Monthly Archives: September 2010
CB’s Islanders Preview for Fanhouse
No predictions, few projections…more of an overview of the Islanders’ rebuild, authored for AOL FanHouse. For loyal Point Blank readers, consider this my Islanders’ training camp preview. Thanks for checking it out. See you Monday.
From the Islanders’ press release:
Individual game tickets for the first half of the Islanders’ 2010-11 season will go on sale to the general public on Tuesday, Sept. 14 in an exclusive event at the Team Store in Hicksville, from 5 – 9 p.m. Trent Hunter will sign autographs at the event from 5 – 6 p.m. The Islanders team store is located inside the Broadway Mall on Route 107.
All fans will have the chance to purchase individual game tickets starting at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 15 at the Nassau Coliseum Box Office and at all Ticketmaster outlets.
UPDATED at 1:00 pm: Petrov is not in the lineup today for the regular season opener for Ak Bars.
9:40 am: While Kirill Petrov’s chances of joining the Islanders organization may appear to be grim because the KHL regular season begins today, hope remains.
“Give this just two or three more days,” a source close to the Islanders’ talented prospect told Point Blank. “There is a possibility that something can be worked out.”
Petrov, an Islanders third round pick in 2008, is under contract to Kazan Ak Bars for two more seasons. In the two years since the Islanders drafted the 6-3 right wing, he has played primarily for Kazan’s B squad – in addition to the Russian national junior team.
A standout at Islanders prospect minicamp this summer, Petrov said he would like to join the Islanders organization immediately. Islanders GM Garth Snow shares Petrov’s wish to see him begin his North American development now, and continues to search for ways to spring his prospect out of the KHL. At Ak Bars training camp over the last three weeks, Petrov has been benched for some preseason games and could be destined for another season with their second-tier club.
Since a third year with the B squad will not enhance Petrov’s development, the Islanders want the forward on Long Island next week. Islanders prospects are playing a pair of rookie games in Boston next week before the official opening of camp on Sept. 17. According to the Islanders’ website, Petrov is on the roster for those rookie games.
“I’m holding out hope that a resolution can be reached for the benefit of Petrov’s future,” said the source. “We should know by the weekend, if not sooner.”
But what about the rule that states, once a European player is on a roster at the start of his league’s regular season, he cannot leave for the NHL ?
“There are a lot of issues with this one,” said the source. “Let’s start out by seeing if we can get him to Islanders training camp. Just give this a few more days.”
Please check out my column on what Dan Ellis posted on Twitter last night
Man, I would have thought the Islanders would have done something mildly substantial in the nearly four weeks the blog has been on hiatus. So far, beyond the two-way returns of Jon Sim and Andy Hilbert and finalizing of Doug Weight’s bonuses, it has been a very quiet time.
There still is plenty of time for a move, and I don’t mean the inevitable announcement of a training camp tryout or two. After the summer of Tavares, what a quiet offseason of positive transactions it has been for the Islanders. Until the signing of Nino Niederreitter – perhaps – there hasn’t been a single move worth calling a press conference for. Not even a conference call with the media, at least as far as I know.
That doesn’t mean this won’t be an exciting season for the Islanders. Quite the contrary. When a primarily-young team is given another year to grow together, there will be plenty to cover. When a third-year head coach enters the final year of his contract, there will be plenty to discuss.
I have one more week at the U.S. Open and then I should be back at it next week. Although the prospects have a pair of rookie games in Boston next week, Camp officially starts next Friday, Sept. 17. I plan to be there to report and hope you will join me for season three of Point Blank. Thank you for continuing to check out the blog. This should be a fun year…CB
