Friday Night Twitter

With the Isles in FLA awaiting tomorrow's game against the Panthers, I'm stuck here watching the Leafs play the Rangers. Currently: Rangers 0 Post 2.

Wow! Gas in Farmingdale today was $2.99 a gallon! Sucks that I'm happy with that detail.

Found out today that next week's issue of The Hockey News will have a special tribute to Paul Newman written by Jay Greenberg with contributions by Hanson Brother Steve Carlson. (Check his website for a cool look down memory lane at the ORIGINAL Hanson/Carlson Brothers!) I hear the THN article is a must have for every hockey fan and Slap Shot enthusiast. If you don't have a subscription to The Hockey News, you ca actually purchase since issues on line. But the subscription is well worth the price. They also offer an online subscription.

So Scott Gordon lost his cool a little on the bench Thursday night? Good! It's about damn time we saw a little fire behind the bench. While talking to Mr. Carlson, we discussed the current Islanders youth movement and his friend Scott Gordon.


He told me that "losing is easy. Winning is hard. They can't be satisfied with their win against Tampa. They need to be consistently good -- all the time."

Having full faith in Gordon he said to wait at least 20 games for "Scotty to do his magic." Okay... I've got time.

I called the Port Jeff Ferry company today and found out that they WILL be doing another promotion with the Sound Tigers. $29 for round trip fare and a Sound Tigers ticket. Considering that the normal price of a round trip ferry ride is $25 for a walk on, that means it's only $4 to go to the hockey game. You can't beat it! Sadly, tomorrow's home opener won't work with this promo because they are currently only running two boats, and the last ferry back tomorrow is 8 pm. Game time is at 7. So, yeah... then you'd actually GET $4 worth of hockey. But this is something I'm definitely going to do this season. Maybe even more than ONCE. (Call (631) 473-5138 for reservations and details.)

So they brought back Pick & Win. Cool. It was fun, even if I really am horrible at it. I also don't remember reading anything about the winner of last year's grand prize. I must have missed it. But it is great fun. Sign up again as your registration from last season won't work.

Once again Chris Dey has taken his chances responding to the change in radio choice by posting an open letter on IslanderMania. I give Mr. Dey credit for his willingness to address the fans. For further clarification of the situation, Botta's Point Blank has added details (as only Point Blank can). I'm mentioning this for two reasons. First, I am probably the largest proponent of XM radio because there is nothing like having 24/7/365 hockey. No. Nothing. I pay that monthly fee gladly for the luxury of being able to hear about hockey in July. Second, I have always liked 94.3 FM. And I'm pretty happy listening to the promotion that this radio station is giving the
Islanders. I admit, it sort of makes me smile when I hear it.

Hockey Fights Cancer tie & scarf auction with all proceeds going to cancer research. Great cause, not bad looking neck ware. Wonder how much they go for UNSIGNED? Very classy looking.

What else? Oh... Rangers beat the Leafs in a shoot out after a scoreless game. The Leafs can't catch a break for nothing.

Game Notes: Isles @ Tampa 10-16-08

Yeah... from the couch that is. End of second period and Isles are up 2 - 0. Nice start.

This morning I asked my friend Dr. David Lubin who was the 7th Man award winner in 2004 for the Tampa Bay Lightning for his feelings about the Lightening. This is what I got:

"Well, it's not Melrose that wins or loses games, it's the guys on the ice. Against Carolina last week, Mike Smith was stalwart stopping over 40 shots, but the defense gave way and the offense was non existent in the last 30 minutes. I turned to my buddy when we were up 3-2 and said we were going to lose 4-3 in regulation. I was wrong, it was overtime. Stamkos hasn't been seen much averaging less than 10 minutes a game, but when you've got to kill off 9 penalties, there's not going to be much of him to see, although Melrose has suggested he might play the number one overall draft pick on the power play. With 15 new faces this year it might just take awhile to get adjusted on the ice. Problem is, you can't wait too long. The Tampa Bay Rays will be attempting to win the American League pennant tonight so attendance might be affected. There was another game vs. Boston when we played Carolina but attendance was pretty good. TV sets on all the concourses and in the suites were tuned to the game and the Lightning played the remainder of the game on the big screen following the hockey game. Glad I was watching the end at home though since it ended about 1:45 in the AM."

Thanks David.

Well, I can't stay long but I can't believe we now have a seven minute pre-game show. That's incredibly annoying.

I was very happy to see Comrie got the first goal. Not quite the $4 mill goal we've been calling for, but a goal non-the-less.

Joey Mac is doing a decent job considering, according to Howie, "he has not been considerably tested." I'm sure Joey would beg to differ with you Howie.

And my favorite part of the night so far? Look at Scott Gordon behind the bench. He's wearing a blue suit, a blue suit and an orange tie with little white accents.

Scott. You just won me over BIG TIME.

Sean, score one when I can see you.

Back to the game.

Oh why do I bother. Tied now 2 -2. Note to Barry Melrose. Drug testing. Start at "P."

And the Islanders get their win in OT. That should put a slight smile on Garth Snow's face.

SOG were even. The entire evening, they seemed very evenly matched. Which is a bad thing considering how bad we hear Tampa is.

Night.

Bad Day @ Blackhawks 1 pm

So you're with an organization for more than 20 years in various capacities. You've just been fired. What's the first thing you do? Do a radio interview of course!

I just listened to a very good radio interview with fired-this-morning ex Blackhawks coach Denis Savard. What a gentleman. A very sensitive matter handled well by E.J. Rhadek and Don LaGreca.

This is why I love XM radio. Sure, the instaneous news stream on the web keeps us informed. But to hear the man's voice during this time is a different dimension.

Our Hot Prospect or Theirs - NYI vs TBL 10-16-08

Okay folks, who is it gonna be??? Stamkos or Okposo? We've already seen Vinny light the lamp 18 times too many on the NY Islanders. What's Stamkos going to do... anything?

With Barry Melrose behind the bench looking for his first win of the season as a "new" (old) coach, we know for a fact these guys are going to come out flying. It should be an interesting match up. (hopefully.)

Also interesting will be seeing what CJ Papa does in his new role. Tiger Track Tom had said he was watching him at a previous game and said he did a good job. Now it will be my turn to judge.

Game time is 7:30 pm, but I'm not quite sure if there's a pre-game or not on good old MSG Plus, where ever that might be tonight.

Will we get the surprise of the evening with DiPietro in net? Doubtful. But anything is possible here in IslanderCountry.

Check the Isles website for an interesting contest on IslanderMania to win Witt's seats, and if you have XM radio, Commissioner Bettman's NHL Hour makes it's return today.

I don't care what you think of the man, the show is entertaining and informative.

Happy Thursday. Go throw on that Blue, White and Orange! IT'S GAME DAY!

Good Godard! Pens vs. Flyers 10-14-08

Real quick because I've got two articles I need to complete and still have time to go work for the people who actually pay me.

Eric Godard is back. Yesterday on my way home, the boys on XM radio were taking wages on how long it would take Eric Godard to square off with Riley Cote. Boomer said 11 minutes, his partner said something like 7.5. They both lost. It was only 5:23 into the first when the two big men agreed it was time to go. Such gentleman to agree like that before throwing off their gloves and pummeling each other.

Godard looked good. When he left the Islanders at the end of the '05-'06 season, he wasn't well. He was pale, thin and looked like he was going to pass out any minute. He played 57 games that season and accrued 117 penalty minutes. But he was a fan favorite. He spent time in the Calgary organization where he was played 36 games of the '06 -'07 season in their AHL team. Last year, he played 74 games for the Flames and tallied all of two points. But that's not why he's in the NHL. He garnered 171 penalty minutes and his old form. Good for him. He gets to extend his NHL career as long as his knuckles permit.

So Martinek is out for 4 - 6 weeks... ALREADY! Damn! As Islesblogger.com Mike said, we should have started a Blog Box injury pool on Radek. But we didn't even have time to contemplate it. We're a better team with him in the line-up. But we can never be sure he'll be there. Heal quickly.

Okay, let me see how much of my interview with Dina, the Arena Hostess, I can get done. I'm hoping for that to be up some time this week. Yes, yes, I'll have some pictures... don't drool.

Of Life & Death and Living 10-14-08

I don't want anyone to think that I'm insensitive to what happened yesterday to the 19 year-old Ranger's prospect, Cherepanov. But I wasn't quite sure what to say yesterday. Islesblogger.com Mike may have an idea why.

When he told me yesterday afternoon about the tragedy in Russia, I was shocked that such a young man with his whole life ahead of him could have been stolen from life so quickly. But a few minutes later I received a call with similar news closer to home. Across the street to be exact. My neighbor, one of the Sayville Fire Dept wives, has just passed away as well.

This was particularly upsetting as my husband had bolted across the street in his p.j.s that morning at 5:50 am when the fire alarm sent out the word of an EMS call at their house. Also similar, the true cause is not known yet. She must have felt something in her sleep, got up and collapsed on the floor. She held on long enough for her son to arrive from out of state before she let go of life.

The loss of someone as young as Cherepanov and as long lived as my neighbor Betty only drive home the following points about LIFE.

There are no guarantees.
Bridges should never be burned, grudges should never be allowed to fester. Procrastination is a thief.

We are all given burdens in this life, but it is ours to make the best of. We alone are responsible for making our own heaven or our own hell. Treat others as if you may never see them again, because the sad truth is.... you may not.

Say a prayer for those lives lost, and those that remain, then go out today and make a difference in your own life.

Press Room Recap 10-13-08

Yep. That was all that was left for the evening. Where are the cocktails?

Let's call this: "It wasn't Joey's fault." And I agree, it probably wasn't. Everyone was to blame for this afternoon's loss. However, please remember that for years now I have said the Islanders (whomever is on the ice at the time) never seem to do well at afternoon games. I don't know why. They just don't.

Press room 6 was extraordinarily crowded today. CJ Papa was even there for just a few minutes. Now that he is on his new MSG Plus gig, we won't be seeing him as much around the Coliseum.

We waited and waited for Scott Gordon to come in. He must have been giving the team hell in the locker room. Everyone pressed toward the podium and Greg Logan began the inquisition, um, questioning.

Anyone want to venture a guess what the first question was? "Hey! Scotty, was there a point in time you may have thought about pulling your goalie?" The answer was either truly what he believes or one that is very well rehearsed.

"I'm not a believer in pulling the goaltender I want them to find a way to battle. Ask any goalie who has played for me. It's HIS battle. You can't let up. Coaches let a team off the hook by pulling the goal tender. We weren't in sync -- at all." Gordon was very thoughtful with every sentence.

Of course what everyone wanted to know was "Is Ricky well enough to play?" That answer, of course, was not forthcoming. Gordon went into technical detail that he is so good at, so I just sort of glazed over. I woke up when someone asked him about his "system."

"System? We weren't even CLOSE!"

With Push Play doing their after game concert and the overhead fan blowing (as usual) we were basically reading lips there.

"We're just going to throw this one away."

But then I remember something that Potvin said on XM last year. "Every point lost in October is worth 3 in March." I know this is only the 3rd game of the season. We're not going to panic. But with Martinek the most recent injury, with Witt being thrown to the ice like a toy and with Ricky on the bench with a baseball hat on.... you can't help but have just a twinge of insecurity.

To my complete surprise, Joey MacDonald was the first one led into the locker room for the interviews. He didn't seem the least bit rattled by the media attention.

"He (Gordon) has a lot of confidence in me to battle through it -- it's huge. Pucks were bouncing off sticks right to them. I just kept trying to stop the next puck and go from there. I kept concentrating and kept battling."

And even though it was his third game in four nights, he said he felt fine.


"I'm not even going to think about it. Tomorrow is another day, I'll keep working."

Bill Guerin walked into the room and stood in front of his stall. You could see there was more he wanted to say, but didn't

"We weren't in position, didn't skate. We didn't executive. WE didn't get pucks in their end when we had to. We're going to have to be sharper than that. We're not going to pack it in just yet. Lesson learned -- hopefully."

"It's not like Joey struggled. We didn't make it easy on him." No, Bill. You didn't. But then again, with a considerably shorter bench... well... Okay, still no excuses. Guerin is an honest man. This was his very eloquent way of saying "That sucked."

Thompson came into the room and everyone moved to the corner. He spoke even more softly than Gordon at first. He said that he had been having words with Mair but was taken off guard. And then Witt and Bergenheim were all at it too and suddenly, it was raining hockey gear. "These guys stand up for each other."

This seems to be the new "system" at play. I heard that sentiment the last time I was at a game. Something about it didn't matter how long you had been on the team, they all stand up for one another. It's that 3 Musketeers credo, but like times 7.

Having already been coached by Gordon he said he's sure he will use this experience and there will be plenty of video to watch. Thompson also concurred "It had nothing to do with Joey at all."
Teamwork. That's what it's all about. Unfortunately, it's also about getting pucks in the other guy's net.

And we're back for the 3rd.

Okay the tub of trail mix is probably the best bargain on the concourse. $5 is well worth it for the mix of pecans, walnuts and other cruncy stuff that at least isn't fried.

Steve Herman from IslesNation stoppe by to say hello and so did Katrina Doelle who is here on her day off with a friend from New Jersey.

There's a new feature where you can text a message to the jumbotron. I'm sure someone is monitoring them before they appear... or at least I hope so.

So they start the third two men down as Comrie and Meyer are still in the box. And at 19:02 of the third, it is now 6-0 Sabres, and DiPi is still on the bench and for some reason Thompson is still in the box. Maybe it's a better view from there. Oh look Jeff Tambellini just decided to join him with 2 minutes for tripping penalty.

We wondered what the cheering was for coming from Sec 330. But it was just a fan being kicked out by security.

It's about time! So now I get to hear the goal song that is so in question. Um... uh... what's so bad? We stil have the wooooooo at the end? So what's the problem?

I think this game is going to have more penalty minutes than playing minutes by the time it's done.

Well, now that it's 7 - 1 with 9:42 left, I think it's time to pack up and get ready for the post game. ha ha ha ha....

Blood on the Ice

And we think it's from Witt's head. He took one hell of a crash on the ice. They are now trying to squeege it off.

We're getting the penalties now. I don't think there will be anyone in the line up. They are all getting five for fighting and game misconducts. I've heard of short benchs, but this may be rediculous.

Islanders Freddy Meyer just took 2 minutes for crosschecking when they really couldn't afford that.

With the score now 5 - 0, the crowd is starting to chant DiPi. I'm sure he's getting crazy sitting on that bench watching what's happening on the ice. You know what a competitor DiPi is. This has to be killing him.

Thompson left the box, but was told to leave the ice. And we are still waiting for that $4 mill. goal from Mike Comrie. They just can't seem to get anything set up at all.

If the game couldn't get any worse, with only 1 minute left to the period, both Comrie and Hilbert end up in the box. One for tripping one for hooking. The frustration level of this game is just killer. And I can't even drink because I have to drive. Maybe I will just eat something fattening.

1st Intermission.

And the stage is lowered once again for Push Play to perform. They kids love them. and there's a post game concert to follow.

My camera batteries just died. I'm a little pissed.

Back to food. My normal pizza oven pizza down stairs is no longer. There is now a stand there selling pulled pork and mac & cheese. I'm not happy about that one. But still I haven't sampled anything so I can't judge the quality yet.

And just like that, it's now 2 - 0 Sabres. I don't know how though. Scored by #22 @ 2:22 he he he he..... SOG are now 10 - 15 and most of the action are in the Islanders end.

Andy Hilbert had a breakaway and the tale went wild, but he couldn't get anything out of it.

Islanders are finally on a Power Play, but MacDonald just gave up a short handed goal and they are no down 3 - 0. This is just playing into my "the Islanders don't play well at Day games theory."

"Same old Islanders" is what I just heard. Buffalo almost scored again on the same exact play.

Ken thought that maybe he needed to move to his "lucky spot." But as soon as he did, Buffalo scored their 4th goal of the game... and then.... the flood gates opened.

We couldn't even see who was fighting whom. All I know is that ther eis equipment all over the ice. Witt, Bergenheim, Hilbert, Thompson, pick a player, they were fighting.

Doug is saying that Craig Rivet sould definitely get a game misconduct for 3rd man in. Let's see if he's right. It will take forever to get this all sorted out as it seemed they were just watching as players paired off.

Kid's Day 10-13-08

So I made it here with time to spare and didn't even have to fight my way into the media lot this time. Bonus!!! Although I'm parking basically in NCC, but hey... the $7 I saved on the parking I just spent on a cocktail.

New items on the concourse: A bar every 15 feet. That must have been for me. No not really. Trail mix in little containers for $5 (I think). Philly Cheesesteak and more expensive sausage & peppers. There are some concessions that now have stantions to control the lines wihich I think is a really good idea for a change. But I haven't tried anything yet. I'll tell you if I try anything. BD is in heaven because they have Magic Hat beer and Chicken Wings.

Backing up the back up. Interesting little situation out on the ice as DiPitro looks like he's backing up MacDonald. Ricky and Miller just shared a little goalie to goalie conversation on the ice. Wonder what they said????

The stage coming down hovering over ice level is pretty cool, but not as cool as seeing 4 bands at the Hampton Beach Casino. I should have brought my daughter today.

And this is for her... hey! I think Cobra Starship are better than these guys!

The mascots have taken to the ice and the seats are filling up. I just had a loud, difficult exchange with my husband who is trying to stream the game on the web from somewhere, anywhere actually. I couldn't find it, I hope he does.

Okposonet Ken has joined us here too. We are now at capacity in the box. Guess it's a good thing that Tiger Track Tom is upstairs.

The good thing about having so many kids here is they are at least LOUD. Good thing for me is I now get to see who the heck these new guys are in the Islanders jerseys are. There's Pock and Thompson and basically... I wouldn't know them i I fell over them... yet.

First penalty of the game on Richard Park. I'll give it too him since he saved what would have been a goal two seconds ago.

How many of you went for your free Wendy's Chili after Saturday's game?? hmmmmm?

Witt just took a 2 minute penalty for hooking, but the call looked like nothing we've seen before. You'll have to check out Doug's blog later for the explantion.

It seems that the fact that the Sabres are on a power play may not matter. Hopefully I didn't just jinx them. Sadly... I did. with the SOG 7 - 4 in favor of the Sabres they score first on MacDonald. I'll shut up next time. I promise.

They are really pressuring MacDonald, but he's still holding his own so far.

Mike just yelled at us for not paying attention, and immediately Kyle got into a fight with someone. I think Ken Dick had a heart attack. "Be CAREFUL!" he yelled.

Actually... I think Terry Goldstein who is in charge of merchandising almost had a heart attack too.

Comrie has taken the penalty on this one for some reason. But they have not announced it yet. Oh, 4 minutes, 2 minutes roughing and 2 for roughing. Comrie? really???

Prediction from the end of the table. There will be a weak call on Buffalo before the end of the period.

Wildcats over Badgers 5-1, Isles over Blues 5-2

The Official recap of the game:

**DURHAM, N.H. - James van Riemsdyk (Middletown, N.J.) and Paul Thompson (Derry, N.H.) netted second-period goals 39-second apart to propel the seventh-ranked University of New Hampshire men's hockey team to Saturday night's 5-1 non-conference victory against 14th-ranked University of Wisconsin at the Whittemore Center. UNH won its eighth consecutive season opener and is now unbeaten in 12 straight season openers (11-0-1). Wisconsin is 0-2-0 on the year.

While the Islanders were beating the Blues in their home opener last night at 5 - 2, the UNH Wildcats rolled over the WI Badgers 4 - 1.

I've never been to a College Hockey game. It was an experience. I now understand why Buzz Dechamps is trying so hard to get a rink built for Stony Brook. This was way too much fun.

I have to do this quickly as it's 7:30 am Sunday, and we've got to get on the road to go home. And I hate when there's no coffee to greet me in a hotel. But this is far from a hotel. This place on the beach is more like hostile. Which is a nice way of saying sh**hole.


The Whitemore Center is an amazing newer building with wi-fi, their own streaming video on http://www.unhwildcats.tv/ and a radio station, an ample concourse and the nicest bathrooms I've seen in a public facility. There was also more media there covering a college game than most nights at the Coliseum. But I'll leave that fight for Point Blank.

The students fill four sections decked out in their white and blue jerseys. And they don't let up on the opposition. I've never heard the cheer "Sieve" before, but it's a ritual here at UNH. Followed of course by the always piercing "You Suck." Here they add a hand gesture indicating how many goals have been let up. We wonder what happens when they get to 10.

Another unique ritual is throwing a fish on the ice after the first UNH goal. It's usually a pretty big fish. "The smellier, the better." said the gentlemen who explained it to us.

It was warm as hell in the arena and it looked like the ice got the worst of that. There were deep ruts and almost puddles.

It was a penalty fest as the linesmen were trying to keep the game on track the whole night. Big Angry Man said it reminded him of an Islanders/Rangers game because it was so chippy. Always pushing and shoving after the whistle which would inevitably begin the parade to the box. (31 in total.) I couldn't even count how many times each team was two men down.

But it was very exciting, the crowd really got into it and let me tell you... There was quite a bit of talent on the ice.

There are five NHL drafted players on the UNH roster. Most notably the goalie Brian Foster #29, taken by Florida in the fifth round of the 2005 draft. He stood on his head last night and made some really impressive saves.

Also noticeable on the ice was James Van Riemsdyk chosen by the Flyers with their first round pick of the 2007 draft. That's the SECOND player chosen in the 2007 draft. Blake Kessel was chosen by Garth Snow in the 6th round at #166 overall that year.

Peter Le Blanc and Joe Charlebois were drafted in 2006 and 2005 respectively. Joe wears the C and both were drafted by Chicago.

But there's a name that's not on any draft lists yet that stood out last night on the ice. #15, Danny Dries, a sophomore from Lake Orion, Michigan. What an instigator who set up a lot of grate plays and skated like Jason Blake. He took too many penalties, but the kid was good enough to impress B.A.M.

Blake Kessel spent a lot of time on the ice. A LOT of time. Power plays, penalty kills and five on five. And his shifts were long and didn't seem to bother him. He did walk away with an assist on the second goal of the evening. I think he'll fit in nicely with Gordon's system should Scott still be around by the time this Kessel brother sees the Uniondale ice.



I wanted to ask him a few questions, but since it was a busy night for everyone at home, the arrangements were never made. Maybe I'll keep trying though.

The players on the roster who were not in the line up are being groomed for the NHL as they all sat at the top of the general admission section in their suits and ties, looking professional and intent on watching the game. But the funny thing is, as professional as all these men (boys really) looked last night, Tuesday morning they'll be in class and just students on campus. Amazing. *

*Fireworks -- I forgot about the fireworks. What a perfect way to end a perfect weekend but with fireworks in the autum sky. The entire weekend (with the excetpion of the Beach View roach motel) was just simply magical.

Congratulations to the Islanders for their 5-2 win over the Blues last night in their own home opener. I'm sorry I missed it. I'm especially sorry I missed Sean Bergenheim's first goal of the season. But I'm certain there will be more this year. Hopefully, I'll be there for most of them.

Okay, I have to stop now before I get in trouble. And besides, there's a bird's nest in the air conditioner next to me and it's really, really freakin' me out hearing the wing's flapping.