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We have reached the Doug Weight Regional in the final day of first-round matchups. But before that, lets recap the first round in the Jack Capuano region.
(1) Deadline Duds defeated (8) Sean Bergenheim Saga
(2) Cal Clutterbuck Extension defeated (7) Casey Cizikas Extension
(3) Nino for Cal defeated (6) Zero Head Coaching Experience
(5) Jason Chimera Signing defeated (4) Chad Johnson signing
(1) Goalie Development vs (8) Kirills are gone
Goalie Development
The Islanders and New York Jets have a lot in common, both play second fiddle, can’t seem to get out of their own way and have failed to develop a long-term franchise goaltender/quarterback since winning their last championship.
Snow has contributed the futility, drafting eight goaltenders (Mikko Koskinen, Anders Nilsson, Cody Rosen, Stephon Williams, Eamon McAdam, Ilya Sorokin and Linus Soderstrom) during his reign. Of the eight, only three (Poulin, Koskinen, Nilsson) suited up for the Islanders. McAdam is the only one currently playing in the organization.
Kevin Poulin has had the most success, if you can call it that, won 18 games in 50 starts. Snow is hedging his bets on either Ilya Sorokin or Linus Soderstrom, both drafted in 2014. Soderstrom signed his ELC and will head to the U.S. next season. Sorokin, well that’s another story.
Kirills Are Gone
Garth clearly was a Kirill seeker as he drafted, not one, but two players with the first name Kirill. Petrov was drafted 73rd overall in the 2008 draft and Kabanov went 65th overall in the 2010 draft.
Neither Kirill made it past Bridgeport. Kabanov played two seasons in the AHL, netting five goals. Snow bought out Kabanov before the final season of his entry-level contract, although Kababov claimed that it was his decision to head back to Russia.
It was a surprise when Petrov signed his ELC and came over to America for the start of the 2015-16 season. He didn’t make the team out of camp and headed to Bridgeport. Very few thought that we would accept the assignment. His time lasted just 13 games. A broken foot which occurred during pregame warmups was part of his disappointing time with in Bridgeport. He returned to Russia in December of 2015.
Just like that, the Kirills were gone.
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(2) Thomas Vanek Traded vs (7) Brian Rolston Trade
Thomas Vanek Traded
Thomas Vanek immediately gave the Islanders a boost when he came over in that shocking trade with Buffalo. Vanek, John Tavares and Kyle Okposo formed the hottest line during Vanek’s tenure. In 47 games, Vanek had 17 goals and 27 assists.
When negotiations began for a contract extensions, Vanek turned down a reported seven-year, $50-million deal. With the team out of contention at the deadline, Snow looked to shop Vanek.
He consistently stated that testing unrestricted free agency was his goal, though he said a week before the deadline that he might have considered accepting the Islanders’ offer if they were a better team. Ouch.
The clock marched towards the 3pm deadline. Snow couldn’t find an offer that recouped the first-round pick he used to acquire Vanek. He ended up taking a second-round pick and Sebastian Collberg.
Brian Rolston Trade
Snow acquired the veteran forward and his $5M contract to help bring the Islanders to the salary-cap floor.
"That's secondary and it didn't even come in my thought process," Snow said when asked about the salary-cap implications.
Sure Garth, sure.
Rolston's days of 30+goals per season were long behind him. It clearly showed. He scored four goals in 49 games and failed to find any chemistry with his line mates, most notably Matt Martin and Josh Bailey. Rolston and Mike Mottau, who made the NIT Garth Madness, were traded to Boston.
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(3) Mikhail Grabovski Signing vs (6) P.A. Parenteau Waived
Mikhail Grabovski Signing
Snow waited until day two of free agency in 2014 to make his splash, signing forwards Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolai Kulemin to four-year deals.
Grabovski had 13 goals and 22 assists in 58 games for Washington in 2013-14 after being bought out of a five-year, $27.5-million deal by Toronto after just one season on that contract.
The team’s hope was for Grabovski to be the team’s second-line Center. When he was on the ice, good things happened, problem was, staying on the ice. He missed 55 games the first two years with various injuries and the entire 2016-17 season with a concussion.
He was included in a deal to Vegas at the expansion draft and has yet to play.
P.A. Parenteau Waived
Snow brought back an old friend in P.A. Parenteau, signing a one-year deal. The plan was to reunite Parenteau and John Tavares, who enjoyed success playing together during their two seasons.
With Tavares at the World Cup, the newly formed first line of Parenteau, Tavares and Andrew Ladd played just one game during last season’s preseason.
Snow then surprised everyone by waiving Parenteau a couple of days before the season started. He felt Shane Prince and Alan Quine was more valuable to have on the roster. We all know J.F. Berube had a permanent spot on the roster.
Parenteau was quickly claimed by the Devils and had a decent season before being traded to Nashville at the deadline.
Jason Chimera filled Parenteau’s spot on the first line. As you won’t expect, the first line struggled
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(4) Rick DiPietro Contract vs (5) Not Signing Jared Spurgeon
Rick DiPietro Contract
he Summer of 2006 was one of the most eventful in Islanders history. Neil Smith was fired after six weeks on the job and Snow hung up his pad to replace him as the general manager. His first move was a doozy, signing goaltender Rick DiPietro to an NHL-record 15-year contract which would pay him $4.5M annually.
To be fair to Garth, former Islanders majority owner Charles Wang was the brains behind the deal. The deal would haven take DiPietro to age 40. DiPietro’s deal topped the ten-year contract Wang gave Alexi Yashin, who was also bought out.
The first overall pick in the 2000 draft was a top-ten goaltender when he signed the deal. Unfortunately injuries derailed his career, playing 50 games in the last five years of his career. He was placed on waivers in February 2013 and to no one’s surprise, went unclaimed. He spent time with Bridgeport. In 18 games with the Sound Tigers, DiPietro was 9-9-0, with a 2.93 goal against average and .893 save percentage.
Snow bought out DiPietro in July 2013. As part of the buyout, DiPietro will receive $1.5 million annually through 2029. The money does not count against the salary cap.
Not Signing Jared Spurgeon
Snow had 13 selections in the 2008 draft and selected the undersized defenseman in the 6th round. A team has the rights to a draft pick for two years if taken from Canadian juniors. Snow opted not to sign Spurgeon and three others from the 2008 draft, including two player already in the bracket, Cody Rosen and Corey Trivino.
Spurgeon was invited to the Minnesota Wild training camp and earned a contract. He has played over 500 NHL games, netting over 200 points. Think Garth could use him right about the now?
Consider the 2008 draft the ACC of this bracket.
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