a new arena, they’d have to kill their current lease in order to turn a profit. Currently, I believe they get nothing from parking and food concessions. If I’m wrong, someone please correct me. Amazing how this organization went from having one of the most lucrative cable deals in all of sports (Sportschannel) to not making a dime off a pretzel.
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islesbl says:
People please, if you thought Wang was going to talk team, players, and signings, forget it…. That’s what Garth is for… This interview shed no additional light on players nor should it have… Interview was terrible, but that’s Mike… He know’s nothing about the Isles or hockey, I watched it on YES, and he needed to read through the Post to ask a question on DP…. Then Mike kept asking the same question over and over to fill out the hour… God awful, know wonder Chris left to do his own thing.. The one thing I did take from the interview, “just my thought” if October passes with NO good news, say goodbye to the Islanders.. Hoping October has good news for all !!!
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Noomz says:
Francesa’s bias stems from fear LH will raise his Nassau taxes (mentioned numerous times – even blaming Suozzi directly). He fails to understand Nassau property taxes reassessments were mandated by Court Order (not Suozzi) when the County was sued and lost. An elected Board of Assessors was responsible for the increase process (not Suozzi).
Constantly mentioning “Nassau being overtaxing”, he was implying any Coliseum project funds were coming directly from Nassau County’s pocket – not the State, Federal or Private funds. Watching on YES, you could see just how uniformed & bias Francesa was (reading from Newsday’s article and still mentioning a monorail thru Garden City as part of the project). Usually a knowledgeable but opinionated baseball interviewer, Francesa clearly knows zilch about hockey, the Islanders or the LH – all painfully demonstrated by that WFAN interview. Easily one of Francesa’s worse.
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19404ever says:
Francesca, you blow! Eat a salad and stick to your 24-7 jiber jaber on the Yankees! A total D I S G R A C E having this guy any where near the Isles or Hockey in general, a terrible interview, as usual MF got his smug personality involved and got NOTHING out of Wang that we do not already know, man, this was suppose to be a positive time for us in getting ready for JT and the future, but after the Mears/King crap and watching this train wreck, not feeling very good!
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Battfist says:
Francesca is not an all-around sports guy.
And a terrible interviewer. You dnt find your facts while doing the interview…Wang is the man!
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doc says:
I know it’s been stated a few times I’m sure… but it amazes me how difficult it is for people to understand simple geography.
Queens and Brooklyn are actually part of LONG ISLAND the same way that Nassau and Suffolk are part of Long Island.
DOC
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Yea guys I get it. I should of said Nassau county. I do not equate Queens and Brooklyn with BORING Nassau and Suffolk. I used to live near the Nassau border and when I think of Long Island I think of Nassau and Suffolk. I would prefer to move them out of there.
Doc…it amazes me how some people find it so important to b%$^& over something that is not even close to being important.
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dan from va beach says:
i think what confuses some peeps is that queens and brooklyn are burroughs of the city, whereas nassau and suffolk are not.
so, maybe they think they can’t be both a burrough and part of long island….i don’t know.
however… brooklyn, queens, nassau and suffolk are all a part of long island yo! -
George Dyker Heights.Brooklyn says:
You are all correct, and yes although brooklyn and queens is on long island, when someone says I’m going to the Island they definately do not mean queens or brooklyn they mean nassau and suffolk, Cause queens and brooklyn is part of the city and thats what nassau and suffolk isn’t.
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I didn’t hear the interview but it couldn’t have possibly been more entertaining than reading the comments just now.
For those who did listen, what was the tone wrt Wang? Did he sound a bit more optimistic this time around?
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MarkLawrence says:
Anyone care to put aside the vitriol and actual state what Wang said regarding his October deadline? Much obliged.
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Ari from Long Island says:
I listened to the whole conversation……oh god when Francesa says he doesnt follow hockey he MEANS it….wow….he cant even pronounce Laviolette’s name, he doesn’t even know the name of the coach or our great new young player’s name….what kind of journalism is this….he read an article somewhere that DP was out for the year and he’s shutting it down…..??? What??? That was horrible, he sounded clueless…let him stick with Baseball, its embarrassing to hear him talk hockey or anything related to it.
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Wang sounded optimistic…while throwing out the Oct 3rd date a number of times.
Franseca embarrassed himself today
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CB-you should tear Franseca’s azzzzz up with your next piece…
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There’s no need to over-react to what Wang SAYS about relocation. He has to make it sound like the Islanders are 100% out the door..”UNLESS YOU ACT!” to the politicians to get the thing done. Queens, Brooklyn, the Izod Center (all more profitable than KC) don’t incite the panic in the fan base/media to support the LHP
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TIM says:
well,i bin an islanders fan for over 30 years and i live in canada but if i had to listen to that dork francesa everyday it would be a living hell.he’s absolutly horrible,what a clown
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BrianAlbany says:
I just wish Wang would have stopped answering all the questions and almost being TOO nice. He should’ve called out stupid Francesca on his non-sense repeating questions. Francesca is so obnoxious, I had a headache after listening to this clown after 10 minutes.
Glad the Isles got some air though.
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John G. says:
Wow, this guy is a d bag. Why is he on the air?
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MY summary. We no nothing more than before the interview. Francessca is anti islander. Wang is behind the lack of getting help for the team not Snow who is on a short leash. Question not asked; would Wang sell to a local group who would keep the team on the Island? Although he answered all things would be on the table if Oct deadline comes and goes without a Yes. MY prediction the drop dead date will be kicked ahead several months if Wang sees light at the end of the tunnel. So look for the year end to be the new drop dead date.
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I don’t think Francesa is anti-Islander.
He’s anti-hockey, which made him the wrong guy to do the interview. But, since he’s the star of the station, he had to do it.
In fairness to Francesa, he did put this interview on during prime listening hours, giving the Islanders issue maximum exposure.
In reality, Joe Beningo or Steve Sommers should have done the interview because, even though they are both Rangers fans, they wouldn’t have sounded so disinterested. They would have had the Islanders fans best interests in mind when asking questions and would have shown a lot of enthusiasm because they are big NHL guys.
And, yes, they would have pronounced names correctly.
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the most repeated words in the interview?1 the NYI 2 the Lighthouse 3 Oct 3 4 Kansas City? And the winner is #4 KC mentioned more than 12 times. mostly by Francessca. Ihope that this is not an omen of things to come!
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JPinVA says:
Wang is a great guy, but the only way Mike would have any interest in hockey was if it was played on a sheet of baked ziti.
Wang dropped the ball as well, as I think they both forgot John Tavares’ name. “THIS KID”… they could have been talking about anybody. Nobody says, “that kid in washington” or “that kid in Pittsburg”… I’ve said it before… PROMOTE JOHN TAVARES, or you will lose John Tavares. He spends 38 minutes on NY’s finest (it was when I left) sports radio show, and he doesn’t even say his name. He said Ricky, Kyle Okposo, Mark Streit, Josh Bailey and THIS KID.
As far as the LH project goes… he almost has me believing. I sure do hope he’s right… but I still think the team is better off in the infrastructure that is NYC.
Is belmont for real? I thought Aqueduct would have been the place.
One last thought. They also mentioned the lease. We know about the lease. What about the TV deal. When does that expire? -
Josh says:
CB
The oilers are not paying a goalie 4.5 a year for doing nothing though for 12 more years. Cannot ignore that.
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Examiner says:
Quick lesson on geography and semantics. Queens and Brooklyn are ‘on’ Long Island, not ‘part of’ Long Island. Queens and Brooklyn are ‘part of’ New York City. Long Island consists of Nassau and Suffolk Counties. If Long Island tried to become a state like some of it wants to, that would only consist of Suffolk and Nassau.
Wang did great in that interview. He knew his players names and had great things to say about his coach and GM. He never threatened to move to Kansas City, all he said is he will explore all of his options.
It’s not his fault if we get to that situation.
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Jim Clark says:
The TV deal runs for a while. Expires in 2020 or 2030 and pays well. One thing Pickett did right.
I think we can expect another long dismal year because Wang talked about how in the NHL you should be either very good or very terrible, that being in the middle of the packs condemns you to stay there. Let’s face it: look at Pittsburgh being lousy and getting Crosby, Malkin and Fleury. But you can’t go out and dump games overtly.
Neither person noted that hockey failed in Kansas City 30 years ago. Bad team, poor economy, but it still failed. Would it be different this time?
I look at things politically and think of Queens and Brooklyn being “New York City” and not “Long Island”. Personal preference, I understand the geography. But I ain’t gonna buys tickets if Wang moves it there, I’ll understand his reasoning but won’t open the wallet.
Wang admitted ticket sales haven’t exactly skyrocketed after signing “The Kid”, maybe a couple hundred. He did do a good job pointing out how many man-games were lost to injury as compared to the Rangers.
Nobody mentioned how few concerts are held at NCVMH. CB pointed out several months ago Billy Joel hasn’t played there since 1998, U2 since 1993. -
You are ALL missing the point.
Interview, wfan, Mike, may all be horrible. Tha is not the point.
Bottom Line this team is moving come OCTOBER 3rd. Anyone who does not see that is completely BLIND !!!
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misterpink says:
The “Oh Yeah” Wang let out when Franny brought up Tavares was almost orgasmic. I’m still laughing. (I think to mask my horror at the rest of the interview)
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Brett says:
While it may not have been a great interview, the point was not to inform the readers of Point Blank about the Lighthouse (we may even know more than Wang), but the masses who don’t read an Islanders blog religiously. That should be the takeaway: that Wang told the NY/ Metro area what is going on and why.
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rb says:
bravo, Mr. Wang, he gets it on how to build a team
I got confused during the interview, though
who is this guy Lavalet? Chris Russo used to talk about a goalie named Deepieto…was this guy Lavalet the coach when Deepieto was here?
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Willy shea quit being so positive ….your killing us
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mike fransesca ignorance when it comes to hockey + stupid paranoid islander fans = a lot of posts for cb
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#123
” but the only way Mike would have any interest in hockey was if it was played on a sheet of baked ziti”.That is brilliant!!! Think I just woke up the family with a loud cackle!!! Hilarious….
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a REAL hockey fan says:
*** Mike sounded like a PARTISON politician, and IF he had 1/2 brain he would realize that more business would = more tax revenue which is good for EVERYONE on LI.. His lack of homework was obvious and while not a ‘hockey guy per say’ you have to have a lil more homework than that cmon… Wang “Do u want them to kill the babies”? ROTFLMAO, ha ha ha ha.. Wang said hes leaving all options open and DOES NMOT WANT TO LEAVE LI — He said this CLEARLY 4-5X, not just one time he emphasized this!!!………. Bad job by Wang + Mike on not mentioning John Taveres by name, cmon holy sh!t thats a terrible job – PROMOTE PROMOTE PROMTE!!….. He also said the Isles season tix went up only a couple hundred after the draft, i think hes BSing…. not a great interview (Mike is not a hockey guy but also doesnt want any traffic on LI, idiot) and Wang is status qou and doesnt want to leave….
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JZimm says:
If nothing else, Islander fans sure are sensitive. Take a pill, guys. It’s only an interview. It didn’t effect my day in any way.
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Willy – #127 — and others — all I can say is that the mood within the Lighthouse team these days is very positive. It may not come to pass, and it certainly makes sense for Wang to continue to remind everyone that he’s not a prisoner here. But there is a distinct optimism, from everything I’ve heard, and it will almost certainly be bolstered by what will be, I believe, a big pro-Lighthouse turnout on August 4. So we’re not “blind” if we reject the idea that Kansas City is a done deal.
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I hear yah Jay. My point is there seems to bee so much love here for Wang and what a great guy he is. Some of you need to do your homework on this man. He is far from a great guy. He is a ruthless business man with one thing o nhis mind. The lighthouse project. Not the Isles, not the fans, not Long Island. The Lighthouse project. If he does not get it by Oct 3rd he is taking his bat and going home/
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Wang is the man.
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Brian in VA says:
Mad Dog is on XM 144.. The station is great… Mad dog I think likes the Isles… Wang should go on there but its a national show. Chris Russo is great! Lets Go Islanders… I am a bit siced on the season, I may have to end my boycot on NHL Center Ice because I think the Isles got it right now! They better not move!
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As other’s have said … Mike Francessa knows diddly squat about hockey, the Islanders and the Light House.
How in the world can he call himself a sports radio “talent” without at least doing the basic homework required when interviewing the owner of one of the local teams.
We all now know who carried the load on Mike and the Mad Dog.
Wang needs to better articulate himself when discussing the issues also. I feel he missed an opportunity to punctuate his points … and yeah .. MF was interupting Charles when he was trying to educate him.
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Tom B says:
Mad Dog and Francesa both have no respect for hockey. Never have given the sport any air time.
I would be more interested in this interview if I thought Francesa actually cared if the ISlanders went and played on the Moon.
Yeah… and his questions to Wang are so FACTUAL and accurate too. UGH.
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bf51 says:
@(95)- Ridge, NY in the house!
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Ethan K says:
I just finally heard this interview, and I really can’t stand Francesa anymore. He doesn’t know the sport, first off. Secondly, he has no right to challenge Wang about matters concerning economics and business. Which one of them is the billionaire? What really got me mad is that Francesa badmouthed the team last year, really stressing how horribly the “team and coach” did. He clearly doesn’t know anything about any sport to say that. Francesa doesn’t understand the concept of a rebuild.
I wonder how much time Charles B. Wang will devote of the hour to New York Islander hockey vs. doing an infomercial on Real Estate Development?