The Islanders have done their best to shroud the issues surrounding goaltender Rick DiPietro’s health in mystery, obfuscation and misdirection. They issued a statement last night that was like a skeleton picked clean of any meat by buzzards.
“Lower body injury”… “unrelated to previous injuries”…“day-to-day pending assessment and treatment.”
I’d ask them to define what they mean by “unrelated to previous injuries,” but trying to get a straight answer is like trying to see Major Major in “Catch-22.” You only can go in to see him when he’s out.
Despite the news blackout, when you listen to little snippets here and there from players and coaches, there’s a feeling the Islanders are battening the hatches and preparing for the worst in terms of the length of DiPietro’s absence. Maybe it’s just a case of being prudent.
But DiPietro is almost five months removed from arthroscopic right knee surgery and has worked hard to get in shape in time to play this entire season. Yet, something prevented him from starting the opener and something led to his removal after one period on Saturday and seven periods total this season. And this is a guy who started 33 of the first 35 games last season when he was coming back from hip surgery.
Call it speculation on my part if you like, but something – “unrelated” in what sense to his previous knee surgery? – has stopped DiPietro from playing twice in a span of 17 days. Refer back to the concussions he suffered 12 days apart two seasons ago. Those injuries were unrelated to his current injury physically, but not in the way they were handled.
You remember the term used to describe DiPietro’s head injury – “general body soreness.” That was the classic dodge of all time. Of course, it fooled no one, and in the end, the Islanders looked foolish when DiPietro suffered a repeat of the same injury after four games. Those concussions were “unrelated” in the sense that they occurred on two separate occasions.
But hey, what do I know? Maybe DiPietro has a minor bump/bruise/paper cut, and he’ll be back in goal in a game or three.
Can’t wait until “further information is available,” as the Islanders’ statement said. I just hope it’s not further from the truth.
ISLES FILES: With all the focus on DiPietro’s injury, there was no room in today’s newspaper for a few other interesting comments following the Islanders’ 4-2 loss to the Rangers. So, I’ll address them here.
After four straight losses, coach Scott Gordon was asked if the Islanders need to see something tangible in the form of a win to maintain their effort in the new system: “Just because you don’t have success with what we’re doing now doesn’t mean we’re going to have success doing anything else,” Gordon said. “There wasn’t a lot of success last year. The first half of the season, I’ve been told the team came out pretty strong, but a lot of the success was due to Ricky’s goaltending, too. The way I look at that is we’re trying to move in a direction, not just for this year, but for down the road. We have to create some habits that are our work ethic and our way of playing that are more consistently like what we saw against Carolina [with a franchise-record 60 shots on goal].”
Rookie Kyle Okposo on the 11 penalties taken by the Isles last night: “We’ve taken some penalties we probably shouldn’t have. You can say it’s the refs’ fault, but it’s not. We’ve got to control our sticks and keep our heads.” That statement is a reflection of Gordon’s message to the team, which is to stop yapping at the refs and maybe gain a little respect that way.
Bill Guerin on the decline in the Islanders’ play in the last 30 minutes against the Rangers: “I don’t think it was Rangers pressure. They played a good game, but if we don’t stay in our system, if we have one guy going off on his own page, it’s going to screw things up. From there, everybody feels like they’re just chasing and you just waste energy and everybody’s out of position. We came away from our gameplan. It’s not that we can’t do it. We’re missing discipline in our system, and we’re missing discipline by going to the penalty box all the time. If we correct those two things, we’ll do much better. Those are fixable things.”
Comments (22)
The Islanders are a terrible team. They just are, even when healthy. And you guys are saying that you are "rebuilding". With what? Okposo? He's the only credible young player on the roster. Look at these scrubs they are digging up from other AHL rosters like Pock, Skinner, Thompson. Are we supposed to be impressed with 24 year old tweeners like Nielsen and Tambellini? And Bergenheim? Nice average player capable maybe of scoring what? 15, 16 golas a year? Ohhhhhh. What a player! What else is there? The roster is full of garbage, both young and old. And you know it!!!!
We are last in the league and have only two wins. I say spend all our time flooding Nassau County with complaints to push the new building plans along instead of spending countless minutes complaining about how horrible the team is. Though there are other reasons high profile players do not want to be an Islander, the building is a huge one.
At least we can be productive as fans during this mess of a time, especially since there has already been a commitment to the youth movement - of which I whole heartedly agree with. This season is not going to be glamorous in any way and I don't expect it to be. Booing young players and making the veterans feel like "What the hell am I doing here?" isn't going to help matters at all. Saying Garth Snow is a horrible GM when there's not much to sell higher profile players on is a bit unfair. What he's doing is sparing us extreme mediocrity of the past how many seasons by trying this youth movement.
Just like before the team was sold to Wang, I remember taking part in the protest game where chants of "SMG SET US FREE" rang out. One fan can't make a difference, but thousands of fans publicly pointing the people out (i.e. Nassau County) for dragging their feet on an issue that has been talked about for over 10 years now is downright unacceptable.
Let's focus on something other than how bad our beloved team is, how horrible management is, and start publicly pressuring those than can actually make a difference. Let's maybe show players there is a fan base waiting for them, and that we still care. I feel we have more power than we realize.
Greg, you are the islanders beat writer and you never have anything good to say about the islanders. Its always about how poor the islanders injury policy is or things like "dig in for the long haul." Why not write about something positive, like the islanders improvement in their new "overspeed" system, or our franchise players first goal of the season. You said it yourself Greg, with all the focus on DiPietro's injury in Newsday, there was no room for other islander news. Im tired of reading how much you dislike the Islanders. Either start covering the Rangers or cover the good aspects of this new Islander approach. No one wants to listen to you bash the isles, especially in their very own hometown newspaper. At least Steve Zipay covers his team the right way.
Hey 21, are you an idiot? Are you blind? What possible positive coverage are you suggesting be spun for this pathetic excuse for a hockey club? What news other than bad is there?
Its taken years for logan start writing it like it is for this team, and you want to go back to the "Everything's Great Around Here" stories?
Get your head out of your ass and smell the coffee. This team is as bad as they get, worse even than the Pittsburgh Pirates. If you can't see or admit that then go find something else to do, because you fail at being a hockey fan.
Well said! My 4 year old daughter is more excited to watch this team then i am. Just awful! Let’s hope they can turn this around but i suspect that what we see is what we are going to get. They have been taking too many penalties for 4 years now. I don't even know what to say anymore.
Kudos again Greg!
When they announced a lower body injury for DiPietro that was a "new" injury unrelated to previous injuries, did they think it would make all of us feel better???
What is going on that this kid is always injured? Who gets the blame? Rick himself, the medical staff....
Just another side show....
Isles21, Greg prints so many "cup is half full" articles that sometimes I wonder if he has gotten too close to the Isles management. I definately don't think he is spreading dooms-day stories on the Islanders.
As far as everyone saying the team is sucking, I got down on the team like everyone else. But I didn't realize the Defensemen injuries were that bad. Once the other teams realizes your most of your top 4 Defense, they are looking to pad their stats.
I found the last two games quite encouraging. Joey MacDonald is a solid goalie. A few mistakes here and there, but he is a dependable ABC goalie that any team would love to have.
Okposo and Thompson have stepped up and taken on the challenge. The team is starting a get on the same page for the new system Gordon is teaching.
As the team matures don't expect to see the 60 shots per game anymore. They will start to hold on to the puck longer and setup better plays.
Kevin T.
I emailed this to Mark Hermann in response to his article today.........
I have been a fan since 72.........season ticket holder in section 205 since 1997 and I can tell you that last night was a low point from a fan standpoint. The building has been taken over by Ranger fans, who frankly would have been scared to show up in a Rangers jersey in the 80's. I can't fathom Isles season ticket holders who sell their tickets to Ranger fans. This franchise has no fan base left and frankly I wouldn't blame Wang one bit for moving this team. The reality is that Isles fans were sold out by Tom Gulotta and the Republican adminstration who gave a sweetheart deal to SMG which makes it impossible for Wang to make any money, and this team can't get legit free agents, unless they are at the twilight of their careers. Just look at the difference between the Isles and Rangers. We get Guerin and Weight, they get Gomez and Drury.
I have told Islander officials that if the building deal does not go through, I think Wang should move the team. I would rather root for my team long distance in an economic situation where they have a chance to win than to continue to endure what is in effect a minor league franchise under the current situation. As an Islander fan, last night was embarressing. Even when the game was tight, Islander fans were virtually silent while the Ranger fans were boisterous. There is simply no Islander pride left in the fans...........and by the way - I have nothing but admiration for the effort the team is putting forth. It can't be easy to play in a half empty building, and endure the visiting team getting louder cheers than you do.
It's sad but true, the Isles once fantastic run as the only professional franchise on Long Island is probably over.
Thanks for the little coverage that is left on our once proud Islander team.
Steady-
You ready to admit DiPeitro is nothing more that a decent goalie, at best?
Or will it take more games of watching Lundqvuist dominate to help change your mind?
(Just curious to see if the first 10 games have changed anything from about 9 months ago when we last talked)
Man, I agree with you Islander fans. Your team is flat out bad. There are bad teams out there that are young and you can tell that they have a bright future. Your team isn't one of them. There is nothing to be excited about from an Islander standpoint. Okposo? I mean, he may be good, he may not. Doesn't make anyone forget the kid Mueller that the Isles overpassed to take him. The Isles are trying to say they are rebuilding. What exactly are they rebuilding? The Isles have been a shipwreck for two decades. Do shipwrecks rebuild? Man, if Islander fans showed the slightest bit of loyalty, I would feel bad for you. But, as we know, the Isles have the least supportive fans in the league as attendance figures prove on a year to year basis. I agree with Mark Herrman... what would the Isles do without the 3-4 Ranger games at the Mausoleum every year? Sad, just sad.
I can live with a young team that's trying to rebuild and I understand there are going to be growing pains, but these young players aren't that young in the grand scheme of things (they have all been playing hockey for at least 15 years) and I absolutely can't stand some of the things I'm seeing. 3 high sticking penalties in a game isn't lazy, its not stupid, it's something you just can't do. Keep your stick down unless you are attempting to do a stick lift, and if you try a stick lift, make sure you have enough control that if you miss the stick you won't smack the guy in the face with your blade. However, Bergenheim grabbing the jersey of Zherdev for absolutely no reason when all Zherdev was going to do was touch the puck and be called for a penalty is absolute bull----. Instead of the islanders going on the powerplay it went 4 on 4 and Gomez made it 3-1 and put the game out of reach. Campoli has the puck in his own zone, doesn't realize its 4 on 4, thinks it's a penalty kill, and stupidly throws the puck down the ice for icing.
Things like this I can blame the coach for. Bergenheim shouldn't have seen the ice for the rest of the game after he grabbed Zherdev's jersey. In fact, not only did he play almost every other shift after that penalty, he took one of those high sticking penalties I was talking about before, and it was a 4 minute penalty with 8 minutes left.
Is this team good enough to win on a consistent basis? Of course not. But they are good enough to show up and play with any team in the league on any given night, as they showed by outplaying the rangers at various points in the game and getting good chances they couldn't bury. I can live with my team having less talent but fighting hard, playing smart, and trying to put themselves in a position to win, but taking this many stupid penalties and making mistakes like they are is just unacceptable, and that's on nobody but the coach and the players themselves. It's not Snow's, Wang's or even Nassau County's fault that Bergenheim severly lowered our chances of winning the game last night.
Guerin.....
"We’re missing discipline in our system, and we’re missing discipline by going to the penalty box all the time."
Uh, Captain? Bill? Mr. Guerin?
Easy with the "we" stuff about going to the penalty box all the time?
Counting the double minor Bergenheim got called for that was your penalty, you had 10 minutes in the THIRD PERIOD.
And two of those minutes were for a minor in the OFFENSIVE ZONE on a POWER PLAY.
Clean it up boys!!!
I believe they showed on the replay that it wasn't Bergenheim's stick that hit the Ranger player to draw the 4 min. penalty, but he got called for it. The jersey pull on Zherdev was stupid though.
We own you.Last night was like a Ranger home game.It's gonna be a long winter rooting for the Isles.But hey,you still have those great memories from a quarter of a century ago!
Game Tonight was same old.....Played hard, but the talent is not there...Again some players showed up and some did not.
More dumb penalties by Guerin and Bergy.
KO and Hunter had good games.
Comrie should be traded ASAP....He is a horrible influence on the team. He is a pretty boy....He is exaclty what is wrong with this franchise.....FIRE SNOW TODAY !!!
p.s See Gordon on the Bench...what a mope .... Get rid of this guy asap.
p.s.s The Rags are a good team, but no where near a top tier. They will fade once Lundquist goes into his mid season tail spin.
Hey Wanger and Snow.....Whenever you finally get around to getting a "How to run a hockey team 101" handbook.....Read the part of getting an enforcer so EVERY G^D DARN GAME one of our kids does not get run.......ABOSLUTELY EMBARASSING !
SELL THE TEAM WANGER.....FIRE SNOW !!! FIRE GORDON.....
***Sam Rosen ...Get a nose job....oh and DP did not play. Put DP on the Rags team and he is an all Star every year.
***Rags Rule....You were out palyed for two periods by an AHL team with no mgmt.....You are proud of that ?? Go read the article in the NY POST...They abuse the Rags !
YAWNNN!!! Same ole same ole ....
Just catching up with the blog .... I haven't missed much. We have the same team with some new faces... I don't know what any of us expects ... DP comes up lame .... again this season ... and the Isles are half a team when he's not healthy... Joe Mac is a good backup ... but we can't count on him to hold back a tidal wave when the flood gates open like DP has done in the past.
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Greg ... I don't know whether to buy you a beer or take some steps away to avoid the lightning bolt ... I guess the frustration of covering this team is starting to wear on you... I understand your frustration ... when I worked for Fox as a stats / research guy and had to get info on Lindros from the Flyers Mike Berger of the NHL told me I'd have better luck finding a frozen lake in the Sahara then prying any info from their media relations guy.... BTW ... the Flyers are a lot more forthcoming about injuries now ... they pretty much gave a full disclosure injury report on Briere ... TMI infact.
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My take on the injury policy ..... Who cares? I think it's silly that Snow and the Isles are so tight lipped about the injuries ... first of all ... if a team really wants to find out the nature of a player's injury .... they will keep poking and proding when a player returns to look for the weak spot .... so which is worse? Infact ... if a Ref knows about a player's recent injury and sees that player targeted in that specific area ... will not the ref try to protect that player and assess an intent to injure penalty? Ehhhhh ... I'm done with this topic .... ridiculous.
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Before the season started I felt the Isles were to good to finish last or close to the bottom because DP was going to keep the Isles in most games .... however ... without DP .... the Isles are at great odds to be contenders in the Taveres sweepsteaks .... it might be the best thing for them ... and even JT will not bring the Isles to the promised land ... look at the Pens ... with all that star power they still have work at it to be competitive ... and they'll have to worry about the cap to keep the team together .... they lost some good players this summer .... very very hard to maintain a good team for any stretch of time ... follow the model of the Redwings ... they have a formula that works. Pens will be one of the top teams for a while ... but keeping it all together will be key.
The key to the Isles?? Don't shoot for mediocrity ... play within your means and try really hard ... Picking up players that only vault them to the middle of the pack does nothing ... they've tried that model for the last 7 seasons .... the pain of finishing at the bottom with a team that tries to improve and compete every night still comes with a reward ... a shot at top draft pick... not the way I want to see the Isles get better .... but honestly ... they don't have any guns.
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Snow?? Well ... he's the poster boy for proof that learning on the job .... any job ... just doesn't work and ends in disaster. He needed to work as an "ass"istant first. Wang?? Perpetual cluelessness ... I have that image of him thumbing through the draft guide looking dumbfounded while sitting at the draft table burned into my head .... God help me.
im not saying the islanders are a good team, they are rebuilding and we all know this year is not going to be a successful one. Its just not fair to islander fans that everyday opening the sports section of Newsday just to hear about the injury policy or how no free agents want to come to long island
greg has to watch every miserable game--cut him some slack.
this team is boring beyond belief. we need a few aveery types i hate to admit
Might be true, isles21. I only read what's on the blog page. I don't get their paper where i live.
Kevin T.
Will you all stop whining already? We get it. The Islanders are bad. They dont even have that many good prospects. But what do you want them to do? You have to start somewhere. This Steady guy wants to fire all of the GMs and Coaches in the NY metropolitan area! Suck it up, this year is going to be terrible but next year will be better and they year after they will make the playoffs. And then they will be competing for the Cup.In the words of Axel Rose, All we need is a little patience
To the moron who posted above as Rangers Rule... get a life and go somewhere else. The fact that you think your "quarter century" line is clever, and something that we haven't heard about ten thousand times before, demonstrates just what an imbecile you actually are. Frankly, if the Islanders were to move off of the Island tomorrow, I would take great comfort in knowing that I was there to grow up with one of the greatest teams to ever play professional sports - bar none. Too bad you Ranger fans will never come close to knowing what that feels like.
To Rangers Rule, how long did it take you to come up with that "quarter century" line. I hope you've enjoyed your 1 cup in the last 68 years.