DiPIETRO LIKELY TO START A GAME ON ROAD TRIP
Comeau-Tavares-Okposo and other lines
12:20 pm - Scott Gordon – clearly under orders – would not say more than confirm that Rick DiPietro is on the trip to Colorado, Dallas and Phoenix. Asked if DiPietro would play on the trip, he grinned and said, “Maybe.”
Darn, too bad I don’t travel with the team.
Looks like the plan is for DiPietro to start one game on the trip. Figure on Dwayne Roloson for Wednesday against the Avalanche, DiPietro for either Friday vs. the Stars or Saturday against the Coyotes. All DiPietro would say was that his health is intact and his only knowledge was that he was going on the trip. When I spoke with him, it was obvious he has yet to be clued in on any plan.
The Islanders had a 60-minute practice before getting ready for their flight from Farmingdale to Denver.
Comeau – Tavares – Okposo
Moulson – Nielsen – Hunter
Bailey – Schremp – Sim
Tambellini – Weight – Park
Brendan Witt is back with his six fellow defensemen. Dwayne Roloson, Martin Biron and the first overall pick in the 2000 draft shared two goals.
Sean Bergenheim looks ready to play Wednesday, even if he doesn’t. Like Bergenheim, Nate Thompson skated in a no-contact yellow jersey.
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Live Game Chat Tomorrow: It’s been a while. Our live in-game chat returns Wednesday at 9:00 pm EST when the Islanders play in Colorado. Join fellow Islanders followers as we watch the game, conduct some polls, crosscheck from behind and go off on all sorts of tangents.
World Juniors Tonight: Matt Donovan (USA) vs. Calvin de Haan (Canada) in the World Junior Championships Final tonight on The NHL Network and TSN. Kirill Petrov and Team Russia finish sixth, but racked up lots of points against the junior varsity. No word yet if Anton Klementyev is bringing Kirill to Bridgeport in his suitcase. Stay tuned to other websites for the latest. Good kid Nikita Filatov loses his way, now has Columbus and his national program not in love with his act. Time to grow up.
Mangano Finds Eden: First, Michael Martino – the Long Island Press reporter who wrote about the Lighthouse offices closing its doors – took a job as new County Executive Ed Mangano’s press secretary. Now the latest hire by the Mangano administration is Eden Laikin, who covered the Town of Hempstead and wrote extensively about the Lighthouse Project for Newsday. Sometimes you don’t even have to editorialize.
No. 3 is No. 1: Colorado’s Matt Duchene has been named the NHL Rookie of the Month for December. I’m so proud of all of our Tavheduch boys.
Nice Job, Kid: Thumbs up to John Tavares, who handled an overflow crowd at Modell’s yesterday with poise and grace. Although the Islanders only promised autographs for the first 150 fans, more than 300 fans showed up. While we’re told the Modell’s staff wasn’t exactly Disney World-level customer relations during the crush, Tavares took care of everyone.
That’s it…for now. Comments are welcomed. Please adhere to the Comment Guidelines.
67 Responses to DiPIETRO LIKELY TO START A GAME ON ROAD TRIP
Comeau-Tavares-Okposo and other lines
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Wow says:
They must have been promised jobs. What a joke.
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Islander86 says:
Glad Bergie is back !!!!
He can make difference. -
Bring back Nyles says:
Glad to hear about our returning players.
Seems like everyone who has covered the Ligthouse is getting a job in the Mangano administration. What’s next? Is Nick from Let There Be Lighthouse going to be hired?
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4theisles says:
comeau did not receive the credit he deserved in the last game. He’s a fast skater, is physical, and controls the puck well along the boards and often makes good outlet passes. His big weakness is driving the net and shooting more. I realize that the latter are big minuses. But with his decent size he has a chance to overcome this. He is about the future as compared with players such as Tamby, Sim, Park, and Schremp. So coach please use him more.
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Mike Olivo says:
I went over to Modells after work, but unfortunately had to bail to be somewhere by 630. At 515, there were already 200 people inside, and another 30 outside. Would have loved to get my puck signed. The Islanders should consider having things like this at larger places, say Roosevelt Field or something like that.
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VA ISLES says:
CB: So, are these people Mangano hired, a good thing for the LH, or a bad thing…. sorry I just dont get it.
Let’s give it one more go with Ricky (as a #2 for the rest of the season, since Roli is solid) and see what happens.
I like Moulson Nielsen and Hunter – 2 good diggers down low with FN. Also you have to admit, the Bailey, Sim, Schremp line looks like a fit lately.
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Hogue fan club says:
Love the mix up of lines. Like Okie back with JT.
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Will C says:
With our fanbase being over emotional all over the place. I hope we take a second to realize our BEST PLAYER and ALL STAR at the time he was injured is coming back to the lineup. DP taking a 3rd of the starts with Roli handling the load and then a split next season will only help mature DP more and make him the complete goaltender we drafted in 2k.
I am excited he is back and can’t wait, it adds another dimension. JT-good job, you just made 300+ fans for life regardless of your career. I was at iceworks in 98 and Milbury was in the stands. I approached and asked for a signature, and he had me sit down and we talked hockey for a good 20+ minutes. He didn’t need to give me the time, but he was very professional and we laughed about him climbing into the stands to beat on rags fans. He gets a bad rap too, great drafts, terrible ownership forced him into terrible situations. Look at how we screwed the pooch in the draft from 87 until he came in and strung together solid picks, unfortunately he was forced to deal them for low salary terds. Sad.
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Iron Islander77 says:
Not for nuttin, but I’m nit getting excited about DP until he plays 15 games and remains injury free. Just been too much DP teasing…
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Brian G says:
I could see Biron getting traded before the olympic break to either: LA, VAN, or
Buffalo …no other teams really need a goalie at this time – PS the islanders would never trade him to the Rangers. -
Rob says:
I agree with not getting excited about DP. It’s not like he was shutting things down in Bridgeport. Maybe they should have let him get a bit more conditioning and maybe stop a few AHL pucks before expecting him to stop NHL pucks.
I’m not hating on him… just saying that the stats don’t seem to suggest that he’s ready. -
todd says:
I agree with you 100% Iron Islander77. DP is a world class goalie when is healthy, and on his game. Hopefully this break matured him a bit. I won’t be convinced that he is “back” until he plays a regular starting goalie schedule for at least two months in a row.
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StevieL says:
I really like the line combos! 3 Goaltenders?? Interesting!!!
USA, USA, USA!! Bring it home!! -
Ron says:
Petrov got the C from Russia for the 5th place game after Filtov had it stripped…
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Chris Mc says:
#6- Im a huge Comeau fan so obviuosly I agree with what youre saying, but if you havent noticed Comeau has been in the top 3 in ice time for Islander forwards and a couple games he was just behind KO. I think Gordo has noticed his play the past few weeks bc even when he decided to change up the lines, he kept Blake on the first line.
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Scott W says:
Thats funny about Eden Laikin. Her articles about the lighthouse had as much juice as a Dan Plante Slapshot. I felt like I was reading a high school report on the lighthouse when I would read her stuff. Perfect for press releases. Psyched for DP. Hope he can stay healthy. Only a plus getting him back. Wonder if Ottawa would take Biron? Their goaltending has not been great. If campoli is worth a first rounder, maybe we can steal a 2nd for Marty.
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rb says:
Looking forward to watching Duchene over the course of a whole game. I didn’t think he’d be this good so soon, and my hat’s off to him.
As for Filatov, I’ve got to assume that Isles saw something in his personality (immaturity?, unwillingness to compete?) that led them to conclude that they were going to blow a top pick on him, regardless of natural talent. Obviously, it’s not about talent, and wherever Bailey ends up as a player it’s clear that he competes hard, is willing to learn and even move to the wing. The type of team player you wim with.
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4peatsake says:
After Nick from Let There be Lighthouse, Mangano will probably hire Katrina from LDC
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Moose says:
pretty terrible line for Bailey but I do like what Comeau has been bringing the last week or 2.
What is the roster limit? With DP back do the Isles need to release someone when Bergie and/or Nate is activated?
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UIF says:
I like Bailey and Schremp out there. Sim…eh. Maybe I’m in the minority, but I think Schremp has looked good out there lately. Similar to other players without much NHL experience, I expect him to get better as he learns what he can and can’t do against NHL players relative to lower levels of hockey. But I’m not seeing the laziness that many warned about. He seems to be working hard out there, and I think there’s been noticeable improvement from earlier in the year.
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Staten Islander says:
Wish I could see the WJC game tonight
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Diane says:
LOL, I’m having a brain block since I read about going off on a tangent. Now all I can think about is.. a tan gent. What a fun word. Yeah…:)
I’m liking the extra practices. They obviously need to get straight on a few things.
Surprised no one mentioned about Gordon “not being aware” of DP coming to practice yesterday, seems a little deja vu to me (Nolan vs Snow/Wang)….whatevs.
Not going to wreck my mood with the Lighthouse stuff.
Back to that tan guy in my mind’s eye
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Peter says:
Serious question: How will the Islanders react when, not if, Avery runs DiPietro?
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MJS says:
Mangano’s press corps is full of D-bags. Rather than hire him, I think they would all go out and rough Nick Giglia up a little bit. If you haven’t noticed, these people that Mangano has hired are all the Newsday reporters that were sliming the Lighthouse. And talk about no need to editorialize, but those reporters came about as close to that as possible without actually writing an opinion. I’ve never read such biased reporting. It was like the worst of Fox News and MSNBC combined.
I wish DP would’ve had another start or two in the A before he got a game in the NHL. Dallas makes sense as the game he would start based on record, but they’re somewhere around 10th in the league in goals for, so it could be an ugly one for him.
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I don’t like these line combos Bailey needs to be on a line where he can flourish offensively. He can’t succeed on a line with a pipsqueek and a…jon sim. In all seriousness why shouldn’t Petrov “get lost” on the way to his plane I mean Malkin did it in 2006 and he did it all the way from finland. DON’T GET ON THE PLANE KIRILL!!!
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who says:
keep in mind that the trade deadline is 2 days AFTER the olympic break…
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brian says:
Dear Santa,
One last present please. A Dipietro start in Phoenix, a game that I will be attending
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JackC says:
#24, Serious answer: Hopefully by not doing a thing. Accept the powerplay and score a goal. Goalies get run occassionaly. If DP can’t stand it then he shouldn’t be playing.
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Wow, thanks for the kind words here, guys. I am safe, and I have not been approached for a job in the Mangano administration…yet.
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matt says:
Comeau cant be on the tavares line. tavares has one goal since he came on his line
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anthony says:
Bailey should be playing with JT and Okposo
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Tim F. says:
I like Moulson and Hunter together on the same line. Hunter is one of the few guys who actually gets his slap shot through to the net, and Moulson has shown his willingness to get low and scrap for rebounds. Leave them together for a while and see what happens.
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CG says:
On a different topic. Just saw new fun pack offer on the Isles website. $149 (really $180 with all the fees) for the worst ticket. Can’t get more than 12k on a Sat night and this is the best they can do.
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wow.
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Harold says:
If Matty Duschene turns out to be a better all around player than Tavares I will be screaming from the top of my lungs I TOLD YOU SO. And then I will watch as all the Islander fans crush Snow even though they gave him no choice BUT to pick Tavares. If JT turns out as great as you all said he would be I will admit I was wrong and leave it at that. By the way, anyone seen Tavares lately? I mean I know he was at Modells but when will he be on the ice again because I haven’t seen him in weeks. Oh wait a minute, that’s right I saw him in the last game slam his stick on the ice and skate slowly back to the bench with his head down because he messed up a pass. Can’t imagine why Gordon gave him so few minutes after that. Maybe we will see one of his pattented behind the back passes to the other team. Those are always fun to watch.
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West Coast Fan says:
JT’s “drought” started long before comeau started playing with him.
Hate to say it, but Tavares has shown little more than an ability to deposit pucks in open nets in the rare instances when he’s not falling on his butt while disappearing for large segments of games… I sincerely hope that’s simply a function of being 19 or playing hurt; only time will tell…
FWIW, I’ll be attending the Phoenix game as well, and I hope DP gets the nod in Dallas. I wish him well, but I don’t want to be at his first game against NHL-calibre opponents…
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Oh, now it’s Comeaus fault that Tavares hasn’t scored. That’s pretty funny. Maybe someday we will find the perfect two people on his line to make him better. Or hold on, I thought he was supposed to make everyone else around him better with his incredible skill and goal scoring ability. Now I’m just confused.
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big dally mac says:
Canada 5 USA 3….de Haan with the winner. What is it with being an Islander even at the WJC Islander prospects get injured. de Haan concussed and now a dirty hit on Hamonic…separated shoulder. Go Canada Go….Go Islanders….DiPi is back.
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Just like last year, rushing DiPietro back so soon is going to yield another disastrous result…a road loss when we might get a win and the destruction of any confidence he or the team might otherwise build.
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Examiner says:
After not playing in the NHL in 12 months, I don’t quite see this as rushing him back. As Ricky said the other day, he wouldn’t be suiting up if he didn’t feel that he was ready. He acknowledged rushing back in the past but he is a smarter person now because of it.
Besides, he is currently the team’s 3rd goalie. Why would Snow or Gordon, or anyone for that matter, rush him back? He is a bonus right now, not a necessity (which he was last year).
Rollie is still the starting goalie here.
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billy says:
19- great bit about Bailey, he plays much better as a winger
Hallelujah Ricky is back, i believe he will be everything he was drafted to be, but no can blame anyone for being pessimistic with regards to his health. Any discomfort that he displays will bring swarms of negative reaction, but thats just the way its gonna be.
Speaking of discomfort, everytime they show a close up of Roloson, where u can see his face through the mask, he always looks like he’s grimacing or uncomfortable. i always get a chuckle from it.
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D-Money says:
West Coast Fan:
“Hate to say it, but Tavares has shown little more than an ability to deposit pucks in open nets in the rare instances when he’s not falling on his butt while disappearing for large segments of games…”
It takes being in the right place at the right time to find those open nets, which not many guys can do, or have the good fortune of doing. While I think Crosby is more multi-dimensional, have you ever noticed how many goals he scores from down low, when the puck just happens to find its way to him or him to it? I’ll go out on a limb and say JT has that same knack.
I will also agree that Tavares does spend a lot of time on his butt, but I think that is a product of a few things: 1) terrible ice at the Coli and around the league, 2) being tired from playing so many games with bumps and bruises of that come from playing with much older/tougher guys and 3) to his credit, he is usually on his butt when he is trying to recover the puck along the boards–a testament to the fact he doesn’t give up on many plays.
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joe fred va says:
Still wondering why Mangano would be upset over the deal that was brokered late last week by Suozzi giving Wang some financial control on the Coliseum? I understand it will make the likelyhood of the isles leaving more realistic, but why would he be upset if his intentions were to pass or move forward with the Lighthouse? By the way the second line will have a big roadtrip!
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Go US Ski Team & US Hockey Vancouver 2010 says:
Bad News for the Lighthouse on Long Island for sure. Simply means the death call article was correct
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Railbait says:
West Coast Fan:
JT’s “drought” started long before comeau started playing with him.I believe it started when Flash put Park on the first line and moved Okposo. Most coaches keep a line together when they are scoring. Not Flash though, he wanted to spread the scoring around. How’s that working for you now, Coach?
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Mikey Pants says:
Who cares about Dipietro’s return. He’s never Stolen as many games in his career that Roloson has in just THIS SEASON ALONE!
What are we doing about a lack of an Enforcer now that Jackman got Colin Campbelled??
Snow needs to get someone up here to the Bigs Pronto!
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IslesinOside says:
Looking forwrd to DP’s return. Good Luck Rick! I think we are gonna see a great energy game when he starts and I also think your gonna see our boys be real protective around his crease. Should be fun.
I like the lines but El Gordo won’t keep them anyway….no matter how good that do. -
Frank nyc says:
Watching the wjc right now. Matt Donovan has been very noticable. He’s been blocking shots and seems to skate very well. Being that i never saw him play before he looks real good. I havent noticed DeHaan and USA leads 5-3.
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nystrom23 says:
Congrates to Matt Donovan for a great WJC and a gold medal…keep developing kid your looking like a stud
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JustinChi says:
De Haan didnt seem to get much ice time, he did, however, have a terrible giveaway that lead to a US goal. Canada did miss Hamonic, which I guess is good news for Isles fans.
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Irish Isle says:
Can’t help but wonder how Canada would have done if they had Hamonic on the blue line
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JTnKO says:
Great game between US and Canada (again) for the WJC gold! Donovan played great, lots of blocked shots and solid on the PK all night for the US. De hann was very quiet tho for canada. Unfortunately the two ranger prospects IMO were awesome for the US, stepan and kreider.
Congrats to the USA boys! too bad the olympics will not be nearly as exciting for the US.
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Frustrated Voter says:
If we are building for the future, why not move Tambellini on the third line to play with Bailey and Shremp? Just a thought.
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isles08025 says:
Nice to watch our prospects in the game. Future looks bright with both of these kids
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Jerky says:
Glad Rick is back and hope he can find his way back to respectability. I expect he’ll be less than stellar for the remainder of the season as he gets back into NHL game shape, so he gets a pass from me for performance until next year.
DP will absolutely get run from opposing players and I too wonder how the team will react to protect him. I can’t see Gervais clearing anyone in front of the net to help out, so unless Sutton, Witt and Streit are on the ice for 40 minutes a piece, he’ll be exposed.
I have to agree with Mikey Pants (#48) – Roloson has played better and stolen more games in half a season with the Isles than DP has in his career. I hope DP can become everything we hope he can but the jury will be deliberating on this one for a while. I just hope DP doesn’t over handle the puck anymore … Roloson plays a simple style and doesn’t try to do too much – and it works. Ricky better have been watching and learning.
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Spinner9 says:
To # 55, I’d also like to see Tambellini get on a more “offensive” line but I think a line with him Schremp and Bailey is just too small. Plus Tambellini and Bailey have both been playing the left wing slot, someone would have to go on their off side.
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Dan says:
Now that Ed Mangano’s hired his new coffee-fetcher I wonder who’ll be tabbed as the latest ToH gopher to provide D-level reporting for the glorified cat box liner. It shouldn’t be too hard to locate some random ditz whose only skill is an intimate familiarity with the taste of Kate Murray’s Manolos.
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Now that was a really great game to watch. USA edges out Canada for gold at the WJC. Congrats to Matt Donovan on his gold medal. He also opened up overtime on defense with Cam Fowler. I think that shows a little something about how the coaching staff viewed him as a player. He had a lot of ice time last night.
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I wouldn’t mind seeing Bailey on the left side of JT and The Beast. I that would have the makings of a solid first line. JT can get some of Bailey’s sweet passes to finish.
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Ruud from Netherlands says:
Doug Weight is also a good passing player. So yeah Bailey or Weight on the Tavares line and for sure he’ll produce!
Even though he hasn’t score in 11 games he’s still the rookies top goal scorer. And no offence but he does not have the top passers like St. Louis, Semin and so on… so don’t compare him to Crosby or Ovie in his first year. I honestly believe JT will be a better goalscorer! But he’s got to have a top league passer around him!
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Netherlands – No chance JT will be even near the goal-scorer that Alexander Ovechkin is. Not sure I see Tavares topping the 50-goal mark, let alone the 65 he put up 2 years ago. Ovie put up52 in his rookie season with no help. There was no Semin back then. He finished the season with 106 pts and his next closest teammate was Zubrus at 57 pts.
Sorry, love the kid, but he is not and will never be an Ovechkin type player.
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JtorBust says:
Jt can and will be great if he plays for an organization that gets the right players around him. He needs a Dave Semenko type bodyguard more than he needs someone to feed him perfect passes. He should be concentrating first on scoring goals instead of playing timid and waiting for the next big hit. He has been hit more than Gretzky , Sid the Kid and any other tabbed superstar I can remember. It is sad that a former player running the club can t realize that this sport more than any other has a level of intimidation that teams implore as part of their strategy. We have a team that doesn’t stand up for one another and it not only demoralizes a team but effects other aspects of the game. Instead of a 4th line guy who does nothing besides score a goal every 20 games and is solid on the Pk why not bring in a heavyweight who is a solid checker and makes the opponent think twice before taking a run at our future stars or break our one semi tough guys’ eye socket. He will open up the ice and like the great one, without Semenko’s presence, Gretzky might not have been able to quite reach the scoring levels he did. Give the kid a fair shot before everyone jumps all over him -
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Blizzard says: I agree with JTorbust. JT has been flatned quite a bit. We lack team toughness. A lot of fans cried for an enforcer, and worried the lack of one would effect JT. Those fears unfortunatley have been realized. JT played with a little bit of an edge initially. Not so now. I remeber when Pronger pasted him against the boards and he went on to score which was encouraging. However he seems to be tepid now. I know he is just 19, but the Islanders really need some guys that can kick some ass and stand up. Throw a heavy hit on an opposing star…actually win a fight. There is a reason why Philly beats us all the time when they are still well with in reach in the standings. We are small. With out a lot of Jam. Where is Steve Webb when you need him.
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steve says:
dave semenko, thers a blast from the past.
the game has changed since the early 1980′s. not to say the sand/grit aren’t needed still in the NHL. but brashaer is a wasted roster spot, unless you like being man down for 2 minutes. in terms of body type and strength, look at JB last season vs this season. heck, check the blogs. the same things were written then about JB always getting knocked off the puck, being small, as they are about JT today. JT is a very skilled teenager, but hes a teenager playing vs 27-28 year old men. night and day in terms of body type/size. give him time and a year in the gym.
canada post game last nite was lamenting the loss of hamonic, speaks to his ability. donavans playing team speaks well about him too. good stuff for our club. usa won under 17, and juniors. the futures so bright, we gotta wear shades. -
I understand that the Mick Vukota goon has no place in hockey and a guy like Clark Gillies only comes along once in a lifetime but how about a guy who can put a few in the net and opponents don t want any piece of. We have absolutely no one on our current roster who will stand up for anyone not because they don’t want to do its just not part of their game. Witt is an old warrior with a champions heart but he can t fight anyone and Sutton only will drop the gloves if he has to, not policing anyone. I don’t want a Fritz or Wrecker who are liabilities just a guy who can play and will stand up for his teamates. Those guys sell tickets not Park & Thompson, business 101 Garth -
now we know why the newsday articles were so anti lighthouse. Journalistic credibility….priceless