Monthly Archives: December 2009
In the junior, college and European ranks, the Islanders have built an unspectacular but very solid collection of prospects. Since their respective draft years, most of the youngsters have not surprised the scouting community and become much more than they were projected to be. Of course, in the case of the 2009 picks, it is still very early.
The Islanders’ first picks in 2006 (Kyle Okposo), 2008 (Josh Bailey) and 2009 (John Tavares) are regulars with the big club. What you can expect from the 16 players listed below is for six of them to emerge over the next 2-5 years as important contributors to the completion of the Islanders’ rebuild.
The Islanders’ prospect pool is still shallow when it comes to size and strength.
Other than Kirill Petrov – who is very hit or miss - do any of the Islanders’ prospects have the potential to break out as all-stars? Doubtful. But after inheriting little, Ryan Jankowski and the scouts have added significant depth to the roster via the 2006, 2008 and 2009 drafts.
A note about “Maximum Upside”: To be clear, this is a projection of what the prospect maxes out as if he completely fulfills his potential on a contending Islanders team. In other words, the best-case scenario.
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Honorable Mention:
LW Jason Gregoire: 8-4-12 in 16 games at North Dakota, sophomore; will likely play all four seasons at UND, giving the Islanders plenty of time to decide whether to sign him.
D Blake Kessel: 5-12-17 in 15 at New Hampshire, sophomore; not “the better Kessel” – to paraphrase Don Maloney – but the dman could earn a contract in a year or two.
C David Toews: 4-8-12 in 15 at North Dakota, sophomore; not “the better…” – you get the point – but a fair try with a third round pick. Has a ways to go.
C Casey Cizikas: 12-15-27 in 29 for Mississaugua St. Mike’s (OHL), 18 years old; doing his best to overcome the last two years of personal turmoil and play solid hockey.
C Anders Lee: 13-11-24 in 22 for Green Bay (USHL); still a year away from joining Jeff Jackson with the Fighting Irish, but standing out in the USHL.
G Stefan Ridderwall: 1.93 GAA, .928 save pct. for Djurgardens (SEL); just when it looked like injuries might do him in, Ridderwall is playing the best hockey of his career – giving the Islanders’ yet another option in goal, or the ability to move another goalie propsect as a trade chip.
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Your top ten Islanders prospects in junior, college and Europe:
10. Corey Trivino: 2008 second round pick is sinking like a stone in the prospect rankings – others have developed significantly better, while Trivino has only been average in his sophomore year at Boston University with increased opportunity. He is 3-6-9 in 15 games this season.
Maximum Upside: Third-line center
9. Anders Nilsson: 6-5 Swedish goaltender playing well with Lulea of the Swedish Elite League and will be the No. 2 goalie for his country at the WJC. Islanders surprise 2009 third round pick is ahead of schedule, but will eventually need time learning the angles in North America.
Maximum Upside: No. 2 goaltender
8. Matt Donovan: 2008 fourth round pick is in the final 11 for 8 spots for Team USA at the WJC. Defenseman looking sharp (2-5-7 in 13 games) as a freshman this year at University of Denver, where the Islanders have seen another player on this list develop extremely well.
Maximum Upside: No. 4 defenseman
7. David Ullstrom: 20-year old Swedish forward continues to progress impressively in Swedish Elite League. Told Point Blank last summer his goal was to join Islanders organization for 2010-11. The 2008 fourth-round pick (3-9-12 in 23 games) appears to be on his way.
Maximum Upside: Third-line forward
6. Kevin Poulin: The fastest-rising, most-improved prospect in the Islanders’ system. The fifth round pick from 2008 is 16-6 with a 2.36 GAA and .917 save percentage with Victoriaville in the Quebec League. Impressed Scott Gordon at team’s prospect camp.
Maximum Upside: No. 1 goaltender
5. Aaron Ness: His slow progress doesn’t have to be anyone’s fault. It just appears to be time for Ness to depart the University of Minnesota after his sophomore year and begin developing with Bridgeport in the AHL. The speedy, smart, skilled but very small and slight defenseman did not even make the last round of auditions for Team USA. Time for a change before it’s too late for Ness, 1-4-5 in 16 games this year with the Gophers.
Maximum Upside: No. 3 defenseman
4. Rhett Rakhshani: Passed up chance to join Bridgeport this season so he could be captain at Denver in his senior year, and move is paying off. 5-11, 190-pound right wing is 11-9-20 in 16 games this season with the Pioneers. The 2006 fourth-round pick will be with the Sound Tigers next season.
Maximum Upside: Second-line right wing
3. Kirill Petrov: Just as Ness needs to say farewell to Minnesota, the Islanders will try to get Petrov out of the Kontinental Hockey League. The 6-3 forward is as skilled as ever – he’ll play for Russia at the WJC – but Kazan Ak Bars does not seem interested in developing the 19-year-old. After playing few minutes for them, Petrov was sent to the KHL’s second tier. The 2008 third round pick still has this season and two more on his Ak Bars contract. The Islanders should not wait that long.
Maximum Upside: Second-line right wing
2. Travis Hamonic: In his fourth year with Moose Jaw of the Western League, the 2008 second round pick continues to add offense from the blueline (7-28-35 in 30 games). In the NHL, he projects as a very good defensive defenseman with 30-point potential. The Islanders and Hamonic did not come to terms on an entry level contract last April, so he only worked out with Bridgeport for a week and his agent held him out of playing in games.
Maximum Upside: Shut-down defenseman
1. Calvin de Haan: Excellent hockey sense and skill, now adding strength as he continues to fill out. He is 3-14-17 in 25 games this season in Oshawa, behind last year’s pace, but he also no longer has John Tavares as a teammate (for the time being).
Will 100% be on the Islanders’ blue line by 2011-2012. Only question is whether de Haan over time becomes a top-pair defenseman or just a solid part of the corps. Considering the Islanders gave up five draft picks to move from 26 to 12 and draft him, de Haan must become an impact player.
Maximum Upside: No. 2 defenseman
Comments. Comment Guidelines. The Islanders have today off. As per Twitter must-follow Mike Fornabaio, DiPietro starts Friday in Springfield. LIer Matt Gilroy demoted to Hartford. Conversation continues on the current squad and the Islanders’ real estate situation in the following threads.
Thanks to everyone who was able to make it out to SOCIAL tonight. Hope everyone had a nice time. More Islanders updates tomorrow. Always fascinated by the icetime: Okposo – 22:15 (he passed the audition), Tavares – 20:25, Park – 14:01, Thompson 12:47, Schremp – 9:30, Bailey – 8:15. Bergenheim (rib) out 1-2 weeks, Jackman (hip) is day-to-day.
September 20: Point Blank exclusively reports that developer Bruce Ratner is interested in the Islanders for his Brooklyn Project. Utilizing their own resources, bloggers such as B.D. Gallof from Hockey Independent and Nick from Let There Be Lighthouse receive fourth confirmation and do follow-up stories. Newsday? Nothing, other than a sneer weeks later about how the proposed arena, as currently drawn up, does not have room for a hockey team.
December 9: Newsday – “Brooklyn Arena Developer has Eye on Islanders.” And the paper continues to quote the Rockville Centre “sports marketing” expert who said if the Islanders moved off Long Island, few would care.
MEDIA ALERT: NHL FanHouse Live Chat at 2:00 pm
with Gretz, Botta and Co.
Botta on FanHouse: U.S. Olympic Locks and Contenders
No Really, December is Big: Now that the Islanders have survived the make-or-break road trip – win or lose tonight – it’s time for them to thrive in the make-or-break homestand. We exaggerate, of course, but more will be learned about the Islanders the rest of this month.
After tonight’s game in Toronto, they do not leave New York for the next three weeks. They have eight home games plus two road tilts at Madison Square Garden. The games come fast and the competition is often rough, but this is another barometer for the Islanders.
Deep Thoughts: After another 15-minute, no-shot performance centering the third line between Jon Sim and Jeff Tambellini, isn’t it time Josh Bailey got consistent cracks at the second line? So much for the simplified “Josh just needs to shoot more” chorus disapointingly conducted by Scott Gordon. Josh does not have a shot on goal in his last four games. There’s more to it than that.
Some were aghast a few weeks ago when I quoted a pro scout saying “They’re turning Bailey into a third-liner.” Well, Bailey is centering the third line and – never mind the 7-3-10 in 29 games – on most nights has been unproductive. Josh is a very creative playmaker. Give him the chance to play with more finishers. It’s not like Frans Nielsen (3-7-10) has run away with the position.
For you gamblers out there, Josh almost always scores a goal when he’s written about in this space.
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DiPietro Update: According to witnesses, Rick DiPietro has been sharp and experienced no setbacks through two practices in Bridgeport on Monday and Tuesday. He’ll continue to practice with the Sound Tigers this week and have his second start on Friday in Springfield or Saturday in Hartford.
Okposo’s Audition: With his two assists last night, Kyle Okposo (5-13-18) is now 12th in scoring among American forwards. Of course, this means little in his attempt to make the U.S. Olympic team because Okposo’s game goes beyond the stats. To be clear, the Islanders right wing is very much on the bubble. Tonight’s game in front of Brian Burke and Ron Wilson will count for a lot, no matter how much everyone denies it.
Attention, Comment-ers: To those who can’t help but give lectures about the hot-and-cold nature of fan reactions after wins and losses, please resist the urge. This is sports. This is a blog. This is life in Islanders Country. Thanks.
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The Toughness Factor: Everyone in Islanders Country knew the time would come when Chris Pronger – probably at home, naturally – would stamp John Tavares’s passport to Broad Street. It’s not like this should have thrown anyone for a loop.
In the offseason, the Islanders chose not to get tougher. There should have been no surprise the Islanders did not respond physically to Pronger, or even one of his many talented, smaller teammates. This is the way the Islanders have operated for the last 110 games of the Snow/Gordon Era.
Prior to last night, the Islanders – now one game below .500 – had not lost a game this season primarily because they were bullied, out-gritted or out-toughed. They may have dropped a point or three early with the curious decision to force-feed the undeveloped Joel Rechlicz into the lineup. But today is not the day to bark about the Islanders’ lack of bite.
Nate Thompson does very well against the middleweights. Tim Jackman (injured last night) is fine against the cruiserweights. The Islanders do not have a heavyweight and they’re not going to get one. (That argument is so October). On nights like last night, they’re going to look bad. Hopefully, not too many teams saw the tape.
Put simply, this is the team as it was constructed. There are going to be a few nights like last night. These are your 2009-10 Islanders – the team the rest of the NHL does not hate.
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Jackman, Bergenheim Injured: In case you missed it around 11:00 last night, Jackman (hip pointer) and Sean Bergenheim (rib injury) did not accompany the Islanders to Toronto. They travelled home, where they will be observed by the team’s medical staff today.
As of 11:00 this morning, the Islanders have not made any recalls. Looks like they will just go with recent scratches Blake Comeau and Rob Schremp. Gordon believes Schremp is a center only, so you should see some shuffling of the lines.
If Jackman is out an extended period of time, Jeremy Reich’s time in Bridgeport could be short. I’m told Gordon is a big Reich proponent.
The Islanders passed on Florida dman Ville Koistinen on re-entry waivers. No biggie there.
Good read from Greg at Puck Daddy on the possible death of the “second contract” for young NHL stars.
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True Value: Another tough one last night for Martin Biron. A questionable choice by Gordon as well for starting goalie. If Biron had not played the last two seasons for the Flyers, would Gordon have even thought twice about starting Dwayne Roloson? Before anyone argues about back-to-backs, remember that Roloson played more than 60 games in two of his last three seasons with Edmonton.
These divisional games are too important to not go with your best. Was goaltending the reason why the Islanders lost? Easy to make the case it wasn’t, of course. But the difference between Islanders games with Roloson vs. Biron is too much to ignore.
As for Biron’s trade value, it has not diminished, nor would a big run by him raise it. The entire league knows what Martin is – a very good, 1-B level goalie and excellent leader who took the Flyers to the conference final two years ago. His value increases from a third round pick only if goalies continue to get hurt around the league. The Islanders do not have to give him extra starts to upgrade the market for Biron.
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The Night Has Arrived: Planned all the way back in…well, six days go, Point Blank night is finally here. The good news for the thousands of daily readers who can’t make the event tonight is they don’t have to hear about it anymore. The good news for those who can…it’s tonight, and I have every reason to believe the management at SOCIAL is going to make it special. Some new details:
Because of the wet weather, optional valet parking service has been added.
When you arrive, an awesome buffet (chicken and eggplant parm, calamari, plus a lot more) prepared by Danny Gagnon of “Top Chef” will be right inside the door.
Upon entrance, get your raffle ticket from the SOCIAL staff. Among the prizes, we have a royal blue John Tavares jersey, pairs of Islanders tickets and gift certificates to the restaurant.
The Islanders-Toronto game will be shown on more than a dozen TV screens displayed all around the bar.
First intermission: Steve Webb. Second intermission: Deb Placey and the raffle.
You know all the rest: $1 Buds until 8:00 pm, comp shots after each Islanders goal. We’ll even have a goal song for the night.
See you tonight. If you haven’t confirmed your attendance yet, PLEASE RSVP (YESSES ONLY) AT THIS LINK.
Unless you’re traveling far, don’t let the weather get in the way of a good time.
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Score-O: Besides tonight’s event, you are also cordially invited to predict the score and winner of the game between the Islanders and the Leafs. In Comments.
Comments related to this post, please.
11:10 pm - As I just posted on Twitter, Tim Jackman (hip pointer) and Sean Bergenheim (rib injury) are heading home, not to Toronto for Wednesday’s game.
Islanders vs. Toronto at SOCIAL on a dozen screens. Guests: Steve Webb, Deb Placey. Free buffet and $1 Bud drafts from 7-8 pm. Complimentary shots after each Islanders goal. Free raffle for all. All ages welcome, 21 and over to drink. SOCIAL is at 1002 Hempstead Turnpike across from the Coliseum. PLEASE RSVP (YESSES ONLY) AT THIS LINK. I’m also on Facebook. Don’t miss it.
Botta/Schultz on FanHouse: Silence in the Trade Market
written by Kevin Schultz
FINAL (PHI 6, NYI 2): On Versus, Andy Brickley said the Islanders played “OK as a team” tonight. He gets points for being polite despite the rather large imbellishment…Midway through the period Hartnell crashes Biron and none other than John Tavares is the first one in to stand up for his netminder. That says volumes about the kid and the Islanders lack of a true enforcer. We can safely say at least one Islander came to play tonght… The refs are getting an ear full from the home crowd tonight but I’d say they’ve been just at the very least… I think, somehow, I found a teeny tiny silver lining. Brendan Witt: Even, 17 minutes of ice time. Not even an SUV can stop Witter!
I’d love to write more but there isn’t much to say. The Islanders had not played since Saturday and faced a team that was 2-8 in their last ten and played Monday night. There’s no excuse for the lack of effort. Where do we go from here? I’m going to try and forget about this as fast as possible. Thanks again to CB for having me! I’m sure I’ll see you all again soon. Hopefully tomorrow there will be a hockey game for all of those attending Point Blank Night at SOCIAL ($1 drinks and free raffles! It’s almost like they’re paying you to go!).
2nd intermission (PHI 5, NYI 2): Flyers get a goal wiped out on a high stick at the outset of the period. Refs make the easy, correct call… Jeff Carter adds two in the period and Claude Giroux gets one, all three from down low. Defense doesn’t attempt to get a body on Carter in either instance (although first was on PP)… Islanders don’t get out of the zone for what seems like the first half of the period… Remember when, before this road trip, we could say that the Islanders had been in almost every game? They haven’t shown up for three of the last four… Tavares adds two slam dunks on the power play thanks to the undisciplined Flyers who took five penalties in the second half of the period. After the first goal, he gets elbowed in the back of the head by the King of Elbows, Chris Pronger. JT appears to lose a tooth. He now looks the part of a rough and tumble NHLer… I don’t believe Jackman has been back.
1st intermission (PHI 2, NYI 0): Mike Richards scores twice; first a deflection on the man advantage and the second a shorthanded breakaway. Effort level is pretty low for the Isles and it is showing in the shot totals and the poor excuse for a power play. They’re getting out shot 15-5… Tim Jackman headed to the lockerroom at the beginning of the period, my guess is that it’s equipment related… Biron’s looked OK so far but is letting up some big rebounds. Can’t really blame him on the goals. Got hung out to dry on the second goal… Oh and there’s no excuse for Scott Hartnell beating Gervais down the wing like that.
The Islanders are in Philadelphia for the fourth of a five game road trip (1-2 so far). If you’re a DirecTV customer, you’re out of luck tonight as the game is on Versus and the Comcast owned channel is still fighting with the satellite provider over money. What a mess and, as always, the fans are caught in the middle. If you’re John Stevens, you’re watching from home – unless he has DirecTV – as the Flyers fired the former coach last Friday and replaced him with an old friend of ours.
Thanks to CB for once again letting me take over his site for the night. I’ll be checking in after each period to discuss the action with you and will be around in the comments or you can tweet me @bmr_blog. If there are any changes of note, I’ll update them here. For now, lineup is unchanged. Biron is in net. Maybe the Isles can score a couple for him (or is that asking too much?). Enjoy the game!
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