Unbrewing the Goalie Controversy

The news that Rick DiPietro has begun skating will likely lead to the intensifying of murmurs among fans and media members that a goaltending controversy will shortly confront the Islanders. The original prognostication of a four-to-six week absence for the All-Star goalie still seems overly optimistic, and I will stick to my initial read of the situation, which said that we are unlikely to see DiPietro return before the new year. But know that any such goaltending controversy upon his return will be purely discussion for the sake of discussion.

I love what Joey MacDonald has done for this team. His performance has been unexpectedly impressive. He has turned a position of doubt into one that inspires confidence. I only hope that he can approach the same standard of play as a backup. For that is what he will be.

As good as MacDonald has been, a healthy, conditioned DiPietro is better. If his athleticism has not been compromised by his injuries, he brings another level to the last line of defense.

And for better or worse, the Islanders have too much invested in DiPietro to undermine his stature. He's still at the point in his career where he expects to best help the team by playing every game—not by splitting time or engaging in some healthy competition for the starting gig.

So if you have climbed all the way aboard the MacDonald train and you're looking for him to get a shot at #1 engineer, I think you'll be disappointed. That being said, the Isles would do well not to immediately throw DiPietro into playing too many consecutive games. Make use of a not-yet rusty MacDonald and give DiPietro a chance to get into real game shape.

---

AOL's NHL FanHouse featured Islanders prospect Rhett Rakhshani in this week's edition of Hi, My Name Is..., which focuses on NHL hopefuls currently playing college hockey.

---

It's a shame to see former Islanders coach Peter Laviolette lose his job as head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes. The dismissal demonstrates exactly how much capital a coach earns by winning the Stanley Cup (2+ seasons). Of course, we also learn that five seasons from now, Laviolette will have earned the right to return as Carolina's head coach, as the man he replaced is now doing. Maybe Laviolette and Paul Maurice can invest in a house that they flip back and forth every few years.

Anyway, this looks like a clear case of an organization looking to shake things up, and finding that firing the coach is the easiest way. I tend to root a little bit for other teams in the NHL for various reasons. Any team coached by Laviolette will be one of those teams.

---

Fantasy Stars Update

Game 21: Islanders 4, Canadiens 3, SO (The O'Byrne Own Goal)
1st Star: Bill Guerin (1 G, 1 A, 1 PPA, +1, 4 SOG, 1 BS)
2nd Star: Doug Weight (2 A, 2 PPA, +1, 1 SOG)
3rd Star: Trent Hunter (1 G, 1 PPG, 3 SOG, 1 BkS, 1 hit)
4th Star: Richard Park (1 G, 1 PPG, 3 SOG, 1 BkS)
5th Star: Josh Bailey (1 A, 1 PPA, 2 SOG, 2 BkS)
Faceoffs (W-L): Weight 4-8, Park 7-10, Hilbert 1-3, Colliton 5-1, Bailey 3-12

Game 22: Penguins 5, Islanders 3 (The Five Unanswered Against)
1st Star: Trent Hunter (1 G, 1 A, 1 PPA, +1, 1 SOG, 1 hit)
2nd Star: Doug Weight (1 G, 1 PPG, 3 SOG, 2 BkS, 2 PIMs)
3rd Star: Bill Guerin (1 G, 1 PPG, 5 SOG, 1 BkS, 2 PIMs, 1 hit)
4th Star: Mark Streit (2 A, 2 PPA, 2 SOG)
5th Star: Josh Bailey (2 A, 1 PPA, 1 SOG, 1 BkS)
Faceoffs (W-L): Weight 8-7, Park 11-13, Colliton 13-5, Bailey 7-3
Notes: Guerin demoted for being a -4; Hunter was the Isles' only plus player.

Game 23: Bruins 7, Islanders 2 (No Reminder Necessary—Or Desired)
1st Star: Nate Thompson (1 G, +1, 3 SOG, 1 BkS, 3 hits)
2nd Star: Mark Streit (1 A, 1 PPA, 1 SOG, 1 BkS, 5 hits)
3rd Star: Andy Hilbert (1 A, 1 PPA, 3 SOG, 1 BkS, 1 hit)
4th Star: Richard Park (1 G, 1 PPG, 2 SOG)
5th Star: Brendan Witt (1 A, 5 PIMs, 3 hits)
Faceoffs (W-L): Weight 6-10, Park 9-5, Thompson 1-3, Colliton 7-3, Bailey 6-8

Game 24: Islanders 4, Senators 2 (IV the Win)
1st Star: Andy Sutton (2 A, +2, 3 SOG, 2 BkS, 2 PIMs, 4 hits)
2nd Star: Freddy Meyer (2 G, 1 A, +2, 3 SOG, 2 BkS, 1 hit)
3rd Star: Andy Hilbert (1 G, 1 A, +2, 4 SOG, 1 hit)
4th Star: Trent Hunter (1 G, 1 A, +2, 3 SOG)
5th Star: Jon Sim (1 A, +2, 4 SOG, 10 PIMs, 1 hit)
Faceoffs (W-L): Weight 7-4, Park 6-6, Colliton 4-5, Bailey 4-8

The Fantasy Star Points Top Ten rankings are now posted at the bottom of the sidebar. Trent Hunter has edged in front of Mark Streit for the lead through 24 games.

Stand Up and Take a Bow

It's the first day of 2008, and I feel like handing out some accolades...

To the Islander players, for finishing 2007 with a strong 5 wins in 6 games, including a convincing one-off road-trip victory in Carolina on New Year's Eve. The only team out of reach at the moment is Ottawa. It's going to be a wild second half.

To Ted Nolan, for instilling in his team the belief that a squad without a top-tier offensive player can reach the top tier of the league.

To Richard Park, for running away with the opportunity to break free of labels and stereotypes that limited the roles he had been given throughout his NHL career. Maybe he won't finish the year on a scoring line, but he continues to prove that he can be one of those guys.

To Wade Dubielewicz, for answering the call and those who doubted his ability to do so (myself included).

To Rick DiPietro, for transforming himself into a leader with presence, deserving of high praise.

To Jeff Tambellini, for being named AHL Player of the Week and making it difficult for people to forget about him.

To John Hynes, Kyle Okposo, Rhett Rakhshani, Tyler Rueggsegger, James vanRiemsdyk, and the rest of the U.S. National Junior Team, for advancing impressively through the preliminary round of the WJC and earning a bye into the semis. Isles prospects Okposo and Rakhshani have been overshadowed on the scoring leaderboard by vanRiemsdyk, Colin Wilson, and Jordan Schroeder (not to mention Isles propsect Robin Figren playing for Sweden) but their line has been recognized numerous times for dominating play and they made significant scoring contributions to Team USA's 4-0 start.

To Brendan Witt, for being the kind of warrior that every good team needs.

To Freddy Meyer and Blake Comeau, for making Aaron Johnson's return to the active roster a very interesting story.

To Bill Guerin, for filling the role of captain admirably, and for demonstrating that there's plenty of life left in him.

To my colleagues in the Blog Box (and some outside of it), for their outstanding work, which provides us all with an unprecedented richness of Islanders coverage, and for their spirit of generosity.

This was not meant to be a recap of the 2007 portion of the season. These were simply some people who stood out in my mind recently.

And here's a fun one...The other day I was checking in on Team USA's performance at the WJC via the live updates at onlajny.cz (thanks to Slap Shot). At the top of the page, I noticed the in-progress score of a game in which Skalica was trouncing Trencin 7-0. Remembering that Skalica was Ziggy Palffy's hometown, I clicked on the scoreboard link. Sure enough, there was Ziggy all over the scoresheet with a goal and 3 assists. That one brought a smile to my face.

Ziggy was the first player I can remember being proud of. I remember watching him quickly go from being a young, struggling talent to an NHL-caliber sniper and feeling proud because he became exactly what the Islanders hoped he would be. It's too bad that his 3 consecutive forty-goal seasons didn't coincide with better results for the team. Sadder still, that his time on the Island was cut short by frugal ownership.

Please note that the playoff confidence poll is still open. If you haven't voted yet, please feel free to voice your opinion. Vote "10" if you think the Isles are a lock for the playoffs, "0" if you think they have no shot, or any other degree of confidence in between.