There's hostility in literally every major thread on this site right now

Jimbro al-Mujahideen is declaring a fatwa, via his goaltender suicide bomber, on Halak, the Flyers boys are circling the wagons around Andrew MacDonald, and I'm sure there is some sort of battle on the Leafs thread.
- eichiefs9

all is quiet in our Lightning thread

XxNYIxX

Then when he's still a bust it will be because he was misused.
- JimmyP

He will need 2 more years!! He's the players version of the rebuild.

XxNYIxX

if our goaltending doesn't constantly give up softies like last year then we'll be a lot better as well. when we needed a save, we never got it.
- Isles_since_6

I fully expect us to make the playoffs this year. A good goalie, a good backup, good depth.

Our D may be slightly below average but if de Haan and Viz are healthy I am not overly worried about our D. Our forwards group appears to be one of the deepest in the league. I do expect a trade after training camp as well.

No team in the east or metro improved like us. Flyers got worse, Pens remained same, Caps maybe slightly better, Rangers same or slightly worse, Devils better, Jackets same.

See we do agree n this!!

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

I don't agree.

Action Jackson was on last night!!!!!!!!!!

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

I actually saw that in the theater when it came out

Too bad we can't get the two together...I KID!!!
- keaner17

I'd vote for that.

I fully expect us to make the playoffs this year. A good goalie, a good backup, good depth.

Our D may be slightly below average but if de Haan and Viz are healthy I am not overly worried about our D. Our forwards group appears to be one of the deepest in the league. I do expect a trade after training camp as well.

No team in the east or metro improved like us. Flyers got worse, Pens remained same, Caps maybe slightly better, Rangers same or slightly worse, Devils better, Jackets same.
- Danformo

I still see us as a bubble team right now. While we're definitely improved, I can't look at teams like the flyers, jackets, rangers, caps, and say we're better than them on paper. Injuries, hot streaks, it could result in key wins or losses during the season. Add in another top 4 defenseman or if reinhart/donovan/czuczman take a big step forward we could be fine, but dehaan's injury history along with visnovsky's concussion history make me very uneasy expecting them to play a full year, or the majority of the season.

our depth up front and in net is much improved, but I don't know that we'll make the playoffs. I don't think we're done though, not with all the forwards we have on the roster.

I do hope carkner, mcdonald and conacher all end up being sent to bridgeport.

have to agree, while I can't stand our coaching staff, if they get the players to play more responsible defensively as they did after the trade deadline, with the combination of much better goaltending, and no martinek, amac and hopefully no carkner, we should see improvement. It could be quite a bit improved although with so much youth there will be mistakes.

ideally, what I'd like to see if nothing changes and no trades are made (my first choice would be to make a move for an established top 4 defenseman)

hamonic dehaan
visnovsky czuczman
hickey reinhart

strait, donovan

that's a lot of youth. a lot of potential mistakes, but playing in front of Halak/Johnson and with our depth at forward we should still see improvement.

Ideally, still would like to see another top 4 added, but the summer isn't over.
- Isles_since_6

I could see a vet like Viz be paired w/Reinhart to start the season and Hickey & Strait as a pair w/Czuczman starting in Bport only bc of the numbers game of 1way contracts & waivers. Plus I wouldn't be surprised if Reinhart might start in Bport as well bc the isles still have Carkner & Brennan left on 1way contracts. Grant it, there could be a great possibility that Carkner could get waived & not claimed but I think that could happen later into season. Knowing the Isles & how they've operated in the past is that they will take full advantage of the waiver system in the start of the season. We also have to keep in mind that our D also continues to have injuries to where the kids can always be called up to replace, which allows the team to utilize the depth that they created.

I don't agree.
- Cptmjl

Yes you do.

XxNYIxX

I fully expect us to make the playoffs this year. A good goalie, a good backup, good depth.

Our D may be slightly below average but if de Haan and Viz are healthy I am not overly worried about our D. Our forwards group appears to be one of the deepest in the league. I do expect a trade after training camp as well.

No team in the east or metro improved like us. Flyers got worse, Pens remained same, Caps maybe slightly better, Rangers same or slightly worse, Devils better, Jackets same.
- Danformo

I think if this team could add another NHL legit Dman, yes but w/D that might start the season, I think this team currently is a bubble team....

well thats what the conversation is...next time ill be sure to get your approval beforehand.

obviously making an assessment after something happens is easier than predicting what will happen but since its august 7th and the topics of discussion are currently suicide bombers and hilary clinton, i figured id start the discussion is todays defensive group is better than last years. if you cant separate the defense from the coaching staff and system then im not sure how you can ever blame a player (bailey, amac (pre-flyers days) when the "coaching staff and system" are the same for the entire team.
- LetsGoIsles

You do that, and I'll be sure to ignore you when you get all pissy

I could see a vet like Viz be paired w/Reinhart to start the season and Hickey & Strait as a pair w/Czuczman starting in Bport only bc of the numbers game of 1way contracts & waivers. Plus I wouldn't be surprised if Reinhart might start in Bport as well bc the isles still have Carkner & Brennan left on 1way contracts. Grant it, there could be a great possibility that Carkner could get waived & not claimed but I think that could happen later into season. Knowing the Isles & how they've operated in the past is that they will take full advantage of the waiver system in the start of the season. We also have to keep in mind that our D also continues to have injuries to where the kids can always be called up to replace, which allows the team to utilize the depth that they created.
- Ur Not Me

I'd love to see reinhart paired with visnovsky, but being that LV is likely to play significant minutes, that may be asking way too much too soon from reinhart.

You do that, and I'll be sure to ignore you when you get all pissy
- UIF

when all else fails, ignore the topic and resort to petty name calling...very uncharacteristic of you buddy.

back to the topic which has now veered off from the original point but can you clarify what you meant?

if you cant separate the defense from the coaching staff & system then im not sure how you can ever blame a player (bailey, amac (pre-flyers days) when the "coaching staff and system" are the same for the entire team.

You are THE eternal pessimist.

Do you walk around with a helmet on since the sky is always falling?

XxNYIxX
- XxNYIxX

Do you have something to say about my post or are you just being an internet bully, safe behind the anonymity of your keyboard? Why dont you get back to work? Someone is paying you everyday to light up this message board. You must be neglecting your job.. Or wife. Or kids. Because if all you want to do is instigate whenever I write something then please go away. Nobody needs your negativity. I guarantee your mouth doesn't run as much in real life when you're face to face with another adult.

I said I think they will improve....just not enough to be real contenders. LGI doesn't need you sticking up for him. I disagreed with his post but I didn't attack him personally. Calling him an eternal optimist isn't such a harsh insult. If I called you an eternal a$$hole, now THAT would be worthy of a defensive reply.

Happy with Clutterbuck for Nino..no. Does this have anything to do with Bailey being sucktastic? no. Nino had a grand total of 64 games with us prior to being traded. Bailey has had over 400

If Bailey 'keeps putting up points'?
I'm still waiting for that to start. I expect more than 35-38 points from a top 10 pick entering his 7th season in the NHL.
As for Ennis being a complete player...Josh is?
- keaner17

ok and in 64 games Nino had one goal.
The point is, they are disappointing until the aren't . You cant teach talent/Skill.

KO was in same camp. Yes Bailey is disappointing till now but my point is I have not given up just yet. If you say someone is better than him coming up, I agree let them beat him out of position. I haven't see who that is. Lee scoring a few goals doesn't mean he plays the complete game.

Everyone all ecstatic about Grabovski , Kumelin. Difference those guys have peaked and stats have declined

And last time I post on this. If Bailey comes out firing this year. Guess what, every one here will be singing his praises. that's my point.

Trading Bailey for nothing would be stupid. I always laugh how some people here that trading our disappointing bad players will get us back top NHL talent. Doesn't work that way.

My favorite players on isles is JT. but unlike others, I don't think b/c bailey was drafted 9th he should be top 10 in league. May I remind you he is 24 years old. Oh guess what. Anders Lee is 24 years old. Only difference is Bailey made NHL when was 18. So fact that he has 400 game experience he is a bust?

1st sentence wrong...
2nd right
3rd wrong...
Amac sucks. All who mention his name should 'go to box, feel shame'.
- keaner17

This from the guy who boldly boasted Poulin would be our #1 starter last season.


I am happy Amac is gone but someone else has 5 million reasons a year to disagree with you about his play. It's funny when you look at the careers of former Islanders and how they did when they went to another team. Often, they do better than they did with us. Is that coincidence?

I'd love to see reinhart paired with visnovsky, but being that LV is likely to play significant minutes, that may be asking way too much too soon from reinhart.
- Isles_since_6

I could see a reversal with Viz, bc of his age and history of being injured, the isles might make him a 3rd pairing Dman to try and keep him healthy & using his strength on the PP. The team will only benefit if Viz can stay healthy playing limited minutes compared to possibly getting injured playing major minutes at the age of 38 (I think?). Now this is just my opinion of how I think they should use Viz. Could it happen, maybe or maybe not.

-we'll agree to disagree that the team is/nt better without amac, personally i saw a MUCH different defensive team once he was gone but to each his own i guess.

-i dont expect the moon, in fact my exact quote was

-i dont "also" assume garth will sign/acquire a quality top 4 vet, in fact my exact quote was
"OR" being the operative word...and im saying they will fill (at worst) the 6th spot which will be an improvement from last years team (which was the original topic)

-am i an optimist? i guess some may call it that. i just look at my calendar and notice 2 months till opening night.

-somehow despite what the topic is, you are unable to separate the topic at hand without bring up capuano. the discussion was about the defense being better this year than last year. how is capuano involved in that?
- LetsGoIsles

The coaching has an impact on EVERY aspect of the game, no? When a player is trying too hard or asked/implied or decides to try & play above their capabilities, it's the coaches job to correct the problem.

This from the guy who boldly boasted Poulin would be our #1 starter last season.


I am happy Amac is gone but someone else has 5 million reasons a year to disagree with you about his play. It's funny when you look at the careers of former Islanders and how they did when they went to another team. Often, they do better than they did with us. Is that coincidence?
- jmo16

you're incorrect. Keaner did not say anything like that. Keaner and I had a discussion where we thought Poulin could eventually turn into a #1, and your post here is a gross exaggeration.


**edit**
I’m also going to add here that the amac contract to philly has been labelled a gross overpayment for a 3rd pairing defenseman by a number of publications and in a number of articles. Multiple advanced stats articles showing how poorly he’s played and how he’s declined drastically over the last three seasons.

I’ve also read a number of flyer’s sites where the discussion of trading for amac prior to it happening were met with scorn and one quote of “shoot me if we trade for amac”.

This is definitely a case of “find the silver lining” after a giant mistake signing him to a contract you’d expect to see for a top 2-3 guy, for a 5/6.

Philly does this often. Is Vinny's a good contract? Just because a team signs someone to an inflated deal doesn't make them a good player. See clowe, clarkson, phaneuf, amac.

ok and in 64 games Nino had one goal.
The point is, they are disappointing until the aren't . You cant teach talent/Skill.

KO was in same camp. Yes Bailey is disappointing till now but my point is I have not given up just yet. If you say someone is better than him coming up, I agree let them beat him out of position. I haven't see who that is. Lee scoring a few goals doesn't mean he plays the complete game.

Everyone all ecstatic about Grabovski , Kumelin. Difference those guys have peaked and stats have declined

And last time I post on this. If Bailey comes out firing this year. Guess what, every one here will be singing his praises. that's my point.

Trading Bailey for nothing would be stupid. I always laugh how some people here that trading our disappointing bad players will get us back top NHL talent. Doesn't work that way.

My favorite players on isles is JT. but unlike others, I don't think b/c bailey was drafted 9th he should be top 10 in league. May I remind you he is 24 years old. Oh guess what. Anders Lee is 24 years old. Only difference is Bailey made NHL when was 18. So fact that he has 400 game experience he is a bust?
- Spartiarti

still dodging my points. the sh!t train is still riding the rails, won't change course.

This from the guy who boldly boasted Poulin would be our #1 starter last season.


I am happy Amac is gone but someone else has 5 million reasons a year to disagree with you about his play. It's funny when you look at the careers of former Islanders and how they did when they went to another team. Often, they do better than they did with us. Is that coincidence?
- jmo16

No, it's not a coincidence but amac sucks. He sucked with us and he sucks on the Flyers. They had a better team last year and maybe this year that's why his horrible play was maybe a bit concealed but still evident to anyone who payed attention. The guy is not a good hockey player on any team. Saying due to Homgrem giving him an absurd contract that he must be worth it and we missed the boat is ridiculous.

Travis Hamonic - turns 24 next week. 3 Goals 15assist LY. 78 points in 252 games? I guess we should trade him too b/c he sucks based on how some of you see it

Calvin DeHaan - took him 4 yrs to finally make him NHL. 3G, 13A. We should get rid of this bust too I guess.

Ryan Strome - 21 years old. Only 3 years younger than Bailey. took him 3 years to make NHL 37 games, 7G, 11A. If Strome doesnt score 30 this year should trade him too.

Sorry to come off like a D-ck - but the whole point is. Its not Josh Bailey fault he was put in NHL at age 18. So Saying has played 400 games and done nothing isn't a valid statement. B/c All would be forgotten with one incredible season this year.

2008 first round pick Colin Wilson in his 5th season as Predator and score 11G, 22 A. is he a bust. Mikkel Boedker in 6th season as coyotes and best season last year with 19G, 32A for 51 points. Is he a bust too?

The point Aside from top 1-3 Guys in each draft, not everyone becomes an 60-70 scorer immediately.

So Careful what you wish for. B/c if Bailey get traded for nothing and thrives, that only sets us back.

There's some great convo in here today

The coaching has an impact on EVERY aspect of the game, no? When a player is trying too hard or asked/implied or decides to try & play above their capabilities, it's the coaches job to correct the problem.
- jmo16

so how do you blame bailey for sucking...cant the same logic be used that its cappys fault?

No, it's not a coincidence but amac sucks. He sucked with us and he sucks on the Flyers. They had a better team last year and maybe this year that's why his horrible play was maybe a bit concealed but still evident to anyone who payed attention. The guy is not a good hockey player on any team.
- Cptmjl

I'm not trying to get involved in this Amac debate/argument of any sorts bc I most definitely have a different opinion on the Isles and roster players, etc.

But I have a question? This is not directed at you & if others would like to chime in as well, so be it....

We all know Amac was horrendous here (here's the what if) but if Amac decided to take Snow's contract offer instead of thinking that he's worth $5M, what would be most fans thought about him being here for another 4 more years?

We can really say all the negative stuff now bc he's not on the team anymore but what if he still was? Plus the Isles still need at least another legit NHL dman.

Grant it, I've gone on record of saying Amac sucks only bc my view of this team is different.