The Islanders found themselves in a tight game with the Tampa Bay Lightning for pretty much the duration of the contest, and were able to overcome an early powerplay goal by Isles killer Martin St. Louis to defeat the improved Lightning in overtime as they continue to try and put together a long successful streak that will propel them back into playoff contention.
Showing posts with label Martin St. Louis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Martin St. Louis. Show all posts
January 17, 2014
December 22, 2010
Off Day? Hah!
9:52 - The Isles proved me wrong as they have called up Josh Bailey.
I will say that I am not overly impressed with this, and I truly did get the impression that he would be down for a while.
Fans of the BST were still concerned recently that Bailey would go stretches where he looked invisible because of some fore-checking and defensive deficiencies, but would suddenly appear as he put up some of those points. Hopefully it is fixed, because this is it now. After his next NHL game he has to go through waivers to be sent down again.
8:08 AM - No one told me that the off days were going to have this much going on. I suppose when you're record isn't great, that's to be expected.
Tuesday was a rather interesting one to say the least if you're an Islanders fan. Of course, we'll hit some of the juicy stuff later. First we'll have to start off with some unfortunate news.
The Islanders once again practiced with two goaltenders - Dwayne Roloson and Nathan Lawson. Rick DiPietro did not practice. Jack Capuano stated that it was still just your typical maintenance stuff.
Of course, that "maintenance" word might have even deeper meaning now that DiPietro was officially placed on IR with the swelling in his right knee. For those of you who listened to our last podcast, when Sean and I gave our take on the Roloson situation I downplayed DiPietro's injury. Meanwhile, Sean maintained that he'd "believe it when he sees it" when it comes to any injury of his being minor.
As of right now, I'll only slightly nod my head in his direction but not completely tip the cap yet. Matt Martin was suspended for two games as punishment for his elbow to the head of Vernon Fiddler. The Islanders were already at the max roster limit, which we pointed out during the show on Sunday. They have to call up another forward to take the spot of Martin - unless of course you want to see Bruno Gervais play wing again. Even though we're under the holiday roster freeze, there can be call-ups for emergency. This would qualify.
I'm seeing some people say they want Josh Bailey to be called up. If the Islanders were smart in this situation, and I think they will be, Bailey will not and should not be up. I love what he is doing. The points he is putting up with the Sound Tigers is phenomenal. However, the total package is still not 100% there yet - fore-checking, defensive play, etc. Hasn't the kid been rushed enough in his very short NHL career thus far? Not only that, but he was constantly shifted from one position to another, and seemingly was not given ample time to adjust to that let alone to the NHL game. Josh is going to be down in Bridgeport for the next little while it sounds like. At least that's what my take was after listening to Garth Snow on "The GM Show" a couple of weeks back.
All in all, I have a wait and see approach on the extent on DiPietro's injury. Perhaps it's truly wishful thinking, but I still firmly believe that the Islanders called up Lawson to get a look at what he can do when they inevitably ship off Roloson. DiPietro probably is banged up, but my feeling is a) the Islanders are using it to see what others can do for more than just one game and b) to create a roster spot.
Meanwhile, Mike Mottau was also placed on IR and will be out the rest of the year with a torn labrum in his hip. Mottau had been out since taking a puck off of his eye in Atlanta. Some may be wondering "how the heck does that happen?" Apparently the injury is something he had suffered prior to the year, and most likely re-aggravated it while rehabbing recently. He had started skating with the team.
The news of Mottau's injury is a bit of a blow, but it obviously gives some more thought to the idea that Travis Hamonic will stay up for most of the year. The shame in this is that the Islanders were slowly having better defensive efforts coming on the heels of getting Andrew MacDonald and Milan Jurcina back. I was looking forward to Mottau coming back. Now, we can only hope that the surgery takes care of the issue and it doesn't linger next season. We know all too well how persistent those hip injuries can be.
The biggest story of the day, however, was the rumor of a potential buyer for the team. On Monday night, ESPN's Pierre LeBrun made a mention in his chat that former Isles goalie and current Hockey Night in Canada analyst Glenn Healy told him that Nelson Peltz has expressed interest in purchasing the Islanders. Of course, it didn't take the news too long to spread, and by Tuesday morning the story gained more steam.
Furthermore, Chris Botta in his Fanhouse piece on AOL was able to confirm from multiple sources that Peltz has been kicking the tires for the past year or so, and it appears he will continue to do so.
Before anyone gets too ahead of themselves, let me bring out a key point here. This does NOT mean that Charles Wang has the team up for sale. It could be and we just don't know it, seeing as how tight lipped things can get with the organization, but do not read into it any more than that. I saw some folks on Twitter getting all excited, with some talking as if it were a done deal.
I'm sure Peltz isn't the only one who kicked tires, but he may be the only one who has been persistent enough in making it known that he wants the team.
The connections with Peltz, however certainly are very eerie.
First off, he is currently on the Board of Directors at Wendy's/Arby's Group. The Islanders have a relationship with Wendy's as many fans know by now. Peltz is also the former owner of Snapple Inc., which had it's headquarters on Long Island in Valley Stream for a number of years before relocating to Plano, Texas.
Peltz, who hails from Brooklyn, lives in Bedford, NY. When not there, he is most likely at his other homes in Paris or Palm Beach, Florida.
According to the recent list of wealthy folks from Forbes, Peltz is now worth $1.1 billion which ranks 880th.
Of course, as Botta's source says in the article, Peltz will only buy the Islanders on his terms, which makes sense. Any potential buyer who has interest in keeping the team right where it is doesn't want to deal with all of the politicking that has gone on. Keep in mind though, Peltz has been more than generous over the years to George W.Bush's and the campaigns of Republicans in general. It's possible the TOH Republicans would be willing to do him a favor they weren't willing to do for Wang if they can settle their own debt problems.
Some are wondering if he would move them to his hometown over in Brooklyn if he bought them. I'm not too sure he would do that. I think the preference of the league is to get something worked out in Uniondale. In fact, those who listened to deputy commish Bill Daily on the commissioner's show on XM last Thursday heard him say that they were working with the town to find a solution, and he was pretty adamant about it. Is part of that solution the sale of the team to someone who is willing to accept the proposal the town presented?
Obviously, the selling of teams takes an extremely long time and if anything comes of this, it won't be for a bit. But, the idea of tire kicking for the past year is very vague and who knows what's gone on. I believe the source Botta uses when he says it's nothing for people to get all excited about right now. Time will tell, and it's certainly something we'll be keeping our eyes on.
De Haan Gets an 'A' - Isles prospect Calvin de Haan was named an alternate captain for Canada's World Junior team. He is the captain of his OHL team, the Oshawa Generals. The Islanders are doing Calvin right when it comes to his development, and all of these feathers in his cap are going to help him greatly in the same way they would have helped Bailey out if they didn't rush him. With both de Haan and Cizikas on the roster, and Nino Niederreiter on Switzerland's team, we'll be sure to focus on the WJC a little bit. Congrats to all these prospects.
Up Next - The Islanders take on the Lightning at the coliseum, have gone 1-1 against them so far this season. The usual Islander killers of Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis and Ryan Malone will all be in the line-up.
We don't know for sure who will be in net for the Isles yet. Something tells me it will be Roloson though. We shall see. We will also see who the team ends up calling up to replace the suspended Martin. Be sure to check back for updates.
-CH
nyifyi@gmail.com
I will say that I am not overly impressed with this, and I truly did get the impression that he would be down for a while.
Fans of the BST were still concerned recently that Bailey would go stretches where he looked invisible because of some fore-checking and defensive deficiencies, but would suddenly appear as he put up some of those points. Hopefully it is fixed, because this is it now. After his next NHL game he has to go through waivers to be sent down again.
8:08 AM - No one told me that the off days were going to have this much going on. I suppose when you're record isn't great, that's to be expected.
Tuesday was a rather interesting one to say the least if you're an Islanders fan. Of course, we'll hit some of the juicy stuff later. First we'll have to start off with some unfortunate news.
The Islanders once again practiced with two goaltenders - Dwayne Roloson and Nathan Lawson. Rick DiPietro did not practice. Jack Capuano stated that it was still just your typical maintenance stuff.
Of course, that "maintenance" word might have even deeper meaning now that DiPietro was officially placed on IR with the swelling in his right knee. For those of you who listened to our last podcast, when Sean and I gave our take on the Roloson situation I downplayed DiPietro's injury. Meanwhile, Sean maintained that he'd "believe it when he sees it" when it comes to any injury of his being minor.
As of right now, I'll only slightly nod my head in his direction but not completely tip the cap yet. Matt Martin was suspended for two games as punishment for his elbow to the head of Vernon Fiddler. The Islanders were already at the max roster limit, which we pointed out during the show on Sunday. They have to call up another forward to take the spot of Martin - unless of course you want to see Bruno Gervais play wing again. Even though we're under the holiday roster freeze, there can be call-ups for emergency. This would qualify.
I'm seeing some people say they want Josh Bailey to be called up. If the Islanders were smart in this situation, and I think they will be, Bailey will not and should not be up. I love what he is doing. The points he is putting up with the Sound Tigers is phenomenal. However, the total package is still not 100% there yet - fore-checking, defensive play, etc. Hasn't the kid been rushed enough in his very short NHL career thus far? Not only that, but he was constantly shifted from one position to another, and seemingly was not given ample time to adjust to that let alone to the NHL game. Josh is going to be down in Bridgeport for the next little while it sounds like. At least that's what my take was after listening to Garth Snow on "The GM Show" a couple of weeks back.
All in all, I have a wait and see approach on the extent on DiPietro's injury. Perhaps it's truly wishful thinking, but I still firmly believe that the Islanders called up Lawson to get a look at what he can do when they inevitably ship off Roloson. DiPietro probably is banged up, but my feeling is a) the Islanders are using it to see what others can do for more than just one game and b) to create a roster spot.
Meanwhile, Mike Mottau was also placed on IR and will be out the rest of the year with a torn labrum in his hip. Mottau had been out since taking a puck off of his eye in Atlanta. Some may be wondering "how the heck does that happen?" Apparently the injury is something he had suffered prior to the year, and most likely re-aggravated it while rehabbing recently. He had started skating with the team.
The news of Mottau's injury is a bit of a blow, but it obviously gives some more thought to the idea that Travis Hamonic will stay up for most of the year. The shame in this is that the Islanders were slowly having better defensive efforts coming on the heels of getting Andrew MacDonald and Milan Jurcina back. I was looking forward to Mottau coming back. Now, we can only hope that the surgery takes care of the issue and it doesn't linger next season. We know all too well how persistent those hip injuries can be.
The biggest story of the day, however, was the rumor of a potential buyer for the team. On Monday night, ESPN's Pierre LeBrun made a mention in his chat that former Isles goalie and current Hockey Night in Canada analyst Glenn Healy told him that Nelson Peltz has expressed interest in purchasing the Islanders. Of course, it didn't take the news too long to spread, and by Tuesday morning the story gained more steam.
Furthermore, Chris Botta in his Fanhouse piece on AOL was able to confirm from multiple sources that Peltz has been kicking the tires for the past year or so, and it appears he will continue to do so.
Before anyone gets too ahead of themselves, let me bring out a key point here. This does NOT mean that Charles Wang has the team up for sale. It could be and we just don't know it, seeing as how tight lipped things can get with the organization, but do not read into it any more than that. I saw some folks on Twitter getting all excited, with some talking as if it were a done deal.
I'm sure Peltz isn't the only one who kicked tires, but he may be the only one who has been persistent enough in making it known that he wants the team.
The connections with Peltz, however certainly are very eerie.
First off, he is currently on the Board of Directors at Wendy's/Arby's Group. The Islanders have a relationship with Wendy's as many fans know by now. Peltz is also the former owner of Snapple Inc., which had it's headquarters on Long Island in Valley Stream for a number of years before relocating to Plano, Texas.
Peltz, who hails from Brooklyn, lives in Bedford, NY. When not there, he is most likely at his other homes in Paris or Palm Beach, Florida.
According to the recent list of wealthy folks from Forbes, Peltz is now worth $1.1 billion which ranks 880th.
Of course, as Botta's source says in the article, Peltz will only buy the Islanders on his terms, which makes sense. Any potential buyer who has interest in keeping the team right where it is doesn't want to deal with all of the politicking that has gone on. Keep in mind though, Peltz has been more than generous over the years to George W.Bush's and the campaigns of Republicans in general. It's possible the TOH Republicans would be willing to do him a favor they weren't willing to do for Wang if they can settle their own debt problems.
Some are wondering if he would move them to his hometown over in Brooklyn if he bought them. I'm not too sure he would do that. I think the preference of the league is to get something worked out in Uniondale. In fact, those who listened to deputy commish Bill Daily on the commissioner's show on XM last Thursday heard him say that they were working with the town to find a solution, and he was pretty adamant about it. Is part of that solution the sale of the team to someone who is willing to accept the proposal the town presented?
Obviously, the selling of teams takes an extremely long time and if anything comes of this, it won't be for a bit. But, the idea of tire kicking for the past year is very vague and who knows what's gone on. I believe the source Botta uses when he says it's nothing for people to get all excited about right now. Time will tell, and it's certainly something we'll be keeping our eyes on.
De Haan Gets an 'A' - Isles prospect Calvin de Haan was named an alternate captain for Canada's World Junior team. He is the captain of his OHL team, the Oshawa Generals. The Islanders are doing Calvin right when it comes to his development, and all of these feathers in his cap are going to help him greatly in the same way they would have helped Bailey out if they didn't rush him. With both de Haan and Cizikas on the roster, and Nino Niederreiter on Switzerland's team, we'll be sure to focus on the WJC a little bit. Congrats to all these prospects.
Up Next - The Islanders take on the Lightning at the coliseum, have gone 1-1 against them so far this season. The usual Islander killers of Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis and Ryan Malone will all be in the line-up.
We don't know for sure who will be in net for the Isles yet. Something tells me it will be Roloson though. We shall see. We will also see who the team ends up calling up to replace the suspended Martin. Be sure to check back for updates.
-CH
nyifyi@gmail.com
October 22, 2010
Isles Defeat Bolts After Waiting Game, Remain atop Division and Conference
The Islanders faced another early season test on the road in Tampa, a building that hasn't been too kind to them in recent years. Tampa entered the game with a 4-1 record, sitting in 1st in the South East Division. Prior to the game, it was decided that Vincent Lecavalier would be playing, meaning all the big guns were going to be on the ice.
But when it was all over, the Islanders would still find themselves sitting atop the Eastern Conference and the Atlantic Division and off to their best start since the 2001-2002 renaissance season.
The game started out with the Islanders looking strong. It didn't take very long for the Isles to get their first goal. Doug Weight took the puck behind Tampa's net, and passed it in front for a shot by Nino Niederreiter. Niederreiter got the initial shot off, but Dan Ellis kicked the rebound to the slot where Michael Grabner was waiting to put in his 2nd of the season.
Tampa Bay wouldn't answer with a goal of their own until late in the period, with Sean Bergeheim scoring on a breakaway. DiPietro had an odd approach to playing it, and I don't think he expected Bergenheim to get it off after the late deke. Either way, there were a couple of things he could have done better there. Kudos to Bergie for getting the goal against his former team. He's off to a fast start.
The second period was a slightly different game, with more stoppages and more penalties coming to both teams. Early in the 2nd, Bergenheim took a holding penalty on John Tavares. It was actually quite blatant, but Bergie being Bergie argued the call. The Islanders weren't able to cash in on that power play, and Martin St. Louis made them pay (of course). Steve Stamkos stripped a rather careless Blake Comeau of the puck at the blue line and passed it up to St. Louis. Mike Mottau did a lot to try and tie him up, but St. Louis used speed and skill to get the better of him. Meanwhile, DiPietro I don't think expected a shot to get off and went down really early, and didn't have much of a reaction to the shot. St. Louis roofed it to give the Lightning the lead.
The Islanders would tie the game when P.A. Parenteau converted on a 5-on-3 powerplay. A shot deflected right to Parenteau with Ellis going down expecting the original shot from the point to get through but couldn't move to his right in time.
Tampa Bay would get a 5-on-3 of their own, but for a full two minutes. Jon Sim continued his battle with Matt Smaby, and when Sim refused to go with him Trevor Gillies tried to get Smaby to dance. Both Sim and Gillies were penalized, something that quite frankly should not have happened there with the game tied. The Islanders penalty killers were up to the task, with Zenon Konopka, Mark Eaton and Andrew MacDonald all coming up in big ways, keeping Tampa Bay to just one shot. MacDonald injured his hand from his blocked shot, and left the ice and did not return. No update on his situation yet, but he was still with the team after the game and bandaged up.
The 3rd period had the Lightning really playing their game, and preventing the Islanders from playing theirs. There was a lot of standing around from the Islanders side. DiPietro had to make a lot of saves in the period, and came up big for some. Early on he was very sloppy, including one series where he was down on the ice with the puck going across the goal mouth and Victor Hedman missing a shot to a wide open net.
Late in the 3rd, the Islanders got some of their legs back and Comeau was able to break in on Ellis by using a power move around Pavel Kubina. Kubina tripped Comeau up on the play, which created a powerplay for the Isles that went into overtime.
The Isles didn't score on the power play, but Matt Moulson put the puck in just after it ended. The goal, however was reviewed for about eight minutes. It took a while to get the camera views that the league wanted after it looked like it was very possible it went in. One view from over head clearly showed the puck over the line in mid-air before Ellis swatted it away. It was Moulson's 4th of the year.
As far as individual performances are concerned, one notable player who didn't look too great was James Wisniewski. Sure, the ice in Tampa Bay is notoriously bad. But, he had two big turnovers in critical situations that lead to rushes the other way, one of them Bergenheim's 2nd breakaway that DiPietro stopped. He shanked a few shots too. He appears to be using different sticks, but who knows for how much longer after that performance.
Frans Nielsen looked very strong again as well. He skated hard the whole game, and won a critical face-off late when Konopka was kicked out of the circle. He continues to do the little things right, particularly on the defensive side of things. He's been chipping in with assists here and there too. Good stuff coming from Nielsen this year.
Niederreiter had a strong game, and I noticed that he finally started to get some time on the power play. It's about time, quite frankly. The Islanders have two games left to decide what to do with him, and they need to be sure he can handle the special teams so he can get consistent minutes in order to justify developing him up here and not on a top line with Portland of the WHL. He doesn't shy away from contact in the corners, and is most noticeable in getting to the scoring areas in front of the net. He and Weight seem to have some chemistry when it comes to a play like that, and it essentially created Grabner's goal.
Josh Bailey sat this one out, but it is expected that he will return Saturday against the Florida Panthers. Trent Hunter returned, so the team did not have to call up anyone from Bridgeport. However, next game may see someone sit out. I would think the early favorite for that would be Gillies. Sim could be another candidate, but when you look at how much PK time he has been getting, and how well the Islanders PK has been performing these last few games, I think he'll stick for now. Grabner had an excellent game, and needs to remain in the lineup right now. Ditto for Parenteau.
The Islanders road trip is off to a great start. They have eight of the next 10 on the road. I think its great that, in these last two road games, the Isles have not had anywhere near their best effort but walked out with all four possible points. We'll have a better read on how real this team is as the road trip rolls along, but for now it is certainly enjoyable to watch.
-Chris
nyifyi@gmail.com
But when it was all over, the Islanders would still find themselves sitting atop the Eastern Conference and the Atlantic Division and off to their best start since the 2001-2002 renaissance season.
The game started out with the Islanders looking strong. It didn't take very long for the Isles to get their first goal. Doug Weight took the puck behind Tampa's net, and passed it in front for a shot by Nino Niederreiter. Niederreiter got the initial shot off, but Dan Ellis kicked the rebound to the slot where Michael Grabner was waiting to put in his 2nd of the season.
Tampa Bay wouldn't answer with a goal of their own until late in the period, with Sean Bergeheim scoring on a breakaway. DiPietro had an odd approach to playing it, and I don't think he expected Bergenheim to get it off after the late deke. Either way, there were a couple of things he could have done better there. Kudos to Bergie for getting the goal against his former team. He's off to a fast start.
The second period was a slightly different game, with more stoppages and more penalties coming to both teams. Early in the 2nd, Bergenheim took a holding penalty on John Tavares. It was actually quite blatant, but Bergie being Bergie argued the call. The Islanders weren't able to cash in on that power play, and Martin St. Louis made them pay (of course). Steve Stamkos stripped a rather careless Blake Comeau of the puck at the blue line and passed it up to St. Louis. Mike Mottau did a lot to try and tie him up, but St. Louis used speed and skill to get the better of him. Meanwhile, DiPietro I don't think expected a shot to get off and went down really early, and didn't have much of a reaction to the shot. St. Louis roofed it to give the Lightning the lead.
The Islanders would tie the game when P.A. Parenteau converted on a 5-on-3 powerplay. A shot deflected right to Parenteau with Ellis going down expecting the original shot from the point to get through but couldn't move to his right in time.
Tampa Bay would get a 5-on-3 of their own, but for a full two minutes. Jon Sim continued his battle with Matt Smaby, and when Sim refused to go with him Trevor Gillies tried to get Smaby to dance. Both Sim and Gillies were penalized, something that quite frankly should not have happened there with the game tied. The Islanders penalty killers were up to the task, with Zenon Konopka, Mark Eaton and Andrew MacDonald all coming up in big ways, keeping Tampa Bay to just one shot. MacDonald injured his hand from his blocked shot, and left the ice and did not return. No update on his situation yet, but he was still with the team after the game and bandaged up.
The 3rd period had the Lightning really playing their game, and preventing the Islanders from playing theirs. There was a lot of standing around from the Islanders side. DiPietro had to make a lot of saves in the period, and came up big for some. Early on he was very sloppy, including one series where he was down on the ice with the puck going across the goal mouth and Victor Hedman missing a shot to a wide open net.
Late in the 3rd, the Islanders got some of their legs back and Comeau was able to break in on Ellis by using a power move around Pavel Kubina. Kubina tripped Comeau up on the play, which created a powerplay for the Isles that went into overtime.
The Isles didn't score on the power play, but Matt Moulson put the puck in just after it ended. The goal, however was reviewed for about eight minutes. It took a while to get the camera views that the league wanted after it looked like it was very possible it went in. One view from over head clearly showed the puck over the line in mid-air before Ellis swatted it away. It was Moulson's 4th of the year.
As far as individual performances are concerned, one notable player who didn't look too great was James Wisniewski. Sure, the ice in Tampa Bay is notoriously bad. But, he had two big turnovers in critical situations that lead to rushes the other way, one of them Bergenheim's 2nd breakaway that DiPietro stopped. He shanked a few shots too. He appears to be using different sticks, but who knows for how much longer after that performance.
Frans Nielsen looked very strong again as well. He skated hard the whole game, and won a critical face-off late when Konopka was kicked out of the circle. He continues to do the little things right, particularly on the defensive side of things. He's been chipping in with assists here and there too. Good stuff coming from Nielsen this year.
Niederreiter had a strong game, and I noticed that he finally started to get some time on the power play. It's about time, quite frankly. The Islanders have two games left to decide what to do with him, and they need to be sure he can handle the special teams so he can get consistent minutes in order to justify developing him up here and not on a top line with Portland of the WHL. He doesn't shy away from contact in the corners, and is most noticeable in getting to the scoring areas in front of the net. He and Weight seem to have some chemistry when it comes to a play like that, and it essentially created Grabner's goal.
Josh Bailey sat this one out, but it is expected that he will return Saturday against the Florida Panthers. Trent Hunter returned, so the team did not have to call up anyone from Bridgeport. However, next game may see someone sit out. I would think the early favorite for that would be Gillies. Sim could be another candidate, but when you look at how much PK time he has been getting, and how well the Islanders PK has been performing these last few games, I think he'll stick for now. Grabner had an excellent game, and needs to remain in the lineup right now. Ditto for Parenteau.
The Islanders road trip is off to a great start. They have eight of the next 10 on the road. I think its great that, in these last two road games, the Isles have not had anywhere near their best effort but walked out with all four possible points. We'll have a better read on how real this team is as the road trip rolls along, but for now it is certainly enjoyable to watch.
-Chris
nyifyi@gmail.com
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