ISLANDERS FREE AGENCY 2011: DAY 1
C Marty Reasoner Signs 2-Year Contract with NYI
Updated – 10:15 PM: The Florida Panthers were the most active team on the first day of free agency. In the early afternoon, they added forward Scottie Upshall and defenseman Ed Jovanovski with four-year contracts to go along with goalie Jose Theodore, who agreed to a two-year pact. The re-tooling team in South Beach then locked up forwards Sean Bergenheim and Tomas Fleischmann to four-year contracts in the late afternoon. The Panthers also added forward Kris Versteeg in a trade with Philadelphia for a pair of daft picks.
Here are some of the other noteworthy deals of the day: Center Eric Belanger goes to Edmonton on a three-year deal… Sheldon Souray, who spent the last season in the AHL due to a hefty contract, has signed a one-year deal with Dallas… Left Wing Ville Leino has been grabbed up by the Buffalo Sabres on a six-year contract… The Dallas Stars have landed winger Michael Ryder with a two-year contract… Recently cut defenseman Cam Barker lands with Edmonton with a one-year contract… Forward Mike Rupp lands with the Rangers on a three-year deal… Winger Joel Ward signs with Washington on a four-year deal… Defenseman Roman Hamrlik to Washington on a two-year deal… Winger Erik Cole to Montreal on a four-year pact… Jaromir Jagr is back in the NHL agreeing to a one-year deal with Philadelphia and Max Talbot bolts across state to join him on a five-year pact… Andy Greene is staying on New Jersey’s blueline for the next four years… Raffi Torres is moving from Vancouver to Phoenix on a two-year deal and Radim Vrbata stays with the Coyotes on a three-year deal… Columbus locked up defenseman James Wisniewski for six years… The Colorado Avalanche signed defenseman Jan Hejda for four years.
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3:24 PM: The Islanders have signed center Marty Reasoner to a two-year contract. The 34-year old scored 14 goals with 18 assists for 32 points while playing in all 82 games for the Florida Panthers last season. The deal is reportedly worth a total of $2.7 million.
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12:08 PM: The Islanders have signed prospect Kirill Kabanov to a three-year entry-level contract. The Russian forward was selected by the team in the third round (65th overall) in the 2010 draft. Kabanov spent the last two seasons in the QMJHL splitting time between the Moncton Wildcats and the Lewiston MAINEiacs. In the 2011 playoffs with Lewiston, Kabanov turned heads by averaging more then a point per game scoring 20 points (8 goals, 12 assists) in 15 games. He was also a finalist for the QMJHL’s Humanitarian Player of the Year for his contributions to the local community.
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9:40 AM: Islanders RFA forward Jesse Joensuu has signed a contract with HV71 of the Swedish Elite League. The Islanders extended a Qualifying Offer to Joensuu last week and will retain his rights. Over the last three seasons, Joensuu bounced between the Islanders and Bridgeport (AHL) and played in a total of 60 games with the big club. In his time with the Islanders, Joensuu totaled eight goals with five assists for 13 points.
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The NHL’s calendar officially turns to the 2011-12 season as the start of free agency begins today at 12:00 PM EST. Some big names have been taken off the board before the market even opens, but there is still plenty of talented players available – many of whom the Islanders wouldn’t mind getting their hands on.
Original Post: While we all wait for the festivities to begin, take a look at Point Blank’s take on the top forwards and defensemen that the Islanders could be targeting.
692 Responses to ISLANDERS FREE AGENCY 2011: DAY 1
C Marty Reasoner Signs 2-Year Contract with NYI
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Yeah says:
something will happen
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Jack says:
The big fish is Richards, he will probably be a Ranger. The Isles could offer Stamkos a huge deal and make TB match it, but do the Isles really want to lose 4 1st round picks? There really isn’t much to get excited about tomorrow since the Isles do most of their FA signings 2-3 days later..
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islesfan36 says:
Even if on some parallel universe the isles did offer a contract to Stamkos, they couldnt convince Christian Erhoff to sign here. You really think one of the top 3 players in the game would? We will once again see more marginal depth signings, nothing more.
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Name says:
Gagne is my pick. He is fast and can score. Sign him big/short term and Play him with JT for now.
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Dave says:
Let the Ehrhoff situation be a lesson. Don’t overpay. Stay calm and don’t make any stupid moves simply because a player with some level of talent is out there. There’s plenty of time and homegrown ability to get us where we need to go..or at least up until a point.
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Cary says:
Fleischmann, Rupp, and Barker – get er done!!
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Christopher Willmer says:
Stamkos or Doughty or Yandle.
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Steve M says: *sigh* …
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something big, not insane…but significant – will happen. and that player will be crowned a prince for actually wanting to sign here or gets traded here and actually wants to be a part of this…
bringing my blackberry charger with me all day…everyone stay cool and don’t lose it like i do as every name comes off the board
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Playoffsnextyear! says:
Ian White please.
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Vlad from Brooklyn says:
At this point I am having much more fun watching these young kids grow in to real NHL players. Dynasties are built from the ground, not from FAs. Yes, they help. But the main pieces come from the homegrown. I hope Garth will not get crazy and will stay the course. Let Rags overpay for Richards and destroy him in 2 years.
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Dadi says:
Jovo & Cole…
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Paul says:
If they are going to go the offer sheet route, which they probably won’t, it should be for Doughty or Weber. Either would look great next to Streit now, and De Haan in the future. Realistically, I say make a hard run at Ian White, and fall back to Eminger if necessary. If you get White, he’s first line, if you get Eminger, I think Jurcin plays with Streit.
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patrick says:
i doubt we will do anything tomorrow and if we sign someone it will be a few days later. everyone wishing Richards or Stamkos or any RFA to sign is really dreaming. I just hope garth gets somebody that is right for them. i know with the current team we have we are not a playoff team but i dont want snow to sign some mid level guy for 3 or 4 years and who only provides marginal help and we dont make the playoffs, then end up stuck with his salary.. Stay the course. their will still be growing pains. Especially if ricky is handed the number 1 but the core is the most important now. i like our core. i dont see ricky in that core in hopefully 3 years…if the players we want sign somewhere else then dont just sign people for the sake of signing people.. I think Snow will do fine.
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ed says:
Not too impressed by anyone on the list. No need to go crazy imo. Hopefully a stay at home defenseman if Streit is healthy
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jamal says:
Michael ryder theres your top six veteran forward with stanley cup experience
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booten326 says:
Ryder seems like the best fit.
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Strummer's Army says:
Don’t like Ryder’s injury history and as much as I like Stamkos and think he’d love to play with good friend Tavares and best friend Matt Martin and be in the organization with former linemate DiBiendetto and Katic, I simply don’t see the need for another top center. I was against the drafting of Strome for this reason despite his obvious talents. I’m thrilled to have Strome’s talent but seriously another center now in Stamkos?
Ward and one other forward IF Snow is going to be trading forward assets. Isles have at least 13 Forwards on contract and some prospects knocking on the door.
On defense we still need the 2 mean, skilled, D-men. Maybe one will be found in FA but the other will be trade. Look at Philly’s Richard’s trade Simmons an RFA came back to Philly. RFA’s are usually the ones who get dealt.
Some nice posts here tonight on the quality moves Snow has made. He hasn’t been perfect. Isles finally decided to get tough, which was a major issue I had with him, he’s finally gotten rid of some crap players he hung onto for too long. We haven’t seen him make the big trades, I think his hands have been a bit tied but very impressed with his last three drafts and strategic moves.
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Mike239 says:
“While we all wait for the festivities to begin, take a look at Point Blank’s take on the top forwards and defensemen that the Islanders could be targeting.”
The question is really, who is targeting the Islanders and Long Island??? Nabokov? No. Ehrhoff? No. So who??? We’ll see what happens or doesnt in a few hours. My hopes are not up.
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@11…LMAO!
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Pez19 says:
Ryder has only played good for one coach and he coaches in Boston! He will not help the Islanders in any way other than to eat up cap space! The Isles are trying to make a big move for the vote on 8/1/11! The only way they are going to make a splash is trough a trade. My bet is that Strome makes the team and they need to find a trade partner for Bailey….hopefully for a good young defensemen!
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93 Miracle says:
I want Ward. Big time playoff player. Overpay if you have to and 3 years. Would love Rubb to replace Konopka that be an upgrade. Winchester is also big would love him. Upshall is an option. Make a play for Cole. On Defense you got that columbus guy, you got Boytchuk, Andy Greene wouldnt be bad getting him to our side, and Ian white as well. Those last 2 dont have a lot of size but if we can get one of those 2 and one guy with size thats good. Then sign one 4th liner or even 2 if you can get Rupp and Winchester or just one of them and another forward like a cole or upshall or Leino. Might have to overpay for cole or Leino but I do it!
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dedshark says:
If i read one more comment about stamkos im gonna puke. Its so unrealistic its not even funny. overpay leino and find a dman through trades or FA. Thats it.
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Ari From Long Island says:
I know this may not be a popular choice, but what about Souray on a one year deal? He would most likely be able to help out our abysmal power play. One year at a low salary would be harmless and we could catch lightning in a bottle. Low risk, high reward.
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joe in alberta says:
sheldon souray, to streit back to souray for the one timere, islans score on the power play.
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Bjorn Holland says:
Fleischmann is the only big name available who I could see signing here
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sean says:
We may to trade for someone but you never know what will happen.
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Jeff from Smithtown says:
Sign McCabe for 2 years and be done with it.
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Nyifan11 says:
Bring back ZK
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Isles Fan in VA says:
Depressed!
Glad we didnt lock up 10 years of cap space for Erhoff.
Now where do we go? Such mediocrity. How do we get to the cap floor. Don’t want to overpay for so-so players.
Fleishmann – eh, maybe but needs to be short term deal.
Ward – no real history of producing
Jovo, McCabe – old
Ian White – Might be the best of the mediocreI was really looking forward to today. Now at 7 AM, i’m going to golf instead.
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The New Isles GM says:
Adding Cole, Leino, Jovo and it’s a successful day at the job. Or Garth can just grow a set and throw money at Stamkos. Enough is enough and it’s time to start winning hockey games. Let’s see if that losing streak last season meant anything.
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hale078 says:
to post 20 saying no to steve stamkos because we have too many centers that is like standing up jessica alba for a date
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Hollywood says:
History says this day will be no different then any other. Unless ofcourse Snow does something wild and crazy which I hope he does. We deserve some enjoyment on day 1 of free agency.
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No one has made mention at all about Shane O’brien. We’ve lost toughness on D. OB is a shutdown physical guy. He’s a journeyman, and a real Pro, I would seek his grit, and another shutdown defensive forward in Joel Ward who will log big minutes against the other teams top lines and also be utilized on special teams. Two defensive minded players with real grit and tons of heart. We have guys who can score, we do NOT have shutdown guys. Unfortunately, I don’t think the isles will get either, but who knows what Garth Vader and Obi Wang Kenobi have up their wizard sleeves.
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MoreDraftPicks says:
#31 – Agree!! Although Stamkos would look great in blue and orange, Its a dream. But a helluva dream!!! Dont think any big splashes will occur, so my hopes are not high. We do need to add, prospects arent everything. I dont subscribe to the “we’re young and coming” theory because 10 other teams can say the same.
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FanSince72 says:
To the “Don’t Overpay” crowd I have two comments: 1) there is no other way that anyone will sign here and 2) what part of $24MM under the salary floor don’t you understand?
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Billy says:
My hopes are for Ian White and/or Fleischmann.
I might be ok with Leino, but i seriously dont really want anyone else. I hope Garth makes a smart trade to get us a good player, because our current isles team is already fine without adding any of these other bum ufa’s lol
To be clear: Ryder,Jovo,Mccabe,Cole are all finished as productive NHL players, pls do not sign any of these guys Garth!
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Ethan K says:
Give a bit of an overpay to Jovanovski for 1, maybe 2 years. He’s got the character and toughness we need. He can be convinced to play for the Islanders because unlike a Laich, Ehrhoff, Bieksa, etc there won’t be a long list of teams ready to give him a big contract. Give Fleischmann a one year deal so he can play wing for Tavares until Strome is ready to do it. Bolster up the 3rd and 4th lines with longer contracts (3 years or so) for veterans who have decent mobility, size, grit, and some offensive upside. Our only choice this year really is to stay the course on the rebuild. We’re not too far off.
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Are we really 24 mill under the cap floor? I thought it was 12. Don’t forget we still have to get our QA’s on the books. Something tells me Alexei Kovalov is on his way over for 1 mill but with a 7mill bonus cushion. Weak day on Free Agency Opening Day.
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Brian G says:
To All Realistic Fans
1. The Isles are not signing anyone to an offersheet
2. The Free Agents are not that good, so don’t expect too much
3. The Isles will be right around the cap floor if they sign all of their free agents and 1 minor signingI would honestly be happy if they signed:
C/W – Belanger,Goc,Dowell
D – Hedja,McCabe,O’Brien,Lepisto
W – Upshall,Ward,Fleischmann -
Michael Pastore says:
There is only 1 free agent left that I would like to sign and that is Cole. He is a winger with scoring ability. He is in his late 20s and could bring some veteran leadership to this team.
I would love to sign Stamkos to an offer sheet but that will never happen. Besides Cole maybe the Islanders can make a trade for maybe Bouwmeester. I just do not want to sign players that we do not want just to reach the salary floor. It is unproductive to overpay for 2nd and 3rd tear FA. Rather trade for what we need because the FA pickings this year are slim especially after who has been signed before the deadline. -
MikeInNYC says:
I’m holding out for Hedja and upshall
Hedja is like a 6’5″ kasparitis
Upshall put up 18 goals the last 2 seasons with NO ONE around him in Phoenix.Put upshall on the first line with Tavares and Moulson
Moulson-Tavares-Upshall
Okposo-Neilsen-Grabner
Comeau-Bailey-Nino
Martin-Parenteau-Gillies/HunterStreit-Hamonic
Hedja-MacDonald
Eaton-JurcinaPlayoffs.
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Chris Retzlaff says:
Oh, the negativity is killing me, perhaps tavares and stamkos are buddies, who really knows, perhaps Richards and weight are buddies, who knows…..stay positive, Snow has not made a bad signing since he took over, perhaps schremp was the worst, but it was worth the risk, a the cost was minimal. Wang knows that to make money, he will have to spend it first. The right guy is available in stamkos, who cares about 4 first round picks, this teams days of top 5 picks are over, offer him anything he wants, just be prepared to fight to keep JT next year….So far the worst move by the snow-wang tandem was the “Botta Ban”
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streit02 says:
The problem with this years free agency is the salary cap increase. Top teams who were pushed up against the cap were given a 5 million dollar cushion. So whatever was there as far as this weak FA class has re-signed with their teams or are looking to go to a contender because they now have money to spend. Teams like the Isles who just had their head above water last year get screwed because they will be forced to throw away money on mediocre talent and/or take on someone else’s mistake at the cost of giving up their own assets. I dont know how the cap increase works, but it obviously wasn’t thought through well enough. And if we thought this years free agent class was bad, next years already looks worse.
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Chris,
are there any past 1st rounders that were not signed to Qualifying Offer Sheets that we may be able to pick up. The Islanders pro scouts seam to be able to find diamonds in the rough and re-start their careers. The team has had a lot of success in bringing in the likes of Moulson, Grabner, PA Parenteau (even though he is not the right fit for the team any more), and Montoya. The jury is still out on Wishart. The only miss for the most part was Schremp. -
Steve says:
Per Cap Geek, the Isles payroll is a little over 37 million. Thats roughly 11 million under the floor. Sign Bailey, Comeau, and add Nino to the team with his nearly 3 million in salary and we are a lot closer to the floor than we realize. If Wang will truly let Garth spend, I will believe it when I see it.
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Ian says:
For those thinking we need to spend a lot to reach the floor, you are mistaken. Here is the breakdown as of right now.
Salaries and buyouts currently on NY Isles roster per capgeek:
37,390Likely roster changes:
+ 2,795 Nino
- 892 Poulin (currently counting towards cap)
+ 4,847 Last years RFA amounts
+ 1,703 My guess for total RFA raises
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45,844This is only 2,456 away from the floor and this number does not include bonuses. I’m sure there is someway the Isles can count more bonus money to get there or simply pay one of their own RFAs a little more than they really deserve.
The RFAs I’ve inlcluded above are: Comeau, Bailey, Haley, Joensuu and Wishart.
The Isles don’t have to do anything to reach the floor, which is good in that Snow doesn’t have to do something stupid, like Florida might have to do.
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MarioGazz says:
Please sign Z today. If he ends up on the Rags I will puke. Use the KISS model today Garth. Keep It Simple Stupid. We dont need that 10mil a yr player. Good defenseman and good forward and lets roll.
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DWC says:
Trade for Yandle… Wishart, Nabokov, a 1st and 4th rounder in 2012 draft. Garth will not offer sheet his buddy Maloney.
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emira83 says:
if were gona overpay,do it for stamkos. give him an offer that no one will or could match and he wi=ont refuse. 10 mill for 10 years.sssssttttaaaaaaaaammmkkkkkoooossssss.
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Brad says:
Sign Tambellini and send him down to Bpt
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Big Van Vader says:
Sign Tambellini and send him down to Bpt<-
This MAY happen.
lol
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Dan C. says:
I don’t know what will happen in the NHL over the next few days, but I do know that #20 ‘Stamkos would probably love to play for the Isles but we don’t need him because we have too many centers’ is the early favorite for 2011-12 comment of the year.
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Reality Check says:
if a trade goes down, itll be for a quality top 4 d man or a top 6 forward…IE Yandle or Malone…lock it up
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#48, right on, i choked on my coffee…
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corey says: I will be missing the first 2 or three hours today. My brother is going to text me the Isladers news he sees on here. Maybe something happens, but please stay patient and dont make any huge contracts where we overpay a guy who really doesnt deserve it.
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BattFist says:
Joel Ward.
He has connections.
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quez says:
Although I believe in the rebuild, and for the most part, the way Garth is doing things, I am getting sick of the way the organization is being showed no respect. I mean, when did Ehroff become Ray Bourque? It may not be the right way to go about it, but a huge RFA offer to Stamkos would be the one way to legitimize the franchise again. Sorry if we piss you off Stevie Y. but business is business. Then trade some assets for a big D-man, and just forget about the 1st round of the entry draft for the next 4 years. If Stammer were here, signing FA’s would not be a problem anymore, anyhow.Oh…and then lock up J.T. long term immediately, so this doesn’t happen to us next year!
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@35 Billy, White and Fleischmann would be my picks as well.
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jimisles says:
I’m just going to sit back with a ice cold Blue Moon and watch all the FAs sign elsewhere
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Stay the course, dont overspend. glad ehrhoff took 10 yrs to play in buffalo! All i gotta say is Norwood wide right!! All these guys who rejected us will see one day how wrong they were. Garth should entertain trades, and look for value signings. Were on the right track.
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Pablo says:
At this point they should look for a trade! Forget about these lack luster FA’s.
Look, the big problem is the Fact that established hockey players 2-3 yrs into their career do not want to play for this Management! It has nothing to do with Money or the Building.
It is the past damage by Charles Wang and Garth Snow that has swept the league with how they treat established players and FA’s. Let’s face it fans Wang and Snow just this year has changed direction and Attitude mainley do to there change of position on the Lighthouse.
That’s is why the Islanbders have mostley draft picks and rookies.
Management needs to change there stubborn ways and Wangs rules or this team will never see quality Talent come to the Islanders, it’s so clear to see that the building and the Money are not and never was the reason’s. It Is Management!
Hockey players careers are 4-5 yrs on avg.
and they do not want to move there familys to a unstable organzition with noose’s around their necks.
That’s the bottom line and if nobody can see that after 10 yrs of Wang. The fact FA’s and players do not want to play for the Islansders is the reasons.
Remember it has nothing to do with that History proud LoGo it’s the people who run it! -
jisles says:
Why do some people think the Lightning are going to let the best player in their organization walk at the age of 23? C’mon, Eklund is not a reliable source or hockey insider at all.
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Isle in the 404 says:
May sound crazy but the Panthers look like they’re gonna be needing a goalie and they will be around $20m under cap floor (per Spector) when Vokoun splits.
Think they’ll take DP?
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Oh no, now we won’t be able to make the cap floor with out Joensuu….no big loss
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hangover3 says:
Good riddance. The guy had no game at all, never saw a player that young that brought nothing to the table at all.
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dp isnt goin anywhere. nobodys gona take his contract. id rather cut him and pay him and make room for other goalies than keep him. send him to bridgeport,if we can, wil never forget after the last game of the past season he was interviewed and asked about the upcoming seasons goalie competition and his reply was,”what competition”. id drop him quicker than the penguins goali johnson did with his right hook. he gis up soft goals. “hey dp,stay in the net”"your not ron hextall”!
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islesfever says:
This years free agency will be just like the last few, lots of lines in the water but no bites. Maybe Wangsnow & company are using the wrong bait?
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sionara jesse
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Brother Rat says:
Eh, no loss w/ JJ. He put up good numbers in the AHL but couldn’t crack it here–we’d be wise to trade his rights for a pick. We gave him chances, he didn’t take them.
I’m not going to get my hopes up for anyone this year. If we get anyone big or mediocre, I’d be shocked. I could see us get Chris Drury for a 1-year deal for his leadership, like a Doug Weight 2.0 (only w/out the points). And a top 8 defenseman. I’m surprised how indifferent I am to a shake-em-up trade.
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Watching NHL on the fly as I type, I love the silence, I have to believe our crafty GM is not bringing a sharpend stick into a gun fight this year. To quote a great line from the movie, The Rock, “losers try their best, winners go home a ^*%@ the prom queen”…..
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Doug says:
#66…I would do a “happy dance” if Garth got rid of DP’s salary…
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Mike says:
David Perron from St. Louis would be a great fit for the Isles today. Great goal scorer and probably cheap as well.
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71 – in that analogy from “The Rock,” I think we’re a better fit as the prom queen than the loser. Oh to be an Isles fan.
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Do the Ian white proponents know he’s 5’10″ 195 lbs?
We need size, not a meaner Jack Hillen
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Also, lets raise the stakes a bit. coming away from this offseason with Thomas Fleishmann and Andy Greene is same old Isles.
Make a trade for a D-man, sign a charatcer forward, use the abundance of our farm system.
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Charlie says:
Did JJ sign with SEL just so he has some leverage with negotiating with the NYI? Or is he really going to play abroad next year?
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ss says:
Guys I’d be interested in include: Upshall, Anthony Stewart, D’Agostini, Leino and Fleischmann. These guys could all contribute on a second line. Fleischmann probably on the first.
I could see Garth taking one of his fliers on guys like Zherdev, Kobasew or Bergfors but I would pass on that list of leg Kvasha like softies.
Konopka replacements could be Goc, Nichol, Fiddler or Reasoner.
Would not be opposed to seeing Raffi Torres bang bodies on a line with Nielsen and Comeau.
Not much to like in terms of defensemen meeting the Isles’ needs. Hejda is a big body that could play a stay at home role. McCabe is still viable and physical. Barker is probably the guy I’d take a chance on in a typical Garth catching light in a bottle Moulson style. Mara and Vandermeer could be physical depth guys.
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JTizzle says:
Who cares about JJ. He was not in the future plans of this team anyways!
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Hishutzi Skorz says:
As a few mentioned, no great loss in JJ, the ultimate waste of size.
Opens a W spot for Rakshani, Hunter (if healthy) or a possible FA.
My vote is for Leino…at least he can do some comedy monologues!
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martin says:
Can someone tell me about Matt D’Agostini? Does he have top 6 potential. He’s only 24.
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Pry Bufugyin away from Atlanta/Winnipeg. There has never been a more perfect player for this team at this time.
1) A D-man that plays power forward to a tee!
2) Crashes the net, always comes up with
the puck, ALWAYS! Can you imagine J.T,
waiting for it?
3) Leader. Stanley cup winner.
4) Super tough! Players just bounce
right off him!
5) Long Island would actually give
him better visibility than
Winnipeg.
6) A monster during the playoffs!
Find a way to get the big buff!!! -
Dagostini is a 3rd liner like Comeau.
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Adam B. says:
JP Dumont will be cheap. It’d be nice to finally see him play a game as an Islander.
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Congrats to the Wiz for getting his MONSTER deal from Columbus!
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Tom says:
Wow, Wiz just signed with CBJ for the same amount we offered Ehrhoff.
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Oye Comeau Va says:
Insane. Let’s keep pricing out others by signing run of the mill players to large contracts. Everyone enjoy next season, we’ll soon be where the NBA and NFL are right now.
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Comeau-Bailey-D’Agostini
D’Agostini had 21 goals last yr, and shouldnt make more than 2 mill this yr.
Just throwing darts on the proverbial board.
A vet winger and a top 4 Dman works for me as well.
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Wiz just signed for 5.5 million a year in Columbus (6 years, 33 million)
haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
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D’agostini scored 46 points last season with an average of 14:46 of ice time per game. aka…he’s Blake Comeau #2, maybe even better since he played 4 mins/game less
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Tyler Kennedy might be a good fit for the Isles – he seems like he could play wing or center on the top 3 lines.
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Mark I says:
Is HV71 a new flu strain? Good luck Jesse! We hardly knew ye.
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Sumo Goalie says:
That Wiz deal has to be a joke. On what planet is he a 5.5M guy?
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The league is going to be in major trouble by the next CBA….if you’re going to overpay a guy, I’d rather it be one of our own. Don’t go nuts on these guys Snow, reward the players who built this team back up themselves and had to go through all the tough times. Let’s not shun our own guys by throwing ridiculous amts. of money at outsiders who are not star players. Get to the floor, stay the course. Pull the trigger when the time is right for the team.
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we havent built the team up into anything yet…so no one should be getting congratulatory contracts yet
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Scottie upshall to play the wing with tavares and John madden to center the fourth line and mentor everyone on how to win! Good luck Garth!!!
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shlo says:
Could not care less about JJ.
Wiz got a great deal. Not worth 5.5 mil good for him. I’ll wait for next year. With DP in goal we are a lottery team again unless you believe in miracles.. -
the return of McCabe looks possible
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Why do I have a feeling that we are making a play for JAGR. Just a hunch. Most likely wrong.
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Mike in Bohemia says:
Making a play for Jagr would’nt shock me.
Him saying yes would shock me. -
vukotaismyhero12 says:
I honestly believe CB is right though…the only way they get an impact d-man or forward is via trade…otherwise it will be hard to get someone significant here
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Rob (in Pgh) says:
I like Joensuu and he still may develop into a consistent and good 2nd or 3rd line NHL player but he obviously isn’t there yet.
Signing in the Swedish Elite League may be good since it allows the Isles to retain his rights while someone else pays his salary and brings him along.
I’d like to see him come back and be successful at some point but if he isn’t then it’s not really a big deal either.
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islesfan03 says:
caps are trying to get rid of semin i think he is a really good fit for JT line.
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Ray says:
give Jagr Double what the pens offerd….
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the thing about semin is the caps are going to want a huge return but semin only has one year left on his deal
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The Wiz deal hurts every team because now every dman is going to say “if Wiz got that much”…..
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Jagr will not sign here.
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drive45 says:
I see the posts already come 7pm tonight. Garth sucks. Just a backup goalie. Wang won’t spend any money. This team is cursed. No one will come here. This franchise is a joke, pathetic, circus, adjective of your choice.
If this is what you are going to post here then do us all a favor and stay away from the keyboard. We’ve heard this nonsense all before.
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Nick M says:
islesfan03 i agree with 100%…if the isles can package something to bring back semin AND green we are set. in addition to a call for the services of hedja
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Jagr wont sign here but at least Snow can use his favorite line….”we did our…..”
im sure everyone can fill in the rest…
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@drive45 haha your right every year like clock work…
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Steve M says:
Keep dreaming #103 + 109..
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Hedja is EXACTLY what we need
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Jersey Jerry says:
I dont live in Nassau county, but my question is if the Isles do nothing in free agency what kind of effect do you think it may or may not have on Aug 1st?
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@Steve M deffinately worth a try one or the other would be a huge improvement
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so the D’agostini thing is probably dead now…
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JJ…it won’t have any effect. The people who want to vote this down are not hockey fans.
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James from Swindles says:
This free agent class STINKS. Predictions (note: not saying this is my “wish list”, just saying I think this is what will happen):
~ Konopka is gone by 5:30 today
~ Isles sign McCabe, Gilroy, and Eric Belanger.
~ Snow eventually swings a trade later this summer to land a top four defenseman.
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Steven says:
Amen 108. No need to go down that road again and again.
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A big move like bringing in someone top tier would def make backpage news(at least with Newsday) and show alot of people that our owner is serious about winning and show everyone out there yet another good reason to have the Isles stay in Nassau with a YES vote.
Not that our owner and gm have done ANYthing since trading for Ryan Smith years ago…….
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what about iginla on JT’s wing. Calgary clearly can get it done with him. his salary is up there. up there in age but he always finds ways to get over 30 EVERY year!! Get it done garth
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DarrenDreger: Isles announce they have signed Kiril Kabanov to an entry level contract.
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Blues Close to Signing Matt D’Agostini.. (E4)
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Steve M says:
#115 – would rather offer Stamkos.
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God I hope they don’t bring in Gomez.
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Cant ***
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konopka to the Rags
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@ steve M… oh god so would i but garth does have the ball to..
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bcarroll25 says:
cb, if joensuu plays in europe does he still count against the roster limit?
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Kennedy resigns in pitt
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John says:
Kabanov signed? Interesting
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so kirill in the bridge?
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we should b putn all our energy and dollars into stamkos. he wants 8 mill a year thats only 2mill more than what we offered erhoff and we hav the money. giv him 9mill or even 10mill just to get him to sign and play for us. we dont need anything else if we can acquire him and i think it would def improve the aug 1 vote. theirs no way he would decline 9 or 10 mill a year for 6-8yrs to play on long island. let dehaan play,we dont need erhoff and LETS PLAY..
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SCLI says:
In his first full NHL Season.
Matt D’Agostini, RW, St. Louis
TSN.ca Rating: 70.20
Stats 21-25-46, +8, 40, 82 GP
’10-’11 Cap Hit: $550K
Comment: Breakthrough offensive season may have priced him out of Blues’ plans. -
does the ELC mean Kabanov is up with the Isles this season? Not sure how that works
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If the Isles are signing Kirill Kabanov at 12:15p.m. on July 1st I wouldnt expect anything significant to happen for a while…
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DET and PITT withdraw from Jagr that means Philly or the Habs….Get in there Garth dont let him go to Philly!!
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Yes. By all means sign a 39 year old washed up Winger to a contract more than he’s worth just so he does not go to Philly. Good move!
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Steve M says:
People are so crazy over Jagr.. He really isn’t that great and he doesn’t have the best attitude.
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nosebleed says:
Well, Snow can close up shop and light his BBQ. They made their big play by signing Kirill. He was the only player that did not hang up the phone when they heard, “Hi, this is Garth Snow…”
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LouD says:
Jagr left the NHL and when he did it was obvious his skills had declined substantially. That was a few years ago so…..
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jagr would be the wrong person for the youngsters to look up to
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Frans Dish says:
I know wishful thinking but, I would sacrifice 4 first rounders for Stamkos. Throw 10 million at him a year can many teams match that?
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Glad they signed Kabanov. No, this doesn’t mean he is up with the Isles. He can go back to Juniors and the contract will start next year. They must think he earned it.
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He looked pretty good in the worlds…..and me saying Jagr is the same as saying Stamkos or Weber…..It will never happen….realistic i want Hejda upshall ward Cole those are guys I would target
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You Stamkos people kill me. Tampa is going to match any deal. Please stop with the Stamkos stuff.
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Re Kabanov: His ECL should be the same as Nino’s. He’s either on the NYI roster for the season or must return to Jrs. Not eligible for the AHL. This does make him eligible for the 8 game tryout, which may be intersting.
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Steve M says:
I hope Weight recruits Cole here, that would be great. Also Hejda or White. Leggoooo
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the bomber says:
see all you who said the isles wouldn’t sign anyone were WRONG again!!!
(so what it was one of our own picks?)
Seriously, thats like a slight of hand trick. Do they think we will be fooled by that? Who announces signing their own picks on July one at NOON? That’s a new one for me. Bar keeps getting lower around here…
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2011-2012 Isles says:
Isles aren’t going to do anything. Honestly, this crop sucks anyway… who cares?!
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I for one agree that stamkos is a loooong shot. But to say Tampa would match any offer isn’t entirely accurate. If they would match any dont you think they would give stamkos his 8 mil/per and lock him up for at least 6-7 years. he was security and roughly 8mil per. so clearly tampa is not as fleixble with as how high they will go. 10 years 10mill/per would get it done
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WM says:
Andy Greene resigns w/ Devs for 4 years.
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bossy man says:
So Glad the Whalers are no longer a hockey team. Whales eat Krill, long live the tatoo man.
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bill says:
Won’t miss Joensuu- he was the next Trent Hunter. Kabanov nothing to write home about.
My idea? How about Aaron Asham? Tough 4th liner that can give you more minutes than Gilles, can shoot the puck, and is one of the toughest SOBs when it comes to fights.
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CB – is the Kabanov signing part ‘let’s get this expirement underway’ part ‘let’s get him out of Montreal’?
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I guess its good we havent heard from CB, hes probably getting the details on the isles signings/trade…..i can hope cant I??
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cgs878 says:
Steal Brad Richards from under the Rangers’ noses! Yeah!
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I would not oppose the suggestions of a one year Drury deal to replace Konopka like some people suggested. All bearing his health, of course. I would sign up for that though.
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wizniewski got 6 yrs and 33 million??
oh my god this is out of control. we need to lock up tavares for a long time, STAT !!!!
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ISLES40 says:
Please keep the Stamkos talk going. I’m having a really bad day and I could use the laughs
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43 minutes ago
@TSNBobMcKenzie: Hearing restricted free agent Steven Stamkos is not close to a new deal with TB so he’s now eligible to receive offer sheets.
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NC Dan says:
With Joensuu gone, i beleive the only dead weight left is Hunter, oh and DP…if somehow snow got rid of those two today, he would get a pass for not making any other moves
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@TSNBobMcKenzie: Hearing restricted free agent Steven Stamkos is not close to a new deal with TB so he’s now eligible to receive offer sheets.
Is this where Garth tells us he did his “due diligence” and offered Stamkos a TON of moolah, but Stamkos replied, “The money is nice, but I just CAN’T play in that BUILDING!”
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I’m dying to see how Garth will spin it this year.
1 top 6 fwd
1 vet fwd
1 top 4 dmanWill we get any of the 3?
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#158 its us the fans that laugh at the possibilities of signing stamkos because we dont even believe in our owns teams potential in signing big guys cus of our teams history. its possibile for evry other nhl team but unrealistic and just a pipe dream to us. the sad thing is we hav the money. even sadder that with outbidding evry team thers still a great chance he doesnt wanna come here. we could really bid for this guy and make it a battle between us and the leafs. very few teams hav the cap space to giv him 8 or 9 mill year.guys like this at his age and caliber rarely are available to sign offer sheets
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caber09 says:
“The money is nice, but I just CAN’T play in that BUILDING!” and I cant play with my friends JT & Martin, etc. Snow is full of BS anyway wouldnt surprise me, I say blow Stamkos out of the water with a huge offer, at least force Tampa to match and kill their cap situation.
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even if we were to offer stamkos to a mega deal offer sheet….he still has to agree to it….
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‘Snow is full of BS anyway wouldnt surprise me, I say blow Stamkos out of the water with a huge offer, at least force Tampa to match and kill their cap situation.’
And then watch next year when another team signs Tavares to an OS and blow our cap situation. Really guys, get off the Stamkos tip.
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John says:
The Isles bid big on Stamkos and the same will be done to Tavares when the time comes. Wouldn’t want to see that happen.
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Name says:
The Pens report they will not sign Jagr. This is Wangs chance to TRY to sign a name player.Jagr is after the money. Please give him the big bucks and get him here!
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There’s 2 of Me??
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do you guys really think tavares makes past july 1st next year? no way! if okposo and grabner get done before july 1st then i highly doubt teams will even have the possbility to offer sheet JT. To be completely honest, STAMKOS > Tavares..
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you sign Tavares to a deal before free agency even starts…you do it after the 8/1 vote and before the end of next season…
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Eric says:
Get Vokoun here we need an established goalie here already im tired of all this what if this goalie can be good lets just give him a chance. NO. Sign Vokoun and never have a goalie problem. I say 3 years 5.5 mill and let Poulin develop like a normal prospect
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@ Ray.. Agreed
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West Coast Islander says:
This free agent crop blows. As much as I want to see this team move forward and spend some coin to win, I don’t want them locking themselves into long term contracts for mediocre players. Focus on signing JT to a long-term deal. As much as I hate to admit it, Garth has done a nice job with under the radar short-term signings on low-risk deals. He should just stick with that plan instead of throwing $$$ and years at players at the mediocrity that is out there.
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JT won’t sign until he sees a shovel in the ground. Don’t you guys think his agent knows all the hurdles involved even if the Yes vote wins out.
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This isn’t NHL ’11 on Xbox…in the real world, you don’t screw over people you have built up a good business relationship with by lobbing a salary cap grenade at them.
Garth won’t do it because he’s too conscious of his relationships with other GM’s
Notice that no one did any business with Edmonton after Kevin Lowe pried Dustin Penner from the ducks and then tried to grab Vanek?
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We are so far below the cap it wouldnt matter, and the point would be to sign JT before July 1st next year.
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after the yes vote the town has to have a majority vote for the approval. JT will more likely sign with a team that is bringing a supporting cast vs drafting potential that could not even see a game to long island..maybe in brooklyn
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How about doing it the proper way if you really want Slamkos. Contact Steve Y and neg a trade in order to speak with the agent. If the Isles can get a him to sign then the deal is done. I think signing him to an offer sheet is a dirty way at trying to get him. Isles already have enough crap to deal with.
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jonfromnj says:
Stop with stamkos. Honestly, it’s absurd.
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Tobu says:
Congrats to Kirill. Humanitarian Award? Damn.
I have a weird feeling Kirill gets a spot this year on the big club. At this level, it’s a lot about confidence. . . of which he has plenty.
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Blizz says: I can not even believe peole are talking Stamkos here. We cant even overpay a d-man.
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ENV79 says:
Erik Cole please. He is NOT finished -anyone remember that game in April at the Coliseum that he more or less single-handedly won for the ‘Canes? Played all 82 games, big bull-in-a-china-shop with wheels, sets a keen example for KO and, more importantly, Nino.
2 years at $3.5-4 ought to do it; give Jovo about the same and Leino about 4-5 years – job done.
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We can get Stamkos, right after we lock up Ehrhoff….oh wait….
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I would pitch it like this to SY if i was garth “Hey steve, the islanders are interested in stamkos. What kind of package would you be willing to take for stamkos. Would you prefer the 4 first round picks that could be top 5 picks. history shows, we drafted top 5 the last four years. You choose, either way we want stamkos”
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Upshall to FLA
Is Kabanov really going to get a shot? Now that would shock me.
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Steve says:
Upshall to Panthers.
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#182 the proper way??? what r the isles a charity? yeah,give up established players instead 4 unproven 1st round picks. that makes no sense.after july 1st thats what u try and do,sign rfa’s to offer sheets. dirty play??? thankgoodness ur not the gm.
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They should look to trade for a defenseman. How about they make their 4th line something to be scared of and add Rupp and Eager?
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Onesinceforty says:
Upshall to Panthers! Nother one down.
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Eagar signed with the Oilers 3 years 1 mill plus per yr
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damn the panthers been making moves!
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Joe in Massapequa says:
You play to win the game. If it is within the rules you do what you need to do to win. Just hope it doesn’t come back and bite you when it is our turn to sign JT. But in saying this I can’t ever see the Isles sending an offer sheet to either Stamkos or Doughty.
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Upshall- 4 years 14 mil
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JT says:
D’agostini ust singed a 2 year deal with STL and Flyers signed Jagr.
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jfnisles says:
Snow really makes me want to run out and vote YES on Aug 1……do SOMETHING Garth!!!!!
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JAGR TO PHILLY!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!
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felix says:
upshall for 3.5 for 3 years you want taht?
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Raffi Torres to PHX -2 years for $1.75M/ea. Pretty reasonable.
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Even Raffi Torres is gone….to Phoenix
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Hud says:
This day is always funny on here, nothing ever happens, it’s the most entertaining nothing will happen day of the year.
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CM says:
Hope Isles stand pat. Not one UFA is any better than what we got or even in our prospects.
Can anyone tell me which UFA made any difference last year? -
Anthony from Commack says:
what goes on?? players being signed left and right …. isles staying put again?
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We might have to resign Konopka and Martinek just to reach the cap floor.
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Jovocop speaking to Phi. Great. Just what we need, another giant D-man we can get bruised and battered by 6 times next season.
Wow, did you see the Tim Connolly contract Dallas just gave him? 55 million over 8 years. WOW!
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i feel like linus waiting for the great pumpkin, again….
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can we sign Bossy to a players contract to reach the cap floor??
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Jagr to the flyers!?! wow lol
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Does not look good in the UFA front, Snow is unable to sign anybody, even Florida gets to sign decent players.
I am beginning to believe it is how agents and players regard Snow and the organization. -
Dvorak to DAL. 1 yr/$1.5M
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That Connolly to DAL contract was a fake… Someone created a fake Dreger twitter account
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Nevermind on that Connolly contract. An NHL source retweeted a fake account…
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Isles99 says:
no disrespect #208, but you’re just “beginning” to believe it is how agents and players regard Snow and the organization? My 7 year son skates at their “practice” facilities once a week…Snow’s office in the place is also the storage room for the pro shop…the whole organization is unprofessional, and this is the result…I can go on and on…
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Even Fla is signing guys, like I said, we need a new salesman to pitch LI to players, Snow is terrible. Neil Smith was able to do it in 2006, why cant Snow do it now with a good young core.
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This is the year: Those negotiations with tampa would start like this…OK for Stamkos we want Tavares, Hamonic and 2 first round picks
not happening
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And there goes Hejda. 4 year deal with Colorado.
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Brian says:
Jagr inked with Philly? No details.
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Florida has signed Jose theodore and scottie upshall…how are they grand champions of free agency so far?
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I’d still like to see Garth sign Flesichmann. Will be good for JT, Moulson and Grabner.
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Staten Islander says:
Hejda to the Avs, Jagr to the Bullies, the Mullet i back
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wow Hejda was the one i wanted o well….not even Mccabe wants to sign here
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Brian – Jagr gets 3.2 million, 1 year deal.
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Jovanovski to FLA. Thank god he didn’t go to PHI.
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Kabonov’s deal is book keeping. If he wasn’t signed by end of this year he’d have gone back in draft. Normal business stuff. He’s on the upswing for sure but I doubt he’ll make the roster or be eligable for Bridge.
JJ playing in SWE is disappointing because I think it weakens Bridge but might improve his game so we’ll see.
There isn’t a player Snow could sign today that would get me really excited or upset Isles didn’t get him. I think Isles remaining needs are filled via trade and perhaps complemented in FA.
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A Real hockey fan. says:
.. This is a pretty weak class of free agents, not a great year!
.. WOW i just saw that Wisniewski (the wiz) is going to get $33 million over 6 years? WTH? Hes a ok Dman but not worth that type of $$ (almost 6 million a year, wow) His time with the Isles was meehh so/so at best
.. Alot of Dman around the NHL are going 2 think they are underpaid after this contract!
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Damn Panthers still putting in work…
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Eddie Jo to FLA – good, he’s terrible.
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.. Can anyone else confirm my earlier post about Wisniewski deal?
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Jovo to FLA.
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Mike From Westchester says:
Wiz deal is front page on TSN.
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@MikeInNYC Steve Y cant over demand when he everyone see he clearly cant get a deal down with his guy. If Tampa really was that much.. Steve go scratch yourself.. expect an offer sheet.
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our signing will will most likley be a ahl player that a team has given up on…I just hope hes BIG UGLY CAN HIT and knows how do skate
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im just saying for a GM in garth’s position, its bad enough you don’t have team success, fan base and an arena as selling points to free agents…you don’t need every GM in the league clogging up the trading market bc they think you’re an a-hole.
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we really need Fleischmann or Leino
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breath … with all of these signings today and tomorrow, there will be plenty rfa’s trade wise that a team can ot accommodate in addition to potential walk aways form arbitration awards.
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Looks like another year watching our “prospects” develop into another top 5 draft pick…..Islander seasons are getting like the movie Ground Day….
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hejda’s gonna hate…
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i feel like an idiot going back and fourth to check the computer….
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Matt says:
and that concludes the isles FA activity. Thanks for tuning in
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WOW-Fla. gave way too much to JOVO-he’s like 55 years old
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FrankieD says:
Strummer, you’re right. Sometimes the best deals are the ones that aren’t done. I won’t be disappointed if the Islanders don’t pickup anyone. This UFA stinks this year. Too much time was spent on the lighthouse and not enough time keeping this team competitive. Philly just piked-up Jagr after Pens and Red Wings dropped out.
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JSExpress says:
Why do some people pretend to be so offended at the mere mention of Stamkos? He is 21 years old and has scored nearly 100 goals over the past two seasons. Even if you have a 1% chance of acquiring him, you have to look into it. This is not Phil Kessel we are talking about here. TB will not necessarily be in a position to match every offer made to him. As far as “retribution,” the only player on our roster worth throwing a sheet at is Tavares. Either lock him up before that time comes, or assume that he will want to remain part of what could be a great organization. And make no mistake, if someone wants to throw a sheet at JT next year, they will, regardless of how the Stamkos situation is handled. It’s not like if Burke wants him, he will give us a break because we were mindful of Tampa the year before.
At the end of the day, I doubt there much of a chance, but why not let things play out before poo-pooing the idea of signing the best young player in the game?
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“Strummer, you’re right. Sometimes the best deals are the ones that aren’t done”
Dont we do and say that every year-and then finish bottom 5-enough with tolerating this crap -
Joe says:
Damnit..if Stamkos is all we get this offseason I am going to be annoyed.
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Goc to Florida
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Anything from the Snow Weight Team??? At least they put the priority in the Kabanov signing????
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Settle down. Would you really have been happy if we signed Ehrhoff to a 10 year deal? Really? Or Wiz for 33 mil? Or a 4 year 16+ mil contract for an old Jovo? 4 years 14+ for journeyman Upshall? Come on…these guys are not worth the expenditure. None of them. These contracts are insane for those types of players. Save the $$. Try to make a trade if possible.
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goc would of been good 4th liner
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Peter says:
I love the Stamkos talk. I’m not sure why people are offended or annoyed. If you’re going to be “hated” by other GM’s for throwing an offer at an RFA, Stamkos is the type of player worth doing it for.
It’ll never happen, but it’s fun to talk about for one day. I think a 100 mil/10 year contract would at least be tempting for Stamkos. We have an incredible amount of cap space – players like Stamkos are the ones that are worth utilizing said cap room.
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Madchef says:
duped once again, yeah we have a DECENT team but geeze open up and bring in something, every friggin year its the same thing. Look what Florida did today. They will be better next year for it. GUess we couldn’t have used any of those guys(Goc,Upshall, Jovo) I support everything this team does soup to nuts but WTH can we make something happen. Frown again.
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Upshall: “My agent had a number of calls and Florida just made sense. I really believe in what they are doing.”
Does anyone believe in what the Isles are doing??????
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I wish we had Isles signings to recap.
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Does anyone believe in what the Isles are doing??????<-
Only us and Garth Snow, apparently.
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Madchef – Isles were in on Upshall and Jovanovski. They opted for nicer weather and a nice arena. Face it, the Isles have little to offer aside from a rebuilding team on the rise, which is exactly what FLA is too.
Did the Avalanche really trade their 1st rounder in 2012 for Varlamov? Really? This GM is terrible.
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Varlamov traded for a 1st and second rounder. Makes you think Garth can get some kind of value for Nabokov.
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like the caps really need a 1st round pick in a very deep ’12 draft…..thats what you get when you drFT well
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BTW, i though Doug Weight had some pull with these guys….clearly not.
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If we think we can get Stamkos, let’s also trade for Malkin and Crosby, then pick up Cory Perry, Timmy Thomas and Ovechkin. We can deal our next 40 first round picks, plus the rights to Yashin. Too easy
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according to some on here , most of thes signing are “insane” and yet most of the teams who make these “crazy” free agent deals finish way in front of us in the standings every year….
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justin says:
Agree that we should overpay for these B- guys who are going today. Question is how do we get to the floor. Offer sheet (Stamkos, Doughty, Callaha, Sauer) or do we sign Trent Hunter to an extension with 10m bonus that kicks in if he is able to skate from red-line to red-line in uder 10 minutes?
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The NHL Network just reported that they called the Isles’ offices to see if they were in on anyone and a message came on saying they were closed for the holiday weekend.
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James R says:
“The NHL Network just reported that they called the Isles’ offices to see if they were in on anyone and a message came on saying they were closed for the holiday weekend.”
ROFL
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Big Van Vader: I wouldn’t be surpried…..
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Should have a hired a Canadian GM!
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“according to some on here , most of thes signing are “insane” and yet most of the teams who make these “crazy” free agent deals finish way in front of us in the standings every year….” Totally agree…guess mediocrity is the goal on LI, not winning
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oye comeau va, so your telling me that Panthers have a better anything than the Isles at this point besides state tax and weather(I dont buy arena). That is horsepoo.Miami is known as one of the worst sports towns and Panthers have 0 history.
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@255 but that is not because of the bad signings they made this year they were better than we were last year. Until we get rid of the albatross that sits in our net and the sickly pallor that falls over our defensemen this is what happens.
Same team keep DP under 10 games and keep all guys healthy bring up Nino and maybe Strome if ready and I think we are competing for a playoff spot.
But who wants to grab the 8 seed to get eliminated by the Pens or Bolts in round 1? This team needs to grab a 5 or 6 seed and play someone they can beat to finally win a series before anyone of significance signs with us.
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closed for the holiday?? are you kidding me???
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Seriously, I am sick of the..if this happens..and IF this happens..and IF this happens we will be COMPETING for the 8th seed! woooooo
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@252
Somehow I get the feeling Nabokov is going to be our starting goalie this year.
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Doug says:
wow this was an exciting day in Islanders country so far lol….great job Garth!
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@263
Who here isn’t sick of it? They need to get the name talent here now.
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Ross says:
Tavares will need to be resigned next year, so we will be saving money for him no doubt. I hope we grab Erik Cole and another D Man
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IslanderFAN says:
I guess some of you know the inside on what Snow is doing….give me a break!! it was proven that Snow made strong offers the UFA but they dont want to sign with The Isles!!!! and some of you blame Snow for that!
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patience patience patience…we should think about shipping out Taveras Moulson and Grabner before they get too old for some 2015 draft picks…we are rebuilding people relax.
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If they don’t sign anyone, i say we see what Strome’s got for the first 9 games. I could see him making a splash, he’s way more dynamic than Bailey. Bailey bores me haha, and always has.
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I guess some of you thinks its a good deal to sign a D-man like Jovo for 4 years 16 millions he guy that had 5 goals and 14 points!!!
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We signed Kabanov today…some of you people are so greedy, you cant have EVERYONE.
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“BTW, i though Doug Weight had some pull with these guys….clearly not.” Or they just aren’t interested in overpaying for mediocre talent. Or they aren’t interested in any of the guys that went already for our system. Or the players are following other players and not signing with the Islanders because of the uncertainty of their future on Long Island. I don’t understand how no one understands this. Why would a free agent with a family to think of sign with a team that may be moving to Canada in 3 years unless we grossly over pay them, strap our cap, and lose players like JT and Neilsen because of it?
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What effect does the arena have on the players? They play on the ice. They’re not the ones sitting in the dilapidated seats, walking on the soda sticky floor or waiting 10 minutes to pee!
It’s all about 2 things, the $$$ and a chance to win. We’ve offered comparable $$$, but until the team exhibits on the ice that it is of playoff calibre, we’ll continue to have problems drawing UFAs.
As for this crop that’s signed, no big deal. 16M/4years for Jovo? In two years FLA will have our version of Brendan Witt? As for the great Fs who have been signed, haven’t we been down this road with the likes of Vasicek?
Stay the course. Continue to build with home grown talent, and pick the scraps off the table, something which Snow has been very good at!
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I love the Stamkos talk even though it will never happen. Someone will try to offer sheet JT next year (to pry him from this “joke of a franchise” – see it all over TSN next year) no matter what we do this year. Hell if we get Stamkos and lose Tavares…so be it.
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Madchef – Panthers don’t play in Miami, they play in Sunrise. That’s liek saying the Islanders play in New York City. They obviously bought into something down there that the Isles didn’t have. And you can’t tell me product on the ice was a deciding factor. Money was the same, but why come here with an uncertain future when you can go live all year round in FLA?
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Yeah Snow has been great, missed the playoffs every year.
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we would have to actually sign someone to strap our cap….
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Stamkos > Tavares
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I don’t think it’s fair to blame Snow and Wang. Wang’s money is as good as anyone and even overpaying can’t get anyone to bite. Until this team proves they can win not much will change.
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FLA has Tallon as the GM I believe, we have Garth Snow, end of story, need a new sales pitch, Neil Smith was able to get UFAs here with worse team/future, why cant Snow?
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Doug says:
#239 (Matt)- pretty funny…that sums it up…
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.. Calm down people, really
.. This is a pretty WEAK free agent class of 2011, i want to add a guy as well but cmon guys the pickens are on the slim side this year
.. Add talent or value but dont add just to make a splash, imo
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Seriously, who is out there that you’d want to overpay for that we wouldn’t be screaming about as a bad contract a year from now? Its thin this year folks.
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…yes and we are SUCH a powerhouse team that sells out every game that we DON’T need a splash…
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Brian says:
Not sure why people are freaking out. Seriously, was anyone expecting something different today? So we didn’t overspend for a bunch of crap, which is what this this FA crop is… big deal. I can’t blame the Isles for not grabbing any of these guys today… too much money and years for mediocrity. Also not at all surprising that nobody wants to sign here. Players don’t care about a team’s young core or a team’s history. They care about money and a chance to win. Win a playoff round next year and maybe someone will sign with us.
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Yeah alllll these other teams are doing it wrong…the Isles got the right idea not overpaying for these players…next year might be a stretch but give it another year or two and we can seriously start considering the 8th seed…
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Stumpy32 says:
For all of you saying that the Isles are doing it right by not overpaying, don’t you think that the only reason we’re not overpaying is because no current FA will let us?
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The state of Florida does not have state income tax. Any state without state income tax has an advantage and cost of living is cheaper. LI has some really heavy taxes and high cost of living, so Isles need to vastly improve the offer to be on level.
The guys singing today are like watching guys you don’t like leave the bar with ugly fat girls, who cares. There isn’t a 10 in the room.
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These teams that finish in or closer to the playoffs, yep they are all doing it wrong while the Islanders missing the playoffs are doing it right, yep
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Chris says:
If we can’t get any free agents the isles should bring back Martinek. We are very thin back there.
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Flyers got Talbot.
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PotvinRocks says:
I’m really happy that the Islanders haven’t gone out and wasted money on an overrated UFA. No one out there, has me drooling over their skill.
Stamkos, Doughty, and Yandle are RFA’s that I’d love to see in Blue and Orange but it’s not going to happen, unless via trade. I don’t think that an Offer Sheet is a smart way to go, considering the loss of draft picks we’d lose.
Stay the course Garth. -
Seriously, who is out there that you’d want to overpay for that we wouldn’t be screaming about as a bad contract a year from now? Its thin this year folks.<-
Seriously, how many years can we hear this? You need some of these guys, these vets, to help these kids. They're NOT great, but how many UFA's ARE that will come HERE?
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joeg says:
Garth is clueless if he doesnt throw an offer sheet Stamkos way or find some way to get Parise in a trade. Stamkos will play here for 10 million a year.Theres nothing out there free agent wise.
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Big Van Vader, thats what people say every year, its a think class next year next year…next year is always the same crap
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While the Los Angeles Kings continue their full-court press to sign Brad Richards, the New York Post reports that the Rangers, long viewed as the favorite to sign the high-scoring center, will have the chance to match any offers he receives. Richards’ potential price tag, according to multiple reports, has gone up throughout the day.
rangers gonna make that redden contract look cheap after this one….
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Yes, stay the course Garth and maybe my great grand children will see the Isles amke the playoffs…
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Winning says:
Tavares wont be signing a contract extension with isles knowing they are 7 or 8 years away from being a lowest paid team in league/last place every year. Any team in hockey is better for him then isles are(due to fact he has options)
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C/W – Belanger
D – McCabe,O’Brien,Martinek
W – Fleischmann, Joel WardThe Isles need to sign some players…and there is nothing really available in trade
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It’s time for the Isles to get back to the playoffs and win a round. (To start)As the GM of this franchise it’s Snows job to make that happen. No UFA’s that are coming here/any good? Fine. Trade for some guys. And to all those who will never give up anything on our roster/prospects because they are all gold; get over it. You have to give up some quality to GET some quality. Especially since you can’t get anybody to come here via free agency.
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so many impatient people on here, jeez! Let it go, guys…this is the perfect place for Garth to read on exactly what NOT to do. (For the most part, some people on here actually have it right, but the others need to just relax and let it be cause those are the people who are gonna complain regardless of what GS does.)
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KOkid21 says:
Get Cam Barker and Thomas Fleishmann . i would be estatic
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Talbot goes to Philly…whew…we dodged another FA bullet…stupid GMs…only a few more to go then we don’t have to worry about “overpaying” for any FA’s for another year…
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andrew in montreal says:
Garth you have to at least make offers to FLEISHMANN COLE KABERLE. and confirm to us fans that you have made these offers.
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yes, we are impatient…..this team has been spinning it’s wheels in all directions, rebuilding is no guarantee of a contender without adding some proven players to the mix….
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enough with this offer sheet stuff, do you think that tampa wont just turn around and offer sheet Tavares when his time is up. it is not good business it will bite you in the arse
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everyone hating on Garth is gonna feel really stupid as soon as the first transaction (signing, trade, offer sheet?) is made.
just shut your mouths….less than 3 hours into free agency and you make it sound like the season is over. RELAX!!!!
its a terrible FA class out there anyway. chill!!!
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thanks god we didnt let moulson hit july 1st…he would of got crazy offers..
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cant we trust that garth has targeted one guy (cole – thru weight i hope?) and thats it? he cant be throwing money at everyone. our kids need to play and develop. get a vet wing who is fast and tough, and try to get a defensemen. we will be ok… our kids are pretty damn good. relax everyone…
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Maybe Snow & Weight are spending all of this time trying to get Bergenheim back….
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18 years with no playoff victories is impatient? Get a Grip. No I would not have overpaid for Jovo, etc.But you mean to tell me all the teams spending money today are all making bad decisions, thats a joke? We are so smart for being different and not signing anyone. Ok,lets go with that.
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the Rags told Richards that they will match any offer he gets…they should give him 8.5 mill for 10 years….haha
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alan says:
McCabe will be an Islander. The writing is on the wall!!!
Cole would be a solid signing
And 2 ex-Devs intrigue me – Madden and Langenbrunner for vet influence
How does that sound?
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Mike says:
Typical Isles
Make an offer get turned down act like they are trying do next to nothing….
I do not want to overpay either but this team needs to improve
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we the sign Bergie will they hand him a vote “yes” shirt?
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@andrew – so what if they offer sheet Tavares. I’d take a Stamkos for Tavares. This is not a gentleman’s game. Play within the rules but do what you have to do to improve your team. If all the GM’s are too polite to offer sheet any RFA’s then how about in the next CBA getting rid of the RFA all together.
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Matt says:
Your not hearing nething with the isles at all i dont know what it will be but i think snow has something brewing.
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How in the hell does Phoenix get free agents? Sure, it must be nice down there, but how do you know if you won’t be in Quebec or Kansas City by this time next year?
How in the hell does Florida sign free agents? Columbus?! I don’t get it…if its not the unsure nature of the franchise (re: Phoenix) and its not the lack of winning (re: Columbus and Florida), then what could it be?
I wonder if Garth and Wang are pointing at each other right now.
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i just dont see anybody signed whos gonna make a 10-20 point standings difference in our team.
ehrloff would have been a nice add, but that contract was a bit much.
Wiz, nice player, signability aside, 5+ million a season. REALY?
torres is grit and jam, but thats 15 goals..
ericcson to the wings for $3 million..whos development “stalled” as per tsn. nah, i dont think so.
$3+ million for a 39 year old Jagermeister? thats a PR stunt…
Jovo is mid 30′s, why overpay for a fading vet who plays at a physical position.
dont make a move to make a move( the leafs and phil kessel, or jeff $14 million finger). make a move to get better
our GM has added one solid piece each season via UFA, trade or waiver. i’d like more deals, and faster improvement too. but too buy, you gotta have a seller and a resonable price. not always fair, but reasonable. -
Sorry all, but I think those looking for qucik fixes with this FA class, or to overpay just for the sake of acquiring someone gives me flashbacks to the Milbury days of forcing the issue. Lack of patience has hurt this franchise big time and still has us in the same hole we’ve been in since 1996. Knee-jerk reactions and signings will not help this team become a contender.
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Maybe comment #1 was right after all
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AngryPete says:
Rupp to the Rags
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Very well said SM
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Rupp to NYR. More Gillies-Rupp showdowns to come.
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RAGS got Rupp! damn man. i hate this crap
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Dom says:
@ Reality check……great point. Florida absolutely sucks, Tallon is loading up on “dead” free agents to try to remind South Floridians that there are hockey games in useless Sunrise, Fl. Bank Atlantic Center is empty, so Tallon thinks signing retreads will ignite attendance. Florida is going nowhere. Let’s sit back and watch the smoke clear.
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Rupp to the Rags…thats surely gets them closer to the cup haha
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BanGarth says:
drive45 , we are already the laughing stock don t have to make every team in the league hate us on top of that. Did Garth even come to work today or did start the weekend ? Get John Scott and sign Haley and at least we won t get abused all i ask.
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Jim Clark says: Yammie Jagr to Philadelphia? Whiskey is saying “hello, Columbus” for six years? Herr Erhoff has shuffled off to Buffalo for the next decade? Meanwhile Snowang is sitting this out. Is it the policy of a wise man not to getting caught up in hockey’s version of tulipmania? Or that of a team that will only spend the minimum?
I am reminded off a “Mad” magazine cartoon that had a middle age man reading “Playboy” when his wife asked him why, he said that when he read it he felt like everyone in the world was having a party. Except him. That’s us Islanders fans.
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UPDATE:
ISLES; RESIGN RADEK MARTINEK TO A 10 YEAR, 68 MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACT…
ISLES; RESIGN ZENON KONOPKA TO A 6
YEAR, 32.8 MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACT…
ISLES; RESIGN JACK HILLEN TO A 2
YEAR,11.4 MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACT.
GENERAL MANAGER GARTH SNOW FEELS THE CONTRACTS WERE REASONABLE, HOWEVER WAS A LITTLE UNHAPPY WITH THE LENGTH OF HILLENS CONTRACT. A.P. -
No one has signed that I am upset about. Bad year for Free Agents. Leino I like from Philly but everyone is after him. I hope the Islanders look to teams that need money for Richards and try to fleece them in a trade. Rangers add Leino Richards and Rupp, throw an offer sheet at Sauer to get some size on the blue line
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Take Cole off the board soon. Close to deal with MTL according to Dreger.
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“What effect does the arena have on the players?” Hisshutzi you would be 100%correct if the arena just needed a renovation but that’s not the case in Long Island. Pickler stated that without an arena the Isles would most likely be moving out of the NVMC. What that says to free agents is there is no stability. They will have to move their families to Long Island, send their children to new schools, buy new homes, and then possibly do that all over again in three years, maybe in Canada. When you’re young and single you can afford to be selfish but when you have a wife and kids you make decisions based on what is best for your family. That is how the arena effects our ability to sign veteran free agents, they sem to want long term deals.
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doc says:
Losing out on these FA signings is not really a loss.
I think Cole or Fleischmann would be a nice signing and that’s about it.
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1000% right 346. It’s the unknown future that kills the Isles. This is the number 1 issue killing the Isles and not Garth was a backup goalie or Charles being owner.
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i guess Cole doesnt want to win…MTL is a mediocre team.
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ProudIslesFan says:
I agree it’s tough to watch the team remain idle, but some of the people that post on this website sound like spoiled only children with all the complaining.
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habs closing in on cole according to dreger
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Steve Sullivan to the PENGUINS
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Sullivan 1.5 m for 1 year per TSN
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346 and 348 are absolutely correct but I will add that Phoenix signed a few players today and more than likely that team will be gone after this season. I think most of these UFAS look at this franchise like a sideshow and want no part of it.
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@ProudIslesFan Well said!
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love watching Peca on the set. Maybe he can help being someone to the Isle.
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tonysac says:
islanders sign marty reasnor 2 yrs
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Reasoner to Isles
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The franchise has NO ONE TO BLAME BUT ITSELF for creating the circus-like sideshow reputation it now has.
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354 the big test is if we ever get this new building. If we do and the players still stay away it’s on Garth and Charles and LI?
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Joel Ward to WSH 4 years for 12 m per TSN
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MR? god, i feel like vomiting
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I would have rather let a rookie win a spot on the 4th line or have Konopka back than Marty Reasoner….any terms
Joel Ward to Washington
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Dan- Wilton CT says:
Why do we need Marty reasoner?
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Reasoner wouldnt not make the Isles better…i rather have a young player in his spot.
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Mrpud says:
Reasoner=4th line center…bye, bye Konopka
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StevieL says:
A 34 year old center?? Really?
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Yikes… suddenly, I feel like Konopka and Mccabe will be back. Can we at least get Michael Ryder or Tomas Fleischmann??
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If Marty Reasoner is the answer, what could possibly be the question?
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free agency opens and our GM is on the phone with agents of Marty Reasoner… Facepalm
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Wedgie says:
Marty Reasoner is a waste of time. Is this signing so Garth can say, “You see I did something!”
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Mike from Sarasota says:
Unknown future does not stop players from signing in Phoenix. Blame Wang/DiPietro
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We need Reasoner because we need some kind of veteran to work with these kids. 32 points last year for FL. Not a bad 4th line center to throw with Matt Martin and Haley.
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Garth snow just slapped Zenon in the face
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@BanGarth – who cares if every team hates us. If we sign Stamkos they can all kiss my A–.
Stamkos, Tavares, Strome, Moulson, Grabner, Okposo, Nino, Franz. That would be some top 7.
You think the rest of the league didn’t hate us when we won 4 in a row.I’m not seriously advocating we do the offer sheet, I just think the idea that you can’t even float the offer sheet because you might piss someone off as a ridiculous notion. Do what’s in the rules of the CBA to make your team better.
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So a move is made and now Snow gets killed for that. Bye Konopka will miss you.
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TimQ says:
Cole to MTL 4yrs $18M
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islz says:
Well, you guys wanted a signing. There it is. Sometimes less is more.
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Yeeesh….
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Scratch that. Marty Reasoner for two years. If their plan is to have him be the fourth line center, then you can’t help but think that is a real upgrade from Konopka. Another great faceoff guy, had 14 goals and 32 pts last year. Better skater than Konopka but not as energetic. Clearly more offensive skill. Was also a +2.
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I guees we needed a signing a la Eaton and Reasoner is the Eaton of this year.
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Reasoner is coming off a career high in points: 32. His 14 goals is more than we could ever expect from ZK
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Cole 4 years 18m with MTL….waste of money
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2 yrs 2.7 mill.
i bet we gave him 1 million more than any other team
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marty reasoner huh? Is he going to play goalie? The limited roster spots that are open have been discussed a lot. If were using one of those spoys for marty reasoner then I’m not sure what were trying to accomplish here
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Wow stressful day for Snowy so far signing Reasoner and resigning Kabanov.
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Darren says:
Who??? :-/
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1.35 per year
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Marty is fine for the 4th line but we need to do much better than this.
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Caps sign Hamrlik, Halpern, and Ward…so who’s leaving Washington?
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reasoner is worthwhile as a 4th line center. good on faceoffs and is much more useful of a player than konopka.
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Edmonton signs Cam Barker per TSN
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I hate to see Konopka leave but Reasoner is an upgrade.
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Isles getting lots of praise for signing Reasoner. He can play until the time Czikas or one of the other youngsters are ready and then he’ll be dealt and Isles will get nice return around the deadline.
Interesting on Isles website, Konopka, Martinek etc. removed from team roster but Hillen still there.
Rupp won’t go near Gillies you are thinking of Godard who also now wants no part of Gillies.
Now that Col gave up a 1 & 2 for Vramalov and unproven goalie who had a bad year to only sign him for a 2 year deal, you have to think Nabokov’s value increased.
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high price for reasoner but hes a real solid fourth line center and PK guy….upgrade of Z….i just dont think hes a fighter but we got plenty of that
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Chris Stephenson says:
Wow – total yawn. I guess the mercs still don’t care that we’re a team on the rise. So we do it from within, that only makes us stronger.
Screw them if they don’t see it. It’s coming. And the NHL better beware, they WILL year from the Isles!!!
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I meant “WILL hear” – srry.
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Reasoner — 14 18 54% FO % + 2 71 Hits Veteran, leader can score a bit. 2 yr 2.7 million
Joel Ward — 10 19 48% -2 67 Hits. 4 year 12 million
Don’t let the facts get in the way of your whining.
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At least last year CB told us not to get our hopes up for day 1
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The more I think about the Martin-Reasoner-Haley line, the more I like it. 2 guys that can drop the gloves with anyone, and each has exponential better offensive ability compared to Gillies and Konopka.
Now, a D-man and maybe a 2nd/3rd line W. Thanks!
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mike says:
i cant believe dougie couldnt get Eric Cole to sign with us…well i dont see us signing any big names this year just role players to get us over the cap floor…
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Worst GM in the NHL….you probably could have signed Belanger for 200K more per year….I am sorry but Reasoner is not getting us in the playoffs…we need some impact players ….Cziskas would be better to try since the team will be all youth anyway…..please don’t waste any money on Leino….I would rather have Fleischmann or Belanger
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To be fair, Reasoner is an excellent fourth line center. And I’m sure he’ll bring back a 3rd round pick at the deadline.
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Now looking back at it….The Isles replace Konopka by Reasoner…i guess its an upgrade but still wont make the Isles better
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Joe says:
The isle players should start getting their fingers sized with this signing. Feel another top 5 pick next season.
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I don’t understand this signing. Reasoner is good at faceoffs and put up some points last year but wouldn’t we have been better off keeping Konopka who is awesome at faceoffs, can fight and wanted to stay here! Snow had better pull of some kind of trade or we’re gonna end up getting screwed as usual!
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hockeytime says:
Like Reasoner, he will definitely help the 4th line. He can actually play hockey and win faceoffs at the same time. Like Z’s attitude but it was a disaster when the other team got the puck. Good move Garth. Don’t overpay these scrubs. Next year is the year to throw around money.
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elnino says:
reasoner is a good player and zk was only good at getting penalties and fighting reasoner can score 14 goals and and almost 40 pts and if he can score 15 goals it will be def an upgrade go garth and leino is still there
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cmon garth!! give JT a reason to stay with this team in the future please!!
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Leino is still out there, as is McCabe… Reasoner is a pretty decent pickup, nice replacement for Z.
I’ll agree that some teams went way over the top but to say doing nothing/little is OK because everyone else went overboard is wrong. Either hints of apathy from management or a miserable perception league-wide. You don’t improve from 27th by standing still.
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how are the caps affording all these guys…go for broke garth get green and semin!!!
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Well Moulson is happy with Reasoner
from Moulson twitter: @mmoulson: Really excited about the signing of Marty Reasoner…great veteran player…will fit in great on the Island #isles
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All these teams are spending like crazy on these guys….im not mad we arent spending stupid money but atleast make an impact trade
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Oren says:
4 GWG out of 14, not bad.
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Upgrading our 4th line shouldn’t be the priority
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Garth and Wang were on thier knees begging Moulson to say that…
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Welcome to the Islanders Marty, reminds me of when the Isles signed Mike Sillinger. The key is not only knowing when to break the bank but with what player, the Islanders are not a Butch Goring away from winning the cup, but, they are on their way.
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the Lightning are meeting with Brad Richards agent…are they trying to scare Stamkos???
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@madchef 324- the years before the rebuild do not factor into what I was talkng about so your point is not valid… we’ve gone in a different direction in the passed 3.5-4 years…So again, yes, you are impatient. Wait for this rebuild to bear fruit. And if it never does, you can serve up some crow for me to eat.
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Spinner9 says:
Reasnor is a huge upgrade over Konopka. Zenon was a good faceoff guy (as is Reasnor) and enforcer-type but an overall liability on the ice and brought zero offensive ability to the game. Not a huge signing but not a bad one.
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goodbye barker, goodbye ryder ….. oh yea, great first day
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I have a feeling Islanders are trading for Hemsky.
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and with the 7th pick in the 2012 draft the New York Islanders select…..
People are lining up at the coliseum to buy tickets for opening night & pick up their Marty Reasoner tee shirts….another midget for this small team
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mike m says:
Always the brides maid, never the bride…….The story of this franchise….. What an absolute joke…..
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with the Islanders it’s always “next year is the year to throw around money”
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Commadore to DET for 1 mil…damn i would of went 1.5….haha
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geduffer says:
Classy veterans are needed in the room. I have no problem with bringing Reasoner in. There are too many headscratching deals out there. I’d rather see Garth do nothing than give terrible contracts.
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jpa says:
I’d rather pick up reasoner than overpay like most of the signings today. Like the pickup. Good upgrade from konopka, and will be a good vet presence.
Anyone who thinks were not doing enough needs to take a good look at how badly teams are getting fleeced by mediocre talent because of this weak FA class. Isles getting Streit back, and offense wasnt an issue last year. Reasoner a nice upgrade from zenon. You could make a case for goaltending, but its not like there was much out there in FA. No reason to go nuts in a trade or signing.
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Good signing for 4th line. Islanders obviously need a crease clearing Defenseman and a sniper. If Toronto really is going after Richards, bring in Komiserak. Not that good, but helps with salary floor and will give us someone besides Hamonic that will throw a check. Not in love with Komiserak at all, but i do not see anything better
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if we trade for a winger in thier late 20′s who is a ufa after this season I would prefer Semin not Hemsky….Hemsky and the isles injury record dont mix….might as well get him his own room at NCMC
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islesfan that is what guys on here don’t understand u need guys like reasoner cause they have been around a while so he csn help the young guys and u don’t need to get the elite playerd too win..u get the hard working players ask the canucks y they lost cause they were outworked by a line made up guys like marty
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I say go w/ Fleischman at this point. He could play on 1st or 2nd line.
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@elnino thats what i said…looking back at it…its not a bad signing but its still a 4ht liner.
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Welcome to the Island Reasoner!!!
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Matt says:
Guy komiserak is under contract for 3 mor years at 3.5 mil def not worth it
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Dave says:
I don’t understand why everyone is freaking out… Where are you putting all these players you want… Are lines are set. We need a Defenceman & that’s it.
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StuDog says:
isles should go after langenbrunner
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Most teams did nothing, so I’ll give Snow a pass this year. There was really nothing worthwhile there for the price.
Even Richards will be overpaid big time and I can almost guarantee he is not lifting the cup any time soon. -
We still suck
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Keepthehope says:
Comon ppl stop the complaining about how we’re a joke b/c we’re not picking up mid level FAs for more over priced long term contracts.I’d rather do nothing.
This is a TRUE rebuild. We’ve waited this long, we’re getting better. Sometimes the turtle really does beat the hare.
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pained says:
Fleischman, Martinek, and call it a day.
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Florida seems to be in a giving mood. Trade for Gudbranson.
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Reasoner is an upgrade, but was/am hoping Isles make bigger improvements. Goalies & D-Men are bottom 10 in the NHL. With these crazy salaries going out this year I can see a work stoppage at the end of this labor agreement as Owners will want to save themselves from themselves & Donald Fehr will not allow it.
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1) I see Reasoner more along the lines of a Sillinger.
2) “Z can fight” Wrong. Z can drop the gloves but his “fighting record” is something along the lines of “No wins, No losses and 39 DRAWS!”
3) LouD. I understand that there is uncertainty surrounding the location of the franchise, but that should be answered in a few months. Anyone who signed here for 3 years or less would not be affected, and I’m glad we haven’t jumped in to some of these ridiculius long term deals like Wiz and Jovo.
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Versteeg to FLA for a 2 and a 3
We couldnt do that!!!
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Marty Reasoner?! oy vey.
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LOL some of you want to sign rubbish for big money and play them ahead of guys like Moulson, Tavares, Okposo, Nielsen, Biley, Martin, and Grabner. Seriously how many of these FA’s going other places even came close to matching Blake Comeau’s numbers? Most of you know I am not COmeau’s biggest fan but I’d rather have him then everyone who has signed somewhere today. Isles only need 1-2 forwards and they got the 4th line center. Haley shifts to wing and you have Gillies-Reasoner-Haley as line 4 and it’s a darn good one. So now the only spot they may be getting an upgrade at is Comeau’s third line LW spot. Blake would have to be dealt for that to happen and don’t forget Hunter and PA too.
Snow can fix the defense by using his extra assets to make a couple trades. They sky is not falling take a deep breath and relax.
Moulson Tavares Nino
Grabner Nielsen Okposo
Comeau Bailey Martin
Gillies Reasoner HaleyStreit Hamonic
MacDonald
Wishart
DeHaan (until he is determined 100% ready)
Donovan
Ness
Jurcina
MOttau
EatonDiPietro
Montoya
Poulin
Koskonin
NilssonThat is a really good roster if you land those two d-men.
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Wonder if we can trade yashin to fla.. they seem to be picking up horrible contracts from everywhere.
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damn FLA is going to be better we might have a chance at a top 3 pick…..YES
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Dr Phil says:
WOW! Marty Reasoner. Make rooom for the cup. 14 goals last season: 4 in 2009-10.
Team him up with that scoring machine Snow drafted….Johan Sundstrom. Really gets you excited about next season. Get Hilbert back and team Reasoner up with Andy and Hunter and you got something. What? I don’t know. Way to go Snow!!!! -
Jim Clark says:
Harry Reasoner is a slight upgrade over what we had. And it’s not a six year contract either (has anyone anywhere ever suggested giving Wisnniewski a six year deal for $33 million?).
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strummerers u said it all…bravo
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2Bit says:
Can Reasoner get other FAs to reason with us?
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The one trade I’ve seen today I could get behind is Gudbranson. I would be behing doing that for the right price. #442, I’m with you!
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good call Ray
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yes, it’s a really good roster if you want another top 5 pick….
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I wonder where Lieno lands now??
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Strummer
Gillies is on a 2 way contract and will play only in games that we need muscle. 4th line will be Martin,reasoner, Haley
Pencil in niño
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Leino to BUF.
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say it was possible to trade for Gudbranson what would FLA want and what would we have to give up….
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Lieno to Buffalo- 6 years 27 million
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tio says:
Strummer-that is not a great 4th line. Gillies and Haley are not good hockey players..your other points were fine but that comment ruined it.
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mht says:
Just started reading this blog now,and I can not believe the hysteria of 95% of the posts.People Garth Snow has a MBA from the University of Maine,and played approximately 15 years in the NHL.Perhaps he thought that the money being handed out today for marginal players is crazy.{James Wizniewski getting that contract may rate as the worst transaction since the Indians sold Manhattan to the Dutch for $24.]Maybe he looks ahead to free agent class of 2012 and wants cap space for a Zach Parise,or one of the other players.Honestly I admire the man’s intelligence and judgement.He is building for the long haul,not a quick fix.
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i’m isles fan since i was 12 and to this day
i never said that the isles suck or stink i would be ashamed too… i’m a real fan -
Leino 6 year $27 million to Buffalo
dude…I do NOT want to be this GM in 2 or 3 years
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That is not a playoff team though Strummer.
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leino too buffalo 4 years 27 million
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BUF got Leino alot of teams upgrading….get ready to be sold on MARK STRIET is = to a huge free agent signing…. Just to be clear Im glad we didnt spend some of the money that these teams are spending on these guys….Im looking for a trade rather than Signing
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Florida hasnt signed Gudbranson. Give them next years #1,#3 and/or a defense prospect not named Dehaan.
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I like Leino but for that price….damn
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piper in dc area says:
Solid upgrade to the 4th line no doubt…. the kids need to stay in minors or college until ready. Redwings force their kids to do it and when they are ready they come up. No sense ruining any of them. Buy out dp already sign a goailie offer sheet to stamkos and another top player PLEASE. Been a die hard fan since 79 and sport isles gear in dc area since 99.. go isles…
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next years crop of free agents is gonna be like of the best in a while better too spend the money on those guys .. this year the only guy for me would be on the d a guy like kaberle and on offece ..fleishmanchmann
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Wiz was allways a gut who wanted to be highly paid, thats why he is on his 5th team already. Thats why isles traded him away. Jagr for 5 million would of been better fit or even if he needed 6 million year to come here at least tavares would feel like he is not playing for a loser. Why would tavares resign a year from now when isles will possibly be worse this comming season…remember the great goaltending last year? Thats not guaranteed to happen again.
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Rob76 says:
I hate July 1st. Every year against my better judgement i spend the day hoping for a surprise. I never really get it, one year we did sign Jon Sim on July 1st – that was a good day.
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Haley has a lot more game then most folks realize. He is capable of putting up points when given the opportunity, we all know about his fighting and he is defensviley responsbile. Haley can play hockey and will put up points with Reasoner. Gillies isn’t a point machine but is a great team guy and needed and all teams have a guy like that. So you’ll see Haley and Reasoner most of the game with another wing. Isles wanted more points from the line.
It is not a playoff team until we see how the defense is reshaped but if the right two d-men are added its a playoff team who can do some damage.
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Petey Pete says:
“Marty Reasoner…come up and get the Cup!”
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PuckDaddy99 says:
Am I the only one here who thinks the Isles need to get a goalie? Or am I just too dumb to understand that DP will be in the best shape of his life and give the Isles 50 solid games in net and Montoya will play the other 32?
Vokoun is still out there and it would be worth it to the Isles to sign him for $15 mil for three years. Or someone else, but for God’s sake, don’t rely on DP for next year.
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#470 Lets’ hope we have an agreement on a new arena or it won’t matter how much money we have to spend on next years free agents, Wang won’t spend any of it…
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NickTheGreek says:
Word out Tampa is talking to Brich. Is it possible an offer sheet has been received by Steve Y and he does not plan of matching within the next 7 days??
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Pnut says:
We upgraded the 4th line center position already and it’s only been 4.5 hours and people are complaining. There was very little in the way of forwards or d. We tried for ‘Hoff and didn’t do the dumb thing and sign him for 10 years! Did we not learn from Yashin/DP?? Man, we get McCabe we will be close to the playoffs we would just need to trade to upgrade over PAP. Get back from the ledge people.
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john says:
i think a trade for komisarek isn’t a bad idea, if you think about some of the money being thrown around right now 3.5 mill for a local boy who’s pretty good makes a lot of sense….. as for gudbranson id LOVE that but i doubt florida would do it.
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when Wiz is 5.5 for 6 Komi at 3.5 for 3 doesnt seem so bad…
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BJeags5 says:
Reasoner makes our 4th line quicker and more skilled. That is a good thing. The second half of last year proved we are going in the right direction. Any improvements on that, no matter what role the player fits, makes us better.
Look at the deal Wiz just signed with Colombus. Would that have been possible without his trade to the Islanders last summer? He got to show the league what he can do with his time here. Other players in the league should and will take notice of that.
Garth doing good work here not just signing guys to sign guys and spend money… -
Zeike says:
Regardless of what has been spent, it’s a good day to be a Sabres fan. Their owner has shown he is dedicated to making his team the best they can be and that is all any fan can ask for. Crazy money maybe, but I’d love to be a Sabres fan today.
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#473:
<>
It’s not a playoff team unless and until they shore up the goaltending. Montoya can’t be counted on for 82 games and DP can’t be counted on, period. How many games did the Isles forwards and D win last year that the goalie, usually DP, lost?
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fa frenzy says:
#268, i think i jus peed in my pants!!!!
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Jerky says:
The Reasoner signing could have happened a month from now – no reason we’re signing this guy on day one (reminds me of the big signing of Sim on the first day four or five years ago).
CB and others have said that a trade is the only real way this team improves next season. I didn’t want to believe we couldn’t pick up a couple of guys in free agency this year but I was delusional. CB and others are 100% correct. Let’s hope other teams need to shed payroll and the Isles can swoop in without overpaying to get their guys. Otherwise we’re looking at another high draft pick next June.
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@476 – I just spit my diet coke all over the computer screen
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@Zeike you said you’re a Sabres fan?…then what the heck you doing here, Who cares what Buffalo did!.
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We don’t have any good trade chips..
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Chris says:
472 I hope your joking.
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Sheldon Souray back in the NHL, to Dallas.
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hoser14 says:
I’m sorry, but Marty Reasoner is a mediocre bottom 6 forward. He is a Richard Park-lite, and should be paid like one, ie: he rates only maybe a one year, two-way, league minimum and not at $1,350,000 each for the next two years.
Money not well spent.
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Plan the parade.
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at least we are not colorado, trade first this coming draft and a second either in this draft or next for varlamov then turn around and sign giguere
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john O says:
should have overpaid for Jagr. Would have been good press, good for taveras, and worth double what philly paid for him in press and ticket sales alone
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Phil L says:
the Isles aren’t serious about fielding a playoff caliber team until the fix their goalie situation. Montoya played well and Poulin is good prospect, but seriously, DP doesn’t belong in the league anymore. He couldn’t even get an AHL contract at this point. Until we stop throwing away 8-10 games a season hoping for DP to regain the form he never really had why even bother
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PLEASE SIGN MCCABE!!!!
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kaberle can play on d and makes a perfect 1st pass out of the zone and can log lots of minutes a game and unlike our dmen usually plays 82 games and great on powerplay 52 pts i think almost more than tavares
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IsleofNJ says:
People need to think back to last year. Without the monster losing streak, we very well could have made the playoffs. We are moving in the right direction even though it is not as fast as some would like. Even cup winning teams need players like Reasoner. He isn’t bad for what he does and what he signed for.
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Rangers have made their pitch to Richards and are confident they will get him. Them signing him would be the only thing that can make this a bad day for the Isles… unless of course they spend so much that they can’t sign one of their RFAs (Callahan or Dubinksy). I would be happy to take them off the Rangers’ hands.
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Phil L #494:
Thank you. I’m glad I’m not the only one.
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Bill from Oceanside says:
Let’s be real here. Ville Leino was the only player that Snow should have thrown serious money at. All the rest are just that…..the rest. Nothing but retreads and leftovers that silly GM’s overpaid for. In a different year, most of these guys would not have gotten a second look.
Reasoner is an upgrade over ZK. Small piece, but a upgrade none the less. Snow knows that he has to do something to improve this team, so I am guessing that he bides his time and sees what shakes out when a few team have to dump salary near the start of the season.
All in all, he gave it a shot with Erhoff that didn’t work out. But he did try. You can’t blame Snow for that. Buffalo went way overboard and will regret this within two years.
As a season ticket holder, I would like to see Garth trade one of his chips and a draft choice or two for an estabilished scorer who has years to run on his contract. Semin only has one year left, so a sign and trade would be ideal. You can’t give up blue chips for a player that can walk away after one year.
If the roster sill looks the same on opening day, then I will have something to complain about. But I am willing to wait and see what can be done before October begins.
Step back from the ledge. It’s a long way to go before opening night.
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The Real JD says:
Puckdaddy – YES! We need a goalie and Vokoun is a great idea that will not only help us get to the playoffs and also get to the cap floor at $5-$6M per
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Reasoner will improve our 4th line very much, and two years is the perfect amount of time for Cizikas to stew in the minors while getting a few call ups to play for injured players.
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What other veteran did you guys want the Islanders to sign for the 4th line? Drury? Give me a break. Reasoner is a strong pk,faceoff man and chips in 10 goals. We upgraded that position, on to the next. Fleischmann just signed with Florida
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Fleischman to FLA. What a day for Tallon and company.
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Joe says:
Marty Reasoner and an entry level contract for one of our own prospects? Really? Is this how we improve the team this offseason? I know it’s only day one but something tells me the remaining acquisitions won’t be anything to get excited about – at all. How about signing or trading for an impact player for just once? Geez even Buffalo made some serious moves to better their team.
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Can’t believe Tallon gave Fleischmann more avg salary than BUF gave Leino. Whacky day to say the least… Apparently PHI made a big pitch to B. Richards. This is getting interesting.
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Fleishman to FLA, that was a guy i wanted them to sign
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Fleischman 4 years 17 million…pure non sense…im glad Snow did not give that kind of contract to a 3rd liner
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Colin M. says:
Is the chatter about Vokoun on Twitter real? If so, is this the sign we’ve all been waiting for, that we’re going to buyout Ricky?
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It seems Garth doesn’t want to sign any free agent for more than two years. He wants to save the money so he can keep his core/drafted players to long term deals.
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Colin M – Where is all this Vokoun twitter stuff? Haven’t seen his name mentioned once.
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4 years, $18 million for a guy whose season ended with a pulmonary embolism??? Man, GMs are friggin’ nuts.
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again with florida! Tomas Fleischmann gone
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Current five highest salaried Isles for the 2011-12 season…
Rick DiPietro ($4,500,000)
Mark Streit ($4,100,000)
Mark Eaton ($3,000,000)
Matt Moulson ($2,500,000)
Alexei Yashin ($2,204,000) -
Kevin says:
OK, enough with the “no one wants to play here” stuff! If that was the case, then tell me why Konopka and Martinek both said they wanted to stay. And then tell me why Moulson re-signed this year. If Moulson went FA, he’d already be signed. Money is green no matter where it is given. If GMs want to throw absurd amounts out there, players will take it no matter where it is. Snow is doing this right. Or would you rather go back to Milbury tossing every blue chip prospect away?
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Oye — Someone reached out to me that PuckDaddy Radio was discussing the deal, which was later revealed to be a Bob McKenzie imposter. =\
Ah well. A man can dream.
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I don’t believe anything about DiPietro but Vokoun would be interesting to be sure. That would be a HUGE move for us to have a fresh start in goal.
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Don’t agree at all with what FLA did today, they spent a ton of money on average players, some with major question marks. If they dont resign Vokoun they get way worse in net. Would take Garth’s slow and steady approach on FA signings over what Panthers did today everytime…Btw Richards isn’t this good….
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I think some people are missing the point here……the Isles need to get to the salary cap floor. We have to sign some players to get there. We are currently at like 38 million and i believe the cap floor is 48 million so they are going to have to make a trade or something!
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Vokoun would be the best addition for this team right now, but unfortunately I don’t see it. I think front office likes the competition between DP, Montoya, and Poulin. Sucks, but that is the case.
Belanger to EDM. Looking at his numbers, nut much of a difference between him and Reasoner. Although Reasoner is bigger.
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what the hell is in the water in florida??
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Ray says:
Very frustrating!!! Lots of names coming off the board that can help at a price we can pay. C’mon Garth where are the Islanders. Step up and demand respect!!!
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#518 Ray – I couldn’t agree more. Where is Garth? I really hope he’s working on SOMETHING.
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Fla had to spend a LOT of money to get the cap floor. But hey, The Isles got Reasoner !!!!!
Who are the top 5 guys for the 2012 draft cuz that’s what’s headed are way once again Isles fans, or after Aug 1 will it even matter anymore?
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Strummer: I agree with overpaying for anyone in this crop (or is it crap) of free agents. However, PA Parenteau is going to be on this team (I like him more than most on this site) because he was recently signed for next year. I believe Gillies will just be a situational call-up and the fourth line will be Haley, Martin and Reasonor. I also agree that Haley has a bit of offesnsive ability in his game. Also Martin scored in juniors and will expand his pro game as he matures.
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My last post should have said “I agree with not overpaying…..”
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Florida still is actually 4 million below the floor. A lot of 3rd and 4th liners and their agents got very rich today thanks to this increase in the cap.
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Fleishman is one lucky guy to get that deal with his health issues. Glad we didn’t do that.
I find it very entertaining to read posts from you guys getting worked up that we didn’t sign these mediocre players. PAP and Comeau have better stats than almost all of the forwards signed today. How many goals did Leino have? How many did PAP and Comeau have?
Didn’t your mother ever teach you guys that patience is a virtue? -
The only UFA player who are worth the big bucks this summer is Richards and maybe Kaberle, the rest of the free agent litter are not worth multi-year, multi-millions in a year before a lockout and or strike and during a deep recession.
I rather have Snow save the cap-space for Taraves, MacDonald, Homonic, Storme, Niederriter, Lee and the rest when their entry-level contracts are up in the very near future.
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AJAX says:
Just out of curiosity, what did you all expect?
This is normal of Garth Snow.
Now comes the “We have a plan and are sticking to it” & “Our goal this year is to make the playoffs and we are a better team this year than we were last year”
You will see some signings at the end of the month. -
Shoeless Joe Jackson says:
Reasoner is an upgrade on our 4th, better than ZK in pretty much every way, and is a solid bottom 6 signing. As for jumping off cliffs hours into free agency, I can’t imagine that is a fun way to root for a team, but that’s just me.
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versteeg went for second and third..those are gonna be very high picks, so good for philly. florida has/forced to sign a ton of UFA’s, they are many millions under the floor. hence, they gotta be very busy. tallon is a genius, explain campbell signing to me? that was a mistake the day he was inked, it hurt them trying to defend the cup( which they won by drafting Kane, Toews and few others very high in the first round.
if your gonna sign somebody, who are they gonna replace? if its not an upgrade, you dont do it! Reasoner is better then ZK. who was a massive improvement over blake comeau at 12 noon? fleischmann, leino, versteeg..nope..cost more for the same production…
making moves to make moves is a great way to squander money..or as they say in buffalo, ehrhoff and leino..16 years at $67 million..INSANITY
think about that.. ehroff is going to make more then our entire blueline next season, and he wouldnt start over STRIET, TRAVIS and might be on par with AMAC given the same teammates..its not about being cheap, as much as about being plain foolish.. -
Drive 45, you’ve got to be kidding about patience. Do you remember that our last Cup was in the early 80′s? We haven’t been in the playoffs for a few years now and our arena is a dump. There’s nothing wrong with a few fans clamoring for our team to be relevant once again. We do not need to overpay for a FA to make a splash. We can also work a trade to improvebthe team.
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I see a trade coming for a defenseman and hopefully a LW…probably draft picks or some assets like Comeau, maybe Bailey, etc…would you trade Comeau to Toronto for Komisarek or something like that…
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As much as I admired ZK’s passion for this team and the energy he brought, he need to be replaced. He was good at faceoffs but that’s about it. Too many times we ended up on the short end of the stick because of his actions. I think Reasoner is a substantial upgrade for our 4th line.
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@Joe – I’m talking patience with this rebuild that started when Ryan Smyth left us. I understand the frustration with how long it was since the last cup. In fact I was at the game as an eleven year old, when we beat Edmonton in 1983 to win that last one. Garth is rebuilding from the draft and with smart moves. He is trying to build a long term contender ala Pittsburgh. This takes patience. Making stupid rash moves with FA signings is the Mike Milbury style. Some of you guys must have loved that style…it worked so well. Patience my friends. Garth will get us there.
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Joe (528) I agree with you. 16 of 30 teams make the playoffs each year, it shouldn’t take 5+ years of rebuild just to make the playoffs. Just look at Tampa. Snow has done well at bargin hunting, but it would nice to bring home a name brand for a change
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Dan C. says:
@SM
Campbell has become the most underrated player in the league because of his salary. Great skater and great outlet passer. The Blackhawks would not have won the cup without him as their #3.
I was skeptical of Florida, too, but they have now added Versteeg, Fleischmann, Upshall, Kopecky, Campbell and Jovanovski. Obviously Theodore is a big downgrade from Vokoun, but they have Markstrom, who is the highest-rated goalie prospect in the league. They have now added two top-4 defensemen and four top-9 forwards and most of them have extensive and recent playoff experience.
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Paul M says:
offer sheet to doughty 5 years 30 mil. what about dustin williams take back McCABE or Montreal D-Man Hamrik
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Jzimm says:
FOr whatever it’s worth, Marty Reasoner was my favorite team USA forward at the ’96 WJCs. Bryan Berard was the best US player, but I was still trying to convince myself that Redden was better. Reasoner did a lot of things that I liked… but that was also 15 years ago. I hope he’ll be a good 4th liner here. Better skater than Z, but not nearly as tough.
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Barker just signed with Edmonton.
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Mike says:
Wow…for such an informative site, the message threads here are awful. I would’ve figured after 2 decades of losing Isles fans would’ve had thicker skin – y’all some whiny children. LOL!
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Somebody go to Garth’s house and tell him it’s July 1st please.
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JackB says:
All the talk about taking advantage of teams needing to dump salary and not overpaying for talent is old and worn out. The Isles will not be able sign a FA unless they overpay or he has zero impact. Nobody in their prime will come here. The players know the story, it’s an old one. Rebuild after rebuild, great owner who cares and sly GM who can build a cup winner. The rest of the NHL thinks the Isles org is a joke and this will not go away because we have a few good players and some prospects. EVERY team in the NHL has good players and prospects. If any Isles fans watched the finals this year, the Isles don’t resemble either of the teams in any way shape or form and that goes for the rest of the playoff teams as well.
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CupQuest says:
Wow!! NHL GM’s like druken sailors on shore leave today. I can’t imagine what Brad Richards is going to get $10.5, $11 million per year could he get more?? I shudder to think what these prices mean for the Islanders long term. Unless you can take a page from the Billy Beane “Moneyball” philosophy and build a contender that way; this will be a difficult road back even if all your draft picks work out.
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Phil (531), Tampa hit the dumps with all-stars like St. Louis and Lecavalaier, then won big when they had Stamkos fall into their laps. They actually were pretty poorly managed for a while. Lacking those three guys, can you name another 3 tampa players (outside of last years isles) who you’d want?
Pits and Chi are better examples of how a rebuild is done: Tank for a long time. Chi made the mistake of overpaying for their vets to fill things out.. they might have won a cup but got gutted.
So yeah, Isles can use this or that, and they’ve got money to spend, sure. But in 2 or 3 years, when this team is flying and all these homegrown kids are ready to make big money, do we want some huge contract from these FAs this year hanging over our heads? I’d rather Snow did nothing this offseason then do something stupid just to “do something” or “show he’s taking this seriously”. Isles aren’t any worse today because they didn’t sign or trade like FLA or BUF. And I’d wager they’re better for not.
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Isle Be Damned says:
I’ve never seen so many moronic & crazy contracts given out in 1 day. Don’t care if it was players not wanting to sign here, or Wang not wanting to spend the $, it’s a very good thing the Islanders didn’t sign some of those contracts.
Isles will have to make a trade or 2 for this upcoming season. They have plenty of depth in the organization where they can afford to deal some assets.
I’d heavily inquire as to the availability of Keith Yandle. He’d be a great fit here.
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KJCossin says:
Well said JPA, well said!
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BAGS502 says:
ISLES SIGN VOKOUN…. 6.5MILL CAP HIT
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Hey, is Snow still alive?
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eric r says:
If Snow signed any of these players to the contracts their getting it would screw up the islanders pay structure. How can they look at Grabs or Moulson in the eye and give Leino 4.5 million a year or Fleishman 4.5 million a year. The contracts are out of control.The islanders must be patient still and hope Dehaan and Nino are the real thing. PA 20 GOALS 1.2 MILLION OR Leino 19 GOALS 4.5 MILLION.That means Blake 24 goals should get 4 million if Upshall 22 goals 3.5 million.WARD 10 GOALS 3 MILLION ARE U SERIOUS. The islanders must build with draft picks and good trades not thru free agency. They can not compete with what other teams are paying nor should they. Garth is GM of the year Grabs 3 million,MOULSON 3.2 MILLION , PA 1.2 million and Kyle 2.8 million.Grabs and Moulson easily could have made 4.5 million a year and most likely front loaded contracts somewhere else.Garth saved us 3 million a year from these contracts so we could forgive maybe the 4.5 million a year to Rickey.
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WE’LL RULE DAYS TWO & THREE!
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@eric r thanks for that breakdown…you actually made me feel alot better…
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VOKOUN!
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isles wont sign a goalie….they dont want to upset Rickey…remember when he was asked about the goalie comp he gave a cocky answer as if he is the #1 no matter what
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we need to buy out DP’s contract and sign Vokoun.
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ColinS says:
Where are you seeing info on Vokoun???
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eric r is dead on.
Marty R won 54% of his faceoffs, didn’t play on the PK or PP and didn’t score on his 1 or 2 shootout attempts, but he was a plus 2 for a really bad team and he averaged 17 minutes of ice time.
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dp at a buy out would last until 2030….he could sit on his couch for the next 20 years and be a millionair
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91NYfan91 says:
isles should trade for carle from the flyers.
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@colin s i think they are joking….
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I THINK GRABS AND MOULSON JUST CALLED THEIR AGENTS AND SAID YOUR FIRED!!!!!!
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…thats what i thought…didnt think it was serious…DP’s pretty deep inside the organization (multiple people)….not sure where all the Goaltending comments are coming from…
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BUDDY CALLED ME WHO HAS BEEN WATCHING TSN SINCE 11AM… CALLED ME LIKE 40 MINS AGO AND TOLD ME. (IM STILL AT WORK)
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islesfan999 says:
Lets sign 2 forwards:
Stewart
Carcillo1 Dmen:
Babchuk
Obrien -
@539 JPA. I would gladly take winning the Cup and and then have to dismantle the team. The only mistake Chicago has made is trading Byfuglien. They are still left with a core of Toews, Kane, Hossa, Sharp, Keith and Seabrook that is better than most team’s core, including the Isles’.
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need to sign Blake…..package Bailey for a front line wing…not sure if Garth is gonna want to do that though considering he traded down a few years ago to get him…
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if we do get vokun which i think makes no sense, then DP becomes the back up…….for Poulin in the Bridge or for anders in Utah…..because Montoya is not leaving the island unless we trade him
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Just because other GM’s overpaid for certain FA’s does not mean anyone here is advocating doing the same. What we need is for the team to IMPROVE IN THE OFFSEASON. If wanting this constitutes a lack of “patience” then so be it. I’m confused when I read posts that claim all is well and on target. The Penguins got Crosby and Malkin during their rebuild. This is not something that just happens. They are two of the top 5 forwards in hockey. Looking to them as a sure formula to model after is a friggin pipe dream.
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Benjammin says:
I think Fleischmann is a very risky signing for Florida, and glad the Isles didn’t get him. Yes, he is a very good player, BUT he has a history of developing blood clots. The most recent article on him stated that he is now on medicine to help prevent them from forming again. Guess what everybody, the medicines out there that help prevent clots from forming are blood thinners! Hockey isn’t tennis. I don’t know about you, but I would NOT want to be on a blood thinner and get checked by a 6′ 5″ player going 15 mph plus on the ice. Can you say internal hemmorrhage? Can you say subdural hematoma? Just too fricking risky.
I’d like to see them sign another solid d-man to go along with Streit Hamonic MacDonald and Jurcina (not too keen on Eaton and Mottau). Ian White, Kaberle or McCabe are all OK with me.
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@BAGS502 your a dirty RAGS fan get out of here….TSN has nothing about what you say
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@ray, I’d rather DP be a millionaire (it’s not my $) on the couch than be a millionaire in a NY islanders goal.
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@Ray 559
How would signing Vokoun not make any sense? He’s the only player available that could turn the Isles into a playoff team.
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AS MUCH AS I WANT MONTOYA TO BE THE STARTER, HE HAS BEEN GOOD FOR WHAT? 30 GAMES? DP CANT PLAY MORE THEN 20 GAMES WITHOUT BEING HURT. POULIN NEEDS AT LEAST A YEAR BEFORE HE IS RDY TO BE THE #1.
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@steve his buyout would count against the cap for along time but I guess since were always at the bottom of the cap that doesnt matter…And your Logic makes alot of sense….hes better use to us on the couch then hurting himself and the team in between the pipes
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@dan not for 6.5 cap hit…
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@bags502, I agree. DP is finished, let’s just do the inevitable and get rid of him now rather then let him get injured again year after year. That will allow Poulin to play in Bridgeport to play pro hockey for a year or two, then sign Vokoun and have Montoya as 1b.
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tond24 says:
love when people on the site talk about money like its coming out of thier pockets…and we really should have tried to get versteeg…we havnt drafted a 2nd rounder worth anything for years..would have been a good pu..reasoner is smart because it seems like every old guy we sign gets a job in the front office soon after ahh hmm SNOW
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bags502:
Exactly! Which is why the Isles need a veteran goalie in his 30′s with 3+ good years left. Can you spell Vokoun?
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Ray, who cares about the cap hit? Do you really think the Isles will ever be anywhere close to being up against the salary cap in this league and in this universe?
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NYI 16 says:
CBA is up after this year and it’s more than likely there will be at least a rollback of the total contract if not a window to buy out without having to pay him for the next 20 years.
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@ dan c
campbell is overpaid. not saying hes a bad player, hes way-way overpaid. hes its nicely to a team trying to reach the cap floor. hes pulling more then lidstrom..he might be highest paid nhl defender. just for perspective..
markstrom is an excellent prospect, no issue there.
Versteeg, Fleischmann, Upshall, Kopecky, Campbell and Jovanovski.
versteeg is on his third or fourth team..
and in philly, he was set up for success.
he didnt find it.
Fleischmann had a great few weeks in Colorado, but the caps were disappointed in him? they didnt get much back in that trade.
kopecky also passed around alot. not a bad thing, but certainly not an endorsement, generally you try to keep quality.
i like upshall..but thats lot of $$ for < 20 goals on a team stacked at the foward spot. see leino, ville for same..
jovo and mccabe, meh. they are fine players, at the back end of their careers. i wont call them old men, cause im older;). but thats diminishing returns.
the post on salary structure was also dead on. kudos to eric r…everything has an impact going foward. i mean, WIZ getting that kinda money? hes wasnt worth $3.5/year 10 months ago..
i'd say wait another year, and if the isles are #8/#9 seed, and look like they are gonna move up..aka nino is awesome, the goaltending gets sorted out,then drop the hammer on an offer sheet next summer. if the picks are gonna be bottom of round #1, and you can weaken an eastern conference rival, and push yourself way ahead..take the shot.. -
@dan C you +1 me 0…..when your right, your right
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I just looked at FLA roster and they look pretty solid and better than last year
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asher says:
y’all realize that if everyone is “overpaying,” then it’s not overpaying. It’s the market value.
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@ Dan C. After waiting as long as Isles fans have, is winning one cup and then seeing these kids get traded worth it when you could build a core thatll compete for a decade? And, realistically, would signing any number of the players signed today turn us into a cup contender? Doing something just to do it reminds me of the milbury years.
We made a smart signing today. Not the loudest by far, not the biggest name, but one of the (few) fair deals. Snow already said thru isles twitter he’s looking at trades. The FA pool just isnt worth it. Why get broken up over it?
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isles71 says:
Veteran goalie???? We still have Nabakov…CHEAP, we don’t need another goalie…we own him, if he wants to play, it is because we say so, he has no leverage at all.
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Asher, post 575 – excellent point.
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CB tryin to confirm???
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@tond24..#568
what year and round did we draft travis hamonic: that big defensemen with huge upside and snarl..
26 points in 62 games, 100 ppm, +4, plays 21 minutes a nite as a rookie..what? second round in 2008..oh yeah..
which is funny when you think seabrook of the blackhawks had nearly the same numbers his rookie season. are they the same, NOPE. could they be, perhaps.just saying you might want to reconsider that last post. there are a few others, esp in the third round, who” might be worth something”..
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@SM dont forget Cizikas 4th round and better Martin 5th round
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Sonic Joe says:
Cant believe everyone is saying Fla “overpaid” blah blah ….Buffalo over paid…blah blah…both of these teams are in our conference people…they are much better than a week ago. We are not…Hard enough to make the playoffs now 2 teams in the conference are better.
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Rich says:
All you DP haters make it downright sad to read these posts. Do you recall that he was not even active during the big losing streak. We had Rolly and still lost all those games in Oct-Nov-Dec – before DP played one game. DP is not the only reason we sucked the last 3 years- he is one of 10 reasons. DP is not going anywhere. 2011-12 will be DP, Montoya, maybe Poulin possibly Nabakov. Stop blaming DP for all the Isles woes. Next the haters will blame DP for the recession.
And BTW after we sign the RFA’s we are not that much under the floor. They can always lock up Tavares with a new long-term deal to get to the floor. I rather do that then waste money on someone like Tyler Kennedy or spend 4+ mil a season on Erik Cole.
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Bob E says:
So deal were outright crazy. I hope Garth was just disciplined. We’ll make the playoffs. Then guys will be begging to come play the following year.
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@SM
That was a bad trade by the Caps, who were desperate to stabilize their defense. Fleischmann was buried behind their big guns and as soon as he got 1st line minutes with COL, he was great.
The bottom line is that any one player that FLA acquired is not without some question marks, but the fact is the got not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4, not 5, not 6, but 7 (!) players, several of whom played big minutes on a Cup winner 13 months ago. If the Isles had added those seven players to the core of JT, Grabner, Moulson, Nielsen, Okposo, Streit, Hamonic and MacDonald, that would be a very good team.
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@595 Sonic Joe: agree 100%
If the Isles don’t make a big move right now, after the strong 2nd half of last season and the arena vote coming a month from now (plus the CBA expiring soon) when will they ever make a move? When will the timing ever be right?
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Hey look at the bright side, at this rate we will be picking 1st next year. What a disgrace!
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Garth Snow’s GOTTA be doing something, right?
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Relax snow will do something… He is a smarter Gm and not a jackass like some others.
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Steve says:
Can he at least get Gagne? 1 yr. 4 mil? First line and PP… is that too much to ask for?
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He’s gotta be awake to get ANYone. Someone wake him up!
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Sorry to break it to you boys but Garth Snow manages Syosset’s own Ice Works Arena. Between setting up a month’s worth of public skating sessions, mini mite summer camps, and figure skating competitions it’s no wonder he didn’t have time to sign anyone today. Oh well, hopefully Wang will give him a week off to focus on free agency.
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If Wang really gave Snow permision to create a team that had a “normal” sized payroll, Snow would of traded for Cambpell and paid him the 7 million he earns. Snow would of also traded for other high priced players. Bottom line is no good free agents will sign with the Isles cause the player knows 2 things are guaranteed #1-last place wrapped up by thanksgiven #2 lowest payroll every year in NHL.
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Panthers winners of the day. They also got Versteeg for draft picks.
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Jon in Chicago says: I’m already excited about the 2012 Draft Lottery.
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So WE couldnt deal some draft picks for Versteeg? Really?
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No, of course not, if we trade draft picks then what will Snow do all year?
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Maybe Snow can be a customer service representative in one of Wang’s companies?
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texas_isles says:
most of you need to relax and take a vicodin. this is day 1. lets get worried on opening night if nothing happens. all the ufa sucked this year! i’m very glad snow did not do something stupid just because he could. lets see if he can pull off a trade. that is the only way this team will get an impact player. just sit back and enjoy the ride. no need to get all worked up today!
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People let’s examine history;In 2006 the first year after the lockout the Carolina Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup without having signed a significant free agent.2007 Anaheim won the cup,and yes they had signed Scott Niedermayer,2008 the Detroit Red Wings had no major FA signings,2009 the Pittsburgh Penguins ditto,2010 Chicago Brian Campbell and Cristobal Huet,and the 2011 Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins only FA signing has been Zdeno Chara.Champions and teams of long lasting excellence are build by astute drafting,trades and supplemented by FA signings.People ,we are headed in the right direction.
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garths sleeping says:
I guess we are going to miss the playoffs again. Holding out hope that we win the draft lottery and get the first pick at the 2012 draft
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Something is up in Washington. They already have 21 legit NHL players signed with two good RFAs (Brouwer and Alsner) still to be signed. With only $2 million of cap room left my guess is a dman and/or a forward is going to be moved to make room for a goalie since they only have one under contract. This is just my opinion, but I can see M Green and/or A Semin moved in the next few hours. Any interest?
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BigBoo317 says:
Its no wonder why so many Islanders fans are Mets fans as well… One bad day and they majority of you are ready to jump ship. We have great young talent and will have the cap space to keep them here for an extended period of time. When Snow feels that we are ready to contend for a Cup every year he will either trade for an established star, or throw him James Wiznewski type money.. Patience is a virtue.. Lets all start learning some and see how the rest of the summer plays out. And to all you Nassau Fans, if you do not vote yes on August 1st shame on all of you… We dont get a new arena, Wang sells to Quebec.. simple as that
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Claude says:
Reasoner?What happened to Ward?
Looking forward to our next 65 pt , playing golf in May season -
GeneF says:
good luck against the Panthers on the opening night
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NYISLES001 says:
Remember in High School gym when you would pick sides for Basketball or Volleyball and there were always 2 people left that nobody wanted at the end.
That is what the Islanders get every year in FA.
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BigBoo – One bad day, it has been a string of them for 20 years.
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Ok, here is the bottom line.
Can deal with no great FA signings.
But Taveras, Baily and Okposso have to take it to the next level next year, similar to what Towes and Kane and Crosby and Malkinen did in their careers.
No more excuses. Baily and Okposso especialy, The heat is on these 2 to take it to the next level. No more excuses. Do not want to see a sulking soft Baily and a “I hit the post again” Okposso.
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What is worse than the expected inactivity of the Isles? The fans whining and complaining as if they expected otherwise.
No offer sheets according to Katie.
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Okposso reminds me of Ron Duggay. Very similar styles. Excellent whirlwind typpes of skaters, and like Duggay they would clang pucks off of the post more often then not when they had an opportunity to finish.
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Chris I know I am deviating from the main topic of conversation,but I want to share a post card I just received in the mail from my Representative Norma L. Gonsalves. On Tuesday evening July 12,2011 there will be a public meeting to be held by Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano on the Coliseum Referendum between 7-9 PM at the East Meadow High Auditorium 101 Carmen Avenue East Meadow, NY 11554.Let us show up in numbers,be respectful and be supportive.
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I’d like Garth didn’t go crazy. Why should he with this UFA class. I’m hoping that he and Maloney get together make a deal for Yandle.
Garth is staying th course and letting this young core grow. -
@BigBoo, did you just move here or something?
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NYISLES001, agreed, enough with mediocrity from Okposo and Bailey. They were high draft picks for a reason this team can’t wait around forever for their “potential” ala Cam Barker
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Garthsnow says:
People, the only we do well in free agency is when the cap drops. We also lose when there is lesser stars available. Its just reality. I think next year we will have a better shot.
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As per Katie Strang “NYI Biggest priority for #Isles, Snow said, is top-4 defenseman. Said team has 10 forwards “pretty much set” heading into training camp”.
Wow.
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Patience? What is this team waiting for? When will it ever be time? No, free agency is not a panacea, but when your #4 dman is Mark Eaton, your first line RW is PA Parenteau, the team is 30 million under the cap and there’s public referendum on a new arena a month from now, it’s time to get something done, pronto. Today, player after player has gone off the board and the Isles have done almost nothing. Teams ahead of them have made moves, rebuilding teams that were behind them have made moves, the Isles made a slight upgrade on their 4th line. The only team that had a worse day is COL, who have traded a an almost certain lottery pick for Varlamov.
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I don’t want to hear any excuses about the arena…Edmonton, Dallas, & Phoenix spent some money today, they gave out multi year deals…. as some one mentioned above Reasoner signing could have waited a few days…not that important…..Isles also have nothing to trade, unless it is a complete salary dump like the Wiz trade…..Snow is not a good GM, Steve Tambellini got UFA’s to sign with the bad Edmonton team that is in worse shape than the Isles…..it doesn’t make sense to do nothing.
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Latest quotes from the clueless one snow. set at forwards for training camp. will trade for D-man and no offer sheets. sell the team wang please!
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I agree with Dan C here at #630. The perception is supposed to be we are building a new arena, get out and vote and BTW every team around them invested…not the Isles. Doing nothing just makes the Erhoff move look like a ploy to get people pumped up….sorry.
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Looks like Bergie just signed a 4yr deal with Florida.
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@JoeG who is the source
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Wang is just as clueless business sense as he is Hockey sense. Any logical person would say, Hey, to make sure we get the YES vote, im going to make this team as competitive as possible. Im going to sign a couple of veterans to show im putting a competitive team on the ice night in and night out. Look any idiot that would keep milbury around for as many years as he did has absolutely no clue!
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Bergie = 4yrs, $11M…..these contracts are insane.
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Is anyone really surprised?!?
-Garth is staying the course-the course to another top 5 pick -
Sean says:
Chirp… chirp… +1 for the Islanders needing to do something to stir up excitement. If you want people to pony up tax money for an major new arena, start acting like a major league team and upgrade the roster with proven talent. And never mind the CAP, they are way below the FLOOR. They’ll probably buy Dipietro out just so they can take the cap hit and reach the floor ala Yashin.
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Im gonna sign with FLA!!! i feel left out…damn they cleaned up….but they will pay for it in the future…
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while it would be easy for me to say i told you so when i said yesterday that either wang and snow will be aggressive or they will do nothing but sign 4th line scrubs, with the free agent class not that good and teams over paying, i rather sit back and see that the isles get another top 5 pick in next years draft and use all that cap space next year when the free agent class will be much better we can use it for parise and other players. of course even with all that cap space and a great free agent class next year, there is zero percent chance that wang and snow will sign parise or any top free agent next year or ever. enjoy the anticipation of a top five draft pick every year til 2015 when wang sells the team to the highest bidder who will move the team to where ever he wants. the old sabres owner sold the team for far less money to the new owner to keep the team in buffalo who is dedicated to building a winner. wang is dedicated to screwing us fans and thinking we are nothing but garbage.
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We should have required Torres to ride Shot gun with Jt. Until DP is gone signing free agent is a moot point.
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The reality is the free agent crop was poor. I’m glad Snow didn’t get roped into some of the crazy deals in terms of dollars and years given. Not every team went hard today. I think some teams will regret their spending sooner than later. As for Buffalo now being one of the big spenders in the league… the old saying may apply… “A fool and their money are easily parted.” Good luck Pegula but the Sabres reshaped their team … that doesn’t make them cup contenders. And for those of you too young too remember the dynasty… those teams were built on the draft and the owners and GM didn’t panic and stuck to the plan… slow and steady often wins the race.
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Jim M says:
It’s pretty ironic, ya know. Isles fans have been so optimistic since the end of the season for a strong year coming up, between the push for a new arena and two key signings(okposo-grabner) and not to mention a healthy Streit coming back. Honestly, what were you guys expecting in free agency???? Moulson, Tavares, Okposo, Grabner, Nielsen, Comeau, Bailey, PA, NINO are going to be our top 9, simple as that. So please tell me what free agent players(take into account today’s absurd contracts) would have been an upgrade? Reasoner is a solid 4th line center/role player who can chip in offensively. The rest will be filled out by hunter/martin/haley/gillies….Defense is clearly where Snow needs to make a splash and he couldn’t get it done with Ehrhoff and I’m sure he was rejected today just as he was last year by FA’s. Jurcina/Eaton/Mottau fill out the bottom pair well, combined with dehaan and other prospects coming along. It is IMPERATIVE that Snow adds a top 4 Dman to Sreit, Hamonic, and Macdonald and I believe that he will do just that. It’s day 1 of free agency people, crack a beer and take a step back from the hockey ledge, I know I’ve done the same the past couple of seasons. Isles will be in good shape come September, it’s year 4 of the rebuild, THEY HAVE TO BE!!
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Islesfan_in_Vancouver says:
not at all surprised. Reasoner will be a good player on the pk and is an upgrade on the fourth line.
the thing is, of the free agents out there, who can you say is an upgrade up front over what the isles have on their top three lines.
I don’t see anyone who will produce more than the guys they already have, with the exception of richards. If you have three set lines, and nothing better, why sign someone to play in a spot there may not be room at, or isn’t an upgrade for?
the only way they can upgrade a position is through trade, even the defensemen available aren’t an upgrade and everyone is going for stupid money.
If the cba next season brings the cap down, many teams are going to have serious issues and lose players. I’d hate to see JT not being signed or the Isles have no cap room next year because they blew all their cash on a third liner and thought he could play on the first line.
Nothing is an upgrade at the moment, wait and see what happens, but I expect this will be close to the same team in october barring a trade.
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Kaszycki's Krew says:
Why not put DiPietro on waivers? Seeing some of the silly money spent today – maybe someone would have grabbed him ? LOL I wish we could have gotten Jovo – but not really overwhelmed at the list of players who were inked by other teams. No thanks to Mike Rupp and the rest of this group of under-achievers who were out there.
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Bergy for 4 years???? Fla is crazy. He’s a stiff and always has been. He had a lucky playoff’s and the idiot in Florida threw money at him. Florida signed a bunch of over the hill has beens’ and a few never was’s. In fact, most teams got hoodwinked by paying top dollar for bottom talent.
As for saving money for next year’s free agents, that’s crap. All the good players this year ended up resinging with their original teams. Same thing will happen next year, so don’t hold your breath.
The only good thing to come out of today was the fact the Moulsen, Grabner and OK are signed long term for far less than they would have made by going the FA route. Snow looks like a genius compared to the fools who threw good money after bad players.
A trade is coming, count on it.
And please DO NOT bring Can Opener McCabe back. That woud be a huge step backwards.
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Dan C. #630 right on! Exactly what I’ve been saying! I’ve been patient since we last appeared in the “Drive for Five” Cup series. All this talk of patience and being glad we made no serious moves is maddening. The goal this offseason should be to IMPROVE the team. Today’s pickup barely does that. Eight teams from each conference make the playoffs. I’m not saying these young players should win it all overnight but c’mon guys! How about an eight seed playoff appearance at least?
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IslesFan says:
I can’t understand the bashing of Wang. The guy bought this team with all the problems it had in order to try to save it and keep it on Long Island. It was not a good business investment, it was an attempt to do the right thing. He spent his own money trying to build a winning team and gets no appreciation for it. I cannot blame Wang for refusing to dip into his pocket until he gets what he wants.
Most free agents don’t want to come here. It’s hard for me to believe its the arena issue, but it just may be. The team needs a new arena and the revenue from developing the surrounding area.
btw, I agree with #619, opening night against the Panthers should be interesting.
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Signing McCabe or Ian White to a 1 year deal with bonuses looks like the only move that makes sense. Unless resigning Martinek to a 1 year makes sense…this team needs to carry 8 Dmen on the roster….maybe Lepisto as a low level signing. not much left at all…Snow should sign Bailey 2 years for 1.2 per, Comeau 3 year for 2.3 per.
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Fishbulb says:
Geez, 600+ comments… a few well thought out and reasonable but most are over the top. There are a few players signed today that I would have loved the Isles to have gotten, but the contracts have been insane. Look back at the last 5 years of July 1st signings. So many bad contracts for mediocre players. So many of those players traded. Some bought out. When was the last time the Isles had a July 1st blockbuster signing? Garth has been patient during his tenure and I applaud him today. The knee jerk reaction would have been to throw a 6-10 year deal to someone just to make the front page of TSN. Give it a few days and let’s see where we’re at.
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Nobody wants to play in a run down arena, my brother knows Chris Higgins and he told him every player in the nhl hates the nassau colisuem because it’s so run down and small. The people that are commenting here that it has nothing to do with the colisuem are wrong because it is the arena. The colisuem is the worst in the usa from what I read. Unless there is a shovel in the ground nobody will come here except young developing players or players that can’t find a team.
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Dave says:
People Lets not get to angry or upset…looking at the avilable free agents this year 2011 besides Brad Richards there is no All-Star Player! The Islanders can wait during mid season if they are still in the playoff hunt to make a big trade in the likes of Zach Parise or Jerome Ingilia! Watch the Islanders sign Brian McCabe to a 1yr deal to get close to the bottom Nhl cap. It does look like another season of a top 5 pick for the Islanders because the Panthers made some upgrades. We will have to wait 1 more year thats if the Islanders get approval for a New arena deal come AUG 1, 2011
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Look at Leino and some other available free agents this year there stats are not impressive at all! The only way the Islanders are going to bring in UFA to signs is to win and make the Playoffs consistantly..only way!
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corey says:
Why is everyone getting ready for another lottery pick? This is the first day of a weak free agency class. Do you really want us to over pay for a non impact player? It is July 1st and the Season doesnt start for a few more months. The best way to improve the team would probably be by a trade, so be patient and wait for Garth to make his move. Hasnt he done enough for us to trust him? Just relax and be happy we arent signing contracts we will regret in a few years
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Kaberle is still out there….but the way money was being thrown around today i see him get like 4-6 mill a year….
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@Islesfan 645…..I agree that Wang has really saved the Isles and has lost a ton of money over the last decade to keep them on LI!! However, he has NO CLUE how to run a sports franchise and this is a HUGE problem in building a successful team. He let Milbury do anything he wanted ’cause he did’nt know anything about hockey. Now instead of having competent hockey people like Neil Smith running the team, he is running it by committee as if this is IBM. He has fired most hockey people including scouts that are the eyes to finding the talent. He has frustrated former Isles stars that WANTED to help with the team to the point that they resigned. Also, because Wang has seemed only interested in his “gotta have a new bldg or real estate project asap” he has LET the team flounder to and be the laughingstock of the NHL for the last while. Perhaps if Wang had this team successful and being a Cup contender the last few years, MOST PEOPLE even if they were NOT hockey fans would be in GREAT SUPPORT of a new arena and VERY disgusted with the prospect of losing this team. In reality, most people that are not hockey fans really don’t care whether the team moves or not. Wang has made the Isles that irrevelant that the NHL network almost never talks about them unless to joke about them.
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isles316 says:
Ask yourselves this, what player out there that was signed did Garth miss the boat on? I dont think anyone. The money given out is disgusting.
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The Pork Chop Express says:
This was a crazy day. A lot of overpriced signings. I am glad we didn’t give a ton of money on a mediocre player. I thought the league learned from their mistakes after the lockout year. I guess not. We need to sign our core young guys and win from there. That is how you build a continuous contender.
To bad we couldnt sign Rupp. I thought he would be able to protect our guys while chipping in a couple of goals.
Garth continue the plan. Spend your money wisely.
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Anyone who thinks Florida is actually getting better knows nothing about the sport. Tallon is signing players to sign players. Fleischman (hurt, sulks, soft), Jovo(old has-been), Bergenheim (nice playoff story, $$$millions spent on a guy who will be healthy scratch 10-15x this yr), Theodore(what has he ever really done…except get traded), then a bunch of AHL depth foder??? Believe more in what we have, then signing a bunch of overpriced cast-offs……but take DP Florida…you can have him!!!
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and yes Reasoner is a good signing, we just added 32 points to the 4th line!
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Overpay on Kaberle, it get’s us to the salary cap minimum, he’s still young, and he’s a top pair defenseman. Problems solved.
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Does anyone know anything about jonathan ericsson? The Isles need a defenseman with size.
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How about bringing Erskine back? I beleive he’s still available, or maybe this Woywotka fella, big dude.
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Jon in Chicago says:
Ericsson re-signed with the Red Wings.
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@sm 593 your funny man ur big 2rder is travis..yeah he has upside but even he was passed over by us twice 2 because he was our 3rd pick that year..and b4 that no one since ZIGGY in 1991…yes i was way off base
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without the isles giving away the few good building blocks that is already here who is there to trade that would actually get the isles anything worthy back?
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BabyBear says:
Not to be a stickler but the Panthers are nowhere near South Beach. They’re in Sunrise, which is a suburb of Ft. Lauderdale.
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David Salazar says:
why not go after bersfors? Hes a UFA? Still young. First round talent.
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What does it say about your “young talent” in the organization when the Florida Panthers have to sign half the players eligible for free agency? And they are mostly past their prime, never had a prime, or are just mediocre at best. Tallon is a clown, he knows he has “O” decent youngsters so he throws stupid money at players who have no business collecting those amounts. Good luck Dale, you’ll most certainly need it!
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DP2D says:
Why don’t we toss 6 million at Gagne? We have absolutely nothing to lose. I would also like to see 4 million at Hannan, plays hard and hits like Hamonic. Sign them both for a year or two. He should put DP on defense if he can get Voukoun
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Juniorjunior says:
Since no one has the stones to say it, we are all just nervously waiting to find out if the arena goes through. Because if it doesn’t, this is all just bs cause we won’t have a team anymore. Garth is doing a great job so far and If somehow this arena does make it we can look forward to a bright future cause this club is loaded with young talent. Instead of blogging about fantasy ufa signings we should be spreading the word about the 8/1 vote. Get your $h!T together islander fans. Free chris botta.
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Michael Delman says:
Lots and lots of teams overpaying today for a bunch of junk. There were a few good players signed, but so many 3rd liners for way too much money. I trust Snowy…he’s looking like the smartest GM in the bunch these days.
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boys its not the money that hurts its the years..2 to4 year deals are fine its the 8 to 20 yearsdeals that kill..how far are we frrom the floor..be pay for a basement view we get a basement view
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As per katie strang’s twitter snow said hes gunna be quiet this weekend ans will not be sending any offer sheets or go for a forward — i just dont get it, im falling offthe snow wagon little by little
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Michael from Toronto says:
What a stupid day. Anyone who thinks the Isles had a bad day are wrong!
First off, players on paper are one thing. For example, who knows if the players signed in Florida will even gell. Has Versteeg been the same guy that he was in Chicago? Is JoVo,Flesischman or any other of the players Florida signed worth that money. Not IMO. Plus how many other free agents signed today are actually worth what they signed for.
The Isles have a plan. Just signing players to reach the floor is not part of the plan. That would be just plain stupid. Signing guys that would fit their style of play for reasonable money is the way to go. Plus, the players they have they know. JT is going to get a big raise for the following year. Plus Snow is going to make a signing or two and/or a trade to improve this team.
Patience is a virtue and I’m glad Snow and company have the patience to build a team properly!
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MickeyBoy7 says:
Same old Isles…every year it’s the same…lather up the fans…we are willing to spend, blah, blah, blah. In the end it’s always the same…BOTTOMFEEDERS.
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isleasfan1972 says:
such ridiculous signings today. Snow is a smart man, knows what he is doing. 8/1 is far more important to us than 7/1. if all goes well in a month from now, everything will fall into place.
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Back to shopping at the dollar store for the Isles….please no Gagne or Hannan
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Westfall says:
I like the Reasoner signing, he is definitely an upgrade over Konopka. Also glad that Garth has recognized the need for another Top 4 defenseman, but why is he already publicly giving up on the free agent process when guys like Hannan, White, Kaberle and McCabe are still available? Is he that confident he can pick up someone better in a trade, and is he willing to sacrifice the assets needed to do so? He was able to get the Wiz in a deal last summer, lets see if he can pull it off again.
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brad says:
kind of off topic, wasn’t going to comment but calling the guy who did the impossible, built a blackhawks cup team a clown, is pretty absurd. He overpayed guys because he was 20 mil below the cap. The only signing there that can make you scratch your head is theodore, unless he gets a no 1 then it makes total sense. garuntee the panthers finish above the isles this season. Isles havent been able to win on the road against teams in the division for years now, and its about .500 at home. Look at all the other signings in the Atlantic. If the Rangers get Richards theyre going to take the next step. Compare that to what Garth and Co. have done. Now that most of the “mediocre” players have been signed and “overpayed” who is garth snow going to have to overpay to get to the floor? We’ll see who comes out looking like a clown. Oh yeah he’s going to have to put a deal together to get rid of Nobakov too btw, should have been done at the draft. Oh yeah about that, instead of using the limited number of seats for scouts he wasted them on overweight children of the owner. Wait, I almost forgot WE DON’T HAVE SCOUTS, so I guess that makes perfect sense. So we might as will bring Kevin Dillon back next year to announce our pick. Honestly, They’re going to have to recruit a fan dumb enough to sit at that table next year or just bring the who wang family to the table. because no one with any hockey knowledge or self respect could possibly sit at that table. no director of scouting? Seriously? Christian Ehrhoff and no other legit free agent doesn’t want to play for this team? Try to blame it on the building. I dare you. It is the Owner and Mgmt until that gets sorted out good luck.
I’m sorry I’ve been through a lot being an isles fan for the last 20 years. With that I take my leave, I will never comment on this blog again. I am baning myself for life (or until DP’s contract ends, whichever comes first). All the best C.B. your a hero for writing about this poor excuse for an organization. GO ISLES!
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funny how every year there are no players that fit our plan..whats our plan again…draft top 5 thats it, well weve got that down
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jeff says:
a little disappointed, I hope garth has something up his sleeve because the cards he is holding are not a winning hand yet.
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Its only day one of the free agency period – many moves can be made to improve the team. BUT if Garth doesn’t acquire a top 6 forward and a top pair or top 4 D-man by training camp i will be pissed. I am sick of some fans saying “stay patient” its been 18 years since a playoff series win!!!! 4 Straight years of lottery draft picks. More than half the league makes the playoffs every year and we have only ONCE since the lockout. They need to make a splash to show commitment to winning if they want the people of Nassau to show a commitment to them on August 1
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in garth we trust.
Given all the activity today it looks like we missed out. Reality is there is still alot of good players out there.I actually just went and got my season tickets today. Im doing my part to keep my team here.
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I think Snow is going to upgrade the team via trade. There will be some teams after the next few days that won’t be able to sign their RFA’s and a trade might come cheaper. Still 11 mill or so under the cap floor guys, he has no choice but to do something.
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Sean #653, that argument about the arena to me is a cop out. You are telling me that Joe Louis Arena is nice? No offense to people that live in that area, but it’s nothing compared to Long Island and the building is about the same age. Bottom line is that the Isles are a laughing stock and players are hesitant to sign here until they start winning. They could play at commack arena then and it wouldnt matter.
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Jon Gimps says:
Well today was a good day overall for the team, I think. Garth didnt do anything to doubt our faith in the team, and didnt foolishly overspend to snatch up some marginal talent. Keep the core together, get Nino and Strome in the mix and maybe well make a run.
That said, the Isles definitely need to make a couple of moves prior to the start of the season, as any true fan would observe. Another solid, seasoned defenseman, and who knows Vokoun is out there in a dream scenario. Good luck next year go Isles!!
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Pete says:
I am so excited lets start the season now watch out nhl we are back.Not going to renew my nhl package really sad………
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jack blakc says:
Oh boy! Here comes the cup now! Marty Reasoner was the piece we were missing to not only make the playoffs but win the stanley cup NEXT SEASON!!! WOW garth, again, job not well done. It’s July 1st btw, that means FA has started. DO SOMETHING PRODUCTIVE FOR ONCE!
nothing will happen