On the Islanders Beat

Carried over from the last thread, you cannot trade Satan, unless you are a Seller, in which case, lets face it, the team is a failure for around the 15th consecutive year. Comrie has a 1-year deal and has a reputation for a questionable attitude and work ethic, which limits his value. He's not a bad player, and has value here, but can't be counted on as the teams go-to offensive guy.

Its pretty clear that the team is made of role-players who may play with a lot of grit and heart, but can't put the puck in the net. Hunter, Hilbert, Bates, Sillinger, Simon, Park, none of these guys worry the opposition. They're good hockey players for their roles but aren't scorers. Even of the "top line" guys, there aren't any real scorers. Ultimately, that's what this game is all about. Without some kind of consistent scoring threat the best this team can do is abuse excellent goaltending and hope they score a goal. That isn't going to get them very far.

I like guerin who is a gamer but he's 37, not the player you build a team around. Maybe if things worked out differently last year Bergenheim would have another year of experience under his belt and would be a different player... He was supposed to be a faster version of Peca at one point, if I recall correctly.

Bottom line is none of these guys scare anyone and until the team acquires, and that is the key word, acquires, a real scorer the ceiling is very limited. "Acquires" is the key because the kind of talent this team needs is not in the system, and even if it were, it would lack the necessary NHL experience to make a real difference.

Personally, I keep hearing about changes in Tampa and I'm hoping theres some way Garth can bring Lecavalier here. I'd give them anyone but rick and he would make a difference. A real difference, not like Walter, Tambellini, or anyone else down in bridgeport would make. The more I think of it, the more I rue the Smyth deal now. With those chips we would definelty have enough to get it done.

Greg,

I couldn't agree more. This team puts me to sleep on a nightly basis. Fans were able to withstand the lack of scoring as long as we were winning, but now this team has hit a wall.

Simon needs to be removed from the lineup because he brings absolutely nothing to the table. Hilbert has been adequate defensively, but even a 3rd liner is expected to score 10-15 goals per year.

Hunter is too slow-footed to be receiving so many minutes per game. Boy am I glad Snow didn't sign this guy to a long term deal.

Dubie is at his best when he is playing consistently. We caught him on a good run at the end of last season, but he is obviously not a capable backup NHL goaltender. While his defense certainly deserted him last night, its obvious that Dubie is not comfortable in goal. Send him down to the Bridge so he can get some shots.

Two comments on last night's debacle that I haven't seen mentioned...
1/I am not so sure that Comrie and Guerin are comfortable on the same line. I am seeing 3-4 offsides per game between those two, i.e. one or the other is always ahead of the play.
2/I am now convinced that Comrie is hurt. Either that or he is going for the league lead in "arm-checks".

Other than that, I thought Dubie was fine last night.
No goalie should face 5 breakaways in a game.

What do the Islanders have to offer for a player like St. Louis? Really. What if Tampa says we want a quality young forward off your roster and your two best prspects. Do the Isles have a young, quality forward on their roster that would interest Tampa? I don't think they do. And will Tampa want Oksopo considering how bad his season has been this year? And beyond him, what else do they have? Comeau? He's not doing much. Colliton? He's doing nothing at all. They didn't have a first rounder last year. I mean, do they have anything beyond future draft picks to offer?

OK, Okposo won't be involved in trade talks and he shouldn't be.

But, I must ask a legitimate question.

Who possibly do the Islanders have to deal that would enable them to acquire an impact forward?

Problem: Offense
Issue with Offense: They have none.

Snow is right though. They have to play with what they have in the locker room Why is that? Because they gambled last February and lost. Gave up 3 (2 prospects, 1 1st rounder) for a rental. Now they have nothing to bargain with.

Do you think the Yankees are going to trade Hughes without having a contract extension setup for Johan Santana? Hell no!!! That would be stupid. Snow should of made the 1st round pick conditional that they were able to re-sign Smyth. Even then that would be to much to gamble. Yes, I know the draft was before free agency. Maybe free agency should begin a week before the draft.

Oh well. Not going to debate that deal again. We already beat that to death. Gotta play the hand that is dealt. Snow learned an expensive lesson. I think the schedule is only going to get more grueling. It is going to be a trying 60 or so games. I'm sure they will work hard, and entertain us more times then not.

Hilbert, Simon & Park need reduced 5 on 5 time. Simon should only play in games we need a little extra grit. Keeping fingers crossed that Tamby ... perhaps Walter or some young gun steps up into this opportunity to make it happen.

Thoughts?

I think Greg sums it up quite nicely. While the jury's still out for me on how much losing Sim hurt offensively, I have no counter to the storyline. Also remember that a great goal scorer is not a guarantee of success--see, e.g., Alex Ovechkin or even Ilya Kovulchuck--who have played to losing records for years. And as so aptly noted, you don't get something for nothing.

A 5-5-1 stretch is not horrific--it's just mediocre at best. But it's a loooooooong season with many ups and downs for non-elite teams like ours. Right now, we're in a stretch until December 8th of 14 games in 23 days. That's brutal--especially when we pretty much utilize only three lines. And while after this week we have three more sets of 3 in 4s for December, each comes after three days rest and two involve the back-to-back matches on the front end.

Therefore, I'd be hesitant to make any long-term changes until the end of this month at the earliest--and assuming DP stays healthy, I suspect what we've seen thus far is what we can expect for the remainder of the year--I hope!!!!

"If you take a club like New Jersey, they had a tremendous amount of success. They scored limited goals, but they played well in their own end and made up with defense and goals-against.”

No, no, no, no, no. Garth, we call what the Devils did "The Trap". It involved almost no goal-scoring and led to wholesale rule changes for things like 2-line passes and shootouts. It made the goalies play in these little squares behind the net. It made an accidental clearing attempt over the glass a penalty, and it keeps the debate about bigger nets alive today. We really, really don't want to trap. Really. And even if you tried, you would never be as good as the Devils were at it anyway.

I've got an even better idea: Let's score instead. Do what it takes to get a proven goal scorer in here. Bring Okposo up here. Play him. Trade him. Do something besides the customary threat of or actual call-up of tambellini, and talk about how its all "within". You are what your record says you are, Garth, and right now you are a barely-over .500 team that can't score. And you haven't been able to score for 12 games. THAT MAKES 16 of 24 OR FULLY TWO THIRDS OF YOUR GAMES YOU HAVE SCORED 2 GOALS OR LESS. That's not an aberration, or a streak, ITS WHAT YOU ARE. There is no great offensive talent hiding in this roster. What you see is what you get.

If something isn't done soon, then, given the level of competition in the division, Isles will be clear sellers come mid January and it will be another season on the pile.

I think Greg touches on it briefly, but I think the best shot the Isles have to land an impact forward is to target teams up against the cap who are looking to re-sign pending RFA/UFA's... while the Isles may or may not have the chips to make a talent-for-talent or prospects-for-talent trade, they do have the advantage of being able to absorb a lofty contract that would free up space for a team-- I don't know, I'll pick one out of a hat, let's say Tampa Bay-- to ship a high priced forward (again, just grabbing a name out of no where, but let's say Brad Richards), which would then give them the space to re-sign Dan Boyle.

Just speculating, but that would probably have to be Garth Snow's most probably angle of attack to land a significant impact player.

Going back several games ago... Comrie was taken out on the end boards... got up slow holding his shoulder and retreated to the bench.... I am sure that this is where he got hurt... but he still is playing which means that he is good to play... but not 100% obviously.

As far as some bloggers complaining about the D-men getting "torched" regularly... come on people... isn't there a D-man beat almost every time a goal is scored????

So of course when a goal is scored against "your" team you are able to say... Martinek got torched... or Sutton got torched.... but isn't it just the same when Satan beats his man and scores...? you could say.... Lidstrom got torched.... what's the difference? D-men get beat every game.... and sometimes the puck goes in the net (in which case we say that the D-man got torched) and sometimes the goalie makes the save and we forget about the D-man who got torched.

Overall the Islanders have played strong team hockey... Defence and goalie first and foremost... and they haven't been able to score which makes it frustrating to watch. On most nights if they scored 3 or 4 goals in regulation, they would have several more wins. What can you do?

I have spoken.

DOC

They lost to the Rangers in a game in which they were obviously tired after 3 games in 4 nights. Then they lost a stinker with a rusty backup goalie and some mental mistakes, the likes of which are uncharacteristic of their play so far. I think everyone needs to take a deep breath and calm down a little.

Goal production has been pretty pathetic, but we really do have a defense and responsible forwards needed to al least compete. C'mon, really. We have a number of forwards with proven track records that just haven't gotten it going yet. But in all probability Guerin, Comrie, Tank and Satan are gonna start finding the net. Isn't a bit early to be talking about Okposo in possible trade deals? It's a long season. The scoring chances have been there. I'd be a lot more upset if Hilbert didn't even have that chance that he missed, rather than missing the open net.

Nolan sees the need for scoring. We all do. That's why he's brought up Tamby and shuffled the lines. Let's all let him be the best coach in the NHL that we've all been saying he is.

It'll be great to see TOP 5 scorer in Isles uniform, but be real - who we can offer in exchange for likes St.Louis, Lecavalier, Iginla (signed new contract with Flames - his name is just example), Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Hossa etc.

A real deal would be.... CHEECHOO!!! And I think he would be relatively cheap. Would cost us young D (or MAB) plus at least another player, but I am sure he will be a bargain! He is 27, gets 2,5 mil. a year and we can build a team around him. Comrie would be a light version of Joe Thornton with him, add Satan and we have a great first line! 2nd line of Fedotenko-Vasicek-Guerin would be bad neither...

Other great players available are: Jokinen and Sundin (both 1st line centers, both 5,25 and 5,5 respectively) or JP Dumont - scored 20+ in 5 out of his 6 seasons in NHL.

Trade has to be done soon. I don't want to hear the same Tambellini comments anymore .... Greetings from Slovakia where noone can understand why Satan plays 16 minutes per game when he should be there for 20+

Big game tonight Tambs...show them that you belong here and please give us some offense.

Stick Check: If the trade with Tampa went through, we would not have to give a huge amount because if Tampa is trading, they are doing it for the sale of the team and meaning they are dumping salary. So we would be giving up a 1st round pick and some other things. I can see Satan being put in a deal but who knows.

We also have not had the best 1st round picks in a while so the deal with the Oilers Nilsson and O'mara(echl) most likely will not hurt us except for the fact we could of used them in a different trade. If tambs does not work out, he is going to be in a trade.

On Ovy, if he is available, I would not mind the Islanders losing 4 1st round draft picks on him but its a long shot help. He would do a lot for us with the team and the fans.

On a side note: Andy Petite is back...huge

It's no so much who do they have, since they don't have anyone. It's what they have. As Logan said, they have cap space. For now they have to play a tight defensive game, hope to find the right line combination and pray that comrie, satan and/or guerin start lighting the lamp consistently.

When the trade deadline approaches then they can re-evaluate and use what they have (cap room) to their advantage. Basically they will need the perfect storm in order to get a proven goal scorer - a team that is virtually out of the race that has a veteran productive forward who can put pucks in the net, is on the last, or close to the last, year of his contract and who has not lived up to whatever big money deal he was given.

With 8 teams making the playoffs its hard to imagine the Isles dropping so far out of playoff contention by february that they wont use all this cap space to their advantage. Personally, I think they will end up adding about 2 or 3 2nd-3rd line wingers and hoping one of them breaks out. I also wouldnt be shocked if Bergenheim doesn't end the year with the Isles. He doesn't seem to be meeting expectations and he still has some value for other teams to pursue.

I have been rummaging through my bag of goodies to see what the Islanders will be getting for Christmas. All I came up with so far was a massive case of fans oversimplifying things. Do we really think a single top-flight scorer is going to solve this team's problems? It certainly won't, because if you know a team has only one legitimate threat you shadow that player and force his teammates to step up. If they can't, it's an easy win day in and day out against that team.

I started to beat this drum earlier, but I'm now firmly convinced our thinking on this issue is flawed. I would love to see the Islanders land 2 20-25 goal scorers, each of whom would be more cheap than a single St. Louis, Vinny L, or anybody else of that caliber. Acquiring 2 25-goal players would accomplish 2 key objectives:

1. Increases the total goal output by 50 (assuming full-season numbers, naturally - and that players like Simon and First Base will be the ones to lose playing time)

2. Balances the offensive attack. Adding 2 bonafide and reliable above-average scorers will bolster both the Vasicek and Sillinger lines, which hopefully would take pressure off those guys and elevate everybody's play.

A group that's built wholly on the concept of team such as the Islanders needs to tinker with caution. I'm with Piero (what a surprise - and good to see you man - this is my handle until Christmas), we should look into guys like a Cheechoo or a J.P. Dumont (damn Milbury...trading him for DMITRI NABOKOV, whom I believe fell asleep during a team meeting...), guys who can play both sides of the puck and provide MORE OPTIONS, not a SINGLE OPTION. It's clear that many of our current players are pressing as the goal drought continues, so the focus should be on smart growth and adding pieces to add to the whole. A big bang solution is not what this year's team needs - Smyth was a great move for last year, I would've done what Snow did 20 times a day - this team needs additional pieces and to help balance its attack.

I'm putting the Islanders down for 2 above-average scorers who can be had for lower draft picks and prospects. Let's hope Snow doesn't deserve a lump of coal!

Is this board that dead, or is Jimmy Olsen just late for work today?

If nothing else, we shold see a different Islander team tonight. that is an awfully small "top line" and one that SCREAMS OUT DEFENSIVE LIABILITY. But.. we'll see. I wouldn't be surprised if that line gets the LEAST amount of ice time as a unit.

three or four games with Tambellini on the first line should make us appreciate the 2-1 wins. Sure he can skate, but he's just a north american Nilsson... and Nilsson probably had better hands.
He will offer a little more speed, which they lost with Blake. But he doesn't have Blake's talent to forecheck.

I really hope I'm wrong, but I don't see Tambellini as the answer... but with some time he could be an effective third (Hilbert) or fourth (Park) line option.

the best "new" line I see is Hunter-Sillinger-Bergenhiem. they have been missing opportunities left and right because of Hilbert's hands and Silly's wheels... this should be an upgrade.

Seperating Vasicek and Satan only slows down the most effective line to date. I don't get it.

I'm beginning to question the thought process a little.
Tank-Comrie-Guerin show some fluidity early... break them up.
Satan-Vasicek-Bergenhiem are an oaisis in a desert of goals... break them up.
Park shows an offensive spark where-ever he plays... get him back on the fourth line.
Walter shows some good two way ability... bring back Bates, then bring up tambellini.

Who's really running the Islanders, Howard Dean?

Who sits on "D"? Berard or MAB?

Cincy/doc - Nice posts. Words could not possibly express how mad I'll be if Snow panics and gives up what's left of our draft picks and prospects (Okposo, really) in some "impact" trade for a player that doesn't want to be here, and will bail at the first opportunity. Our system is in desperate need of rebuilding. The only thing we have a surplus of is D-men, and they're not even "in the system"...they're with the big club and are being scratched. There's very little else.

If there are people on this team that are in the last year of their deals, and that Snolan doesn't intend to bring back, then I'd have no problem with shipping them off for prospects and picks at the deadline, instead of moving them for a player that will maybe get us to the second round of the playoffs for one year and then leave.

Nolan has a good game strategy that rewards hard workers, but I don't think you can keep shipping off draft picks, cobbling together a team of FAs, and hope Nolan gets the best out of them every year. That's not a great forward-thinking strategy. If you want to be a team that will be a force for years to come, then building the system is just as, if not more, important than the players you're putting on the ice. Our focus in this conversation is in the wrong place, imo.

They are in a hole. It's a deep, dark hole and there are barely any footholds to climb out... but little by little they make their way out of the hole.
They were owned by people who didn't even realize it was a hockey team. It was a quarterly check from Cablevision.
Then it was managed by a lackey who thought he could change the face of the NHL by making the worst deals in recorded history.
When the team was obtained by a well meaning, and comitted ownership it was misguided by the lackey into more years of mis-spending and poor decision making.
Last year, with about a 5 year development project they tried to take a short cut and got stuck in a traffic jam at the exit.
This team is 4-6 years away from being legit again. they have a good coaching staff, and a GM who is learning, but has potential to be very good.
We, as fans, need patience that we really shouldn't be asked to have... but they are putting out effort and some entertaining (for the most part) hockey while we wait.
Patience and time... and let's hope that Milbury didn't leave a virus in the computer system.
There will be opportunities along the way... and there are short term goals (milestones) we can all root for and celebrate.
Big games... we have had a few excellent victories to celebrate.
Division contention... this season is not even close to over.
Winning records against rivals...3-1-0 and 3-0-0
Favorable deals from salary dumps... there will be opportunities.
Playoff entry... still on teh table.
Playoff series win...the next step in the progression.
A good draft.
Free agency aquisitions.
Maybe Milbury gets banned from hockey for what he did to this franchise (good intentions or not)... not likely, but we can all dream.
All this... and the bigger question is... when the Islanders do get back on their feet... WHERE WILL THE NHL BE...
Local television, exept for Canada?
36 teams, with talent to fill 24 rosters.
90 game schedule to compensate for 5k weekday attendance figures.
Red line completely gone(Icing from the blue line).
The penalty area (soccer)
the penalty dot where one shot is granted when a foul occurs in the penalty area.
Mandatory birdcages so everybody can clobber each other over the head with their composite sticks.
But 2 minutes for contact...
And 1 player on each team who has a sword and shield so they can battle when one team is 3 goals down to entertain the crowd.

Bettman's Dream!!!!

Garth Quote: If you take a club like New Jersey, they had a tremendous amount of success. They scored limited goals, but they played well in their own end and made up with defense and goals-against.” This is true, but the Isles, as a group, do not posses the same foot speed on coming out of their own end and generating opportunities through the neutral zone via the rush. It is that simple. I also tend to agree with Islander505, Comrie and Guerin are not on the same page. You can see it with the minimal on ice communicatino between the two. Way way to many offsides per game are a testemant to that. Weather Comrie is hurt or not, who knows, but he simply can not get away with that dipsy, fake back pass and keep the puch crap he pulled in the first 4 or 5 games of the year, these players are way to smart and know he'll try that crafty stuff one too many times and eat him up. Put your head down, go to the net or shoot it !!

This is Tambellini's chance. Put up or shut up time.

Here's the basic problem: The Islanders have less scoring talent than almost every other team in the league. Almost everyone is playing a line above where he'd be on a good team: e.g. Comrie is a No. 2 center playing on a top line because there is no one else.

On nights when they don't work hard (like Saturday), they get whacked. On nights when Ricky isn't at the top of his game (like Thursday), they lose. They have no margin for error.

Andy Hilbert is a hard worker who can't score. Park is only slightly better. Hunter and Guerin have to produce something offensively (especially Guerin, whose goal-scoring ability is his only on-ice value)

But be grateful that Smyth took Colorado's money and not ours. He's a good player - hard worker who can score. But for a franchise like this, that kind of contract is suicide. Vasicek has more goals -- and we're not tied to him for five years.

Been sitting back and watching things unfold over the last couple weeks without spouting off too much to see if the ship gets turned around.

Now with a couple of games under our belt where our defense and goaltending was not able to carry the load, I am ready to chime in. I do agree with Garth - as long as we score more goals than our opponent it doesn't matter if the game is low-scoring. And I don't think he was advocating for the trap as someone suggested earlier, just for exceptional defensive responsibility, which is no shock from an ex-goaltender.

So, while this stretch has not seen us win more games than we've lost, we are in ok shape. Has our offense come back to down to earth a little - obviously. But a couple of goals here and there (including those like Hilbert's empty netter that I could have scored on and some powerplay goals) has us back into some games or winning more than losing over these last 10-11 contests.

This team was clicking early on, and I am not sure if it is the personnel that have suddenly gone cold or if other teams are playing harder because they have taken notice that this squad isn't going to just fold because everyone says they will.

So, keep working the powerplay, and if they still can't get some of their "goal scorers" going, and none of the kids in the Bridge (or on the team - like Bergy) start potting some goals, then let's see what Garth & Co. do. So often do we talk about patience with our kids, but as soon as they don't produce, some of you sound like you want MM back so he can swing a deal for an over-priced, veteteran winger that doesn't want to play here.

Bottom line - we need some more dang goals!!

Excellent article written by Greg. It's a long year and teams are going to have ups and downs. However, this teams weakness, the lack of scoring and a bonafide #1 line, is being exposed big time. The only way to get scoring now since there are no trade chips is to get a free agent who has not signed and hope he can get into game shape quickly. I've said in the summer that Jeff O'Neill should have been targeted to sign despite what is said about him. He scores 20 goals in a season without playing half the time. If he had Nolan to motivate him, he might return to the form he had when he scored 41 goals for Carolina just 4 years ago. He's not a savior by any means but could score more goals than most of the forwards that are currently on the Islander roster. If there out of it come February, they need to become big sellers and rebuild their farm system and then sign whatever free agents are available come July. I'm not throwing in the towel, just looking ahead.

Everyone go read a copy of the Edmonton/Ducks game yesterday. It reads like a mirror of the Isles/Thrasher game

At least the Isles were in good company this weekend.

"The DEFENDING STANLEY CUP CHAMPION, Anaheim Ducks, who are 'struggling to find a scoring touch', lost on their home ice to EDMONTON yesterday 4-0.'

"Anaheim had an extended 5-on-3 opportunity to try and get back in the game....could only come as close as hitting the post."
I bet MAB's was a LOUDER CLANG!!!

(In fact, Edmonton beat the Ducks 5-1 at home on Friday as well.)

I also believe it's time to let the kids play. We know what Hilbert, Simon & Park can do. Let Bergy, Tams and perhaps Walter or Comeau slide in for some solid minutes. We need to see if these kids can play. If not then go in another direction.

I just don't want to see another rush job on the kids in the farm like they did with McCabe and Bertuzzi we all know how that one worked out.

The NHL is loaded with Islanders Farm products. They just don't play of the Islanders. Redding, Chara, Dumont, Brewer, Luongo, Connolly, Kolnik, Torres, Just to name a few. I would love to see some of these guys still on the Isles.

Let me say it another way, I would rather Suck for a few more years, draft some solid young talent build from within, then spend the next 10 years barely making or missing the playoffs

15 million to spend, salaries are not prorated for the cap, just for payment. You cannot exceed the cap limit unless there is an exemption for injured reserves.

This team is at its first cross roads. The rest of the league is starting to get hot while we are cold. The Devils and Bruins have come on strong. Atlanta and Tampa Bay seem to not want to go away, and have the talent to stick with the pack.

This is where last years "Bobbleheads" move of getting Ryan Smyth kills us. If we still had those THREE number ones, we could make a move for a pure goal scorer from a salary strapped team. Now we have nothing except our promising young defensman. Do you move one of them??? I say Yes!!!

OR

Does this team start to fall back. If that is the case, than AZS is correct and our worst fears will come to fruition. We sell in February and replenish.....Players like Comrie~Satan~Guerin can all get us picks in the stocked NHL draft!

One thing I was dead wrong about has been Hunter. Why is he not in front of the net anymore? What happened to those Ryan Smyth like plays ??? He is a good hitter yet too slow in this new NHL. I though he would be a force on the PP in front....Again, dead wrong !!!

well it is 7pm....Lets see what we got tonight !!! Come on Boys !!!

Towards the end of the first right now. The thing that I've noticed is that Thomas consistently flops around like a fat guy trying to do the worm, and the Isles just flat out refuse to shoot the puck in the air. They did this same thing the last few times they played Boston. See what Murray did on his goal? Up in the corner. Berard, Guerin, Comrie, Satan...all of them had opportunities and shot the puck along the ice, many of them while Thomas was spawled out on the ice.

At least Dubie feels a little better now that the D is hanging DP out to dry too.

Quoth Gerard Gallant, just before the start of the 3rd period: "A two goal game is nothing in today's NHL"

Boy, have I got some news for you!

This team is a disaster. Nolan told them to put everything on net and now you have guys just firing the puck from the blue line or into opposing team's player's legs when there's no shooting lane. Also I think it should be pointed out that Hilbert is getting 14:05 minutes of icetime per game while our leading goal scorer Vassicek gets 14:28 per game. Does anyone else see something wrong with this?

1) Did Guerin retire after November first ???

2) Comrie is absolutely horrendous. He plays with the heart of a jelly fish!

3) I honestly feel bad for DP!

4) Sutton was having a great game until the give away. At least he is hitting people.

5) Hunter is a bust! When the NHL changed he was not able to adjust.

5) The crowd was seriously embarrassing. What is going on Long Island ????

6) Every time this team plays well (last year the same thing) and we give Snow credit, they fold like tents.

7) MAKE A TRADE NOW for Offense....56 goals is pathetic...Or fold tent and start over!

****As sad as the LI crowd is, I almost cannot blame them. We have no young faces to come watch. We have no identity. We have DP and that is it! WAKE UP BOBBLEHEADS !!!!! *****

Did I say comrie is a joke ????? As they say in BRONX TALE....."Nothing worse than a wasted talent!"

another clunker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DISASTER!!!

One thing about Snow's comments comparing the Devils' success in winning without scoring much goals. Here is a news flash Garth!!!!! The Devils have a Hall of Fame bound goaltender between the pipes and had TWO Hall of Fame defenseman ... not to mention a GREAT supporting cast of Defenseman and solid 3 lines of forwards who WERE ABLE to put the puck in the net when they got their limited chances.

That is all I will say about that.

I agree with what Frei said last night:
[[[ Posted by Frei | December 2, 2007 21:11
"You are what your record says you are, Garth, and right now you are a barely-over .500 team that can't score. And you haven't been able to score for 12 games. THAT MAKES 16 of 24 OR FULLY TWO THIRDS OF YOUR GAMES YOU HAVE SCORED 2 GOALS OR LESS. That's not an aberration, or a streak, ITS WHAT YOU ARE."]]]

That being said I also agree with Saint Nick and JP on some great points they made. Steady always steady with the good points also.

I believe you build a team from the goaltender out. We do not have a deep minor league system with which to tempt teams for impact players. We blew that with the 3 prospect (1 being our 2007 1st rounder) crap shoot and lost.

The Isles will only be older next season so it doesn't look pretty for the future. I say we play with what we have. As someone pointed out a Stud Goal Scorer will not help. We are better off with above average goal scorers (20-25 goal potential) is a good start... and go with a balanced attack. All that will happen to a Stud Goal Scorer is he will be shadowed like he was covered with a wet blanket.

Build the team and then add the scorer. I really have no idea where they should start. Why is Hilbert still getting 14 minutes a game? For that matter ... we keep blaming Hilbert but there are 20 some odd other guys not scoring either. Did they catch Hilbertitis???

I think the Isles need to stop changing their long term goals back and forth and focus on a 5 year plan. Last year was the wrong time to decide to become a BUYER .. They could of had a slim shot of unloading Yashin and even take responsibility for part of his salary (if the CBA still allows a Jagr like Caps - Rags deal) ... anything to get some young talent replenishment.

Well I'm steamed up ... so I will cut off here for now. I'd rather see them lose with young talent playing hard than what I'm seening now.

ONE GOAL!?!?!?!? This is just ridiculous!!!!!!! There is no excuse for this.

Oh ... my brother just pointed out that Nokelainen (another 1st round Isle pick) scored his 1st Goal for the Bruins ..... where is Walter??? Oh yeah ... he's scoring almost a point a game for a last place minor league team.

BTW ....Nokelainen's pace of 1 goal in 13 games is ahead of Hilbert's pace. Still Nokelainen hasn't done much for the B's ... I just find it ironic his only point / goal this season come's against the team that traded him. That is a spray of ice chips in the face of the team.

Just back from the game ...

1) As someone who goes to every game and is very critical of the small crowds I don't think I can get upset anymore ...as was stated earlier by Steady there's really no one, other than DP, worth paying money to watch. There were a lot of young kids there - a lot of kids looking for a reason to cheer and the Isles gave them nothing ...

2) Why is it that Vasicek played under 10 minutes this game (none on the PP) yet Chris "thank god I'm Nolan's friend" saw some PP time? Doesn't Vasicek lead the team in goals? Why is it that Sillinger sees time on the 2nd unit but the team's leader in goals get no time on the ice. I realize that Hillbert's ice time seemed a lot because of the penalties the Isles took, but even he saw more ice time than Vasicek.

3) Double standard ...if MAB gave the puck up ...or if Tambellini or Bergie gave the puck up they'd be riding the bench the whole rest of the night - yet Nolan puts Sutton back in ...I'm not saying I don't like Sutton, but he should have sat ...

4) This is getting beaten to death, but they show no urgency out there ...other than the flurry at the end they showed no heart ...no marbles ...they play around with the puck on the perimeter and no one goes towards the net ...the few times they do they generate chances then they just abandon it ...very frustrating ...

I couldn't even jump up when Campoli scored because I'm very upset about what's going on with the team ...people were chanting "REFUND" and I can't really blame them ...

Hopefully the Isles will rebound ...if not ...

WE WANT STAMKOS!

All hail a much needed extended road trip.

They will turn it around on the road. The scoring chances are there and they just don't have the confidence right now. The puck is not bouncing their way. Sometimes too much home cooking can be a bad thing. This road trip IMO will get them straight. Lets put it this way, too much time at home can be a bad thing. A good road trip away from the wife, girlfriend and kids can do wonders for a team. Go on the road and eat drink and sleep hockey, not to mention a trip or two to the nudy bar with the guys and all will be good.

Bergenheim is ready to break out in a big way. I love his play right now. Tambs looked fast and his speed should really help.

I'm headed to the game on Friday against Panthers. Go ISLES.

i'm trying to be patient. they are still over .500 and there are some good pieces on this roster. they're not getting blasted every night and if guys supposed to score start doing so, this team can be pretty good. BUT- 13 games in a row with less than 3 goals is crazy. weird even. i don't think i've ever seen it. does anyone have a stat on that? the record ?
losing THIS WAY every night for this long is going to take a toll, in several ways, most importantly on the goaltender. the GM has to do something, also for several reasons. everytime this team seems to make strides -as with all the positive momentum generated by the al arbour extravanagza - BOOM - 2 steps backward. the fan base is tenuous at best. jerking them up and down as if on a bungy-cord is very risky. it will not take much more to nudge a lot of fans over the edge - passed the fandom point of no return. then what? the arena-hub plan is nice. but i wonder if even the savvy mr. wang gets that the time to move on that stuff is when the team - your centerpiece - is on a high and is a REAL WINNER. 1972 was 1972. now - you must have a winning team FIRST or they won't come, and you must recognize the nuances of momentum and move accordingly and to your advantage. in this respect this team ownership fails as did all the others.

I don't think it's a coincidence that when they finally shot high, they scored their only goal in two games. When I think of Bill Guerin, for instance, the first mental image I get is him skating down the right side and firing a high slapshot into the near corner. That's always been his game. Now he seems content to push the puck along the ice more often than not.

Simple stuff, imo. This team's better than they've shown, and I think they're just "holding the stick too tight," or whatever the cliche is. It's happened to a lot of good teams that've hit ruts so far this year. Buffalo was only putting in a goal or two a game pretty much from game 6 up until somewhere in the mid-teens. They dropped well below .500, and gave up the first goal for something like 14 straight games. Now they're winning games 8-1 and put together a five or six game winning streak, and they're right back in the mix. Ottawa's dropped their last six after an insane start. Carolina hit a rut for a while and came back to the rest of the conference. Philly's cooled off a bit.

A couple of weeks ago everyone here was riding high and thought this team was going to win the division. Now the mood is that they should blow this team up. The real Islanders are somewhere in between that, I think.

well i am not going to comment on the game since i was there. Well the only thing I am going to say, is we had a lot of chances but i get the feeling that when we go down low, most of the time someone our team does not look up and just passes the puck and 90% of the time no one is there or the pass is way off.

I liked Saint Nicks idea of getting (2) 30 goal players instead of a superstar. That would most likely fit our system very well and produce more offense. Ryder,Cheechoo, etc

On trades: we need to do something. Some of the fans do not want to trade any of our first round picks but does anyone understand that we are going to be a middle of the draft team for the next two years. So we will be picking around 15-20 in the first round. I say include a first round pick. because we most likely will not get someone in the draft that can help us right away.

JP: Stamkos would be great but I would rather throw next season and get TavAres next year in 09. The penguins will find a way to get him but who knows, here are the stats for the OHL.

GP G A PTS
John Tavares Oshawa Generals 28 23 39 62

Steven Stamkos Sarnia Sting 29 28 20 48

AZS -

Good points about the crowd, ice-time for big Joe-Vas versus Hilbert, and the lack of urgency in the overall play of the offense.

I've got to disagree with you though on your claim of a "double-standard". If MAB, Bergy or Tambellini cough up the puck, it's most probably gonna be a result of a bad decision or being out of position or staying on the ice for too long of a shift. A benching for things like that is justified. But Sutton has been playing his face off for all of the games that the offense has been asleep. He's always in good position and has donea tremendous job using his size to make big hit and send a spark into the rest of the team. On his gaff last night he just plain wiffed. That's all. He was in the right place, he was there at the appropriate time, and he was attempting to do the correct thing with the puck. He just didn't do it. That's all. Much bigger technical "mistakes" aren't usually subject to such drastic and immediate benefits to the opponent. It would've been a HUGE mistake for Nolan to sit Sutton after that play. It's exactly what Stirling would've done a few years ago. It would send a message to the team that you can do everything right, night in and night out, but if you make one mistake that results in a goal you're toast. Make that move and you'll see this team go from a 3 game slump right into a death spiral.

I find it extremely unusual that there is NO ONE offensely hot on the whole team. It seems that all 4 forward lines are cold. Maybe it is 'Hilbertitis', as someone previously suggested.

That said, I think we should be patient a bit longer. When things were going well earlier in the season, it looked as if we had several 20 goal scorers, which would give us decent balance. Yes, maybe no "go to guy," but a constant threat for the opposition. I still think that is what this team is made of.

Skating is always key in this league and that's when success follows. We need that effort every night, but another couple speedsters would not hurt either.

I was looking for some highlights from your game last night and found this blog. I have to laugh because I am a Thrashers fan and your blog sounds exactly like our fans did the last couple years. You have people pulling their hair out everytime Sutton makes some stupid play, half of you want him benched and half of you say he is a good positional player with size and don't worry about the one play. I would wish you guys luck but your next game is against us, so I'll offer it to you after Wed. Can I offer a complimentary "Rangers suck" instead?

Well I would have to say I disagree with the Coach and Manager on the scoring issue. I also agree with all the trade talk. We already saw this team succeed. And what were they doing right?

AGGRESSION!

They were extremely aggresive and attacked the other team. It was like a Football Blitz.

Now I see them hanging back and out numbered in the battles for the puck. We saw just a little bit of that aggression at end of the third against Boston. And they had several quality scoring chances and scored on the power-play.

I don't know what is wrong now. Loss of confidence, too much respect of the opposition, over-coaching...

We already have the players that can do some damage. Just play aggressive!

Kevin T.

Now that Mark Recchi is on waivers, it might not be such a bad idea to try and pick him up. His salary would be all of 850,000 a year which is nothing when the Islanders have 7.5 million in cap space, and he might spark something. Put him on a line with Comrie and Satan and maybe something will come out of him.

Recchi will not last until the Islanders...someone will take him before then. Wouldn't be a horrible idea, but for whatever reason he's only managed to pot two goals skating with the likes of Crosby and Malkin, so I don't know if he would help, or simply compound the scoring slump here skating with the likes of Comrie and Vasicek. Maybe he just needs a change of scenery, or maybe age has caught up with him and he's lost a step. But either way, as I said, I can't possibly see him making it past teams with preference before the Isles that are looking for veteran leadership or secondary scoring..

I think taking a flier on Recchi is a fine idea, since he only costs money, fits our team concept, and would have something to prove.

In other news, the Isles' web site says that the forward lines have gone back to what they were at the beginning of the year:

Fedotenko - Comrie - Guerin
Tambellini - Vasicek - Satan
First Base - Sillinger - Hunter
Simon - Park - Bergenheim

I'm not one of those chicken little types insisting the sky is falling on the whole Islanders' season, but this legitimately pisses me off. First of all, what's the point in tinkering with the lines if you're just putting them back right away? It doesn't make any sense. Secondly, I know many people think my dislike of "First Base" Hilbert borders on psychotic personal hatred, but I'm sick and tired of watching him continue to get second chances from the coaching staff. Tambellini, Walter, Bergenheim, and MAB were all either benched or sent back to the AHL for infractions far less than what Hilbert has done in consistently thwarting any offensive chances (not to mention Simon, who looks lost out there since he came back from suspension). It reeks of a double standard to me, and the team really needs to decide its future direction. We can't muck around in no-man's land praying for the 8th seed every single year. We need to commit to a plan and FOLLOW IT TO THE LETTER. If you don't think the kids are worth getting playing time, trade them for someone who is. I reiterate my previous stance that getting a few above-average scorers will do wonders for this team far beyond what a big bang acquisition like St. Louis would do. We got Czerkawski for a minor prospect back in the day, and there have been plenty of other instances where low-profile moves have done the trick. Blind loyalty to players and a stubborn refusal to play the kids are the only real faults I see in Ted Nolan's coaching style. I think Ben Walter could easily be one of those above-average scorers we need, and I think he's far better than Tambellini. Walter, Ryder, and Recchi may be all this team needs, especially if they replace Simon, First Base, and Tambellini (he seriously looks to me like what baseball people call a AAAA player, too good for AAA but not good enough to consistently cut it in the majors). Out of those 3 guys, only Ryder would actually cost us anything, and you're looking at a low risk-high reward scenario. I'd also kick the tires on a vastly under-performing Jonathan Cheechoo in San Jose, as Piero suggested (and I seconded) earlier.

The Islanders need to get back to what got them here in the first place: balanced attack, creating havoc in front of the net, and controlling the neutral zone. They need to concentrate on crashing the goaltender and forcing him to make the 2nd and 3rd save, which I really haven't seen consistently in weeks. Teams have scouted us and see what got us to our fast start, and lately the Islanders have gone for low-percentage plays and perimeter shots because of other teams' adaptations. They need to get back to basics and find a way to counteract teams' current neutralization of DP. If you noticed in the Ranger game, for example, they dumped pucks softly in the corner, where DP couldn't play it, either due to the trapezoid or the risk of giving up an easy goal if he gets caught. We have a good team and, more importantly, the guys play for each other. We can't under-estimate that. However, the team needs to get back to its roots and, if the current formula isn't working, start auditioning some complementary pieces.

The Isles are in a Catch-22 situation. They need goal scorers but there aren't many goal scorers who'd want to come here. If I was Teemu Selanne for example, would I want to play in an aging arena surrounded by parking spaces & not much more, get hounded by autograph seekers every day & have the pressure of being the "go-to" guy playing in front of 9,000 people during the week?

The Isles haven't had a "sniper" since Palffy got traded and haven't had a "superstar" since arguably Pierre Turgeon or Pat LaFontaine. It's not like the opportunities weren't there, (drafting DP over Heatley & Gaborik, trading Spezza's rights + Chara for Yashin, etc.). However, right now, they're stuck with having limited trade bait, semi-talented prospects and difficult decisions with what to do with their draft picks in 2008 & 2009 in what's stacking up to be deep drafts. If anything, those picks are the Isles strongest bargaining chips but do you give up potential franchise players for a short term fix? Do you roll the dice & pick up a Hossa for Satan, Tamby & the 2008 pick & hope Marian doesn't bolt the first opportunity he gets? Or do you hold on to the picks & hope they don't turn up like Tim Connolly or Taylor Pyatt?

Good luck Garth. This season will show if you have icewater in your veins & if you're fit to be the GM. The last thing the Isles need is Maloney, Part II.

Jaffe and Rose made a point last night that I am seriously thinking has something to do with the lack of scoring: scouting. If the Isles play what every commentator has called a "simple" system, does it just take a little film time to figure out how to crack that system? Without any truly dynamic offensive players playing within that system to keep people on their toes, does it just become a game of cat (opponent) and mouse (Isles)?

Seems like this may have more to do with it than anyone wants to admit. It is great if Nolan is getting the most out of his players, but if the other team has us figured out that quickly, maybe the system needs to be a little more dynamic?

Kevin T ...

You nailed it right on the head ... AGGRESSION! ...

The Isles were a puck attacking team. They smothered the other team's defense, didn't give room to the opposition and seemed to have their sticks in the way of the opponent's passing lanes. Those factors turned into high probability goal scoring opportunities.

I'm not sure if that style wore them down and they just can't maintain that kind of attack for 60 minutes with all the 3 games in 4 nights schedule ... or as a team they just lost their way in playing that kind of system.

Even though he was around for only 2 full games, I think the Isles also miss Sim more than they or we as fans realized.