Sat 7 Oct 2006
As a Met fan, I can honestly say that I did NOT want to see a Subway series. I really thought that the Yankees could beat us again. I did not want to see that happen. The many Yankee fans were extremely arrogant. They thought they would walk through the league and already had the canyon of heroes parade all made up.
Well - guess what Yankee fans - spending $200 million a year does NOT equal a WINNER! Have a great off-season and watch my METS do it.
Sat 7 Oct 2006
Thee Isles head to the shark tank to face Thornton, Cheechoo, and the rest of the San Jose Sharks tonight. 
The team hopes that the 3rd period of Thursday’s game is what they look like, as opposed to the first two periods.
Kozlov looked well in his first Islander matchup, scoring twice. I am hoping that Yash, who had a good game on Thursday, playing well in all three zones, repeats that performance. Of course, we would like to see some goals as well.
I heard from the pre-game skate that is played on Islanders TV, that Ricky does well at the tank, and his record and goals against average is vastly improved the game after a bummer-like performance.
Containing the top like of Bell - Cheechoo and Thornton will be the primary responsibility of the Islanders defense. 10 of the 13 penalties were to the defense and the goaltender. This did not allow the forwards to mesh together. When the team stayed out of the sin bin in period 3, the team jelled a bit better. They must stay focused and hard-nosed, as they did in the last three games of the pre-season.
Going to get some rest before the 10:30 game tonight. Let’s get the team to 1-1 tonight! Go get ‘em!
Gary
Fri 6 Oct 2006
I did go to sleep during the second period (I was really tired last night), but kept waking up to that damn howl!
I hate that thing! It makes the Woooooo sound at the Coliseum sound tame.
We were down 6-1 and then lost 6-3 in Glendale last night.
It really did not look so bad to start the game. Miro scoring just 105 seconds into the game. I really thought we would take the same attitude that we had in the last 3 preseason games, and incorporate that into this game.
However, Phoenix had other ideas.
The Isles were doing EXACTLY what they did at the start of the 05-06 season. They enjoyed a great deal of time in the SIN BIN. 5 on 3’s are not going to give your offense work. Two of the six that Ricky gave up were off Islander defensemen. One off Sean Hill and one off Brendan Witt.
Guys, that is NOT the way to endear yourselves to us!
Other miscues by the defense led to other Phoenix goals. And by the mid way point of the game, it was 6-1.
Mike Dunham was getting ready to go in, when Ricky basically told his coach and Dunham, that he wasnt going anywhere. Kind of a bold statement to make, but finished the period not letting in any more goals. Dunham held a clean sheet for the 3rd period.
The Isles were severly OUTSHOT (46-29, I believe). Mostly due to the power plays that Phoenix had. They (Coyotes) took advantage and put the Isles down early. The third period was a much better frame for the Isles. They played positionally better, had a much improved puck possession, got two goals from newcomer Viktor Kozlov, but just ended up to be window dressing.
Teams in the Sterling era would probably have caved in under a rock after a 6-1 deficit. Ted Nolan’s team did not. They did play better in the third, and you have to take a positive out of this game, that would be it.
Yashin played a better game than in the past seasons. He played in all the zones. He did not set the world on fire, but he did not look lost out there. Hope it improves.
The Isles now go onto San Jose to face Cheechoo, Thornton and the rest of the San Jose Sharks. They (SJ) are expected to be a top team in the West, so Nolan and his staff have to ensure that the team is firing on all cylinders.
Let’s hope that the defense is not just marginally better, they better be a stone WALL. The D looks more like the 05-06 Isles, than the expected 06-07 squad. A IMPROVEMENT is a MUST!
Great to hear Jiggs on the broadcast! He is filling in for Howie Rose, who is covering those METS! Billy Jaffe did a nice job last night. I liked his reporting for OLN last year, and I think he will mesh well with Howie when he returns.
Onto San Jose!
Thu 5 Oct 2006
The stage is set:
Glendale, Arizona. NYI @ PHO. The opening night for our boys in blue, and the second opening night game as coach for one Wayne Gretzky. What do we see happening….
Should be an even match. The Yotes have a balanced team, with some strong men on D, protecting Cujo in net. We know that this team will be disciplined as we would expect with the Great One at the helm. The Isles, as the road team, are going to have to make a presence known, and let it be known early. They have to bruise it up a little, to let them know that they will NOT be a pushover.
The top line of Yash/Sillinger/Kozlov need to make their presence known from the get go. If they play like they played against the Rangers, then they should do fine. Get all four lines going.
Campy out - Chirs Campoli the 2nd year defenseman is out 2-4 weeks with a shifty groin. Bruno Gervais should take his spot in the lineup. Campoli made a name for himself on this team with a great start, including a goal on his first shot in his first game in Buffalo last season. Maybe Bruno can do the same.
Ricky - just play your game mate! All will sort itself out in the end.
Teddy - psyche these boys up. Make them plow through brick walls. They will win for you! Make the fans proud. The rest of the league, the media, everyone else, basically, does not think we can stand up to the league and thus will falter at the bottom. We know that your teams play hard and are there every night. If we see that, we respect you even more. It was so bad last season, that some members of my seating section thought that Chi Chi Sterling should be the coach! (Right Keith?)
Take a nap Islander fans, we need to stay up late and watch this happening!
Let’s Go Islanders!
Wed 4 Oct 2006
LET’S GO METS!
Wed 4 Oct 2006
Watching road games at home is always nice, when I am in my great room. I have a 48″ wide screen (my pride and joy), enabling me to enjoy my game anywhere in the room.
The unfortunate part is that when I get ‘comfortable’ I will immediately fall asleep. Working and commuting is about 13+ hours of my day. It just hits me like a ton of bricks, and unfortunately, I will lose my opportunity to take in the show I am watching.
That is what makes the first four games of the season tough for me.
The games start at 10:00 or 10:30 PM. It is the ONLY time this season, that the Isles will be playing out west. After these first four games, the lates time that a game starts will be at 8:30 PM (Nov 15 @ Dallas). The rest of the year, we will be on Eastern time.
The first four games will feature:
It will be hard, but I will try to stay awake for these games. This trip is real important for a few reasons:
I have ordered my Center Ice package. I am ready to watch hockey! THANK GOD!
BTW - NY Hockey Report show on the internet tonight at 8:05 Eastern. No Joe Mac (he can not handle me now!!!!!) So Derek and I will talk about the start of the season, and review the other two divisions in the West.
Well - as far as the LOVE TRAIN is concerned - thanks to my buddy Nick (alias WEBB20) on the NY Islanders Country Message Board, I had to put this picture on…
I am on board the Islanders LOVE TRAIN, are you? If you are an Isles fan - get on - cause believe me we will DO BETTER THAN THE MEDIA HACKS THINK WE WILL. AND WHEN WE DO - REMEMBER WHO PREDICTED US WHERE THEY DID, AND LET THEM KNOW!
I just wanted to list the lyrics from that great O’Jay’s song. C’mon Islander fans, please start singing…..
People all over the world (everybody)
Join hands (join)
Start a love train, love train
People all over the world (all the world, now)
Join hands (love ride)
Start a love train (love ride), love train
See ya!
Gary
Tue 3 Oct 2006
Well, the roster that Mr. Nolan goes to war with is out. Pretty interesting that he is going with 8 D to start. Let’s take a look at it…
GOALIES:
Writing in Ricky will be done for the next 15. Let’s see that is about 5,475 days that he will be on the Islanders Roster. The more interesting hitch was the backup. Garth Snow as the GM, did a former roommate a favor, and gave him a tryout contract for the Isles. Mike Dunham, not only got his tryout, but got a contract for this season, and subsequently, made the team. Wade Dubielewicz, the top netminder at Bridgeport is once again sent down. I really thought that “Doobie” should have the chance to be up with the big club. He deserved it. Oh well. I have no problems with Dunham, he is a capable backup, but why did Dubie not even get a speckle of a chance? Eh, Garth?
DEFENSE:
Teddy is carrying eight right now. I know that Hill has a lacerated hand, and they are taking their time with it, making sure that it heals 100% before putting him back on the ice. Not sure whether it is right to keep Bruno on the squad, if he is sitting on the bench. At his situation, he should be playing 25-30 minutes a night. He needs the ice time. Unless someone else is not…??? I think this is the most improved part of this team right now. Having Witt and healthy bodies in Hill and Zhitnik will make this group a stronger and more physical bunch. Poti will be key to their success. As much as Joe McDonald (my NYHR colleague) can not stand him, I think that he has a LOT to prove, and wants to do it in the backyard to Manhattan. Hopefully, he will give Joe a real PoopBurger to eat when the season is completed. Would like to see Martinek have a breakout, healthy season, and see Campoli improve this season as much as he did in his rookie campaign.
FORWARDS:
From the sounds of things right now - this seems to be the line pairings:
Kozlov/Sillinger/Yashin
Hunter/York/Satan
Tambellini/Bates/Blake
Simon/Park/Asham
I think Sillinger will be a good fit for Yash. He is a good passer, and a good face off man. This will allow 79 to focus more on the offensive side. Being the center has more defensive responsilbilities. Not that he cant hack it, but right now - we need a scorer. He looked much better and happier than last season. Let’s hope that he continues… Keeping York with Trent and Miro is a good deal. Bates and Blake do well; it is just going to be the ‘who will hog the puck longer’ contest. That will keep Keith real happy (or at least he will have many of the same chants to do…RRRRRRRRRRR.). I like the Park acquisition. Asham had a nice camp as well, and Simon, a fellow first nation man, as his coach, will go through fire and brimstone for his coach. This lineup will really allow four ‘functioning’ lines to roll. This will enable Nolan to keep bodies fresh in crunch time.
OVERALL ASPECT:
Is it just me, or did the passion and energy of this team look better than it has in years? The Nolan effect is already working its magic. The media’s whipping boy team, may not be as bad as EVERYONE predicted. Did this team have a ‘circus like’ atmosphere in the summertime? Of course it did. We Islander fans are used to it. Just have it roll off the shoulders and move on. As I have been saying for months, just win, and everything else is a memory. They gave NO chance to the Canes. I keep coming back to that, because it is a FACT.
48 hours + till the start of 06-07 for the Blue and Orange. I am excitied. Many are. Especially if we do better than the so called ‘experts’ predict. I just love to push this back in their collective faces.
Game on!
Gary
