My mother would say:

If you don’t have anything nice to say about something, don’t say anything at all…

Other than nice for Jesse to get a goal – that’s about it.

On to the Rangers tonight!  Big two games – move the bad game away – and concentrating on stealing two points from the Blueshirts, like they did last month.

Will comment more tomorrow.

Posted under Islanders 09-10

Schedule maker on some serious cabbage….

Two games in 4 days – yea…

Weight out again with the flu. The captain has missed 5 out of 10 games. This is not what you want out of your leader. I am not on him – but this team needs more of his presence. I am sure that he has been the good locker room man. I do not doubt that in the least.

Gervais gets to play at ‘home’ tonight – I am sure that he was bummed when he was still in the dog house.

Same lines playing tonight as was the other evening against the Caps. Just have to do a 180 degree turn and be the aggressor. Just do what the did on Saturday and hope none of the bad breaks happen, and a chance is theirs.

As Scott Gordon said after the game on Saturday – this team needs to make the most of the chances it gets. Young teams need to learn how to do that. They have the talent level – just execute.

Will write a little about the game tomorrow.

Posted under Islanders 09-10

I am so looking forward to going to a game, and not having to do ANYTHING but WATCH!

What a feeling.

I know that the Sound Tigers set all sorts of club records for wins, points, etc. But to be honest – I am not totally up to date with the stats. I know that Trevor Smith had 30 goals to lead the club, and Mike Iggluden had 20 and lead the team in points.

Nathan Lawson is one of the best goaltenders in the A this year, and Peter Mannino will be there as well. Both may see some significant action. The team also will get KO for the first two games, and Hillen will be with the Tigers for the full run. DiBenedetto and Katic may see some time, as they are now in the professional ranks. Roben Figren also may get a call or two.

I will be doing a REAL VIEW FROM SECTION 317 tomorrow night, and blog live from the seats.

If you do not have tickets, and do not want to sit home and watch the Yanks and Mets get tanked in their new Billion dollar homes,, come to the Coliseum. Top ticket is $29… How can you beat that. I just hate that I actually have to pay to park, but if that is the worst problem I have, I can deal with it. Go TIGERS!

Posted under Sound Tigers

As the Blog Box was not available today, I had to actually do a REAL VIEW FROM SECTION 317.

And we saw a good game… A little scary at the end, but nevertheless, a 4 point weekend for the boys.

The things that came out of the weekend.

1. The Isles are capable and definitely have the ability toplay against different styles of teams, and systems. In this weekend, we encountered a Devils team with outstanding skill levels. They crashed and crashed again, and were able to remove the best goaltender in the world out of his net. In the case of Phoenix, a similar looking team as their opponent, they were able to beat them to pucks, and win the battles in front of the goaltender.

2. The re-emergence of Jeff Tambellini. Hey Jeff – glad to have you back! He looks so comfortable with the puck and is crashing the net with strength and confidence.

3. Although Joey Mac has done a yeoman like job – we are seeing the scale sliding more and more to Yann Danis. He has not only made major strides on his play, but has taken that play to whole new level.

4. The forwards do not look like young and green, but are playing like solid NHL veterans. Then you get 26 year old Mike Iggluden – who not only come in from a similar system and fit in nicely, but has 3 assists in 2 games. Not only does he fits in, he is a snug a a bug in a rug.

5. The defense is slowly improving game by game – and guys have made tremendous strides. Bruno Gervais, who honestly did not have the best two games this weeknd, has done great with his pairing with Mark Streit. Jack Hillen has taken the Campoli role, and showed great confidence in a very short time. Joe Callahan has stepped up well in the absence of Brendan Witt, and has been solid. Tomas Pock has come back, which has allowed the Isles to send Andy MacDonald back to Bridgeport, and get his 22-25 minutes back; which will help him out.

6. Scott Gordon has got these guys believing that they can take on ANY team, and stay with them with no issues. This will make great inroads for next season, as they move to the next level of their development.

And do NOT tell me that this team should just lose it – in order to secure the first pick in the draft. I, like all of you, would love to see the name Tavares on an Islander jersey. But I want to see this team grow and develop as this season comes to a close. No matter what – the goal is development for ALL players, not just the potential new #91.

Well – the team is NOW on the road for six games, and no home match until the 25th. So the number of entries may be small, but I will make comments as needed.

On the late evening of the 20th, I, and 49 others will get on a bus and make the trek up I81 and head to Ottawa to see our boys take on Chris Campoli, Mike (Tinkerbell) Comrie, and the rest of the Senators. We (the booster Club) are going to be wearing our ORANGE as our trip group is normally called the ORANGE WAVE! I a looking forward to that trip, and I will be writing entries from the road, and after the game.

Have a great week everyone. Way to go boys. Real proud of ya!

Posted under Booster Club, Islanders 08-09

Greetings from a gorgeous Saturday afternoon and what am I doing? Stuck here at the Coliseum seeing the Isles take on the Devils I just wished the day wasnt so gorgeous – - but anyway after being stuck in the office this week, during my accounting close, it is nice to see some live puck action.

Another call up – Mike Iggulden – wearing number 36 is making his NHL debut today. The 26 year old St. Catherine’s Ontario native, and former Red of Cornell, is averaging nearly a point a game in Bridgeport with 58 points and 23 goals in 63 games. If truth goes the same way as other debuts – it should be a nice one for Mike.

Thomas Pock makes his return to the lineup after missing 14 games with a hand injury. Nate Thompson still has not returned, so Jesse Joensuu remains here with the big club. I really did not realize not only his skills, but his size. He is a large young man!

McAmmond, Hunter and Streit are wearing the “A”‘s. No surprise there. As I did not see the last two games.

Amazing that so far, the Isles have missed 438 man-games due to injury or illness. That issuch a depressing statistic.

For NJ – of course, who would you expect to be between the pipes? Marty B – going for shutout number 101 tonight. And is only three victories behind Patrick Roy (551 vs 548) for the most in NHL history. What makes it scary, is that Marty is only 36. Look at some of these top goalies that have played into their late 30′s orearly 40′s. With the pace that he is on – that 551 number could blow up to nearly 700. It will get near the caregory of the 2632 or Ripken or the 56 of Dimaggio or 511 of Cy Young as untouchable.

BTW – my winning streak is at 4, and I AM predicting that it will hit 5 today!

Keys to the game –

1. Get physical early and often. A Brent Sutter team is one that like to establish control and stay that way. You have to get on top of these guys and stay on them. When they feel like you are letting up – get on EVEN MORE!

2. Dont over focus on #9. We all know that he is a KILLER of this team. At the game here a few weeks ago – he was stopped nicely – had 6 shots, but only 1 or 2 were significant. You have to keep your eyes on him, as well as keep him to the outside; as well as show him who is BOSS!

3. Keep throwing pucks to Marty. He may be the best of all time, but he is NOT invincible. Find ways to beat him; get a lot of situations to make him have to move around. His mobility is great, but constant will break ANY goaltender down.

4. Get the PP going. The Devils are very good on the man disadvantage, but any time a PP can work – it can make a difference. And we all know that we are 0 for 18 in the last 6 – this has to change.

I will be live blogging during the game today, so check on the site often for updates.

Posted under Blog Box, Islanders 08-09

Friday night in Phoenix, last night in San Jose – the Isles are outscoring their opponents 4-1 in the last 3 minutes of games.

Maybe we should do like they can in video games like NHL 2K9, and make the games last 5 minute periods instead of 20. We would be leading the league, for sure.

Again – falling into the moral victory category – we got close with one of the best teams in the league, but again – a loss, is a loss, is a loss.

I like Jackman’s play. He can not only play ‘in your face’ (or in the mask) hockey, but has decent hands, and can put the puck in the net. He always looks like he is playing his last shift in the NHL every time he steps onto the ice surface.

Someone asked me today, “…who does Park think he is Ovechkin?”

No – he is not- but I am glad that he is contributing and being a factor.

Once again – this team is getting into games very late in the contest, but just finishing short of getting it done. What they need tomorrow in Edmonton – is playing that desparation type of game throughout the entire contest. I know that is not the right thing to do, but we need to do something different.

Will Ricky be in net tomorrow? I believe that he will play in the next two games. Especially since he will have two days off in between the Alberta contests.

Well – let’s see how we do this week.

Posted under Islanders 08-09

Another rough loss last night, and to make matters worse, the Isles head into Philly, a beaten and hurting team.

Sutton and Thompson are out, Fritz and Callahan replace them.

We are heading to ECHL players real soon, if this keeps up.

I agree with Chris Botta, as much as losing another body is a tough thing, I think Bailey SHOULD play the WJC’s in a few weeks. Confidence up the wazoo, and this is what 18 and 19 year old Canadian’s DREAM of playing in. This should be a no brainer for Garth. Let him go.

I know that in this league, anyone can go into a building and pull off a gem. However, the Isles have lost, I believe, 6 in a row in Philly, and they are playing well of late. This is going to look bad.

Comrie, I hear, is back soon… I see a lot of excitement coming from that comment….

I really think that Joey Mac needs a break tonight. I know that Danis had a meltdown in his one game here, but what the heck, let’s see what he has, against a team like the Flyers. Ricky is 3 weeks away from the lineup, and I think Joey needs a day to contemplate life, and other variables.

Question of the Day? Will Fritz see more than 2 minutes tonight?

I like Comeau first two games back. Energy, and smartness. This is the player that many were expecting to see on the Island, not the one that was invisible in camp and exhibitions.

As far as last night, it was nice to hear the comments of one Mr. Blake. He spent a long time here, and deserved, in some cases, a better fate, but he takes it all in stride and moves forward. Nice job!

We get Pittsburgh on Thursday, and Columbus on Saturday. Tonight’s game is on Versus, which means all of the US can see how horrible we really have been. And also – to have other announcers tell us how rough we look.

Just what I need on a Tuesday evening.

Enjoy it – well – tolerate it.

Posted under Islanders 08-09

Hanging around a hospital waiting room can make you a little nutzo. I figured I would write a little, and take away some of the anxiousness and thoughts. Although my mothers surgery is routine (skin graft), she is 82, and has a history of breathing issues and COPD to boot. So…..

I decided to come up with some thoughts that have been entering my mind after 5 completed games. The thoughts are random, because right now, I am random.

1. Scoring down, goals against up. – this is one of those statistics that if you break it out by 16 (16 * 5 = 80), it makes us look bad. To me, the only numbers I am looking at is 2-3. A lot on the boards are complaining and moaning, but hey, at least we have two wins. Look at Philly (0), Tampa (0), Anaheim (1) and Calgary (1). It is not so bad yet…. Don’t jump off the ship… and you know who you are…

2. What happened to Jon Sim? I guess he is just not used to playing so many games….. (bad joke, I know). He as pushed down to the 4th line, and his T.O.I. has dropped significantly. He is just not being the ‘pest’ that he was in the first two games of the season. Those kind of players will get their games back. It is just usually a ‘brain fart’ and back in the saddle again. I expect him to play much stronger against Dallas (one of his old stomping grounds).

3. The “Streit” Confidence factor. He is not scoring goal yet, but #2 has logged some serious minutes for the Isles this season, and it is just not all offensive situations. He has been seriously relied upon for the PK and major 5 on 5 situations. He has responded ok. With Martinek on the shelf again, he will be needed more and more, until him, Sutton and Campy return to the lineup.

4. Gordon leaving… What dope was on the serious spiked Kool-Aid when they said that they thought the coach was leaving after 3 games. Do they write for a soap opera in their spare time too? Maybe they will come up with a cliff hanger that a player will develop a serious illness an die on the training table too? Scott is here for a while and hopefully, when the guys fully endear to his style of play, the team will be better.

5. Tinkerbell… My name for Mike Comrie. It is not that I do not like the guy, I do… but he seems to try and dodge a play, or try and make a ‘too cute’ effort, to get an “ESPN” like move. You would figure for a player of his age, that has now been on 5 different teams, that maybe, just maybe, he would get the idea that he needs to change his style a little and adapt. Hey Mike, here is an idea, you have a stick, and the object is to take that stick and strike the puck towards a goal. Copying a line from Nike, JUST DO IT!

6. Line changing – going back to Scott for a second, I am glad he is making small changes. I like Ted, but it seemed that he changed lines so much (even from period to period), that I could imagine what hewas like on an extra value line at Burger King. Scott seems to be making changes, and trying to keep them going for a little while, before attempting another change. I know that this is only 5 games into the tenure, and I could be proven wrong a little bit, but I am liking the approach. He is not wavering his philosophy and we will wait and see what happens.

7. DP – I am glad to say that he played a good game on Saturday night. The first goal, I think no one would have stopped. The second… well, but overall, he made some great saves, and kept his team in the battle. He looked good going from side to side, and did not seem to let his injuries get the best of him. Gordon started him slowly, and it seemed that everyone wanted to kill him for that. But once again, I applaud that fact that he stuck to his guns. MacDonald, for the most part, played a yeoman like effort and he seems to be relied upon when needed.

8. Crowds – for the most part, the first two games were loud and almost filled. I am interested to see how much we get this weekend. Dallas on a Thursday night does not scream “WALKUPS!” Carolina on Saturday should be interesting as well. The team is promoting games, and doing what they can, and I know that they are trying. Some people do not believe how much the back office is doing, but I am one that believes they are. Fans are so fickle, and have been hurt so much, that I can totally understand their feelings. However, give it a chance. Rome wasn’t built in a day. It make take more years, but I have the feeling that eventually, it all will work.

9. Blog box – yes, the number of people involved has increased, but I think that is all good. For the first part, a number of them are not able to come every game, so when they can, it gives them the chance to get involved. For others like me, BD, Mike and those who have season tickets, we will be there to report. I have heard that their were some issues with the people they chose. I happen to think that they got a good cross-section of people, opinions, and styles, that encompass some or all Islander fans to some point. I think it is fine, and I am glad that I am being welcomed to this new fraternity.

10. The NHL in general. Interesting how some of the team have started this season. The Rangers with their 5 game win streak, before going 1-2-1 in the last 4. San Jose looks outstanding. Detroit, well, uh, theu are Detroit. And tell me why in the hell, did Chicago yank Savard just 4 games in? What were they thinking? And for Quenville, his crying that he was going to take the year off before coming back to the game? I am glad you are not a politician, Joel!

11. – Sheffield Steelers report. Right now – after 11 regular season games,the Sheffield Steelers of the UK Elite Ice Hockey Leauge sit in 5th place in their 10 team league with a record of 7-2-2 for 16 points. Belfast are top of the table with 20. The Challenge Cup semi-final berth has eluded the Steelers, and the Belfast Giants and the Manchester Phoenix will get the top 2 spots from Group A. Ashley Tait, a UK born star, leads the team with 9 goals and 18 points in 14 total games played.

Wow – this went fast, and I wrote almost 1,200 words on this. It helps when you have time to do this. And my Mom has not even gotten into the surgery yet. I have a few hours, so I may edit this and add some more, or just make another post. I hope you are having a good day.

Posted under Blog Box, Islanders 08-09, Player Analysis, Ramblings

Will not be at the game. I had to work today, as there were things that needed my attention.

What do I expect?

I expect to see Joey Mac again today. He deserves the playing time. Get Ricky to above 100% and then – we can work things out. We have days in-between games, so this would be the time, to be 100% sure, he is ready, whether TSN thinks so or not!

Keys to the game

Keep the in your face aggressiveness going. It was beautiful seeing that intensity and effort on Saturday. I can see why this Ludicrous speed system works so well… (Spaceball references are always good! – Got to figure out how to put the Schwartz into it!)

Keep the “D” playing positionally well (Meyer has done such a nice job of that). Get Hillen back to the form that he had his first two games in the NHL.

The line combo were good Saturday, keep them up.

And keep the legs moving on the PP and the PK. When we slow down – we slip.

Shouls be fun with all the mascots there today. Just wish I was there. However, I will be listening on line. Let’s see 2-1 in our future today!

Posted under Blog Box, Islanders 08-09