NYI VOTED LEAST DESIRABLE TEAM FOR PLAYERS
NHLPA/CBC Poll: 1. Islanders 2. Oilers 3. Thrashers
The Islanders led the way with 27% of the votes in the poll, confirmed this morning with a press release distributed by the players’ union. (318 players participated). The Maple Leafs were fourth and Panthers fifth, proving this is a lot more about winning and losing than the quality of your arena. On the bright side, Frans Nielsen came in second in the poll for most underrated player. In other news, congratulations to Michael Grabner for winning the Fastest Skater competition last night at the skills competition. No one in Islanders Country was surprised.
94 Responses to NYI VOTED LEAST DESIRABLE TEAM FOR PLAYERS
NHLPA/CBC Poll: 1. Islanders 2. Oilers 3. Thrashers
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Kaszycki's Krew says:
CB – kudo’s on being the subject of the very first question asked at Bettman’s press conference. Who was the person who asked the question ? What’s your take on it ?
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Bob E. says:
What a pointless survey. So it completely correlated to team record. Age of arena has no bearing. So in other words if this poll was taken in 1982 islanders were prob most desirable. Totally pointless.
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valentino says:
I am sure the Islanders propaganda machine will be in full “spin” mode claiming that this has everything to do with the building and nothing else.
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bigdally mac says:
I want to know in the 2003-2004 season where the Pittsburgh Penguins finished in this poll compared to now…..or for that matter Chicago or Washington. In four years if we have a building to play in and a nucleus of primetime youngsters then there is no way we finish in the bottom 5…”show a little faith there’s magic in the night, we ain’t a beauty but HEY, we’re alright.”Bruuuuuuce
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Derek A says:
Bummer… I have a feeling it has everything to do with the media surrounding this team, oh and NVMC’s concourses, oh and our recent losing ways. Shame.
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Dave says:
Your assertion that it’s more about wins and losses is only half right in my opinion. Being dealt to the Islanders is essentially a hole you have to play yourself out of. What I mean by that Is this is a franchise that dedicates only the bare bones minimum in salary and personel. And the only way out is to play at a level that makes you attractive again to viable teams or makes you too expensive for the Isles to retain, which these days doesn’t take much. Not the ideal solution for laying down roots and building a career. The Islanders are a waitng room that, as this poll suggests, most players would prefer not to find themselves in.
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claude says:
wow! what a surprise?
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Hey we have faith already…Franz Neilen the second most underrated player in the league….in the same CBC poll…come people pick your heads up.
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GarthMustGo says:
In a related poll Snow was voted worst gm in pro sports .
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LIT says:
Thanks for the positive news this Sunday morning.. No reason..
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therain93--terriers fan says:
WE’RE NUMBER 1! WE’RE NUMB….oh, wait…
Grats to Grabner, at least ( ‘ :
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Franz Neilsen is very soft and has no grit to his game…He needs to put some muscle on so he doesn’t get knocked around like a rag doll …You know Garth will spin the Lighthouse nonsense at full speed …As to why players don’t come here…Could it be the product on the ice is not very good…Call me crazy, but I think the Islanders record indicates that.
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marioe says:
maybe Mr. Wang and that doof Gm will wake up and do something about it.
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Chris says:
A whopping 27% voted for the Islanders, when only one other team received more than 7% of the vote? That sounds like a lot more than just wins and losses to me.
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rpriest says:
Of the 318 players polled obviously most were not Islanders so really all they have to go on is the building and the record. Most teams only play the Islanders once or twice each year so I think this poll is shallow. All of the currently Islander’s roster seems to have their head in the right place, just take a look at Moulson’s comments after he signed his extension. Had Moulson tested free agency he could have gotten more but he wanted to stay on the island.
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dynasty23x4 says:
something we all knew already, just that now theres proof
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PotvinRocks says:
CB, Garth isn’t going to reinstate you, if you don’t go along with “the building is the reason why free agent” arguements.
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Tom D. says:
Congratulations Charles and Garth!
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Ray says:
really?? thats a surprise…
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On the bright side, 63% of players that took that poll would rather play for the Islanders than at least one other team…
The media plays a big role in this. You can’t read an Isles article without seeing “the lowly isles” or some crap like that. Obviously the Islanders management is to blame as well seeing the team hasn’t done anything positive in a while on the ice but I don’t think it’s all their fault.
Snow needs to be more creative in attracting free agents and his quotes of “No one wants to come here because our arena stinks” is like saying “No girl wants to date me because I’m a loser.”
No one wants to hear that. -
Bryan says:
Great to see Grabner win last night, can’t remember the last time I saw an Islander win anything. Need to keep Grabs around, he gets better every game and with his speed he could be a star if he starts finishing more….These polls dont matter much, if we were winning then we wouldnt be in the bottom….Frans is a nice player, but he needs to take his game up another level. He seems to shy away from hitting and from being creative offensively.
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Al L says:
Boy! The Glory Years are such a distant memory. Those with a sense of history will always respect our logo. Its too bad todays players weren’t even a twinkle in Momma’s eye back then.
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Islebethere says:
Start winning and all perceptions will change, well that and a good P.R Person(C.B)?? Also, the more our own players sign with us again, the better.
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Staten Islander says:
I’m speachless, crushed too
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Patience says:
What makes people think Snow would even comment on this poll?
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mark p says:
Grabner is actually turning out OK…..Guy who does not need alot of PP time….speed for PK……20-25 goal guy playing alot of 3rd line minutes. a nice piece. Rink, Practice Faclity, Loseing, maybe cost of living…..but its funny how a decent amount of guys stay when they are finished playing.
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The Weight says:
I’m actually surprised its not higher.
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JP in NJ says:
“If you’re going through hell, keep going.”– Winston Churchill
There’s no where to go but up, gang.
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Orange&Blue says:
We shall see how undesirable we are 2-3 years from now when we start kicking other teams asses!
The fact that Toronto is ranked close to the bottom destroys the excuse for our crappy arena being the reason for players not coming. Toronto is the English speaking hockey capital of the world. They have a new state of the art arena and have one of the best gms in the NHL. Florida and Atlanta have fairly new arenas as well.
It is the one ice product and will always be the one ice product that causes attendance to go up and down.
I guess these idiot free agents have not figured how good John Tavares really is going to be. They should take a look at Parenteau and Moulsons stats. 2 guys who spent years in the AHL now have very respectable NHL statistics after being castoffs from the teams that waived them. They both play on a line with JT. This kid is only 20. Could you imagine if he another all-star caliber player on his line?
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Lance79 says:
We have a few catch-22s; nobody comes here via free agency because we’re losing but we can’t stop losing unless we get good players to come here. We also have an old building dissuading free agents for which we have no leverage to renovate/rebuild unless we win which we can’t do unless we import the good players who are already dissuaded because we’re losing which further weakens our case with the local government to help build a new arena. Our only drawing card would therefore be stable accountable management, of which we have neither given our GM for life and revolving door head coaching job.
So unless we draft 5 Ovechkin/Crosby/Doughtys in a row (or find them hidden in our current personnel) and find that Capuano (or his replacement) is a genius, we’re screwed? Or is there another way out? Or is the poll BS and just the shadowplay of agents? Somehow it seems asinine for management to have conceded that P. Martin turned down a bigger salary from the NYI to play elsewhere as it is collateral damage for our perception around the league and then to pray that we’ll but the excuse that its only b/c of the arena.
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Chas A says:
Congrats Michael! Great GRAB Garth, he is fun to watch and he has been getting better since Jack put him on the PK. By the way Doc, Gartner had no stick in his record run.
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John in Oregon says:
If I were trying to build an arena and keep the team on LI i would be blaming it onthe arena too. it’s called business, some of us fans feel the islanders should be a non profit and want to find fault in everything management does and although they shoulder some responsibility. Sometimes i think fans should be a bit more positive instead of the doom and gloom sky is falling routine that is getting old. When they win the FA’s will come and we will pick and choose and not have to over pay for assets. Here’s proof I couldn’t stand Milbury I thought he was the worst thing to happen to the team. Now I thank him because if he hadn’t been so utterly inept at his job we might have contended and would still be contending, however under his guidence we saw our beloved franchise stripped to nothing and no FA’s wanted to come here so we had no choice but to build from scratch 72 style. now in a few short years we will win. we will win a lot.
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Merrick says:
The Islanders have run a circus for most of the last 10 years under Wang. Publicly, few NHL insiders call the islanders a joke–but many do off-the-record in casual conversations if you meet them and chatr for a few minutes in airports, hotels, bars/restaurants. I wonder what a visiting player thinks during a national anthem as he looks at a half-empty building and waits for the third graders to finish their squeaky version of the national anthem.
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Luvs19 says:
Count me in as one who is not fazed one bit by this bombshell report. Like others, I’m pleasantly surprised that the news isn’t worse. Thanks, Charles Wang. Such a good corporate citizen (NOT).
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Michael Pastore says:
As I stated previously look at the Yankees in 1989 – 1992 nobody wanted to play there. They said the Stadium was falling apart and it was in the Bronx. The fans would not come to the games they drew just above 1 million, that was because they were in the Bronx. Nobody wanted to play there or see the team because the team was run like crap until The Boss was suspended and Gene Michael ran the show.
1. He stocked up the minors.
2. He traded for the right Veterans and they saw how great it was to play for the team and told other FA to come.
3. After they started winning he signed the right FA.
Since 2004 they have won 5 WS and would have won in 2004 but the strike canceled that season. They draw 4 Million a year and guess what their new stadium is in the Bronx.The Islanders have no more excuses they now receive concession stand and parking revenue like any other team. They have restocked the minors. Now its time for the Islanders to put step 2 and 3 into action:
1 .Trade for a veteran like the Yankees did with Paul O’Neil. Make him a leader that the kids can look up like god help me for saying this Mark Messier did with the Rangers.
2. Once that player sees how great it is to play for the Islanders he will tell FA he knows to come and play here.Once you complete step 2 this off season and they start winning the fans will be back in full force. The Islanders have a strong core of fans and if you win in NY the casual fans will come also.
But it all has to start at the top!!!!!!
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Steve says:
Surprised the Devils didn’t make the list but the Thrashers did.
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Fred says:
@#32: The 72-73 Isles were in the Stanley Cup Semi Finals by their 3rd year(74-75). That team had Bill Torrey and Al Arbour. We now have Snow and Capuano. Big difference. In Snow’s rebuild, we are 29th in the league. In Torrey’s rebuild, we were contenders in 3 years time.
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Onesinceforty says:
Someone actually needed a poll to determine these results?
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NYICHAMP39 says:
Well, they do say that there is no such thing as bad press….
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isles71 says:
Everything has to do with winning, that is the bottom line. Penquins & Caps were 1&2 on that list a few years ago. It is funny, but the players I know love 2 places…the Island & Atlanta. When the Flames played in Atl, they all stayed…Boom Boom, Curt Bennett, Lysiak, Vail, Plett, Bouchard & about 14 others. Same with the Isles, once a player gets to the Island they love everything about the place (probably cause they can afford it). Winning cures all ills!!! We are a solid goalie, a #2 d-man and a consistent scoring 2nd liner away from turning this around, that is why this season sucks so much…so close yet so far….JUST WIN BABY!!!
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Bob says:
If there was a poll for the worst ownership and worst GM, I’m sure the Isles would be right at the top there also. The building is only part of the story. The lack of stability of the franchise and the way it’s been run has made the team a bottom 5 finisher for an unrivaled 5th year in a row. Who’d want to play here?urprised it wasn’t unanimous.
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Jeff Speight says:
I mean who wouldn’t want to keep this fan base happy!
The ultimate definition of an oxymoron!
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Five for Fighten says:
I remember when NO-ONE wanted to play for the NJ Devils, GREENBAY Packers or the NY Yankees! I also remember when everyone wanted to play for the Oakland Raiders. Things change. Sometimes quite quickly.
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The New Isles GM says:
Who cares about these stupid statistics. Quite honestly, the building doesn’t really bother me. If we’re winning games and are fun to watch like the Peca/Yashin/Osgood days, the puck looks good going in the net either way. Statistics will always misrepresent what is truely there. Toronto is a beautiful place to place, live and raise a family. Long Island offers much of the same. You see what guys like Moulson had to say about wanting to stay here and how he tells his agent this is where he wants to be as a professional. That says alot about not only his character but what Long Island can do for a professional hockey player. Sure, every player wants to play for the Red Wings one day, but I look past articles and statistics like this. I’m very excited about our youth movement. After one more solid draft and maybe a few FA signings, we might make the Atlantic Division that much tougher. We might not see playoffs this year but we will see improvement. The only way is up from here.
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Not being an NHL GM or scout I will never the less make the following observations. Conventional wisdom states that you build a competitive hockey team from the goal line outward. This year started with Roloson and DP in net. The defense was comprised of Stiet, Wiz, Mottau, Eaton, Amac, Jucina & Martinek. Up front was a mix of young developing forwards with a great deal of promise. Was that team Stanley Cup material, maybe not but they sure would have been a better product if they had survived the plague of injuries. Why this team has been desimated is anyones guess but its not like they didn’t try to put good team on the ice.
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1st step towards this would be for the arena situation to get sorted out. Not because its seen as a dump, but where the team will be after the lease is up. Here? KC? Brooklyn? Queens? Quebec? Who would sign when they don’t even know where the team will even be?
I DO agree that changing the “lowly Isles” perception by becoming a playoff team would go a LONNNNNNNNNNNNG way towards attracting good free agents.
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Grreenday says:
Even if all players wanted to be islanders, the isles have no money to pay them anyway. Sure no supermodels will date me, and even if they did i couldnt afford the cost of “dating” them. This is dollar tree islanders to the end.
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gary says:
winning changes everything!
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I'm All Out of Love says:
Makes sense… Why would an NHL player want to play in the AHL.
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Numbers65 in Ohio says:
Glad to hear Grabs won. I wouldn’t tune in since no Isles in the big game, I decided to boycott the event.
LET’S GO ISLANDERS! -
Jim Clark says: Let’s look at the bright side. None of our top draft picks has pulled a Lindros.
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brian says:
Just another sad moment in the Isles last 20 years of futility!
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Blizzard says: Its not the building. give us a competitive team and the old barn rocks.
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Brother Rat says:
Not surprising that the Isles and Oilers are 1-2 in the worst teams to play for, as management and ownership is inept for both. Nice that Fransy gets some recognition–I guess other players do know our guys. Great to read about Grabner winning fastest skater, but I can’t say I care one lick about the rest of the ASG festivities.
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mht says:
I am on board with posters 32,42 & 45.Right now think about it.You are a visiting NHL player.Your chartered team flight lands in either Republic Airport,Kennedy,La Guardia, Teterboro{NJ}or Liberty International{Newark,NJ}.You go by chartered bus to stay at the Marriott Hotel,and play your visiting decrepit NVMC.Does anyone recall when Bob and Michelle Nystrom hosted Eric Nystrom and the entire Calgary Flame team for dinner at their home in Syosset last March.Jarome Igninla was quoted as saying “How beautiful Long Island was,and in all his years in the NHL,he had never had seen any of it.” Maybe by nature I am an optimist,but whether its Uniondale,Flushing,or some place else,a new arena be built and the NY Islanders are going to stay.Now think about it.The players for the most part live on the North shore of Long Island,you are approx 1 hour away from one of the most glamorous cities in the world{NYC},you are accessible to Long Beach,Jones Beach,the Hamptons,and some of the best golf courses in the world.This team starts winning,a new arena is constructed,the community supports this franchise:This will be one of the most desirable teams to play for.You can bet on it !
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IsleFan73 says:
Not surprised about Islanders lack of respect, but I am surprised that Frans is thought to be so underrated. Frans is a nice, smart player, but a 4th liner on a very good team. Not great on faceoffs, not physical, average skater. Not really sure why so many are over the top for him.
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VA ISLES says:
Does Deb Placey doing post game for nhl network count as a second all star for us?
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CG says:
So 63% dont think the Islanders are the worst destination. Not bad considering the facts. The Islanders have the second worst record in hockey, play in the worst building in sports and play in front of under 10,000 fans per night. Why would a free agent sign here right now. If they start winning, free agents will come here. Long Island is one of the best places in the NHL to live for a professional athlete. Just look how many players make their homes here. Wonder how many make Nashville, Columbus or Montreal their home (yes Montreal). Poll is meaningless, just win…
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bryan says:
how can we be lowly when we made the playoffs ahead of hockey nuts cities montreal and toronto of in 2007
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rick says:
I actually like the coliseum. does anyone remember how loud it is when we are winning. it is one of the most deafening arenas in the league.
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ahh here in montreal a lot of guys make their homes here
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Bigshot22 says:
Each nhl team is only as good as the owner. Enough said.
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Mario says:
I wish they wouldn’t publish the good news like Nielsen, now he becomes trade bait. Congrats to Grabner.
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HeyFred #39… You make a good point but just remember when we drafted gillies 1 and trotts with our second there were only 20 or 21 teams in the league. Trottier wouldn’t have been an Islander and everyone in the fandom would have screamed “we should have had trottier” 10 years later. It takes a bit longer now.
As a man who has had to manage a staff in the past. I just ignore the whiners and find the winners. winners win and whiners whine. find the players who will win and get rid of all the bad apples. It takes one bad attitude to catch on and the next thing you know the whole damn thing is a mess. I wish they were good nowbut they are not they are improving. What I do know is the whining from the fans does nothing to solve the problem. and in a few years when the team is winning and they get a new arena and they can pick and choose free agents the same people that want charles and garths’ head on a pole will be talking about how great they were and how they knew they had a plan all along. just saying! -
Bob says:
That poll should go a long way to attracting FAs to Long Island in July…
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#58, there are about 390 players that have a better +/- then Frans Nielsen in the NHL this season. I like Frans, a nice role player, but best defensive forward in the NHL at -1, I think not. Yes, he plays for the Islanders, but please, lets not get crazy.
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IslesFan73 – Plus/minus is not a fair indicator with Nielsen. The Isles have only scored 77 even strength goals on the season. Compare that to the 111 they have given up, a minus-1 seems impressive for a guy that averages 18 minutes of ice team per game. Note the fact that he is 3rd best on the team in +/-.
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Isles117711 says:
#59 I believe Deb would count as the third Islanders all-star… I am certain I saw Sparky in the stands.
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Again, I like Frans. Not at all bashing him. Just commenting that he is not the “best” defensive forward in the NHL.
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ok islefan73 who is the best defensive forward then tell us
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Frank nyc says:
oooof.
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jamal says:
well at least we have the fastest man in the nhl. we should just get our hopes up for the fastest skater competition every year, instead of the playoffs
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TURNUPTHEHEAT says:
Matt Moulson said “[Team owner Charles Wang] and Snow are involved in everything and that filters down to everyone on the team.”
AND AS LONG AS WANG IS INVOLVED WE STAY AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LEAGUE. WHO NEED PLAYOFFS? WE HAVE DRAFT PARTIES. -
19 Isle in NJ 22 says:
Can’t say I was surprised to see that … CB … ya forgot the most striking thing about that poll… the huge difference between the Islanders and Oilers (the 1980s most dominant teams) … and the rest of the 3 most undesirable teams.
Almost half the league’s players responed to the poll. So it’s a large sample.
Isles 27% (More that a quarter of the league choose the Island as last place they’d play)
Oilers 20%… (Frigid winters + old building + no winning = 2nd least desirable city)
Then the big drop off.
Thrashers 7% (What have they ever won?)
Leafs 5% (OK … they are the Leafs)
Panthers (What have they ever won?)I get it that the Isles and Oilers have building issues … and the Oilers have at least appeared in the Finals this past decade… I just didn’t think either team would get that many last place votes.
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Sorry for the many posts Chris, but I think you had a post regarding Frans Nielsen and his “underrated” status a few weeks ago. Post #74, how about Nicklas Backstrom, Alexandre Burrows, Datsyuk, Kunitz, Ryan Kesler, Krejci, Brad Marchand and Chris Drury, for starters. Frans Nielsen is the most overrated/underrated player in the NHL. Happy he is on our team, but lets get real folks.
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Dorfer81 says:
The article misspelled Nielsen.
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NickNY says:
and #74, Pavel Datsyuk is leaps and bounds ahead of Frans Nielsen as a defensive forward, hes def the best in the league if not the world.
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Kings Park says:
I read in a recent poll that some people had never been polled before….. until recently! RIP – George Carlin
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while to a small extent, playing in the worst building in front of the smallest crowds in the nhl, while not knowing what the long term future holds for the team doesnt help, the big picture is the isles are the laughing stock in the nhl, run by a clown in a dysfunctional way. they havent won anything in years and years and only get worse every year. wang thinks his way is the only way to run a franchise. his record speaks for itself. can you blame anyone for not wanting to come to the only nhl team run by a owner who thinks you win wihout having scouts, assistants, a director of player development and making sure you have the lowest payroll in hockey by far every single year.
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IslesHostage says:
Why don’t players want to come to LI?
Who is the best GM in the NHL? Who is our GM? (1)
Who is the best head coach in the NHL? Who is our coach?
How does the best owner in the NHL staff his operation? How does Wang do at the job?
How fast are needs addressed by the front office to one club? How fast by the Isles?
How often do trades end with one team’s being better afterwards? With the Isles?I wonder if these things impact a player’s opinion on a team moreso than the presence of newer concrete surrounding the rink? The Joe Louis Arena is AWFUL. Ditto MSPee in Manhattan. But the fans go because they make sure fans enjoy their time there. And players flock there because they know the team will try hard to win for them.
But hey….do they have cupcakes like us?
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Indigoj says:
Does anyone care about us!? The fans?? How many more Embarrassing things must we as fans be put through? Losing records, bad trades, worst ice, worst arena…? Why don’t we all just throw our jerseys on the ice as a protest! Enough already we are tired of waiting for draft picks to pan out and tired of watching a glorified AHL team out there it has been too LONG! A part of me wants this team to move because nothing is being done just TALK and as die hard fans we are at our breaking point!!!
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Jim Clark says:
Kind of amazing Edmonton and Long Island are so far ahead. Wouldn’t you expect them to be close to Columbus, Minnesota, St Louis, not to mention the Dixie teams. But those southern teams have warm weather and lower taxes. Near to NYC? Two other teams are too.
Luongo is rated best goaltendet. Why can’t the Islanders get someone like him?
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David G says:
Jim Clark #86: We actually had a player like him.
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cjcb says:
#87 As we are learning with this article nothing new has changed since before Milbury was GM. Face it right now with arena constant BS surrounding the team NOBODY wants to come here not even Long Islanders??? The only way to get players that are good here is to trade your young talent to get them. You have to be creative in this atmosphere and it will not always work or we just have to stay the course and hope the young players we draft turn out to be good and their is NO guarentee there either. Building through the draft guarentees you nothing and anyone who suggests there is a timeline for success when doing so is trying to sell you more BS. Can it be done sure if you are lucky. This organization needs MAJOR help and a BETTER plan. Nobody knows the plan so NOBODY will come.
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sean says:
Too many preMadonnas in the league today anyway.
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jerf37 says:
Anybody take a look at the picture with the poll results? I can make out 12 Islander players, 7 of which are no longer with the team. Just thought that was funny.
I was also going to make a joke about Snow not really wanting to sign NHL players to play here anyway but I am sure someone must have said that somewhere in the comments I just skimmed over.
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Swan says:
Although winning has a lot to do about these poll results, the location, the fans and the state of the arena has to come into play a little bit.
The Rangers finished fourth in the poll as the most desired to play for and the Rags haven’t been a Cup contender for quite some time. Similarly, Tampa Bay finished fifth as most desired. Detroit finished first, with Vancouver and Chicago tied for second.
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Silliness. Joe Louis and MSG have been recently renovated and are much, much nicer spaces than the Coliseum. Easier to get to games, much more room in the concourse, better food, more bathrooms. Better esthetics. Then you factor in the history and the more knowledgeable fan base. The only really good thing about watching a game at the NVMC compared to those two arenas are the slight lines.
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Anthony says:
i am sick of this building excuse for FA’s not coming. THAT IS NOT THE REASON, ITS AN EXCUSE!!! I recall in 2001-2002 I believe (sarcasm) that we had the same dump of an arena and even Milbury got FA’s to sign here and took a 52 point team from the yr before and got 3 straight playoff appearences. He traded for yashin and peca, BOTH signed extensions! Then signed Hamrlik, Aucoin, Satan, Sopel, Bates, Jonsson(after we traded 4 him he resigned), and Osgood who we claimed off waivers from Detroit when they let him go cause they signed Hasek. He reported here and loved it and even signed a 1 yr extension b4 he was traded. My point is Garth is NOT a good salesman and people blame Milbury. Before wang came in Milbury was FORCED to trade anyone once they reached a 7 figure salary under the group of 4 ownership team. u know those guys who liked fishsticks? My general point here is what has changed in the building from 2002 to now, NOTHING BIG! Wang made minor improvements but its still is bad and Milbury under wang got FA’s to come here. The only 2 OK FA’s Garth signed in 4 yrs in Guerin (past his prime) and Comrie (either injured or never gave 100%). Then Fedostinko and Sim who signed with the prior 2 where hailed as good players at that presser when they named Guerin captain.
I JUST DONT UNDERSTAND WHY A GM WOULD KNOCK ANYTHING THAT HAS TO DO WITH HIS OWN TEAM! Makes no sense, if i were a player and was THINKING of signing with the Isles or another team and was favoring the isles, then i hear the GM knock the facilities, i wouldnt wanna go there either.Garth-your only hope is at THIS YEARS DEADLINE, if it is true you can spend, BE A BUYER for GREAT players and give up a couple of 1st round pix to get them, if we cant sign them then we gotta trade 4 them. If we trade for 1 or 2 established good vets then in the offseason FA’s will see that and WANT to sign here.
If we are injury free, which is a reach, to be good NEXT yr we need 2 top 6 forwards, a top pair D, and a top 4 D, then either a DP miracle comeback, Nabby for the full yr at that great league minimum salary, or Poulin to STEP UP! he looks good and patrick roy’s comments 2 yrs ago sayin he is the best 18 yr goalie he has ever seen in the QMJHL.
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Remember the days in the early part of this decade when we had Aucoin, Hammer, and Jonsson all playing 25+ mins a game and they all averaged over 30+ pts each per season. 3 top D guys like that who were all in their prime, they were great in 2001-2 when we played the Dirty Leafs that yr. That is until Gary Roberts took out Jonsson and Tucker took out Peca. Would have won that series if they played in game 7. Take our best defensive D-man out and out top defensive center who can also score out and of course the leafs would win. BUT THEY DID JUST BARELY!
Chris, do you remember what this poll looked like in 2002 when the Islanders were somewhat competitive?