It was another loss and another lackluster performance by the low scoring NY Islanders. No one is happy. Jack Capuano isn’t happy, the players aren’t happy, I can’t imagine the GM is happy and the fans -- well, they’re about to take things into their own hands.
My favorite Tweet this morning regarding the situation is:
katiesceeKatie Scura
All I know is we better kick ranger ass tomorrow. #orelseiwill
Yep. That is the way it is here on the Island. The Islanders can lose every game to any other team in the league -- as long as THEY BEAT THE RANGERS.
The Rivalry renewed for this season is even more important when things are going poorly in Uniondale. Currently I don’t see how they could be worse. The Isles are at 1-6-3 in their last 10 games. Not the outcome we all hoped for at the beginning of the season. This year we can’t even blame it on catastrophic injury. So what do we blame it on?
Well, if Capuano knew that, they’d be winning. Surely the Isles aren’t the most skilled team in the league, but as Barry Melrose always says “Sometimes will beats skill.” So perhaps the Isles have lost their “will” to win.
They better find it tomorrow night or their season will be on the brink of ruin. They will lose the fans and they can’t afford to do that right now.
By all reports, tomorrow will be the debut of Nino Niederreiter. I don’t enjoy the thought of him playing against the Rangers, but that’s just the mother in me worrying about the youngster. He can handle it. I just don’t know if I can.
Jack Capuano told Art Staple of Newsday that he wasn’t sure who would come out of the line-up in order to get Nino in, but the list of possibilities is a lot longer than we’d like including the guy that some wanted to Captain this team, Kyle Okposo.
The Coliseum is sure to be packed and the chants will be deafening. The Islanders have to shut the Rangers down early or they will lose not only the game, but the crowd as well. Lose the crowd tomorrow and they will not get them back.
Find the Will. Find the Way. Beat the Rangers.
Sidenote: Tonight on NHLWeekly on www.sportstalknetwork.com, guests will be Justin Bourne and Greg Wyshynski. Tune in at 6 pm for hockey news and nuttiness.
"NHL Boss on Coliseum: Isles looking at other options." Duh. No kidding. Gary Bettman has been saying that for years. Has anyone from the Town of Hempstead heard him? Or maybe they just don't believe him. He has said for the last five years that the Islanders will not play a day after their lease requires them to and that the Nassau Coliseum is not up to NHL standards and would never be approved as an NHL venue today.
Let's throw in the asbestos scare and we've got a whole new wrinkle. John Jeansonne from Newsday carefully stated that air quality was "safe in public areas of the arena" after Nassu County hired a consulting firm to investigate since it's being sued by 75 arena employees.
"Public areas" could lead one to believe there 'may' be contamination in the 'restricted' areas which means it could be in the areas where these highly paid professionals work. Hello NHLPA?
Also notice that as I stated before, the League does not think that the Barclays Center is anything but a stop-gap idea for the Isles. It's not a hockey building. But it is a building.
Mike Deery, Town of Hempstead spokesman noted that the town board approved a new building zone ten months ago "that expressly allows for the construction of a new Coliseum." That's nice. But hockey does not live on an arena alone. Nope. So where's the rezoning for that?
With both Nassau and Suffolk Counties cash strapped and in budget crisis hell, I can't see either one of them stepping up with a plan to help. Our Long Island political football is turning into a time bomb.
On a brighter note. Want to see what you get when you are a beloved NHLer who comes home for the summer?
Posts
