Wed 10:30 pm: 21 goals this season, 7 in the playoffs, 2 tonight. Yep. Sean's found a home.
So in looking over the comments, I noticed you HBers started to talk about the same thing I was talking about last night: Wow. Bergie.
The young Swedish speaking Finn that was drafted by the Islanders in 2002 in the first round, 22nd overall. Yes, Bergenheim was good enough to be a first round draft pick. But he was never given the same fanfare as the Islanders OTHER first rounders.
I know this because I argued the point almost daily with the organization. Sean had to prove himself every time he stepped on the ice. In Bridgeport, he was a fan favorite and one of the hardest working players on the roster. But he had a hard time cracking the line-up in Uniondale. We talked about a few times before I was a blogger. He was on the bench for the Islanders when I shouted his name over the Jumbotron when C.J. Papa interviewed me during a TV time-out in January of '06.
The next afternoon, during a season ticket holder event, when I stood in line for his autograph he recognized me. "You're the lady on the jumbotron. I wanted to say thank you for what you said." A day later, he got his one way ticket back to Bridgeport.
I was angry about the move. From then on, Bergenheim and I had that fan-player relationship that would make pretty young girls jealous. His relationship with the Islanders wasn't quite as warm and fuzzy.
Steve Stirling told me Bergenheim couldn't play 4th line minutes, and there was no room for him on the third. Brad Shaw said something similiar and Ted Nolan would just shake his head. Sean was a pin-ball between Bridgeport and Uniondale. His occassional injuries that kept him off the pine didn't help him either. It always felt the Islanders were giving up hope of him developing into what he should have been.
Bergenheim knew it, he felt it and he reacted to it. He pouted -- a lot. Scott Gordon used him where he could within his system and he did have some success, but it was never enough. The damage was done. There were never any tee shirts with his name on them selling on the concourse -- ever. Terry Goldstein never ordered any and told me there wasn't enough interest in them. (In start contrast, the Kyle Okposo authentic jersey for $145 hit the concourse before Okposo himself ever hit the ice. I'm just sayin')
When I interviewed him during clean up day on April 12, 2010, I knew it was for the last time. Sean was never given a qualifying offer and signed lated in the summer with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He was nursing a rib injury which he told me wasn't the reason he signed so late in the season, but I wondered.
He took a one year, one way deal with the Bolts and has found a home on a productive third line. When Jon Jordan, ex-blog boxer and Tampa Bay Lightning blogger, interviewed him before the season started, I told him to let Sean know that I knew he'd do well there. "Tell him I'm expecting 15 goals out of him easy! If he works hard, it will be 20!"
Jon did exactly that. Sean laughed and didn't believe he'd get to 20 goals but thanked me for my never ending support. Well, Sean Bergenheim finished the regular season with 14 goals and 15 assists for 29 points. He has five goals so far in the post season. One more goal and it's obvious -- I was right!
As one poster mentioned, I wondered what would have happened with Bergenheim under Jack Capuano's system on the Islanders. But we will never know.
Much like Matt Moulson, PA Parenteau and Al Montoya, sometimes a player needs a change of scenery in order to excel and develop. Sometimes it's just fate.
Sean Bergenheim has found his home -- and it's in Tampa. Not a bad place to be.
New York Islanders Blogger • 
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