Reason to Believe: Islanders 6, Red Wings 0

Just some things I'm thinking about following a joyful night of joyful hockey...

Matt Moulson's offense is heating up again. And he's finding the net while playing with Frans Nielsen. Both circumstances help negate the ideas that Moulson is a flash in the pan who got off to a hot start and that his production was due mostly to his pairing with John Tavares.

How nice it is to once again be able to legitimately pin the future of the Islanders on Kyle Okposo, Tavares, AND Josh Bailey. Bailey looked like a boy last year. Suddenly he looks like a man, and plays like one too.

Despite his slow start in the goal column, Okposo will surpass his goal total from a year ago. Watch him light it up in the second half.

Seeing my favorite player of his era, Kenny Jonsson, back in the Islanders family for one night.

The part of NHLer Rob Schremp now being played by...Rob Schremp.

BD might be right that keeping Martin Biron on ice (as opposed to on the ice) might improve his trade value. At the very least, it won't harm his value and it will also protect him from injury (as much as that recalls the awkwardness of the Bill Guerin situation last year).

At first I was opposed to the idea of keeping Biron out of the rotation. I thought he deserved to at least dress on occasion and his exclusion reflected poorly on him and reduced his perceived value. But this is going to be all about Dwayne Roloson and Rick DiPietro, and who gives the team the best chance to win night in, night out. That's clearly not Biron.

I would, however, not be so quick to pull the trigger on a deal for Biron. Let's see DiPietro get the rigors of a few NHL games under his belt before the team puts itself one more injury away from last season's goaltending carousel.

It was a shame that the 6-0 domination of the Red Wings had to occur on the same night as a thrilling shootout (in more ways than one) between the other locals. Not good for getting the deserved local press. On the other hand, it was the kind of win that the rest of the league's cities will notice.

It's good to see some old friends still plugging away in the Blog Box.

I resisted doing this for a long time, but I finally caved.

Learning's More Fun When You Win; DiPietro Aches—No Fun at All

Blake Comeau has been universally praised, and rightfully so, for his performance in Saturday night's 3-2 overtime win over the Boston Bruins. He capped of a solid game by delivering a near-exquisite backhand pass to Frans Nielsen that resulted in a breakaway game-winning goal for the Dean of Danes.

Yet, my lasting memory of that game, apart from Rob Schremp attempting to pole dance on Mark Streit, is a replay that shows there's always room for improvement—even when your play impressed people all game long and you created the OT winner.

From the view behind the play, what you saw on Nielsen's goal was that Comeau didn't follow up his pass by going strong to the net. Instead, he glided in and watched to see what would become of Nielsen's attempt. In doing so, Comeau allowed two Bruins to get between him and the play.

By going hard to the net, Comeau would have been in position to pounce on a rebound if Nielsen didn't convert. He also could have given Tim Thomas something else to think about, either as a second option for Nielsen or as a distraction.

As it turned out, the additional options weren't necessary because Nielsen took care of business. And I'll also grant that the speed with which Nielsen attacked the goal may have precluded Comeau from being a realistic second option. But he still could have put himself in position to compete for a rebound.

Anyway, my point here isn't to kill Comeau. It's that this Islanders team has already taken a step forward in its development this season, and learning from plays like this one is what will help them take the next step forward. Being relentless and taking nothing for granted goes a long way toward winning more games. I have confidence that this is the type of play Scott Gordon doesn't leave on the cutting room floor after he reviews game tape.

By the way, John Tavares demonstrated what I'm talking about on the Islanders' second goal. After making his no-look backhand pass out front to Matt Moulson, Tavares continued skating around the back of the net and came out on the other side. If Moulson hadn't been able to get a shot off right away, Tavares was wide open at the far post for an easy tap-in.

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All tightness aside, were the Islanders seriously going to let Rick DiPietro back into the goalie rotation after only three rehab appearances? I realize they have to operate within the framework of conditioning assignment restrictions, but for the amount of time he's been away, how could three appearances have been considered sufficient for him to return to game action at the NHL level? I would think five games, minimum, would be more on the mark. He hasn't even played five periods yet.

I may have said this before, but I'm at the point where I feel nothing but bad for DiPietro. For someone with so much talent and drive to be unable to use these attributes because of physical problems—well, I can just imagine the emotional ache that goes with it. Some will say, "What does he care? He's raking in $4.5 per year into the 2020s regardless." I assure you, that's not enough for DiPietro.

We're past the point of worrying too much about the impact of his injuries on the Islanders. As shown by Dwayne Roloson this season, there is life after DiPietro. Or between DiPietro injuries. Even the long ones. It would just be a shame to see him never quite make it back. We're probably a long way from that happening, but the return has been anything but smooth. It's only natural to think about it.

Losering (Yes, More Whiskeytown)

"And, of course, sadly, the Islanders lost to the Los Angeles Kings 2-1."
--Sports update Tuesday morning on WRXP

The Kings weren't built in a year, nor will the Islanders be. But, oh (and woe), the losing. The beginning of a new season has optimism programmed into it, regardless of whether the team finished 3rd or 30th the previous year. Even if you know in your heart that the bottom five is overwhelmingly more likely than the top 16, there is always the hope that things will click this year—that the development of the next generation of Islanders will take a leap forward instead of a step.

And then four games go by without a win.

Suddenly you are awakened from your October honeymoon by the cold reality that if the ship is ever going to be headed in the right direction, it is still hanging around the pier looking for a clear lane.

The Islanders are not in an adjustment period. They are not off to a slow start. They are still dangerously thin on talent. They have shown an ability to compete, but not a sustainable one.

They have not shown a knack for winning when the game is on the line and a win is in reach.

The second half of last year was productive in that it resulted in John Tavares becoming an Islander. It was not, however, enjoyable.

Could it be that, not even at the midpoint Of October, we are already in the position in having to endure a season the way we endured that second half '08-'09?

The thought of it seems insufferable. But it is painfully obvious that the Islanders need another high lottery pick. We want these guys to be good because they're our guys. But most of them are never going to be as good as we want them to be.

For the Islanders to enjoy success in the standings this year, the following would have to happen (forget about Kyle Okposo, John Taveras, and Mark Streit—you know what they are and you can just enjoy them):

• Trent Hunter would need to go 25-25-50.
• Josh Bailey would need to go 15-25-40.
• Frans Nielsen would need to 15-30-45.
• Doug Weight would need to stay healthy and perform at the same level he did when healthy last year.
• The team would have to get its goals against per game under 2.90, at least.
• A defenseman other than Streit would need to score double-digit goals.

How many of those things are likely to happen?

Streit had 16 goals last year. Do you know how many goals the other six defenseman on the Islanders' roster had last year? 16. Granted neither Andy Sutton nor Freddy Meyer played in as many as 30 games. But Streit cannot be the only offensive threat from the blue line.

Hunter is already missing several weeks of games due to a pec injury. Weight has been in and out of the lineup with a groislander injury (did you already do that one, Dom?). And Bailey has looked nothing like a player who's going to sniff 15 goals or 40 points.

So my optimism bubble has burst early this year. The good thing is that they have virtually an entire season to prove me wrong, or get the difference-maker draft pick they have to have again.

But right now I don't care for the pain and the drudgery of another season with little to cheer about. I have losing fatigue. I'm actually thinking about steering my son toward the Yankees. Or, you know, Civil War battle re-enactments. Those plans always turn out exactly how they built 'em.

Bergenheim Emerges (It's Our Time Down Here!)

[Those on the Islanders beat (Greg Logan, Chris Botta) are reporting that there will be no announcement tonight. Furthermore, there is no anticipation of an announcement at any particular time. Remember, Guerin always retained the right to refuse a trade. And GMs (Snow included) retain the right to change their minds. We now return you to your regularly scheduled program, Bergelicious: The Sean Bergenheim Story.]


In the midst of the hoopla surrounding the location and destination of Bill Guerin, there was a hockey game last night. I will leave the chasing of Guerin to the better connected for now.

Yann Danis posted his second consecutive shutout at home in a 2-0 Islanders victory over the Buffalo Sabres. But this was Sean Bergenheim's night.

The Islanders are a 30th place team in a 30-team league. They have won only 19 of 62 games this season (.306), and in the process of selling off most of their established talent to the most desperate bidder.

Yet, this will be the third gushing article I've written on an Islanders player in the last couple of weeks. And I've only complimented Danis and his impressive play in passing.

Bergenheim is a 5'10", 205-lb. left wing who was drafted by the Islanders 22nd overall in 2002. Now 25 years old, he has been playing on the fringe of the organization's plans for a few years now. You know the story—flashes of what could be if could ever figure it out and pull it together. Kyle Okposo seems to have done that at the age of 20. Some people just take a little longer.

For much of this season, talk of the Islanders' youth core has centered around Okposo, Josh Bailey, Blake Comeau, Frans Nielsen, and Jeff Tambellini. Bergenheim was often an afterthought in that conversation. Oh, yeah, it would be nice if he developed, too.

In accounting for all of the Islanders' scoring last night against the Sabres, Bergenheim established a career high in goals with 11. He has three goals in two games, four goals in the last four, and seven points in eight games. Like Okposo before him, Bergenheim has figured out that his time is now. (I would have given you a picture of the Goonies with Okposo and Bergenheim's faces photoshopped in saying, "Down here it's our time. It's our time down here!" But it's a busy day so you'll have to settle for the mental image right now.)

Also like Okposo, Bergenheim has shown, as he did last night, that he can play the role of the go-to guy for this team when necessary. It's not just that he's scoring consistently. It's also the manner of his offensive contributions. On the first goal last night, he battled for position in front of the net and was rewarded with a loose puck, which he whirled around on and threw past Patrick Lalime almost blindly.

On the second goal, it was tenacious forechecking by Bergenheim that caused Derek Roy to cough up the puck deep in the Buffalo end. The puck ended up on Nielsen's stick behind the net. He fed Bergenheim, now camped out at the side of the net, and Bergie shoveled it past Lalime to ice the game with just over two minutes remaining.

It was this emergence of Bergenheim as a go-to guy, along with similar play from Okposo, that led me to ask Scott Gordon in the post-game about the younger players realizing the need to fill the impending leadership void. Gordon, in an answer that was more revealing than I had anticipated, admitted to having spoken to those players already (updated with full quote):

"I actually addressed a few of our younger players at one point. I went right to the point and I said, 'In this group here there's going to be two captains. It's what you're going to do in the second half that's going to allow me to make that decision.' When it'll happen, I don't know, but there's a good mix of character in our room."

So they didn't merely sense an opportunity. They have been challenged, and some of them have already accepted. You have to have guys on your roster who will take turns saying, "I'm going to win this game tonight." Bergenheim appears at ease with that role. Maybe he always was. But now he can back it up.

Gordon also explained that he showed Bergenheim video of the things Okposo was doing right to elevate his offensive game. It seems Bergenheim is a fast learner.

Gordon's methods have been under heavy examination this year. As Newsday reports, they have not gone over that well in some circles—so much so that it's no longer necessary to ask whether Bill Guerin has expressed a desire to re-sign this summer after being traded away. Regardless of that controversy, and setting aside the record, this season will conclude with some success stories.

(This post was originally published at http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=19707.)

Streit Appreciation Day

Many of us sounded the call once before this year leading up to the All-Star break. But, in these dog days of February, with little to be measured by game results and visions of ping pong balls dancing in our heads, let us pay tribute to the revelation that is Mark Streit.

I will point to two moments from last night's game, one a shift in thinking and one a display of skill. You can add your appreciation as you wish.

With a little over ten minutes remaining and the Islanders trailing 4-2, it was apparent that Streit had eleveated his game to another level. You could practically see the thought process play out before your eyes...

I'm the leading scorer on this team...I'm going to take over and get this done...Hop on board, boys, here comes your offense.

Streit is aggressive from the backline both by nature and by role. But down by two goals with half a period left to play, that was not enough. He needed to force the play more, pinch more, rush more, and risk more. Not only was he willing to do it, he was capable. There was your adjustment in thinking.

With a little over eight and a half minutes remaining, Bruno Gervais sent a pass across to Streit at the left point. Streit had some space in front of him, so he drifted in toward the top of the left circle while preparing to take a slap shot. He had a decent look, with Josh Bailey and Pavel Kubina providing a screen halfway between the puck and Vesa Toskala in the Toronto net. Streit has the shot to score from there.

He didn't shoot. He faked. He drifted a little more. He got a clearer path for his shot. He got Toskala to move. Then he put the puck right through Toskala and into the back of the net.

It was an exquisite goal. In a moment of insanity, I found myself thinking, Maybe this guy should be a forward. But I quickly corrected myself. Streit's defense is just fine, thank you, and he's probably more dangerous attacking from the top of the offensive zone where all of his options are open. He can boom the slap shot by your goaltender or carve up your forwards and your defensemen on the way to the net. And he can finish.

You can break that goal down to the elements that add up to what a special player Streit is. He had the vision to see it. The patience to try it. And the skill to execute it.

With just over three minutes remaining, Jon Sim tied the game on an assist from Streit. The Islanders would go on to lose in a shootout. Streit looked a little gassed at the end of regulation on his way to playing 31:31 and with the Isles down two defensemen. It's not the totally happy recap, but it is an opportunity to express appreciation for a player that you get to watch for four more years.


Guerin Opens the Door
Streit's presence may become even more substantial next week as the Islanders shed themslves of other veterans at the trade deadline. Chris Botta reported last night on Islanders Point Blank that the Isles have cleared a path to trade captain Bill Guerin, who has a no movement clause. As expected, it is a narrow path, as Guerin still controls where he can go and it's up to Garth Snow to make it work with the few teams to which Guerin would be willing to go (previously speculated here as Boston, NYR, New Jersey, and Philly—Mr. Botta expands this to other eastern teams, including Montreal, Buffalo, Washington, and the very intriguing Pittsburgh). But it seems more and more like this is going to be a very young team for the final five weeks of the season.


The Shootout
If you had Nielsen with the deke to the backhand, Tambellini with the mid-range wrister over the glove, and Okposo with the in-tight drag to the backhand, well, you would have split the jackpot with thousands of other people. It's not that anyone can score in the shootout every time. And it's not as if these guys have been around long enough that it's like the goalie is sitting on their fastball. And if ever there was a time to work on things in a game situation, it's now. But at some point soon, these guys will need to work in some different moves.

(This post was originally published at http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=19658 on February 27, 2009)

The Buzz on Gordon's Sandbox

For those of you who don't already know, I'm filling in for B.D. Gallof as the Islanders blogger on HockeyBuzz for at least the rest of this season. I still haven't figured out exactly how I'm going to manage the content in both places, but I don't intend to let this blog die.

I imagine there will be many times when the content will be mirrored from one place to the other. I respect that some people may prefer to read here, so this arrangement will work out well for you. On these occasions, I will probably post there first, and then re-run the content here on a delay. We'll see how that works out. Thanks so much to all that have supported this blog, and I hope you stay with me one way or another.

Here's the latest (and first), originally published at http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Celebrity-Guests/Introducing-Our-New-Islanders-Blogger-Kenneth-Rosenblatt/33/19250...


During the first period of the Islanders' 3-2 loss to Florida, I expressed both my disagreement with Scott Gordon's decision to start Joey MacDonald and my ambivalence over how much the decision really mattered. To sum up, I don't see how you deny Yann Danis the opportunity to keep rolling and to test how long he can maintain a streak of solid/winning play. The ambivalence comes from the idea that at this stage of this season, the winning doesn't matter, and Gordon is going to use MacDonald down the stretch anyway. So why not last night?

The overriding issue is that Gordon is free to play around (tinker toys?) with no fear of significant consequences. He isn't going to blow a playoff run, and he isn't going to lose his job.

The only possible dangers I see are Gordon hindering a young player's development or alienating the veteran players to the extent that the club atmosphere suffers. Let's look at these two dangers a little more closely.

Perhaps the prime example of Gordon being able to see what he has without worrying about consequences is his use of Kyle Okposo on the point during power plays. Did anyone imagine at any point until the coach put him there that Okposo would play the point? I certainly didn't.

But more to the point, what is the point of him being there? Does anyone envision that being his long-term role? I certainly don't. Which begs the question, Why put him there now? Wouldn't Okposo be better served, in this, a year of organizational development, by gaining experience down low where we all assume he will eventually be?

Maybe Gordon sees something and Okposo will be a fixture on the point for years to come. The coach has also explained that he views Streit as the sole point man, while Okposo and Doug Weight are really positioned more along the half wall. But it seems to me that both forwards spend plenty of time just inside the blue line with the man advantage.

We've seen Okposo blast a well placed one-timer home while playing point. We've also seen him rip a trio of one-timers wide of the net. Gordon is playing a delicate game of balancing what's good for the team right now and what's good for its future. Right now, he doesn't have many options to put alongside Streit on the power play. There's really no one else. So maybe Okposo is there only out of necessity. But if Gordon isn't intent on Okposo being in that spot next year, I'd rather see Chris Campoli (when Streit returns), Radek Martinek, Jack Hillen, or even a playmaker like Frans Nielsen on the point.

That being said, Okposo is showing himself to be every bit the professional both physically and mentally. He will not be ruined by playing out of place for a while.

As for the idea that the clubhouse could be poisoned by vets made unhappy by reduced roles, that's only a concern if the poison trickles down from the vets to the kids. That's not going to happen with Bill Guerin and Doug Weight around. And if they're not around? Then there's no problem to be had.

But those two have done everything the team has asked them to do, and been everything they've been asked to be. This team can continue to develop with Guerin and Weight in the fold for the rest of this year and next year.

By letting Okposo, Josh Bailey, Blake Comeau, Nielsen, and Trent Hunter feed off each other, Gordon has created a level of enthusiasm that his older players are forced to match.

Just as Gordon challenged Okposo not to be content with simply being there, the coach has challenged the rest of the young players to make it their team as much as it is Guerin's and Weight's. That is a significant step in the development of the team. Don't forget it.

I imagine that Gordon will continue to make the occasional small decision that leaves us scratching our heads. But let him have his sandbox for the rest of the year. That's where kids learn to play.

Islanders Take the Stage for Act II

The Islanders are officially one game past the midpoint of the 2008-09 season. But having just completed a western road swing followed by a four-day weekend off, Tuesday night's home date with the Rangers feels like the true kickoff of the second half.

Scott Gordon is doing his best to give Act II a distinct feeling—one that many Islanders fans have been clamoring for since the December dive, if not all season. The first-year coach has pledged to accelerate the development of his team's young players by continuing to put them in more prominent roles. If today's practice is any indication, Gordon is now clearly focused on the future.

As Chris Botta reported, the first power play unit at today's Iceworks workout featured Mark Streit, Josh Bailey, Kyle Okposo, Frans Nielsen, and Trent Hunter. The second unit was more veteran-laden with Chris Campoli and Bruno Gervais manning the points for Richard Park, Mike Comrie, and Bill Guerin.

Things will get complicated for Gordon when Doug Weight returns from injury in 2-4 weeks and if the coach decides he wants to get Jeff Tambellini and/or Blake Comeau looks on the power play. In fact, as exciting as it is to simply throw all cares about standings and scoreboard away and concentrate on development, it's hard to ignore the potential for the second half to also include some hard feelings as veterans lose ice time. No doubt those players will face constant questions about reduced responsibilities and the possibility of being dealt.

The challenge, then, is for Gordon, Guerin, and Garth Snow to maintain a positive and productive atmosphere. No one wants a toxic room, even if the consequences aren't as dramatic as they would be in a playoff race. As hard as they might try, athletes and coaches can't always say the right thing. Take Gordon, in Greg Logan's article yesterday:

"I think any team is going to have some struggles if they don't have their top player and their top goaltender. Ricky is that for us. That's not to say Joey hasn't done a good job, but he's not Ricky."

Not exactly what you want to hear the coach say if you're Joey MacDonald and you've done more than anyone could have asked you to this season. That's not to say that I think a rift now exists between MacDonald and Gordon. It's just an example of how hard it is to navigate tumultuous times.

Fans, you can probably count on one thing: Act II, the second half of the Islanders' 2008-09 season, will not be boring.

Launching 2009

Welcome to the new year. First, let me say thanks for allowing me to recharge over the last several days. My batteries died without warning. That and the west coast trip left me feeling oddly detached from the Islanders despite missing only a few chunks of play here and there.

I'll be honest—at times it can feel like there's not much left to contribute with two, full-time major bloggers on top of everything and us independent types with a tiny fraction of the access that they have. You're getting your information and breaking news there first. And Islanders fans themselves are so engaged in everything that all it takes is a trip to the comments on those blogs or forums like HF Boards and Islander Mania to make it seem like there's nothing new to say.

But that's the challenge—to continue to have something to say, or simply something to share. So we press on! (Even if pressing on begins with a post like this.)

It's a few days past now, but still worth it to congratulate Doug Weight on reaching (and passing) the 1,000-point mark, and Josh Bailey on erasing that doughnut from the goals column. I'd also like to congratulate The Drive for Five on being named the 2008 NYI Blog of the Year in voting held at Yes! Islanders.

Who else can we congratulate? How about Garth Snow for picking the right free-agent defenseman?

And while we're passing out accolades, let's recognize the NHL for putting on another great show with this year's Winter Classic at Wrigley.

And for your end-of-year entertainment, here are Puck Daddy's Top Ten Goals of 2008 (one of them scored by an Islander—see if you can guess who before watching).

The tone of this season has certainly changed a lot in the last month. It's no longer about seeing how far this team might go. The day to day of what happened and why is now secondary to the what's going to happen and how well will it work.

It almost seems as though we're entering a period of limbo where not much matters except that Kyle Okposo, Blake Comeau, Jeff Tambellini, Bailey, and a quick healer named Nielsen continue to play larger roles and find some success in doing so.

The first shoe hasn't even dropped yet, but we're already anxiously waiting for the other one to bounce off the floor. After March 4, we'll be able to regroup, enjoy the rest of the season for whatever value it holds, and then look forward to Year 2 of this multi-year project.

I should have more to say soon about specific expectations for players as we move forward. In the meantime, we have a team out west that at least won't let you shut off the game in the middle of the third. With a light schedule on Monday and some flexibility in my lineup for a rental, my fantasy team now includes the point-producing machine Richard Park.

Oh, and I almost forgot. I recently had a random run-in on a New York City street with Butch Goring, whom I have never met, but who was nice enough to stop and talk to a stranger who called out his name.

Comrie, on a Horse, in a Pinch

A few days ago, Mike Comrie had the following observation for Arthur Staple of Newsday:

"In this system, you've just got to throw pucks at the net and be in the right spot. It's scrambles, not a whole lot of pretty plays."

I would argue that if the Islanders had enough players capable of pretty plays, they would be more than welcome in the system.

Just over two months into the season, we have system fatigue. It's not that the players are tired of playing it. They, and the coach, have started to tire of talking about it. I don't blame them. I think a lot of fans are just about done talking about the system, too.

That begs the question, why were we talking about it so much in the first place? My memory may be a little fuzzy here, but I don't recall a lot of people talking about the way the Devils played in the 90s until they started winning. And there's your answer.

Entering this Islanders season, we knew that they didn't have the horses to run with the big stables. But we wanted something to pin our hopes on, and it wasn't a donkey. There was, however, a system. So instead of looking at a successful team and wondering what makes them successful, we were left to embrace a system, and hope it would breed success. To take the equine theme just a little too far, that was putting the cart before the horse.

In the midst of an 0-6-1 streak, one cannot root for a system. In the midst of a 6-0-1 streak, one could certainly marvel at the efficacy of a forecheck, or the daring of a pinch.

Until Comrie, Kyle Okposo, Jeff Tambellini, Josh Bailey, and Frans Nielsen are back and playing with the kind of flair that produces pretty plays, there is nothing to do but throw pucks at the net. And if those guys aren't the ones to do more than throw pucks at the net, others will have to be found.

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Good Tidings

Click here to read about the Islanders annual holiday hospital visits. This kind of stuff can't be publicized enough, even though that's not the point. I love the way the whole team gets involved with this and blankets Long Island as best as it can.

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Catching up on some old business...

Game 29: Penguins 9, Islanders 2 (Ooof)

Fantasy Stars of the Game

1st Star: Mark Streit (1 G, 1 PPG, -1, 2 SOG, 1 BkS, 3 hits)

2nd Star: Bill Guerin (-1, 4 SOG, 14 PIMs, 1 hit)

3rd Star: Andy Sutton (1 G, -2, 1 SOG, 2 BkS, 2 PIMs, 1 hit)

4th Star: Trent Hunter (1 A, 1 PPA, -2, 2 hits)

5th Star: Sean Bergenheim (Even, 3 SOG, 1 BkS, 2 hits)

Faceoffs (W-L): Sillinger 10-9, Weight 4-7, Park 6-3, Thompson 7-6, Bailey 5-5

Game 30: Blue Jackets 3, Islanders 1 (Oh Four the Road Trip)

Fantasy Stars of the Game

1st Star: Richard Park (1 G, 1 SHG, +1, 2 SOG, 1 BkS, 1 hit)

2nd Star: Chris Campoli (1 A, 1 SHA, +1, 1 SOG, 1 BkS, 2 hits)

3rd Star: Andy Hilbert (1 A, 1 SHA, +1, 1 SOG, 2 BkS)

4th Star: Bill Guerin (Even, 5 SOG, 5 hits)

5th Star: Doug Weight (-1, 4 SOG, 2 BkS, 2 hits)

Faceoffs (W-L): Weight 4-10, Park 5-10, Thompson 2-4, Comeau 2-1, Bailey 3-5

Game 31: Capitals 5, Islanders 4, OT (Wittlash)

Fantasy Stars of the Game

1st Star: Richard Park (1 G, 2 A, 1 PPG, 1 PPA, +1, 4 SOG, 2 PIMs)

2nd Star: Mark Streit (3 A, 2 PPA, +1, 3 SOG, 2 BkS, 1 hit)

3rd Star: Bill Guerin (2 A, 1 PPA, Even, 4 SOG, 1 hit)

4th Star: Doug Weight (1 G, 1 PPG, -1, 6 SOG)

5th Star: Andy Sutton (1 G, +1, 1 SOG, 2 BkS, 2 PIMs, 2 hits)

Faceoffs (W-L): Weight 9-6, Park 9-12, Walter 4-7, Bailey 1-5

Note: Freddy Meyer put up an impressive 4 SOG, 4 BkS, and 6 hits, but got bumped for his -4.

Quickly, Before Another Game Hits the Ledger

I was as surprised as many others at the praise and optimism in the Islanders' locker room following Saturday night's loss to the Thrashers. Under certain circumstances, you may accept that a loss was a good loss. This was not one of those times.

It is true that the Islanders controlled the flow of play for the most part. But the attack was fruitless, and the puck ended up behind Joey MacDonald five times. If Weight, Hunter, Streit, and Guerin aren't scoring, no one is. Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo can't come back fast enough. Opposing defenses simply don't have enough to worry about right now. Josh Bailey is pointless in his last five games and is getting killed on faceoffs.

But Scott Gordon was willing to focus on "some pretty good energy" and declared that the power play was also "pretty good." MacDonald thought "the team played pretty well." Andy Sutton opened with, "Sometimes you play really well and lose."

But he, and the others, also backed off the positivity the more they spoke. And when Gordon said, "We had missed coverage on 3 of the 4 goals" and "We were doing something very wrong in the offensive zone and the forecheck," it's hard to take too much good away from the pretty good.

Gordon seemed more exasperated than usual in trying to answer questions. But I'm somewhat convinced that he was at least as exasperated with the having to answer questions as he was with his team's play, perhaps way more so.

In the end, I really have no problem if the Islanders are in a let's-keep-the-energy-positive mode. I don't think the alternative would serve them very well. But pointing to the energy, the plus margin in scoring chances and puck possession, and the negative differential in bounces and breaks just rang a little hollow on this night.

What if Streit or Comeau had connected with the back of the net instead of the post with just over nine minutes remaining? Well, it would have been a 4-2 game with just over nine minutes remaining. Nothing about the game convinces me that the end result would have been any different.

Finally, I don't know if running MacDonald out there every single game is a wise move. I can see decent arguments for both sides of that issue. What I can say is that in the locker room after a 5-1 loss on Saturday night, MacDonald did not look at all burdened by fatigue.

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Game 26: Thrashers 5, Islanders 1
Fantasy Stars of the Game
1st Star: Chris Campoli (1 SOG, 2 BkS, 15 PIMs, 1 hit)
2nd Star: Tim Jackman (2 SOG, 15 PIMs, 2 hits)
3rd Star: Bill Guerin (1 G, 1 PPG, 2 SOG, 4 hits)
4th Star: Brendan Witt (5 BkS, 8 hits)
5th Star: Trent Hunter (3 SOG, 4 PIMs, 3 hits)
Faceoffs (W-L): Sillinger 6-5, Weight 7-7, Park 8-2, Thompson 6-2, Bailey 4-10

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In case you missed it, A.J. Perez has a Q&A with Doug Weight in USA Today.

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New York Islander Fan Central points to a story in Sports Business Journal that suggests the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center as a possible home for the Islanders if the USTA puts a roof on Arthur Ashe Stadium. While a move to Queens would be a boon to my game attendance, the upper level of Ashe is ridiculously far away from the playing surface. Fans will put up with watching specks on skates for the Winter Classic, but would they do so game in and game out of an NHL season?

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Nielsen Out 2-3 Months

When I heard that Frans Nielsen was walking around in good spirits last night, I was optimistic that the injuries he suffered as a result of the Mike Mottau hit weren't too severe. Unfortunately, the limp accompanying his walk was symptomatic of significant injuries. Oh, the dreaded high ankle sprain.

This is a tremendously unfortunate loss for the Isles. Nielsen was progressing so well in his second season of NHL action. And from a team perspective, the Islanders simply do not have enough offensive depth to absorb the losses of the creative players they do have. Josh Bailey, Jeff Tambellini, and Kyle Okposo (when he returns) really have to turn it on now.

I wonder how Scott Gordon reconfigures the power play. Does he move Doug Weight off the point to center Guerin and Hunter? Or does Bailey get the plum spot on the first unit? We'll see shortly. According to Greg Logan, Bailey will replace Nielsen between Hunter and Tambellini at regular strength. Looking forward, this injury opens the door wider for Bailey to stick around past nine games.

As for the suspension to Mottau, my previous post should have been titled, "Here's Why Mottau Won't Be Suspended for As Long As You Think He Will."

[Update]
Me, earlier: "Can't you just hear the explanation that this hit, while deliberate and illegal, was not actually a blow to the head?"

Botta, tonight: "Howie Rose reports that Colin Campbell told Garth Snow that Mottau's hit was not to Nielsen's head."

We have you figured out, Mr. Campbell.

Mottau KOs Nielsen

After watching numerous replays of the Mike Mottau hit on Frans Nielsen (thanks to hockeyfights.com on youtube), I am very much looking forward to seeing how Colin Campbell handles this incident in light of the league's recent statement on hits to the head.

Mottau has two major things working against him. First, from both the front and rear views, he appears to be leading with the elbow. Second, the front view clearly shows that he has left his feet to deliver the hit.

Mottau also has two major things working for him. First, despite leading with the elbow, he doesn't land it. If the NHL's supplemental disciplinarian is using replays to evaluate the hit, he can focus on the fact that it looks like the actual impact was made with the forearm and hand. Second, it looks like the bulk of the hit was delivered to Nielsen's shoulder, chest, and neck. From the front view, it almost looks like Mottau pushed him over.

Of course, what it looks like isn't justification for anything. But if you're calling for a Thomas Pock treatment or worse, I'm just saying there's a lot of room for interpretation. And the Discipline-Islanders Islanders-Discipline dictionary has a spotty translation history. Can't you just hear the explanation that this hit, while deliberate and illegal, was not actually a blow to the head?

It's strange, though. The more I cast doubt on Mottau receiving appropriate disicpline, the more I am hopeful that this issue has finally evolved to the point that he will. Nielsen did suffer injuries and will miss time.

Thankfully, and most importantly, the injuries do not appear to be too serious. The worst injustice at this point is not being able to have Nielsen on the ice.

Pre-Game Reality Check

Today's Daily News preview of tonight's tilt with the Rangers says all you need to hear about how it feels to be an Islanders fan right now. To begin, the headline of Michael Obernauer's article reads, "Rangers head to Nassau Coliseum to face lowly Islanders." There you have it. Seven games into the season and they're already the lowly Islanders again. Hapless and the rest of the Dwarfs shouldn't be far behind.

Then you get right to the first paragraph and read how Nikolai Zherdev scored the tying goal for the Rangers Saturday night with 8.1 seconds left in the third period. No problems with bad ice for Mr. Zherdev. No shooting the puck right into the goalie's chest with the game on his stick. Tie game. Rangers win in overtime to boost their point total to a league leading 17. Meanwhile, with four fewer games played, the Islanders sit at the bottom of the league table with four points.

And just to put some salt into the wounds, Brandon Dubinsky is looking forward to tonight's matchup because "It's like a second home game."

How do you get up for this game?

The starting franchise goaltender is out for the sixth time in eight games. Four of the top six defensemen are also out with injuries. We still have little grasp on what's ailing Rick DiPietro, Freddy Meyer, and Brendan Witt or how long they will be unavailable.

The promise of this season came in two packages—the quality of the roster was not one of them. One could reasonably hope that the implementation of Scott Gordon hockey would result in an exciting brand of competitive play every night. The jury is still out on that one. Some nights the players click and we see the promise. Other nights it's difficult to imagine this team competing very often. And the hockey isn't very entertaining on those nights.

We also had the promise of the future—young players developing into NHL players before our eyes. So far we have seen diminished returns there as well. Okposo, Tambellini, and Nielsen show occasional flashes of what they can do, but can't seem to take that first step toward being impact players. I'm not looking to them to lead the team, but no goals and 5 assists combined through seven games is disappointing. Josh Bailey remains in injury limbo (at least he doesn't have a limbo injury).

I find some Rangers fans to be insufferable when their team is good and, especially, when they really like their team. A big part of that is envy. Even with the Blueshirts having suffered through more lean years recently than the Islanders, it seems like their highs are higher, and their lows not as low.

No matter what you said in July, once the season starts there is always a hunger for winning. But for this team, there will be no dramatic upsurge. It seems unlikely that anyone will step up and find that career year that pulls everyone else along. There is no getting by on talent, only constant effort and precision.

All we have is the patience we promised ourselves we would have. Whether that means waiting another month for everyone to adapt, two months for everyone to get healthy, or two years for young players to lead the charge, I don't know.

Sometimes it's easy to forget what we signed up for.

Snow Adds Stability to the Youth Movement

Perhaps I should have held onto the previous post title a little longer.

Some observers have questioned the accuracy of calling Garth Snow's direction a youth movement. With several aging veterans slated to play key roles on the 2008-09 Islanders, it is a valid question.

Unless Kyle Okposo, Jeff Tambellini, Blake Comeau, Sean Bergenheim, and Frans Nielsen are all playing significant minutes, then the youth movement looks half-hearted.

At least, it did until the last several days.

With the signings of Tambellini, Bergenheim, and Nielsen to multi-year, one-way contracts, Snow has added a new dimension to his youth strategy by:

• Making a quantifiable commitment to the young players
• Demonstrating confidence in the abilities of these players
• Giving them reassurance that their roles belong to them
• Adding stability to the roster

Of course it remains to be seen if Snow has made commitments to the right players. But under the terms to which they agreed, it's certainly worth finding out.

The Nielsen contract is unusual. Rarely do you see an organization commit four years to an unproven player unless he is a can't-miss prospect. It's not as though large offer sheets were in his near future.

But with an average salary of $525,000, the cap structure is hardly at peril. You could even argue that Nielsen is taking the bigger gamble. While he may be limited to fourth-line duty this coming season, his position on the depth chart promises to improve in the coming years. If he produces at all, he will be underpaid. So credit Frans for making a commitment to being an Islander as well.

In a matter of a few days, Snow changed the perception of the youth movement from being about who plays where next year to who is an Islander for the next couple of years.

It would have been very interesting to see how all of this would have unfolded with Ted Nolan as the head coach. That being said, it's even easier to figure out why he's no longer at the helm. Imagine the conversation last Monday went something like this:

Snow: We're making commitments to Tambellini, Bergenheim, and Nielsen.

Nolan: I can't guarantee them lineup spots or ice time.

Snow: They will be Islanders. They won't be going down to Bridgeport and they'll be around for the next few years at least.

Nolan: Then I need security beyond this year.

Snow: I'm not prepared to do that right now.

THE END

Anyone who now takes over as coach of the Islanders will know exactly what he's getting into. One of Snow's most important tasks is to figure out which of the candidates pay lip service his to plan and which are prepared to execute it.

Let's dismiss the notion that no one wants to coach the Islanders. There are only 30 of these jobs in existence. Way more than 30 people are interested in having them. Only the very best can afford to turn their noses up to an NHL head coaching vacancy. And most of those guys already have jobs.

The Youth Movement Arrives and Dubie is Done

Today in Newsday, Islanders beat reporter Greg Logan revealed that the team does not plan to bring back unrestricted free agent forwards Miroslav Satan, Ruslan Fedotenko, and Josef Vasicek for the 2008-09 season. In addition, backup goaltender and fan favorite Wade Dubielewicz rejected what GM Garth Snow described as a "signficant offer" to remain an Islander.

The writing was clearly on the wall for Dubielewicz as far back as April 10th when Logan first reported Snow's dissatisfaction with the goalie's early season conditioning (discussed in this Islanders Outsider post). It's not a stretch to speculate that Snow's mind was made up even earlier, given the presence of Joey MacDonald and the one-way, two-year deal he signed last July.

It is unfortunate that Snow found it necessary to comment publicly on the team's early-season lack of confidence in Dublielewicz. Such talk is better kept to internal conversations. Having the organization sell them out to the press isn't a good selling point to players the Islanders are courting. Just make the decision and leave it alone, even if you do believe that the player put the team in a weakened position.

As for the contract offer to Dubielewicz, Logan states that it was likely a multi-year deal but the first year had a two-way clause that would have destined Dubielewicz to spend most of the upcoming season in Bridgeport rather than in Uniondale. After finally earning his first one-year deal and a full-time job in the NHL last season, you can't blame Dubie if he interpreted the offer as an instruction to get lost. In fact, it's somewhat akin to Joe Torre's exit from the Yankees last fall (with .001% of the media interest).

Dubielewicz was a very capable backup. With him on the roster, his position was one you didn't have to worry about. MacDonald certainly hasn't established himself to that degree. His 17 NHL appearances with the Bruins, Red Wings, and Islanders are not enough to gauge how well he will fill the role, but his play at least suggests that the Islanders aren't being reckless here. And, of course, there's no guarantee that another goalie doesn't enter the picture.

On a personal note, I'll miss Dubie in the locker room. He came across as appreciative of the attention but never the least bit intimidated by being the focus of it. He wasn't afraid to give non cookie-cutter answers and had a good sense of humor about himself and the game.

Snow's comments regarding Satan, Fedotenko, and Vasicek do not preclude the team from making any of them an offer before the July 1 free agency period, but his words strongly suggest that no offers will be forthcoming. The Islanders appear ready to hand over the roles filled by those veterans to young players like Kyle Okposo, Blake Comeau, and Sean Bergenheim.

According to Snow, Jeff Tambellini, Frans Nielsen, Ben Walter, and Jeremy Colliton will also be in the mix. His quotes to Logan are a strong indication that finding ice time for young players will be a priority.

This development should be welcome news to Islanders fans. Satan brought with him the hopes of being a consistent scoring threat, but his production has decreased each year he has been on Long Island. He will turn 34 in October and there is little chance that the downward trend will reverse itself.

Fedotenko and Vasicek were brought in to play at a level that they can only achieve in fits and starts. While they each demonstrated the ability to play an important role, they only surfaced as impact players for short stretches. The truth is that Snow could make free agent signings of this caliber just about every summer if needed.

So rather than trying to patch together a quality product, Snow is following through on his plan to build a quality team. I don't see how watching the likes of Okposo, Comeau, Bergenheim, and Tambellini fight to make their mark on the NHL could be any less enjoyable than watching last year's team lurch and hesitate.

In fact, it should be far more exciting. I know there's the little matter of awarding this season's Stanley Cup, but can't we start next season now?

This Is Not Normal

It seems a little odd to cover these games as though they were normal. They are anything but normal. Of the twenty players who dressed for Saturday night's game against the Flyers, only eight of them were what I consider to be established NHLers. That includes Sean Bergenheim, who didn't play in the NHL last year, and Wade Dubielewicz, who is in his first season as a full-time NHLer.

Here are my criteria: If you spent time in the minor leagues this season, and you weren't there on a conditioning stint, then you are not an established NHLer. If you spent time as a healthy scratch this season, and have not played at least three full seasons in the league, then you are not an established NHLer. Take a look at this lineup:

Bergenheim-Vasicek-Guerin
Satan-Nielsen-Hunter
Comeau-Park-Okposo
Jackman-Colliton-Regier

Spiller-Martinek
Meyer-Davison
Berard-Johnson

Dubielewicz
Mole

Have you ever seen anything like that? Then throw in the fact that Spiller, Regier, and Jackman have been pulling double duty, and it's amazing this team isn't getting its doors blown off. It's a testament to the players, to Ted Nolan and his coaching staff, and to Jack Capuano and his staff. With nothing to play for but the play itself, most of these guys are putting their best forward. That doesn't mean it wasn't a weird night. And, unfortunately, their best foot probably won't be enough most of the time. Here are some notes (not all of them are weird):

Before the game started, two young teenagers stood next to the Blog Box glancing repeatedly toward us. Finally, they moved closer and announced that one of them was a Kyle Okposo lookalike and they were going to go around claiming that he was Kyle's little brother. I regret not taking a picture. He actually did look like him.

Mike Mole is wearing #60 with the Isles. It looked like there was a spring training castoff on the bench. Or Scott Schoeneweis. Mole wore #30 with the Grizzlies where, incidentally, Kevin Colley is an assistant coach.

The Islanders got a break in that Vinnie Prospal was scratched with an illness, and Marty Biron was rested after playing in the 5-4 shootout loss to the Devils the night before. That's Marty Biron, he of the 6-0 record, 1.50 GAA, and .952 save percentage against the Isles this year. So much for breaks.

Trent Hunter's 28 assists this season are a career high. So maybe we shouldn't put a cap on his offensive potential just yet. Of course, 25 goals and 30 assists would look a lot better.

Despite the fourth line being made up of weary commuters, Nolan rolled them right out there early in the first--within the first three minutes. Ice time was fairly evenly distributed in the first, as only one penalty was called. The fourth line would be used much more sparingly the remainder of the game.

Okposo ends up in places with shots on the power play where I'm not used to seeing this team end up with shots from. If that makes sense.

The Flyers' shots-on-goal total seemed to rise as if each shot were being counted as two. I had intended to ask Dubie whether he really felt under seige or if most of the shots were actually quite harmless. He confirmed the latter in response to a Greg Logan question while acknowledging that the Flyers did really take over the game after the Isles controlled the first period and mounted a 2-0 lead in the second.

Frans Nielsen's goal to regain the lead at 3-2 was a beauty of a wrister, placed perfectly over Antero Nittymaki's glove.

I really wanted to claim that Briere's shootout winner was illegal because he stopped his forward momentum, but I don't think the evidence holds up. I wonder if he purposely used that move to counteract Dubie's famed poke check.

The post-game scene included young players hustling to get dressed and packed for the trip back to Bridgeport, where they would play their fifth game in five nights on Sunday. One of them (name withheld to protect his identity) sat in his stall all ready to go in his overcoat and ski cap while wolfing down a piece of pizza. You gotta eat when you can. Another went over this week's schedule of Islanders games, because it's hard to know where you are and where you have to be when you're playing for two teams simultaneously. And for the first time all year, I had to work to figure out which faces went with which names. The names are all very familiar, of course. But it's a little jarring when you suddenly see several faces in the locker room that you've never seen up close before. I never imagined I'd be in that situation. I'm sure the situation is a little weird for them too.

Just a Matter of Time

It's just a matter of time. Not until the Islanders break out of this funk and win a game. Not until they manage to score a goal. It's just a matter of time is how I feel while watching them play any game lately. They can play any opponent close through the first period. They can kill off a bunch of penalties and be in position to force a change in momentum. But it's just a matter of time. It's just a matter of time before Scott Niedermayer threads one through on the power play. Just a matter of time before Todd Marchant and Doug Weight find enough room to put the game out of reach. Just a matter of time before the weaknesses in the structure are exposed and the inner wall is breached. It's not a fun way to watch a hockey game.

If you snap your head around very quickly, I swear you can still see the headline stating that the Islanders are going for six games over .500. It was that recent. Now, that team sits right at that delicate balancing point between unlikely and a lot of we-told-you-so's. And that's only if you discount the NHL's consolation-prize standings (just for appearing on our show today, you've won this valuable 1-point jar of Turtle Wax). Otherwise, they're really 24-30. But even at 24-24-6, they're looking at having to play at a clip they haven't achieved all season in order to qualify for the playoffs. This, at a time when winning with any kind of consistency seems unlikely. Right now, it feels like disaster. It feels like this team could struggle to win 30 games. And that's the doom and gloom report for February 6, 2008.

Let's look at the situation from a more practical perspective. There was a time when the lack of goal scoring was an annoyance, a mere impediment to the eventual playoff appearance that this team seemed likely to make. Now, it is the fatal flaw. How envious are you of Anaheim's lineup, despite their own recent slump? That lineup is stacked in comparison. Getzlaf, Perry, Kunitz, Selanne, Bertuzzi, Weight. I'm jealous of Ducks fans for just those six, and two of them are nowhere near what they once were. Weight is a complementary player on the Ducks at this point, but I see that he has nine goals and wonder, why can't we have a Doug Weight? I guess the algae is always greener on the other side of the pond.

The Islanders displayed an utter lack of discipline in this game. In what has become a trend, they took three more minors in the first period, which prevented them from getting their forward lines any kind of consistent flow. With new faces in the lineup and new combinations, this was especially damaging. Jeff Tambellini hopped over the boards for his first shift, but then had to circle right back to the bench because the Islanders had been whistled for another too-many-men bench minor. Fortunately for the Isles, through twenty minutes the Ducks were as off kilter as the Isles were undisciplined.

The management of the lineup is surely open to debate. I wanted to see Frans Nielsen center the third line in place of Andy Hilbert instead of starting on the fourth line. Hilbert hasn't done anything to distinguish himself as deserving of those minutes. He'll still get plenty of minutes on the penalty kill (seriously, plenty) where he really has distinguished himself and plays a key role. Why not give Nielsen, who has been every bit the impact setup man at Bridgeport, the opportunity to make something happen?

Then there is Tambellini. Early on, Howie Rose (along with Islanders fans everywhere) basically implored Ted Nolan to give Tambellini at least 15 minutes of ice time on one of the top two lines. It didn't happen. The AHL's leading goal scorer finished with 17 shifts covering 13:56. Nielsen was sent out 13 times for 9:01. Sean Bergenheim, who started on the fourth line with Nielsen, was entrusted with 7 shifts and 4:56 of ice time for his night's work. So much for the injection of youth. I don't want to ignore the fact that the Islanders were shorthanded six times, which obviously cuts into the ice time available to young players who do not have PK duties. But there was no concerted effort to see what these kids could do.

Finally, I'm not sure that the power play is being done any favors by scratching Bergeron AND Berard. You could argue that the power play hasn't been any good with them. I don't want to see both of them out there. However, the power play isn't going anywhere with Witt, Martinek, and Meyer as point men. Having one of Bergeron or Berard out there at least gives the opposing PK something to worry about. Perhaps we've reached the point where neither player is in the team's plans for next year, and so it's time to see what Aaron Johnson can do. If that's the case, the same could be said for some forwards who aren't pulling their weight. Did you catch the graphic on FSN before the game that detailed the scoring drought player by player? I'll have to see if I can reproduce it. It's truly sad to see how many players have scored 0, 1, or 2 goals over stretches ranging from two weeks to two months.

On the Roster

I'm as anxious as anyone to see how the most recent Bridgeport callups fare against the Los Angeles Just Ducks of Anaheim. Will Tambellini and Nielsen be paired on the same line with an incumbent? Or will they be assigned to different lines, thus giving the team a transfusion on three of its four lines (assuming that neither one was going to play with Brennan)?

The braintrust had some difficult decisions to make as far as where any callups would be slotted into the lineup (assuming that the decision to actually make callups was not difficult itself). It's rather unfortunate that the decision was rendered easier by injury (Sillinger) and illness (Park and Hunter). I'd certainly rather see a new-look squad that included both Sillinger and Park. While Sillinger's numbers have fallen off from last year, and Park's have fallen off in the last few weeks, they remain key components of a successful Islander team. As for Hunter, I have to admit that I am curious to see how the team looks with a little more speed and skill. The downside is that I like having a hitting machine out there, and Hunter's performance on the penalty kill cannot be overlooked. I don't imagine that he'll be spending additional time in the press box once he's recovered from the flu.

Then there are the ancillary stories. First, how will Okposo fare with new Sound Tiger linemates? It's not as though he can't adjust to playing with new faces. He went from Minnesota to Team USA to Bridgeport in a matter of weeks. But there will be a dropoff in talent no matter who fills in for Tambellini and Nielsen next to Okposo. Furthermore, Kyle will likely be looked to as more of a leader on his new line, whereas he was clearly the protege next to two guys with successful careers in professional hockey and tastes of the NHL. Of course, the convenience of having two forward spots open on the Island may last only a few days. Once Hunter and Park are healthy, I wouldn't be surprised to see Nielsen and/or Tambellini right back next to Okposo.

Second, no matter how well Brennan fills Jackman's shoes, his big-club tryout has a finite lifespan. The Islanders have made it clear that the door to the bench is wide open for Chris Simon, whose return stands just over two weeks away. By then, the team will either have a lot of competition for jobs (if they turn things around) or a lot of vacancies to fill (if they're out of it).

Update: Now that I've had a chance to read the literature from the Islanders, I see that Nolan intends to play Tambellini and Nielsen together. I like this decision and it indicates to me that the pair will get a decent shake at quality ice time. Nolan also suggested that Park would be ready to go tomorrow night, but didn't mention Hunter. So, we should see Tambellini, Nielsen, and Brennan in for Sillinger, Hunter, and Jackman/7th defenseman, at least for one game. After that, it will be interesting to see whether one of the struggling regular forwards takes a seat.