All Entries Tagged With: "garth snow"
Backchecking: Half The Job – An Open Letter to Larry Brooks
The following is a letter I sent to Larry Brooks of the New York Post after his article critical of the Islanders — calling them “irrelevant” was published. I wrote the note, not so much to defend Charles Wang and Garth Snow. But I felt strongly enough that while the franchise is continuing to struggle, [...]
Rask Injured, Isles Edge Bruins 3-2 At TD Garden
BOSTON – After twice posting a six spot on the Islanders this season, the Bruins welcomed New York to town on Saturday afternoon in search of their first set of back-to-back wins in over a month and a half. Playing in the middle contest of a Big-Apple trifecta (NJ on Thursday, NYI Saturday, NYR Sunday), [...]
Backchecking: 6 Points for the New York Islanders
I have not had the opportunity to write as much as I would have liked this season on my thoughts for the New York Islanders. With the season entering the final quarter, the trade deadline on Monday, and the Islanders fighting for their playoff lives, there are some comments Id thought to share with the [...]
The Frustration of Forced Patience for NY Islanders Fans
My latest for CBS New York is about how fans need not to fret on Nino Niederreiter’s ice time. Too often, especially with a bad NHL team, focus then invariably sets with high expectations on the next kids. I go into the Islanders prospect process and site examples. Check it out! Next up on CBS [...]
Backchecking: What to Expect: Part 3 — Defense
I hope we all had a great holiday break the last week. Although, I suppose the 3 games that made up the Christmas break for the Islanders was anything but great. Battling back on the road and getting a few wins put the Islanders within hailing distance of a run at the pack. But with [...]
Backchecking: What To Expect: Part 2 — Goalies
It was easy to keep a little quite over the past several weeks. My work dictated that. But the play of the Islanders from Thanksgiving weekend through the early part of December improved greatly, and the team put some wins together — climbing out of the NHL basement, and giving us fans a small glimmer [...]
TRUTH OF THE MATTER: Some Reality Laid Down On These Isles
What Has Come To Pass Back over the summer I warned on what plans the Isles had with one Blake Comeau. In fact, if you follow me on twitter, I’ve been saying it since the end of last season. Despite the 24 goals and 46 points within last season’s chaos, the Isles [...]
Backchecking: What To Expect: Part 1 — Coaching
I have been quiet. I have been waiting. I have been patient. But the dysfunction of the franchise has once again caught up with me, and I am going to take a guess that I am not alone in my dread. What began 2 months ago as hope that this season would afford the Islanders [...]
OPINION: Are These Isles a Team of Tin Men?
“When you play this game, you need to play with fire. You need to have passion. You need play with determination. You need to play with desperation… When you lace up your skates, the guy across from you, the guy on the left and the right of you, they need to know that you’ve [...]
THE THREE GOALIE ANALYSIS: My Talk With NHL Independent Goalie Scout Justin Goldman About The Isles
UPDATE: Nabokov with a groin injury, as I said last night, and will be out “indefinitely”. That’s about a month for a goalie and a groin. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Justin Goldman, one of the brighter people I know who scouts goalies and has a real feel for the position himself. Take it away Justin…. [...]
CAUSE AND EFFECT: Beware The Blame Game & Reason For Hope
The Islanders start is not one for the ages, but lately it seems that fans seem to be whipped into a frenzy. First with Nabokov and agent seeming to spout off to the peanut galley, then once the rumors get cooking, catch flak and start saying the “party line” on record. Then suddenly we talked [...]
Winless Streak Will Put Players and Coaches On Hot Seat on Long Island
Things To Heat Up….and not in a good way. No matter how anyone chooses to spin last night, most who watched with half a wit saw a team outplayed in two periods, the first and third. The Isles came out awkward and disjointed. Then in period 2, it was they who turned on the Jets… [...]
A LOOK AT THE ISLANDERS DEFENSE: Part 2 of Series
Last week we looked at the Isles offense and asked if the makeup of the lines would lead to enough scoring to make playoffs hopes a reality. This week we look deep at the bigger and more porous issue of the last few years…The defense. Late last season, I was told that the Islanders would [...]
NY ISLANDERS SEASON PREVIEW: The Offense
Well here we are, on the cusp of another Isles season. It’s been a long haul for the Islanders faithful last few seasons, if not last 15 years. It has been very tolling on most hardcore fans over the Nassau Coliseum situation. As I warned back on August 1st and in subsequent blogs, no RFP [...]
Backchecking: The Fun Begins
It has been a painful summer in some ways for Islander fans. Just as the boys in blue and orange were gelling together, giving us glimpses of what could be, the season ended. And while 2010-11 had a stretch of games that led the New York Islanders into the abyss of the NHL standings, they [...]
Streit To The Point – Quick Thoughts On These NY Islanders
There is not much to say about Mark Streit being named captain because it was pretty clear when Doug Weight hung up the skates that he was the only viable candidate besides perhaps Kyle Okposo. It is tremendously silly by those touting that John Tavares should have been named captain. This team needs a [...]
Islanders Name Streit Captain
Today, The NY Islanders announced that Mark Streit will be the teams new captain for the 2011-12 season and beyond. This is not a total shock as there have been stories from multiple sources saying that Streit is a strong leader on and off the ice. This will make Streit the 13th captain in [...]
NY Islanders Three-Headed Beast – Why The Goalie Situation Will Continue To Be A Problem
You do not need much hockey acumen to know that three goalie systems do not work. You just need to be a recent Isles fan to recall that it was not that long ago that a subpar DiPietro, a backup playoff caliber Dwayne Roloson, and a rusty and off scheduled Marty Biron who was [...]
What To Expect From The NY Islanders Training Camp
The battle that “they” will make a lot about, but was never a battle, is starring Nino Niederreiter. Nino has been penciled to play this year on the Isles since early this summer, if not last year. They knew what they had with Nino last year, and knew he was ready this year for the [...]
Backchecking: The Kids Are Alright – Update – Tavares Signed LONG TERM
Another season of hockey is upon us on Long Island and throughout the NHL. My hope is I get to continue to say that well beyond 2015 for the New York Islanders, but that is for a different day. Today, dawn is about to break on the New York Islanders training camp and regular season. [...]
