My Boy Sean

Those who have known me the past few years know where my loyalties lie. All the while I was promoting one little nasty blond man; I kept a keen mother’s eye on another one. I’ve watched his development from the time he was drafted in 2002 as little more than a long haired kid with a huge smile. Six years later, Sean Bergenheim is turning into the player I always knew he could be.

But in 2002, The Hockey News had this to say about him:
THN: One thing about Sean Bergenheim: The only way to stop him is to chop the legs out from underneath him. Bergenheim is not a scorer and any scoring he does is a bonus. He's a third liner with speed, determination and competitive instincts. Hockey sense, however, is another matter. He might end up being a Finnish coming of Rico Fata, the sixth overall pick of Calgary in 1998, who is best suited for the minor leagues. "For me it is hockey sense. He's not a smart player," said one critical GM. "He goes 100 miles an hour. If Rico Fata can't make it at No. 6, how is this guy ever going to make it at all?" Bergenheim likes to hit and play the body. That could make him a serviceable third liner. "He can be a (Kris) Draper type of guy, but Draper is smarter," said a scout. "He makes some nice moves with the puck, but I do not see a lot of hockey sense," added a scout. "If he works on his hands, he will help his game." THN prediction: Character forward

I will be honest, I’ve heard others say early in this season that his “hockey sense” hadn’t developed as quickly as they would have liked. But I think that changed the second half of the season. He capitalized on his chances, and Ted Nolan rewarded his efforts with additional ice time, and praise in the press room.

Why am I bringing this up, you ask? Because everyone is talking about the upcoming draft and rather than looking forward, I just wanted to take a moment to look back. Certainly I could have gone back and looked at Rick DiPietro, first over all pick for 2000. But I think that story has been told more than enough times.

The other reason I’m bringing up Bergenheim is because of his current status with the Islanders. That status is … “UNSIGNED RFA.” Truthfully, I’m not happy about it. Even though Katie Strang of Newsday, while covering for our beat writer Greg Logan, has kept us in the loop regarding Sean’s possible injury as she’s been updating our Islander blog to keep the faithful informed. http://weblogs.newsday.com/sports/hockey/islanders/blog/ I have to send her a personal THANK YOU considering that from the moment I heard he was injured, I was trying like crazy to find out how bad it was. Not an easy task when you can’t read any of the articles you find on the Finnish websites.

Katie also mentioned speaking with Sean’s agent, which sadly is STILL Mark Gandler. The genius who ended up having Bergie play in Europe for a year because he thought he could play hardball with the Islanders. I was hoping Sean would have switched agents by now. The very fact that it IS Gandler doesn’t bode well for negotiations. You know that saying, Once bitten, Twice shy.

With luck, he’s learned his lesson and Snow and Gandler will be able to come to acceptable terms for both parties. I just remember Snow telling me in a stern tone “The last time I checked, a half a million dollars was still a lot of money.” It’s obvious that the Islanders and Snow have a very clear cut vision of their budget based on players, and they will not be swayed or bullied. Believe me; NO ONE can bully Garth Snow. He will offer what he feels he is worth, and what the Islanders are willing to pay for his service. THAT'S IT.

Personal notes on Sean Bergenheim: The first time I saw him play was an Islander pre-season game on 9/21/03 in Bridgeport against the Penguins. He wore #47 that game. I watched this young kid stare down Mario Lemieux and not give up. It was priceless. In October of that year, I found him at the local airport as the Islanders were getting ready to travel. I asked him to sign my daughter’s jersey and the smile that swept over him just amazed me. He was surprised. “Me?” he asked, especially since Roman Hamrlik was the one who drove him to the airport. I didn’t even give HIM a second look. I told Sean then he would be a star in the league, he blushed. And Hamrlik called security on me -- that creep.

When Steve Stirling was coaching the team, I asked him about Sean. He said he couldn't play 4th line minutes. When Brad Shaw was coaching, I asked him the same thing. "What about Sean?" He told me the same thing. He didn't know HOW to play fourth line minutes, and there was just no room for him.

During the work stoppage, we went to see Sean play in Bridgeport; I was amazed at the minutes this kid could play at his intensity level. I thought for sure he would just have a heart attack on

the ice. They let the fans come to the ice for autographs. I asked him to sign his rookie card for me. He apologized for smudging his signature and blew on it to dry.

When I had my one big night at the coliseum in January of ‘06, right before CJ Papa’s microphone cut out on me, I managed to put Sean in the same category as Jason Blake when it came to his work ethic. He heard me. The next day at the STH Meet & Greet, he thanked me. And once again, I told him how much I believed in him.

I was heartsick when he couldn’t find a way to agree on a contract, but I and a few others followed him faithfully while he was in Sweden thanks to our Swedish member of NYIC who supplied translations and video clips.

Then there was this year’s Meet & Greet in the park where he thanked me yet again for my support. I didn’t want to ask if he knew exactly how much support I had offered over the years. I’ve never asked if he’s read any of my writing or if he just knows that I’ve been there, at the games, at the glass and calling for his success.

But success in his mind has not come yet. If you watch the newest installment on ITV, he makes no bones about not being happy with his own performance this year. As of the end of this year, even though he received praise from Nolan, he ended with only 22 points and is a minus 3. This puts him at 311th of the 902 NHL players for points. He can do better. He will do better. I see next season as being the defining year for my boy Sean. I just hope that Gandler doesn’t screw this up for me….. Or him.