Frederick W. Meyer IV

It's just fun to say that name: Frederick W. Meyer IV.

He sounds like he might be a lawyer. "If you've been injured in an accident, call the law offices of Frederick W. Meyer IV and tell them you mean business!"

Anyhoo, today's post is just a celebration of All Things Meyer. Freddy Meyer has had one heck of a strange season so far this year. He started out with the Isles but was let go so that the team could sign Bryan Berard. He was picked up by the Phoenix Coyotes and played some for them but was ultimately sent to San Antonio of the American League.

When he was waived by the Coyotes, the Isles scooped him back up and made him a healthy scratch for 18 games in a row.

Meyer has now played 4 games for the Islanders and is a minus-1. As usual, the numbers alone do not tell the story for Meyer. Instead of being oddman-out on the Isles' defense corps, Meyer's been activated to take the place of the struggling Bryan Berard and Marc Andre Bergeron.

No one can discount the jump Bergeron gave the team last year. I would argue that his impact on the team last season was bigger than that when Ryan Smyth arrived. All of a sudden, with that big shot of his, Bergeron made the Isles PP much more dangerous and because of that shot, the opposition had to stay up higher to guard against the bomb. Until he arrived, the penalty killers could stay low because there was no threat from the points.

The same applies with Bryan Berard. At the beginning of the year, when the PP was on fire, Berard was making the smart play with puck by dumping it on goal and letting his teammates sit on the rebounds. Plus, Berard was making great passes while running the power play.

The Bergeron we have seen this season--while still very dangerous on the power play--is more of the Bergeron we'd heard about from Edmonton. He's scary with the puck at times and is prone to trying to make a great pass or play when the safer option is the smarter move. Ted Nolan has had to sit Bergeron in an attempt to get through to him regarding what his role is and what the Islanders need him to do to be successful.

And, yes, the same applies to Berard. He's never been the most dependable defensive player but he has always had the offensive skill. That's the trade-off you make with him. Can you live with the defensive deficiency? Is Berard's offensive production enough to make Ted Nolan and the Islanders coaching staff look past the issues in his own end.

Here is where Freddy Meyer comes in. Ted Nolan is playing the guys on the merit system. Meyer practiced hard and didn't complain. He knows the system and more than that, he is playing within himself. It doesn't matter about pedigree, contract, of the name on the back of the sweater. All that matters is that the effort is there. That's why Richard Park and Andy Hilbert are seeing time on the power play...and that is why Freddy Meyer is playing a simple, well-rounded game and Berard and Bergeron are watching from the press box.