Monthly Archives: October 2010
FanHouse: CB with reaction on Tavares’ concussion
11:00 pm, NVMC: After falling behind 2-0 after the first period – including a second goal that Rick DiPietro called “horrendous” on his part – the Islanders rallied from a deficit of 4-2 in the third period to tie the game. They got a point in the standings, but lost in the shootout when Mike Ribeiro scored the only goal.
Besides the impressive comeback, a storyline of equal importance was the Islanders losing John Tavares to what the team termed a mild concussion. Tavares suffered the injury on a hit by Dallas forward Adam Burish late in the first period. The Islanders announced that Tavares will be re-evaluated on Monday, so they should be without their No. 1 center when they host the Rangers on Columbus Day.
TONIGHT’S FIVE BEST
1. Doug Weight - The captain truly does look like a new man. Weight had a goal and two assists. Said Scott Gordon, “He made some plays he just couldn’t have last year.”
2. Brenden Morrow - The Stars’ captain was just as good, scoring two goals. With Modano and Turco gone, this is really his team now.
3. Josh Bailey - As one national broadcaster, watching the game, texted to me, “Bailey is playing with diesel now.”
4. James Wisniewski - One goal, one assist and one mammoth hit in the third period that prompted Rex Ryan to say, “Now that’s what I’m talking about”!
5. Brad Richards - There’s a reason the Rangers hope they can recruit him as their No. 1 center next summer.
AWARDS
Unsung Hero: Mike Mottau. “Great signing by Garth to get a player like that so late in the offseason,” said Gordon. Exactly. Over 21:06, Mottau was better than steady.
Wow, He’s Good: James Neal didn’t get on the scoresheet, but now we have a better understanding of why the Stars consider him a cornerstone.
Reader Comment of the Week: (tie, both on the Islanders’ radio deal with Hofstra)
Ethan K: “We have 18 year olds on the ice. You’re worried about them running a friggin radio station?!”
Sidd Finch: “Any chance the Shinnecocks have put in a bid for the smoke signal rights?”
(FRANS) NIELSEN RATINGS (1-10)
NYI Performance - 7: They shot from everywhere, which is good but a little misleading for the shot totals (47-22). They battled hard in the second period and still did not give up down 4-2 seven minutes into the third. For a team dealing with so many key injuries, the glass was a little more than half-full after coming away with a point.
Power Play - 8: Islanders were 3-6 and distributed the puck well. At least for this night, no one was looking for Mark Streit.
Penalty Killing - 8: They were 1-6, including the killing of a 4-on-3 in overtime.
Goaltending - 5: DiPietro said after the game, “I let up a terrible second goal and the guys still came back.” He knows he has to be much better.
Opponent - 7: For a team that played an overtime game last night in New Jersey, Dallas showed something playing a strong opening two periods. It was easy to see they had nothing left in their legs in overtime.
Game - 8: The comeback was dramatic, and the crowd showed its appreciation.
Event - 6: The game operations were sharp and exciting, but the night had less than an “event” feel with all those mostly-empty sections in the 200s and 300s behind the goal the Islanders defend twice. Announced attendance was 13,351 – 3,000 short of a sellout.
Crowd - 10: The fans that were there started off loud and proud from the parking lot two hours before the game until Ribeiro’s shootout goal.
CLIPS
Doug Weight on the Comeback
Niederreiter on his NHL Debut
Comments on tonight’s game are invited.
Instant NYI updates on Twitter
Nino Niederreiter, P.A. Parenteau, James Wisniewski and John Tavares walk to the ice for today’s morning skate in preparation for the season opener. The fifth person is a Swiss reporter following Nino’s every move.
11:15 am, Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum: Tonight’s scratches on defense will be Bruno Gervais and Jack Hillen. (And to think, all those emails and comments about Point Blank resuming drinking because I pointed out Jack’s B-squad assignments). Scott Gordon would not give the reasons why, saying he was meeting with Hillen later this morning. For Hillen, who suffered a major injury last season when he took an Ovechkin slap shot to the face, I would hope it’s more a numbers game than a serious reflection on his play.
As expected, Michael Grabner will sit out as he learns the systems and the Islanders look at what they have on the right side with 18-year-old Nino Niederreiter and unproven free agent signing P.A. Parenteau.
Islanders Lineup – Game 1
Comeau – Tavares – Parenteau
Moulson – Nielsen – Hunter
Bailey - Weight – Niederreiter
Gillies - Konopka – Sim
(Grabner)
Mottau – Wisniewski
Eaton – Martinek
Jurcina - MacDonald
(Hillen – Gervais)
DiPietro
Roloson
Soundbites
Blake Comeau on his placement on a line with John Tavares: “It feels good to be given the responsibility. John’s an elite player. You cannot ask for a better opportunity than to be on his line. My job is to create some space for my linemates, play the body and hopefully continue to contribute points like I did in the second half last season. With Kyle (Okposo) out for a while, it’s on me and a few of the guys to step up our production.”
Nino Niederreiter on his role: “No matter what level I’m at, I have to do the little things, but I’m a goal scorer. It’s my jobs to puck pucks in nets.”
Zenon Konopka on Game 1: “We have to play off the emotion and the intensity that comes with a home opener. There’s lot of potential here. It’s time to start the adventure.”
Notes
The players and coaching staff put in a full week of work in preparation for tonight’s opener. In a bit of a surprise, the Islanders practiced every day for five straight – including one double-session on Wednesday. No one can say Scott Gordon, Dean Chynoweth, Scott Allen and Sudarshan Maharaj don’t put the time in. Teams all over the league, with most like the Islanders not opening their seasons until today, took days off.
Rick DiPietro starts tonight, but opted to rest instead of take the morning skate. Kari Lehton starts again by Dallas after beating New Jersey last night.
By the way Coach Gordon was talking this morning, it certainly sounds like the organization views DiPietro as its No. 1 goaltender. Gordon disclosed that he met with Dwayne Roloson about his role mid-camp and yesterday, and said Maharaj met with Roloson recently. Gordon also talked about the Islanders having plenty of back-to-backs and how Roloson will get his starts. I was a bit surprised that the head coach didn’t simply play up the notion, “We have two No. 1s,” but always appreciate the candor.
The Islanders are 24-10-3 in their first 37 home openers. Tonight is just the sixth time in 38 years that the Islanders will open the season at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The Islanders are 2-2-1 in season openers at home.
Calvin de Haan had two assists and was plus-2 in Oshawa’s 8-7 shootout loss to Kingston last night. Kirill Kabanov was held scoreless and was minus-2 in his season debut with Moncton, a 6-2 loss in Saint John.
Former Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara has signed a seven-year contract extension worth $6.5 million per. As Nick Kypreos tweeted this morning, most of the big money in the NHL these days is being spent on stud blueliners.
The best news to come out of the Islanders’ deal with Radio Hofstra University is the assignment of Chris King as the play-by-play voice. King has been working in Islanders radio for a long time, and I know how much he dreamed of being the lead announcer. Son of a gun also enters the season in fighting shape, looking like he dropped at least 20 pounds. “I spent a lot of time this summer on the bike.” Congratulations to the good man we call Kinger.
Scott Gordon
John Tavares
Comments. Check back here and on Twitter during the day for updates.
Instant updates on Twitter4:00 pm: Rick DiPietro has become boring. When the press enters the Islanders’ home locker room at the Coliseum, the goalie stays low-key. In interviews, he rarely acts the wiseMass. Teammates say they’ve never seen him so serious, so intense.
DiPietro, gleefully married for a year but having endured more than two years of career hell, now plays the part of a 29-year-old man who only wants to be healthy and help the Islanders win hockey games.
“When you have a part of your career taken from you,” said DiPietro, “you appreciate what you have even more. I was never someone who took things for granted, but now every practice, every game, every win means even more.”
As expected, the Islanders named DiPietro the starting goaltender for the home opener on Saturday against the Dallas Stars. Illustrating how much the franchise believes the 2000 first overall pick still means to the fanbase a decade later, the Islanders announced DiPietro’s start 30 hours before faceoff. This, coming off a season in which Scott Gordon routinely told reporters they needn’t bother asking him who was starting that night’s game. Today’s announcement might not have been surprising or earth-shaking, but it says about the Islanders and their once and possibly future franchise goalie.
Beginning with his premature end to last season, and including two months spent rehabilitating and strengthening with daily workouts in California, DiPietro was focused on starting 2010-11 as one of the Islanders’ two goaltenders on opening night. In an interview with Point Blank, he acknowledged that he entered this training camp stronger and healthier than he has been in two years. Team management, and the goaltender himself, have also become wiser with experience and are allowing for rest days, detailing the timing to the media and fans in advance.
“I’m just very determined to put the injuries behind me, to do the best that I can,” said DiPietro. “I want to play and I want to keep my promise to be part of a championship team here. If I’m not playing on a given night, I’ll be loud and boisterous in the room and on the bench. All I want, more than anything else, is for us to start winning. I don’t think we have to talk about rebuilding anymore.”
DiPietro was asked, in lieu of yet another story where it’s impossible to predict how many games he’ll play this season – really now, if I get asked that one more time on a radio show – if he had any fun or interesting details to share about his life. Maybe a celebrity encounter, an exciting vacation, a locker room anecdote.
“Nah, not really,” he said. “I’d tell you, but there’s not much there anyone would find interesting.”
There’s boring DiPietro again. Islanders fans would sign up for it staying that way, and the comebacking goalie getting back to ho-hum regular starts without interruptions by dramatic injury updates.
“I had a good week of practices,” he said before heading to the workout room. “Now it’s off to the races.”
Saturday’s Guest Star: Rex Ryan is dropping the ceremonial opening faceoff before Saturday’s game. Remember when Islanders home openers were about the Islanders? Why not celebrate your own tradition? Would the Jets ever ask a hockey player or coach to flip the coin at one of their openers? Of course not. The Jets, who left Long Island twice, celebrate the Jets.
The Flats Show: Patrick Flatley has been tabbed to succeed Butch Goring as the Islanders’ representative on MSG Network’s “Hockey Night Live.” Flats was never very comfortable in his relief appearances on TV as a game analyst, but with time he should be excellent in a studio setting.
Camp Shutout: Here’s Garth Snow in July to Newsday, when the Islanders announced camp would be on Long Island after their China trip was cancelled:
It’s going to be exciting to have training camp right here in Long Island. Our fans haven’t had that opportunity for the past few years and it should be fun to connect with the community.
The Islanders had one session of training camp open to the public: a scrimmage that cost $10 per ticket (to the Islanders’ Children’s Foundation) and fans were charged for parking. The franchise hosted one event, its annual season kickoff fundraiser at Adventureland they would host whether they had camp on Long Island, Saskatoon or China. The rest of camp closed to the fans.
NYI Confirm Hofstra Deal: updated at 7:15 pm The Islanders sent out a press release confirming the details of their radio arrangement with Hofstra University. Chris King will handle play-by-play, students will take care of most of the rest. The partnership begins with the home opener and WRHU 88.7 FM will “broadcast games throughout the 2010-11 NHL season.”
Comments related to this post. See you Saturday.
NHL FanHouse PredictionsYour prediction of the Islanders’ final record and standing is welcomed in Comments. This is a one-Comment-per-reader thread. Thank you.
8:35 am: After finishing three games under NHL .500 last season, the New York Islanders will finish 2010-11 with a record of 37-35-10. Those 84 points will be a five-point improvement from last year’s big jump, which would be a good thing when you consider the roster and the adversity.
The 84 points will not be enough for the Islanders to clinch their first playoff berth since Garth Snow began his slow and steady rebuild after Ryan Smyth left town.
Some overrated Eastern teams like Atlanta, hyped simply because they rattled their rosters, will finish behind the Islanders. Without almost no expectations projected on them, the Islanders and the Oilers should be the loosest teams in the league. The game can be easier to play when you’re pressure-free and playing up a massive underdog theme. You should see that this weekend.
Although some players and coaches have said they’re sick and tired of talking about rebuilding, the program will continue for another season, but the Islanders will take heart in being in the playoff hunt in March. They will finish in tenth place in the Eastern Conference. The Country will be rewarded with another top-ten overall draft pick and perhaps a chance at another cornerstone player.
Hopefully for the franchise and its fans, it will be the last time they acquire one from the top of the draft. Since the summer of 2006 – remember the “committee”? – the Islanders have entered the NHL draft with overall picks No. 7 (Kyle Okposo), 5 (moved back for Bailey and sweeteners), 1 (John Tavares) and 5 (Nino Niederreiter). After another top pick in 2011, the fans will have every right to demand the end of rebuilding as an excuse for losing. Scott Gordon, Rick DiPietro and other players already have, and that is much appreciated.
The accomplishment of reaching 84 points with this lineup, with injuries to a pair of top-five roster players and coming off Camp Bizarro will be more than enough to earn Gordon a new contract from Charles Wang. Heck, 74 points might get it done. Too bad it’s even a question.
It’s one thing for Wang and Snow to have their way of doing things – “the Islander Way” is how management explains its rationale to players, as if they were the Devils or Red Wings. It’s another for them to go on the record with condescending comments (“We like Scott”) while giving the coach no security. If the ship starts to sink during the season, some players might tune out the coach, believing he won’t be back and assured they’ll have another year to “prove” themselves. It stinks, to say the least.
Also consider these salary figures, calculated by Capgeek for Point Blank. The Islanders are currently keeping Mark Streit and Okposo on their salary cap to reach the CBA-mandated floor. Take away bonuses, the Alexei Yashin and Brendan Witt buyouts and long-term injuries to Streit and Okposo, and the Islanders are spending $30,609,916 on their roster players entering the season. That’s $12,790,084 below the salary cap floor.
Still, this is a solid coaching staff, and they have at least a dozen top-flight professionals with talent and big hearts that will keep the Islanders more competitive than predicted by…well, just about every writer and broadcaster in North America. Oh, Daddy…
The goaltending should, at worst, equal the quality provided by Dwayne Roloson last season. The defense, without Streit until at least the All-Star break, is deeper and a bit better than last year if there are no more major injuries. It’s too bad Snow couldn’t pull off his forward version of the James Wisniewski trade. Kris Versteeg was traded by Chicago to Toronto for not much. Like Wisniewski, Versteeg makes $3 million and plays big. He loves Gordon and four months ago was a major contributor to a Stanley Cup team. Without Okposo, this team would look so much better with a B+ forward acquisition instead of another waiver wire attempt at genius.
The forward corps is not deep, even with a few good men in Bridgeport. The loss of Okposo for a few months is significant, but cannot be used by the franchise as a major excuse. Keep in mind, the Islanders didn’t plan on playing Okposo to the right of John Tavares. Since the first day of training camp through today, PA Parenteau has been in that spot.
In the big picture – yes, the Islanders still aren’t good enough to look anywhere else – this season must be another one with a priority on development.
Keeping Nino Niederreiter here, even if it’s just for nine games, comes off as another case of management getting a crush on a kid – and selling the rebuild when the die-hards have already bought in – than a case of hockey sense. Whether he’s in New York or Portland, Niederreiter has to show he was worthy of his fifth overall selection in the midst of a run of some outstanding talent through pick No. 15. He very well could have been, but why are the Islanders rushing him? El Nino is coming off a 60-point season playing against fellow teenagers in the Western Hockey League. Sixty points.
It says everything about how much Islanders Country wants to believe in its youth that Josh Bailey is almost universally hailed while a fourth-line grinder like Jon Sim is often villified. Never mind the fact that Bailey had one more even-strength goal last season than Sim, despite more playing time. Never mind that the youngster had six fewer even-strength points last season than Richard Park. Bailey has to take a big leap, not have a good week here and there, to prove Snow’s rush-the-youth program is wise instead of desperate. Bailey has to be better.
John Tavares will be, probably to the tune of 30-35 goals. Considering his current linemates are Blake Comeau and PA Parenteau – neither proven first-line NHLers by any stretch of the imagination – a 25% improvement from Tavares in year two would be significant.
While they hover around .500 – the early-season stretch on the road will be a formidable challenge – the goal for the Islanders is to make sure the wheels don’t fall off during the tough stretches. No sideshows. No media meltdowns. No in-fighting. Nothing short of first-class player treatment. If the franchise is having trouble convincing top players to come here, management needs to show their own that this is a place they don’t want to leave.
Beyond Snow, the Islanders are not deep in the management ranks. It’s just Wang and Snow, which may explain the disrespect you’ve seen the last few weeks in national columns and even the usually-soft league broadcast partners at VERSUS. (Yep, the sports media, like the Islanders, is a buddy-buddy business).
The Islanders do not have a team president. The team does not have a Senior VP of Hockey Operations or an assistant GM who can walk into a locker room and quiet a storm. The Islanders don’t have a Mark Messier around to kick a kid’s rear or give him a hug and a faceoff lesson. (Hey, did Bryan Trottier ever get that new job Snow told the media about?) With little leadership of note in the front office, it’s on Coach Gordon to stand up in his third season and take charge. If he believes something is BS, he has to say so (behind closed doors, of course, not Teddy-style).
Doug Weight, the most respected man in the entire organization, is worth every cent the Islanders are paying him. Without the captain, and especially with Streit sidelined, the team would be rudderless. From the start of camp, Weight enforced professionalism and good work habits. With health he can still be a playmaker, but his ultimate value is in leadership, and – if he wants - Weight’s work could lead to a role in management.
I love that the coaching staff and the players are entering the season with an “enough about rebuilding” approach. Internally and to their fans via the media, this should be the message. But in reality, although they will accomplish more than the 13th, 14th and 15th place finishes so many columnists and even some of their biggest cheerleaders predict, the Islanders – still – are playing for next season and the one after that. They cannot lose sight of this.
Your prediction for the Islanders’ final record and standing are welcomed in Comments. This is a one-per-reader thread. Thank you. More later.
6:00 pm: By the time I was forwarded this email by Islanders fans more than 40 times within three hours of the blast, I took the hint. Just two days from their home and season opener, the Islanders are offering up to 40% off tickets for Saturday’s game against Dallas. It says in the email that only the recipient can get the offer by following the instructions and clicking here, inserting this password there – NYIOPENER, just for example. But I’m sure many of you folks, far smarter than me (or is it I?), can figure it out.
The way I see it, the fans emailed it to me for a good cause. I’d like to think the Islanders and TicketMaster won’t mind. No one wants to see the Islanders not sell out their home opener. Thank you for the image, Kevin. Comments. Jaffe video below.
11:15 am: After a recent reunion over coffee, Billy Jaffe of VERSUS, the NHL Network and more was kind enough to grant Point Blank a FlipVid segment. Without prep, I asked Billy for a thought on the Devils and Rangers and a few on the Islanders. Whether you agree with all his views or not, I’m pretty sure you’ll enjoy The Jaff’s insight and enthusiasm.
Comments on this video are welcomed. Discussion of Hofstra Radio and yesterday’s final roster decisions continues below only. Thank you. More later.
FanHouse: CB on Cam Fowler in Anaheim
7:30 pm: The Islanders are hoping to finalize a unique radio arrangement with Hofstra University prior to Saturday night’s opening of the NHL regular season, multiple sources have informed Point Blank.
The marriage is a potentially fascinating one. Radio Hofstra University on 88.7 FM would actually provide Islanders radio broadcasts with a stronger signal than the franchise has had in five years. WRHU covers most of Long Island and carries into Queens and Brooklyn. The Islanders broadcasts would also be available on the Internet.
What would Hofstra get out of the arrangement? For starters, the University’s Communications program would be able to sell to prospective students that their school provides opportunities for youngsters to work on NHL games.
While a veteran broadcaster would likely lead the charge – here’s hoping it’s Islanders Faithful, Chris King – Hofstra students would serve as intermission hosts and sideline reporters. There’s even a chance that students would be color commentators on select broadcasts at home and on the road. Students would also run the technical end – production, engineering, audio.
During the Islanders’ preseason game at the Coliseum on Saturday, Hofstra students worked on a gamecast rehearsal, interviewing players between periods and after the games.
Madison Square Garden Network, which owns all of the Islanders’ broadcast rights, would have to sign off on the deal. With less than 72 hours before Opening Night, the negotiations for this complicated but intriguing arrangement appear to be coming down to the wire.
No doubt, this move will cause some to shake their heads, others to poke fun when you consider the Rangers are on 1050 ESPN Radio and the Devils are on WFAN with broadcasts run entirely by professionals. But for a franchise with financial challenges and with limited options on major stations in the metropolitan area, this is certainly an innovative try. The games would be heard beyond the Coliseum parking lot (the RHU tower is in Hempstead), the dreaded simulcasts would be over and, after all, who doesn’t want the best for college students?
Loudville Open for Opener: On a somewhat related note, the Islanders have made Loudville available for Saturday’s home opener. Tickets are available for students with an ID in Section 330 for just $14. Good news if you’re a student. It also means there are good seats still available for the home opener.
Comments on this post, please. Roster discussion continues below. My promised video has been moved one slot back in the rotation. Stay tuned.
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