Islanders Team Report from Yahoo Sports

With the fewest points in the NHL, the Islanders already will be playing for future jobs over their final 30 games.

But an official competition is shaping up for the right to back up starting goalie Rick DiPietro next season—a job that often entails a heavy workload because of the former All-Star’s frequent trips to the injured list, including his ongoing knee issues.

Joey MacDonald opened this season as DiPietro’s understudy and seemingly earned a new contract for 2009-10 with solid nightly play in starting 36 of 42 games before the All-Star break. But third-stringer Yann Danis has allowed three or fewer goals in seven of his last eight starts entering Tuesday’s home game against Los Angeles, and he appears to have gained the trust of head coach Scott Gordon.

“One thing about Yann, I think he’s taken it a step further than what Joey did,” Gordon said. “Not that Joey didn’t play well, but certainly, Yann, from a level of consistency, has been able to play like a guy that’s a true No. 1. That’s reflective of his numbers…to consistently give up less than three goals is what you expect a No. 1 guy to do, and that’s the type of performance he’s been able to give us.

“It goes hand in hand with his success. When you have that kind of goaltending, it certainly makes it easier for your team to know that, when you have those off moments, it’s going to stay tight.”

Lightning 1, Islanders 0: Yann Danis had won his previous four starts and certainly appeared in line for another, keeping the Islanders in a 0-0 tie with several acrobatic saves until late in the third period Saturday night in Tampa. Still, opposing goalie Mike McKenna ended up with his first shutout in just his third NHL start, as veteran Gary Roberts’ redirection goal with 6:26 remaining sent the last-overall Isles (16-31-5) to their second straight one-goal loss.

“It’s never fun to lose like that in the third,” said Danis, who made 27 saves. “We played a good game. We battled hard. There’s definitely some positives out of it.”

Notes, Quotes

• D Chris Campoli has been installed as the Isles’ power-play quarterback with All-Star D Mark Streit, the Isles’ leading scorer this season, sidelined the last two games with a shoulder injury.

“It was different. I’m in (Streit’s) position, and we’ve all seen he does such a great job every night,” Campoli told Newsday. “It’s definitely big shoes to fill, and I just tried to go out there and keep it simple.”

• LW Sean Bergenheim was activated off the injured list after missing the previous eight games with a strained muscle in his side suffered Jan. 13, replacing center Nate Thompson (shoulder) in the lineup.

Quote To Note: “Yann’s really stepped up. He’s given us a chance every time he’s played. It’s great to see a kid like that come in and play really well for us when he gets a chance.”—Defenseman Brendan Witt, on goalie Yann Danis, following a hard-luck 1-0 loss Saturday at Tampa Bay.

Player Notes:

• G Yann Danis lowered his goals-against average over his past five starts to 1.61, but he didn’t win for the first time in that stretch in a 1-0 loss Saturday in Tampa Bay.

• RW Trent Hunter’s four-game point streak (3-1-4) was halted.

• D Chris Campoli logged a team-high 24:19 of ice-time, including 5:40 of power-play time with No. 1 defenseman Mark Streit sidelined with a shoulder injury.

Medical Watch:

• G Rick DiPietro, who appeared in just five games due to multiple injuries, has been shut down for the remainder of the season with swelling in his surgically repaired left knee.

• D Mark Streit sat out his second straight game Saturday against Tampa Bay with a shoulder injury and remains day-to-day.

• D Thomas Pock also has missed the last two games with a hand injury suffered Feb. 3 against Tampa Bay.

• D Freddy Meyer remains out indefinitely with a groin strain suffered Jan. 5 in Edmonton.

• C Mike Sillinger underwent season-ending hip surgery for the second straight season on Jan. 26.

• D Andy Sutton suffered a broken right foot on a blocked shot Dec. 19 in Minnesota and underwent surgery. He is expected to miss 8-to-10 weeks.

• C Nate Thompson was placed on the injured list after suffering a shoulder injury Feb. 5 against Florida.

A Familiar Refrain

Isles lost again to the Rangers.

Team MVP Joey McDonald hurt his groin (doesn't matter which one) and now they are down to one goalie because they are going to shut DiPietro down for the year--which I have been begging them to do for the past couple of months.

I understand he is a competitor and that he is going to be aching to get out there and help the guys but shutting him down for next year is the right thing to do if the team is serious about playing the kids, getting them experience, and trying to tank so they get the first overall pick.

Ricky would come back, get hurt, come back, get hurt, and then come back again...only to get hurt. Sit him down, let the knee/hip/other knee/other hip heal, and have him sign autographs at the team store for the rest of the regular season. Then, next year, assuming he is all cleared to play, he'll be a freaking animal and so excited to play that we may steal a game or two for the Isles in the early-going.

Now comes word in Newsday that the Isles are reaching out to prodigal son Wade Dubielewicz, who was bought out of his (probably) sketchy Russian KHL contract with Kazan Ak-Bars this year. Dubie was 11-8-3 for those Ice Bears at the time of his buyout; losing the job to 20-year-old Stanislav Galimov.

(And no, I didn't just get that off the top of my head. Thanks, hockeydb.com.)

Just want to mention that the Isles lead the league in man-games lost and it is something over 260. That is just ridiculous.

Newsday's Greg Logan reports that DP is injured. Are we not surprised?

From Newsday:

DiPietro's out -- again

One game into his comeback from a second knee operation in a span of five months, Islanders goaltender Rick DiPietro is hurt again. He took part in the pre-game skate today at Madison Square Garden but will miss tonight's game against the Rangers with a strained groin.

Yann Danis, who was sent back to Bridgeport yesterday, was recalled on an emergency basis this afternoon to back up Joey MacDonald. At this point, it seems all information regarding DiPietro's ailments is suspect until you either see him in the lineup or not.

An Islanders Thanksgiving

Well, it's that time again...time to worry about making it to .500 and whether or not the franchise goalie is ever going to make it back to the lineup. Yes, that is what I wonder about while sitting here at work when almost everyone in the office has taken the day off and I am the only one in the building. Don't worry--I'll turn out the lights when I leave.

I love this time of year. I am a Christmas nerd. Turkey is like my favorite thing to eat. I have a great and supportive family and the best wife in the world. So, yeah, I know I am lucky and that I have a lot to be thankful for.

This forum gives me a chance to entertain and inform with my musings. Yes, I am thankful for my readers. Both of you.

In that spirit, I want to make a list of what I am thankful for hockey-wise this year. Indulge me if you will.

I am thankful for Joey MacDonald. Admit it: when Rick went down (all of the times) you thought our goose was, um, cooked. But Joey MacDonald has nutted up and made himself a darn good NHL goaltender. Sure, he's had coaching and sure he has a underrated corp of defensemen, but in the end, he is that last line. MacDonald has taken his ball and run with it. He's no Wally Pipp--I fully expect that when Ricky can go that Ricky is gonna go--but MacDonald has solidified himself as a good NHL player and he's made Garth Snow look smart for letting Dubie go to Siberia...or the KHL.

I am also thankful for Doug Weight. Weight is a guy who took a chance on Long Island and has been a pleasant surprise. I'm not even sure Doug Weight thought Doug Weight would be leading the team in points and almost scoring a point per game...but he is and he has been part of the leadership core that Scott Gordon has had to rely on to make the Islanders one of the more surprising teams in the league.

Naturally, if we are talking about Doug Weight we have to segue into to speaking about captain Billy Guerin. Let's make one thing perfectly clear: if Guerin didn't buy into Gordon's overspeed then the team would have been down the drain. He had some well-documented issues with the previous coach and the system (or lack thereof) that the team was employing night after night. After the change, Guerin got his buddy Weight to come to NY and once they bought in, they set a professional example for the younger guys. Plus, Guerin is scoring some.

I am thankful for overspeed. Sure, it was a weird catchphrase for a while but now that we see it working, the system is a lot of fun. Islanders games are never dull because everyone is moving. Scott Gordon is still getting used to the big time and all but it really is great having a coach with a plan that the organization can rally around with everyone pushing in the same direction.

I am grateful for Brendan Witt. Things just are better when he is out there on the ice. Witt brings the snarl that every hockey team needs. Plus, he is signed for three years so he is going to be around to help shape the islanders of the future.

And man, for Mark Streit. I can't even put into words how freaking impressed I am with Streit. Whatever his rep was in Montreal, who gives a crap? He has been playing at an All-Star level since he arrived.

Finally, what can you say about Trent Hunter and Richard Park? Cast into checking roles by Ted Nolan, Gordon has released the guys to become point producers and offensive contributors. Hunter seems to have found his scoring touch and Park plays like his pants are always on fire. (I know I've said it a lot but it is true.) Watching these guys get time on the power play proves to the young guys that if you produce, you're going to be rewarded.

So there you go. No, it's not been all a hayride this season. Jeff Tambellini has the same numbers of goals that I do. The whole injury non-disclosure thing was strange and the DiPietro cover up continues. But if you think about it, when we all thought the team was Tanking for Tavares, if we were told the team would have 20 points in 21 games, would we have believed it? Probably not.

Isles go for .500 tonight with the Penguins. It's March of Dimes night. Don't forget to bring some canned food to the game on Saturday if you're going to help some people out.

Isles 2, Vancouver 1 - SO

Isles make it 3 in a row! What a finish! Can I hear it for Joe-Mentum?

Richard Park plays every shift like his pants are on fire

And that's why we like him so much.

Good win last night at the Gahden for the Islanders. Joey MacDonald is doing his best to make people forget about the weeble known as Dubie. (Speaking of, is there any news how Dubie is doing in Russia? If you have some news, put it in the comments. Thanks.)

Park's relentless fore-check and effort led to the Isles second goal. Park intercepted a terrible cross ice pass and made a quick deke that froze Ranger netminder Henrik Lundqvist before firing a high wrist shot over Zoolander at the 8 minute mark of the third period.

The Isles first goal of the night came earlier in the period after some more hard work on the PK. Nate Thompson jump-started a fast-break 2-on-1 with Frans Nielsen. Thompson fed Nielsen, who clinked his shot off the post. Nate popped the puck out of mid-air and over the prone Henrik Lundqvist at 3:18 of the third period. It was the hard-working Thompson's first NHL goal and first NHL point. Well done, Nate. No word on whether Henrik was so sad that he broke out the Blue Steel pose for reporters after the game. We will work on getting an update.

What else I liked: Joey MacDonald. For a guy with a one-way contract that a lot of people (fans) had questions about, Joey was strong again in net last night. He's sure ending up playing a whole heck of a lot more than anyone ever expected so far this season, and he has gone a long way into securing some further employment for himself. MacDonald's best save of the night came at the end of the second period on a Scott Gomez one-timer. He stopped 29 Ranger shots in the first two periods and kept the game even at zero entering the third period.

Jeff Tambellini fighting. Wow. Did you see his dad in the crowd when Jeff was fighting? Talk about composed. Sure, the Tambellinis are a hockey family and they all understand the role of fisticuffs in the game and all but still, that is your kid out there. And Jeff didn't do too badly in a middleweight scrap with Ranger Nigel Dawes.

Still, Jeff was like the next-to-last Islander I thought I would ever see in a fight. The last? That would have to be Mark Streit. He's from Switzerland, of course, and as we know from the NHL Network commercials, the Swiss were neutral in World War II. I think I learned that in school as well.

Kyle Okposo. Kyle hasn't hit the score sheet as much as he'd like but one thing is for sure and that is that the kid can play. He also is really good "playing in space", which is a soccer term for a player who uses whatever part of the field the defender is giving him to his advantage. Kyle Okposo plays in space and it is going to fun to watch him grow throughout this season.

What I didn't like: Not much. The Isles went into MSG and came out with two points in regulation after having trouble holding onto 3 goal leads in their previous couple of games. Got to like that.

The Isles are bound for ATL on Thursday and that should be an interesting game because the Thrashers play a firepants full-court press brand of hockey that our boys do. They also have Ilya Kovalchuk, who is dangerous when he decides to try.

What is it that they're not telling us?

So, you know, yesterday, I'm watching the Isles game and it's 5-0 and Joey MacDonald looks like Ronald McDonald back there and the fans start the chant for DP! DP!

I mean, it makes sense, right? Goalie looks bad and he gets the hook. Happens every so often. Pull the guy out of there before his confidence goes south. Get the backup some PT. Mike Keenan does it after he sneezes. C'mon, guys, let's get Ricky in there!

And yet, there was Rick...sitting on the bench...wearing a cap...smelling his catching glove...and not making eye contact with anyone who has authority to put him in the game.

The Sabres torch MacD for another couple of goals after Trent pots one for the good guys and we end another fight-filled Kid's Day on the bidness end of a 7-1 loss.

Look--we all are thinking it. Many of us are trying to make sense out of it but you just can't. The Isles are protecting their injury reports better than the government protects visiting foreign dignitaries. Everything is ballparked as a lower-body injury or an upper-body injury and it is just useless. I'm getting an upper-body injury wondering why the heck they have to keep these government secrets so tight.

There is no right or wrong here. The Islanders--and any other team in the league don't have to be truthful about the injury situation of their players--but it helps, you know? The whole thing comes off as petty and cheap because they can't be honest with their fans.

The whole DiPietro thing is stranger than a guy you don't know asking you for money. If he's hurt and isn't able to play, then why does he sit on the bench? If he isn't ready to play, then don't have him backup Joey MacDonald. Bring up Yann Danis for a bit so he can wear a cap for a while in case they need him. Having the franchise player sit on the bench when he is in no condition to play--which, of course, is only speculation on my part because the Islanders are playing some weird game here--is not a logical move in any way, shape, or form.

Scott Gordon told Newsday that he prefers to have his goalies battle through tough spots rather than yank them out to save whatever shred of professional confidence that they have. That's fine. In fact, since he is a former goaltender, Gordon would know what it is like to poop in the punch bowl and then watch another guy mop up the mess. That's cool. But don't they realize that when you play this silly game that fans and people in the media are only going to speculate about the "real" motives in player moves and whatnot because you're not giving them anything factual to work with? In the real world, we need something. Plus, there's the whole idea that being forthcoming and honest with the fans is good business because, in the end, we are the ones buying the tickets and jerseys and Center Ice packages.

It is always something with this team. An organization secure in their vision and abilities to realize that vision don't lower themselves to weird cloak and daggers bullshit.

With that, I will leave you with the last paragraph from Greg Logan's game report from today's Newsday. Read between the lines at your own peril.

....But the suspicion is that MacDonald knew no reinforcements were coming if he got in trouble. Asked if he knew DiPietro wasn't available, MacDonald said, "Yeah," then caught himself. Backtracking, he added: "Well, I don't know about that. Like I said, I just kept on concentrating and tried to keep battling."

And it is only the third game of the season, Islander fans!

Home Opener: Isles 5 Blues 2

What I liked:

--Well, the whole first period. The way the guys were crashing the net and moving without the puck kept the Blues back on their collective heels for most of the night. When the forecheck is working, it is a beautiful thing to watch.

--Joey MacDonald. The guy made what Billy Jaffe called a "sick" save in the second period with a lunge across his crease to deflect a sure Blues goal with his catching glove. He also stopped T-Chuck on a breakaway. The fans were into it for sure, chanting "Jo-ey!" in the same cadence they cheer for DP. Stellar.

--Sean Bergenheim played breakneck and got a goal. Trent Hunter also scored with a nice wrister from just above the circles. The Isles are going to need improved offense from these two to be successful this year. If Trent rediscovers his nose for the net and Bergie buries just half of the chances he seems to have all the time, both guys are going to have good offensive numbers.

--Scott Gordon, who got his first NHL win last night in the home opener.

What I didn't like:

--Radek Martinek went down behind his net again with an apparent shoulder injury. I love Radek as a player and there is no denying that he and Brendan Witt are the team's best pairing but we need to find a way to keep Martinek on the ice. He sure misses a lot of games and he is important to the team.

--The "Somewhere in California" commercial that they play EVERY FREAKING BREAK on the Center Ice package.

--TSN.ca speculated (without giving a source, by the way) that DP was going to be out for a while and was spotted with an ice pack on his knee after the game the other night. Yeesh. These guys really like kicking the can of conspiracy and always like to dig at our boys. If Rick was truly hurt, would they risk putting him on the bench as the backup goalie when he may have to get into a game? What in the name of Bob McKenzie is going on up there?

--Newsday reports that coach Gordon says that Blake Comeau's conditioning is not up to his overspeed standards.

--Josh Bailey is also reported to be out two- to four-weeks with an injury.

Opening Night at the Rock: Devils 2 Isles 1

What I liked:

--The pace of the game. The Isles may lose 50 games like a lot of the so-called experts are thinking but they are not going to be boring. The constant pressure and pushing of the tempo by Scott Gordon's Islanders is going to be fun to watch.

--Jack Hillen. Is it me or is Hillen one of those guys you just seem to notice when he is on the ice? Reminds me of something my Dad told me once: some guys are players and some guys are playing. The players affect the flow of the players are along for the ride, reacting. Seems to me, from what we have seen in three games, Hillen is perfectly adept at affecting and making other guys react.

--Joey MacDonald. He was superb as a surprise starter in net. Good idea to hold DiPietro off for the home opener, too.

--Richard Park. Sure, he hit two posts but the fact is that he got himself into a position to make plays. Won 9 of 12 faceffs too.

--Bruno Gervais asserting himself offensively.

What I didn't like:

--One goal. Yeah, it's Brodeur but one goal is not going to make anyone feel any better about the expected scoring woes.

--The Power play. Sure looked unorganized at times...but Mark Streit looked confident running the show. The PP is always the last part of a team's game to get together so of course there is still time.

Overall, a loss is a loss but at the very least, our boys were competing hard. Tonight the Blues invade the Coliseum. Man, it is good to have hockey back.

Josh Bailey, Blake Comeau, and Thomas Pock were the "healthy" scratches.

Let me leave you with this picture of a-hole Joe Elliott placing The Cup upside down on the stage Thursday night in Detroit. You can't tell me that this wasn't on purpose. The base of The Cup is black and looks like THE BASE OF THE CUP for crissakes. Def Leppard blows and Elliott must've huffed too much hairspray sharing tour buses with Bon Jovi in the eighties.

(Picture from Yahoo's Puck Daddy hockey blog)

Islanders sign D Hillen

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK (TICKER) —The New York Islanders on Tuesday agreed to terms on a two-year contract with defenseman Jack Hillen.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

“We are very proud that Jack made the decision to join the Islanders,” New York general manager Garth Snow said. “He was one of the prized college free agents for good reason.”

A Colorado College standout, the 22-year-old Hillen was the leading scorer among blue-liners in NCAA Division I hockey last season as he notched 31 assists and 37 points over 41 games.

“I liked the way Garth Snow and Islanders management came after me with honesty and a commitment,” Hillen said. “They are building a team around a core of exciting young players.

“I know Kyle Okposo well from playing against him and he had many glowing things to say about how the organization has treated him. The Islanders were the perfect fit for me.”

Bill's note: more on Hillen here: Jack Hillen

Another note: Greg Logan in Newsday says that Hillen will practice tomorrow with the Isles and make his debut in one of the remaining games against the Rangers.

Isles brought up Kip "The Suspended" Brennan for another "toughness" audition over the next couple of games. Joey MacDonald will play tonight as Dubie rests and Matt Keith will make his Islanders debut tonight against Martin Brodeur (or former Isles goalie Kevin Weekes) and the Devils.

New Soundtigers' goalie

The Islanders announced today that they have signed former Bruins goaltender Joey MacDonald to a two-year contract. Since Wade Dubielewicz is likely the backup to DiPietro this year, I guess that makes MacDonald the new Soundtigers goalie. MacDonald finished with a 2-2-1 record and a 2.68 goals-against average after joining the Bruins from the Detroit Red Wings organization.

The Islanders also have a presser tomorrow to introduce Bill Guerin and Mike Comrie.