Monthly Archives: December 2010
With the WJC in full swing, it was a good time to catch up with Travis Green, the assistant GM and assistant coach of Nino Niederreiter’s WHL team in Portland. Green also scored 70 points in a season for the Islanders, was a part of Al Arbour’s Kid Line the last time the franchise won a playoff series and was once memorably called a “gutless puke” by Mike Milbury. We talked about it all.
Comments on this video are welcomed. Heading out for the Winter Classic. See you down the road. Have a happy, healthy and safe New Year!
CB at FanHouse on the NHL Winter Classic
9:50 pm: This was exactly what you want to see the rest of the way from the Islanders, 4-0-1 in their last five at home.
Another goal by Josh Bailey, assisted by superb first-year pro Travis Hamonic.
An end-to-end rush by Jack Hillen, setting up Michael Grabner as he drives to the net.
Frans Nielsen blocking shots and getting in the way of the opposition in the neutral zone.
Matt Martin hitting everyone in sight, even if it’s occasionally recklessly. (Good to see the Islanders have someone the opponents hate for more than yapping).
Andrew MacDonald showing no signs of being a sixth-round Cinderella playing over his head.
Health and quality goaltending from Rick DiPietro.
The Islanders bouncing back from the nightmare in the Garden. The Islanders playing loose. The Islanders playing physically and with emotion. The Islanders pushing the play in the final minute of regulation.
The Islanders declaring, “Film this, HBO,” shutting out Sidney Crosby and defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins in the shootout, 2-1.
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I’ll always remember where I was the third time James Wisniewski was traded in his career. While Arthur Staple tweeted the news, I was in Huntington, WVA, visiting in-laws and watching Marshall’s women’s basketball team play Morehead State. Some leftover views on the deal:
Do you really need more proof that Garth Snow’s acquisition of James Wisniewski last summer for a third round pick was a steal? The Wiz didn’t even play well and Snow was still able to a) trade him to Montreal for more (a 2nd and a 5th) than he was acquired, while b) saving his money-hemorrhaging franchise more than $1.5 million. Imagine what Snow could have brought back for Wisniewski if he wasn’t just playing hard and passionately – but actually playing well?
As the legendary die-hard Barry mentioned on Islandermania - the big-hearted Barry can make Lewis Black seem like Mr. Sunshine - it was fascinating how much the trade was analyzed by value (I’m guilty, too) while little attention was paid to Snow swiftly saving Charles Wang more than a million and a half bucks in a troubled season. Short of getting blown away, Snow wasn’t going to take anyone back in the trade making big money. Good point, sir.
Typically quality stuff from Mike Humes of ESPN.com in New York on the Wisniewski trade, making the case Snow didn’t get equal value when you compare Colorado’s acquisition of talented Tomas Fleischmann for so-so Scott Hannan. Humes backs his case up with some stats and reasonable arguments. Here’s my respectful counter to the estimable Humes: teams employ scouts for a reason. If Canadiens hockey ops personnel were seeing on a nightly basis from Wisniewski what the rest of us were, Pierre Gauthier would have been bonkers to give up a good young player for him.
Clarification: the Islanders’ second round pick acquired from Montreal will not be around 50th overall, it will be 50th overall. As pointed out in an email from Brian La Rose of HabsWorld, Montreal received the compensatory pick for not signing their first rounder (20th overall) in 2006. They get to pick exactly 30 slots from where David Fisher was selected. Since every other first round pick signed, no other compensatory picks were awarded. So with the 50th overall selection in the 2011 NHL Draft, the Islanders pick …
Oh, the irony. By Snow moving The Wiz to Montreal, former Islanders assistant GM Ryan Jankowski – now a Habs scout – loses the chance to provide input to Gauthier on a second-rounder in June. He may have to seetle for his team in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Second round picks are hit-and-miss, as Jankowski, Snow and their staff’s selection of Corey Trivino, Aaron Ness and Travis Hamonic (in that order) in the second round of the 2008 draft demonstrates.
Bottom line: like a lot of other moves, Wisniewski didn’t work out. When Mark Streit left that scrimmage in intense pain, it was over for Wisniewski. But what is Snow supposed to do – compound the error, try to sign The Wiz to a new contract (highly doubtful the defenseman would have stayed here) and hope for the best. Nope. Snow did the only thing he could. He turned the page and got what would have been his best offer today, tomorrow or at the trade deadline.
Now Snow has to maximize the value of the incredible ageless goaltender, Dwayne Roloson, prior to the trade deadline. He can always sign another goaltender in July. For now, with his team out of the playoff race before the holidays, for Snow it has to be all about acquiring assets. You may not like how it looks. The general manager is still obligated to do his best for the program.
NOTES: Calvin de Haan sat out tonight’s game for Team Canada at the World Junior Championships, but his lower-body injury is believed to be less serious than initially feared by observers in Buffalo.
Welcome back, Jiggs McDonald. Always good to hear Jigger call an exciting game.
More Than 300 Pack PB Holiday Party
There was the young man from the United States Army, home for a brief holiday break, who said he just had to be there with his friends to watch the Islanders game at a Long Island establishment. There was the guy from Austin who made a point of being home in time for the holiday party with fellow Islanders fans. Another said he came home from school. dropped off his bags, gave his mom a quick hug and bolted over to Uniondale in time for the opening faceoff on TV.
So many incredible Islanders fans packed SOCIAL for the Home for the Holidays Party on Dec. 23. So many stories of allegiance to the Orange and Blue were shared. So many stories about how much this hockey franchise means to them. I must have used the term “blown away” a dozen times. That was my reaction to what I witnessed and heard from the faithful on this night two days before Christmas.
At the first intermission, the brilliant young Long Island musicians Ryan Hunter and Brian Byrne performed “House of the Rising Sun” at my request. Then the die-hard Islanders fans, who once filmed a video with their band Envy on the Coast on the Coliseum ice, played an Islanders-themed “All I Want for Christmas (is a W),” co-written by their pal Danny Burlandi. The place went crazy. Some of the lyrics:
I don’t want a lot for Christmas,
Maybe just a win or two,
Don’t care about the 12 years,
that DP has left for you…
Cause all I want to see tonight, is Gillies or Konopka in a fight…
All the young stars are shining, so brightly everywhere,
Rob Schremp, Frans Nielsen, Matt Martin will lead us to a Cup, I swear.
and everyone is singin’, please come back Jack Hillen,
So Isles won’t you bring us what we really need,
another Stanley Cup so we can die happy.
I just want it to be known, Long Island is our home sweet home,
So, Isles please stay true…
#$%& Kansas City, this team don’t belong to you.
No, it doesn’t. Their wish came true. They got the W. Josh Bailey, Dwayne Roloson and the Islanders beat the Devils, 5-1, capping an unforgettable evening. Thanks to everyone who attended and thanks to the crew at SOCIAL. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year to everyone in Islanders Country.
Comments. See you Thursday. Is tomorrow Thursday?
The Islanders have traded James Wisniewski to Montreal for a second round pick in 2011 and a fifth round pick in 2012. The second rounder is the Canadiens’ compensatory pick for not signing a recent first round selection. Since he won’t be asked to be the man in Montreal, Wisniewski – unabe to shoulder the load when Mark Streit was sidelined with a serious shoulder injury – should be okay for the Habs. Some more wheel-spinning for the NYI (unless there is a significant followup move), but good value for Garth Snow considering a lot of people were beating The Wiz. Would not consider picking up aging Brian Rolston siginificant should it happen. According to Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet, the compensatory pick should land around 50th overall. No problem with the timing here; if Snow waited any longer, I doubt Wisniewski’s value was going to go up. The Canadiens got the player they targeted. The Islanders got as much as they could get.
written by Kevin Schultz
There is not a whole lot to say about this one, as the Islanders lost 7-2 to the Rangers at MSG. The team came out and played fairly well in the first and scored twice while the Rangers got a pair of deflection goals. The wheels came off in the second period, which was reminiscent of the second period I went on about at length yesterday. The Islanders ended up getting outshot 34-8 in the final two periods (with a few of those 8 coming in the finals minutes of a blowout), numbers reflective of a team that played last night and then traveled through a blizzard to get to tonight’s game. The bus ride to MSG was likely not a fun one, and it’s hard to blame them for being tired, especially against a well-rested Rangers team. Still, that was quite a rollover in the final two periods.
Now, the Islanders can look ahead to the second half of one of the toughest couple of weeks on the schedule. They’ve already beaten the Northeast leading Canadiens and been beaten by their rival. Now, they’ve got the the best team in the league coming to town on Wednesday (Pittsburgh) and have to travel to Detroit for a Friday matchup against the best team in the Western Conference. The latter is the first in a five-game west coast swing.
We’ve seen the epic losing streak. We’ve seen points in five straight. These next six games, especially on the heels of a horrific second half against their rival, are going to tell us a lot about exactly what kind of team this is. In my opinion, there’s no tougher stretch then heading out west for two weeks in the beginning of January after the holidays are over and you’re already playoff ineligible. Low in the standings, cold, far from home and possible post-holiday blues. Can’t get much tougher than that in the NHL.
Other notes:
Roloson: The Islanders star of the last few weeks faced 52 shots and didn’t get much help from the guys in front of him. I’m interested to hear the reasoning as to why he was left in the game when it was 6-2 halfway through the third. I would think it would be nice to at least give him a few minutes rest after a long 48 hours.
Zebras: With the Rangers on a power play late in the third, Matt Gilroy took a slapper from the point and his stick nailed Frans Nielsen square in the face. No penalty was called. [Insert jokes about referees here.]
Stat of the Night: From the great Eric Hornick, the Isles 52 shots allowed was their most since the unreal game in Toronto on 11/23/09. That was the night Dwayne Roloson did the impossible and stopped 61 shots in a 4-3 OT victory.
Tweet of the Night: I’m a little disappointed at the lack of snark from you guys but I know we’ll get it done next time. I’ll chalk it up to fatigue from shoveling snow and having to sit through that game.
In our tweet of the night, CB sheds some light on why Roloson may have been left in.
@ChrisBottaNHL #Isles don’t like to put Rick DiPietro in middle of games, even if he is 100pc.
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CB’s pre-game:
Greetings from Huntington, West Virginia! The snow here is nothing compared to what many of you Islanders experienced yesterday, but the car ride up the hill to our cabin – I’m not making this up – is very treacherous. In fact, we never made it up the hill last night. A little adventure for the three boys is how I prefer to look at it. Thanks go out to Kevin Schultz for covering the blizzard game last night.
Anyway, how ’bout them New York Islanders? Clutch goal scoring, some team defense and the superlative play of Dwayne Roloson have combined for a three-game winning streak and a five-game points streak. (I’ve run out of superlatives for Roloson over the last 16 months, so I figured I’d just go with “superlative.”)
Despite a 5-12-1 record, Roloson is 13th in the NHL with a 2.38 GAA and 13th with a .920 save percentage. Perhaps the 41-year-old netminder should also receive consideration for the Masterton Trophy for his commitment to the game and his craft.
The Islanders have a chance to show their faithful that the misery of 21-of-23 is behind them when they face the Rangers at Madison Square Garden tonight. In their last trip there, the Islanders hardly showed up. Even the accounts on nhl.com seemed to be battles to stay team-friendly.
The schedule gets harder for Jack Capuano and the Islanders. Tonight is an opportunity to stay on a roll, gain some more confidence – ooh, there’s that word again – and make their fans feel good about them again. The Rangers will be without Ryan Callahan, but should have Marian Gaborik back and have called up Mats Zuccarello, who has 23 points (11 goals, 12 assists) in his last 21 AHL games.
Talk about the game, and keep me updated, in Comments. Please be respectful of each other. Thank you and Happy Holidays…CB
written by Kevin Schultz
9:39pm: Per the MSG broadcast, the Islanders have their first five-game points streak of the season. With a win on a snowy night in an empty building consisting of a lot of opposition fans, they played well (minus the second period) and earned a 4-1 win. For the second time this week, the Islanders beat a division leader. James Wisniewski records two points to take the team lead in that category with 21 and, tell me if you’ve heard this one before, Dwayne Roloson has another outstanding game.
The announced attendance at the Coliseum tonight was 3,136 and for those of you in the tri-state area, all you have to do is look outside to figure out why. A majority of those in attendance were Canadiens fans who were riled up at the start and quickly faded early in the third when the Isles scored twice on the power play.
The turning point in the game was when Max Pacioretty drove Mark Eaton into the boards with an obvious hit from behind. Pacioretty got a 5-minute major and was ejected. Eaton would go off quickly under his own power and returned later. PA Parenteau scored almost immediately and James Wisniewski would add another goal later on man advantage to make it a full-on 4-0 blowout. The Habs would add one later to break the shutout but it that was all the harm it did.
One down note was the second period where the Islanders were out shot and out skated, 16-7. You can thank Dwyane Roloson and Carey Price for keeping the Islanders in the lead. Up 1-0 after playing a nice first period, the team didn’t have the same energy in the second. Roloson made save after save and Price and his teammates had a few key giveaways in their own zone. After a few misplays, Frans Nielsen fed Michael Grabner on the break and the Islanders finally capitalized on a big giveaway. Suddenly, a so-so period turned into a 2-0 lead heading into the intermission. That swung the momentum and at a key point. It could have been 1-1 or worse with the Islanders not feeling so great after the effort going into the third. Instead, Grabner made a nice finish and they had confidence going into the final frame. They came out firing in the third and took full advantage of the opportunities given to them by the zebras.
Other notes
Attendance: 3,136 was the announced number after a state of emergency was declared in Nassau County but with everyone (read: players and officials) already at the arena, the NHL insisted to play on. Logistically, it makes sense. Otherwise, it really doesn’t make a whole lot. The Islanders made a nice gesture by allowing all fans to move down and are offering a ticket to a future home game for unused blizzard tickets. For comparison, there was a shade over 5,000 in attendance in New Jersey tonight. Not a good night to host a sporting event in the tri-state area.
The Kids: If you were watching the World Juniors, you saw El Nino pick up a goal and an assist and Calvin DeHaan add a helper today.
Habs Invasion: As with almost any Canadiens game at the Coliseum their fans invaded. After a goal was reviewed and waved off in the second, a weird 50/50 half cheer, half boo came up from the mixed crowd. Good for the team for fighting through the odd atmosphere and getting the ‘W’.
Tweets of the Night: I had a great time talking to those of you who joined me on Twitter. Here’s my favorite response of the night:
@Schultz88: MSG’s above glass robot cam thinks for itself :-0 #Robopocalypse
@Schultz88: I think it just transformed into Scott Gomez
@TedStarkey: So, the Rangers just signed it to a seven-year deal for $8M per?
Useless Fact of the Night: The Islanders are now 10-1-2 all-time the day after Christmas. You have to go back to 1985 when they lost to the Whalers to find their last, and only, loss. From now on, I’ll leave the stats to the stat guys. Isles Stat Man Eric Hornick informs me that NYI are 16-7-2 on 12/26 (34 pts more than any other day).”
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5:45pm: It was almost exactly a year ago on December 19th – OK, that’s off by about a week – that the Montreal Canadiens and a couple thousand of their fans invaded the Nassau Coliseum during a Long Island blizzard. Tonight, the Canadiens and their faithful are in town yet again and there’s another storm poised to slam Long Island into the night and the next morning. Predictions of well over a foot in many places. Weird how things work out sometimes.
The Islanders will now play host to their second French Canadian crowd in a month, although this one won’t be nearly as friendly as the last one (I mean really, how nice were the majority of those Nordiques?). More importantly, the Isles have points in their last four games and wins in three of those. On the other side, the Canadiens have lost five of seven but still lead the Northeast Division. Neither team has played since Thursday, so they’ll be rested and we’ll see what they’re made out of.
Roster Notes: Matt Martin back from suspension, Jesse Joensuu back to the Bridge. Moulson cleared to play and Roloson to start in net.
Ticket Exchange: The Islanders have already announced that fans not attending tonight can exchange their ticket for a future date. Kudos to them on the pre-emptive move.
Twitter: I won’t be updating Point Blank until after the game. Follow the action along with me on Twitter @schultz88.
Comments: No purchase necessary. Standard rules apply. Please leave your game predictions and blizzard stories here. I’m going with 3-2 Islanders in a SO. Let’s hear it for positivity!
Two days before Christmas and the biggest audience in Point Blank’s history visits our Live Chat. Islanders fans = astounding. Thank you, and have a happy and safe holiday season. I’ll be by sporadically over the next week.
POINT BLANK HOLIDAY PARTY – TONIGHT!
RSVP – YES only – at THIS LINK
CB’s weekly NHL column at FanHouse (inc. NYI)
John Tavares overcame a rough first 35 minutes – two penalties, sluggish effort outside the offensive zone – to score the clutch goal he needed last night in the Islanders’ 2-1 overtime victory over Tampa Bay before a post-lockout low announced crowd of just over 7,000. The team hopes the overtime tally propels the second-year center to a hot streak with the second half of the season almost here.
Josh Bailey played right wing, which was unexpected, but proved to be a good fit with Michael Grabner’s speed. Bailey is indeed here to stay, since he would have to go through waivers (unless it’s on a conditioning assignment) to return to the AHL. He is such a dedicated pro, you hope he can have a strong second half to build on for year four of his NHL career.
Dwayne Roloson was his typical combination of steady and spectacular. It’s one thing for Roloson to play so well when he plays a lot, as he did last season. Now the veteran is keeping the Islanders in most of his starts, even after lengthy layoffs. No matter when and how this ends for Roloson in New York – he certainly gave Steve Yzerman something to think about for 64 minutes last night – his tenure here will be looked back on with great admiration.
Once the power plays ended after the first, the defense – getting a little healthier by the day – has been solid during the three-game points streak. UPDATE: Radek Martinek (wrist) is out tonight.
James Wisniewski, a very good complementary player forced into the unfortunate position of having to try and take over when Mark Streit went down with a season-wreaking injury, is playing good hockey again. Whether it results in a new contract here or a trade to a contender before the deadline, this is still a very positive development for the Islanders.
Rick DiPietro, whose placement on IR was a roster necessity so Bailey could be recalled, will be back soon after Christmas. Perhaps very soon after Christmas. Kyle Okposo will be a very welcome addition to the lineup soon after New Year’s Day.
Andrew MacDonald, sixth round draft pick, continues to be a wonderful story. Frans Nielsen is what everyone who watches the Islanders daily thought he was.
Who am I missing? What am I missing? I’m sure you’ll let me know in Comments.
Happy Holidays to everyone in Islanders Country. Between the holidays with family and covering the Winter Classic, posts here will be sporadic (and game coverage non-existent) during the break, but check in when you can. You never know.
I look forward to seeing a few hundred of you tonight at SOCIAL for the Holiday Party as the Islanders face the Devils. 2010 has been an incredible year for Point Blank, so these little events are just one way of saying thank you. To those of you who cannot make it tonight, to the thousands who live outside New York (and North America) but hit the site regularly, I’ll have to think of something. For now, please accept my deepest gratitude for your loyalty and participation.
Have a safe and healthy holiday season and here’s to a happy 2011…CB
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