As the Season seems to slip away...

I’m sick as a dog this weekend, so I’ve been occupying my suffering-on-the-couch time by watching hockey games. Sadly none of the games I’ve watched have turned out the way I’d like them to.
Friday night, the Devils failed to beat the Rangers and “Moonlight” (my new favorite NON-hockey show!) was a repeat. These facts just compounded the cold that was swiftly taking hold of me. I went to bed early but couldn’t sleep well because I was coughing so hard. Thankfully, I didn’t have much to do on Saturday anyway, and I knew the Islander game was airing early. I could lounge around and nap till 2 pm, and I did.
By 3 pm, I knew we were in trouble and I felt like someone had beaten my head with a brick. The NYIC message board was buzzing with others watching the very dull and life-less game. The disappointment was widespread as we watched the Islanders get crushed 4 - 1. I went back to bed for a little while and woke up in time for the Devils game.
I asked Big Angry Man to order Chinese food and wrapped myself in a blanket on the couch. I watched the Devils beat the Kings 6 - 3 in a far more exciting game than the one I had witnessed in the afternoon. I watched six goals scored by SIX different players and of course, some excellent goal tending by the always amazing Marty Brodeur. Six goals? How many times have the Islanders scored six goals in one game this season?
Another sleepless night and a low grade fever when I get out of bed at 6:30 am. What the heck do I have??? I NEVER get sick! EVER. Ok, that’s an exaggeration. But it IS exceptionally rare. This Super Bowl Sunday will be a bust for our house as I can’t even think of going anywhere or doing anything more than throwing some snacks in the oven. But there is one more hockey game on before the hype that is the Super Bowl: Rangers vs. the Canadians on NBC.
For the most part, I enjoy the NBC telecasts, although I seriously miss Ray Ferraro. Why didn’t they renew him? But having Eddie O and Mike Milbury doing between period commentaries does lend some sparkle to their typically Vanilla coverage. So what happens this afternoon? Well, the Rangers some how score 5 unanswered goals and beat the Habs 5 - 3. Even if I was feeling better, which I wasn’t, I would have gotten sick again with that score. Another two points for the Rangers, that’s a 4 point weekend. I could just scream.
There are only 29 more games total, and 14 home games. Four of those games are afternoon games, so that almost definitely means those will be losses. The Islanders currently have 54 points, the Rangers have 60. Every time the Islanders lose, they slip further into the abyss.
The season started with such high hopes which were quickly dashed by injury. Jon Sim’s season ended with him only playing two games. Radek Martinek didn’t escape his injury black cloud this year as he missed 13 games. Actually, that is pretty good for him. Newcomer Aaron Johnson lost 35 games this season to injury and NINE as a healthy scratch. I think our greatest loss is Chris Campoli. When the news that his season was over broke, it was just devastating.
All these unfortunate turns of events don’t explain the lack of scoring by healthy players. Mike Comrie has been a disappointment since his stellar pre-season game performance. Bill Guerin, while a much better Captain than they’ve had in years, is still not the dependable savior they need. And while Satan should be making a case for himself in the last year of his $4.25 mil contract, he has only 11 goals and 18 assists in 52 games. Not exactly a “stellar” season.
Speaking of “stellar,” this team has only one true “star,” and he’s in net. I don’t know what to tell Charles and company about the balance of the season and what they should do at the trade deadline. They already tried the “mortgage everything and get a star” plan last season, and it didn’t get them far. Maybe they are better off not making any huge splash and letting the chips fall where they may. If the Islanders fall short of the playoffs, than they have to do better at draft day. If they can’t attract a pure hockey talent, then they have to GROW one of their own. (‘Hello Kyle? You’ve just become the number one son.’)
Some of my fellow bloggers are so upset with this weekend’s events; they talk of throwing in the towel. I know that is only their passion speaking, and they don’t truly mean it. Or at least I hope they don’t really mean it. I can only give my fellow fans this piece of advice from a Toad the Wet Sprocket song -- “If you don’t expect too much of me, you might not be let down.” Let’s keep the expectations reasonable but our support ever present. Ok ok… let’s TRY for God’s sake.
It’s Super Bowl Sunday. What are we eating? Did I win any money?