And... THEY'RE OFF! :-) 9-19-08

Happy Emoticon Day! Yep. Emoticons were actually born in 1857 when Morse code operators used 73 to indicate Hugs & Kisses. They didn’t really catch on until 1982 when a professor at Carnegie Mellon University suggested using our standard : - ) to indicate a joke. See? Learn something new every day.

Oh, and Happy Birthday Rick DiPietro. You get to take a nice plane trip on your birthday. But I’m sure there’s cake waiting for you this evening. (Along with whatever else you’ve requested.)

So it’s off to Moncton today for the entire team and staff. And I mean “entire.” On Wednesday I asked the PR Dept if anyone was going to be left in Uniondale and I was given the names of some new interns and a snide remark. I know there are other fans and bloggers heading to Moncton today, so I’m wishing everyone a safe trip.

Islanders Illustrated Episode 4 aired on MSGPlus last night, and for some insane reason, I thought it was airing at 7:30 pm instead of 7 pm. I will have to catch it during one of the additional broadcasts this week.

I’d like to bestow a gold star on the Bruins organization for setting up a live blog to cover yesterday’s rookie exhibition game in Shelton, CT. Considering that the Islanders are the forerunners in the Blogosphere, I was very disappointed that their article on the game didn’t appear on the website until well after 6 pm. Tsk Tsk!!! Especially considering that the kiddies in Orange & Blue won 8 - 4. Congrats to Sean Bentivoglio on his hat trick. Nice way to make a new coach take notice of you.

And speaking of the new coach, I don’t think I can say this enough: I really like what I see. There’s an intelligence, determination and high energy there that can’t be denied. I’m hoping he can hold onto all those wonderful traits by the time January rolls around.

I’d really like this to be a pleasant season for everyone involved.

Does the season officially start today as they head out to camp? I’m still uncertain. I haven’t put my necklace back on yet. For six years I knew exactly what day to start my season by taking the little velvet box out of the drawer and putting on that necklace. But ever since March, when I agreed to remove the number from the logo charm, I feel a little distanced from my yearly ritual. Maybe I’ll put it on the first pre-season game at the Coliseum. Maybe not. Maybe I’ll find a new ritual to take the place of the old one that would kick off the start of a new hockey season.

For the Islanders though, this is the day the ‘08-‘09 season OFFICIALLY begins. Hold on boys! I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be a very WILD RIDE!

Happy Friday people!