Sunday 8/8/10: I don't travel often, but I do enjoy it when I do. I would love to hit up a few away games this coming season in places I have never been such as Nashville and the new Pittsburgh arena. Knowing what to expect when you get there is always beneficial. That's why this new site called
Stadium Journey can be a great resource for anyone heading to a venue for a sporting event that they've never been to. Checking out the site, I see that our own Islanders stat guy, Eric Hornick wrote the
entry on the Coliseum loving called, "It's a dump, But it's OUR dump." Only a true Islander fan can explain that as well. Fabulous information for anyone traveling or just curious as to how their home arena stacks up to another.
So check it out, no matter what sport you're interested in or where you live.
Now about those cupcakes, you can check out Johnny Z's
entry and video from Saturday on Yes!Islanders.
Original Post:
The Long Island Press featured an
article in April called "Garth Snow's Summer "To-Do" List" written by Michael McEnareny. I actually used the article when I interviewed Mr. Snow in late April.
He admitted he hadn't read the article, but when I explained the five main items the fans wanted to see addressed in the off-season, he said he couldn't disagree.
They were:
1) Draft Wisely
2) Add size up front
3) Fix the Goaltender-go-round
4) Add nastiness at "D"
5) Find an Experienced Sniper
As of today, we can say that No. 1 is pretty much taken care of. It was a good draft year and each prospect that received an Islanders jersey during those two days in June has excellent potential. Brock Nelson is currently one of the leading scorers for Team USA at the Junior Development Camp in Lake Placid NY.
Adding size seems to have been the number one criteria for free agency as so many of those newly acquired for the Islanders organization are over 6' tall. "I would love for all our 'D' to be 6'4", 230 lbs and skate the wind." is what Garth Snow told me jokingly in April. Perhaps it stuck in the back of his mind.
There will not be a three-headed goaltender this season. No matter how many times I have asked if another veteran goalie will be acquired, I've received the same answer. "We are going with Rick and Rolie." The Islanders are comfortable enough with their depth in goal to take a chance on DiPietro being completed rehabbed and ready for action. Of course, the real question is not if he is ready to
play, but if he is ready to
play well? The way he once did which earned him the job in the first place. Will Rick DiPietro be able to steal a game here and there or will it have to be Dwayne Roloson once again the work horse?
I believe Snow took "Add Nastiness at 'D'" to a new level when he decided to sign Zenon Konopka, Trevor Gillies and James Wisniewski. Each of them has a mean streak and Konopka has 265 PIMs in 74 games. I think that's nasty enough. Hopefully that "nastiness" won't lead to suspensions and organization shame.
So what's left on the list is the most important factor for any hockey team that expect to be a contender: Scoring. At this point in the off-season, I do not see that experienced sniper that was on the fan's wish list. Now, while last season the GF totals for the Devils, the Rangers and the Isles was 222, the Flyers had 236 and the Penguins had 257.
I tried to do a little math. The loss of Meyer, Park, Bergenheim, Jackman, Witt and Sutton is a loss of 30 goals. If you throw Jon Sim in that mix, because he has a two way deal, you have a 43 goal deficit. Okay, what did we add? Konopka, Parenteau, Eaton, Jurcina, Wisniewski and Gillies with a total of (are you ready?) 12 goals.
Scoring is the final piece of the puzzle and the last item on the list. And as I've been told, what's the difference if a Free Agent is signed on July 1st or August 31st? Well, nothing except maybe -- ticket sales.
New York Islanders Blogger • 
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