DiPietro & Martinek Updates; Okposo signed!

Greg Logan is reporting that the results of Rick's MRI showed that there was "no significant structural damage" to his left knee. We'll see if he plays tomorrow night vs. the Devils.

Also, Shawn Bates' season is over after two games. Bates had hip surgery before Christmas and is out for the year. First I had heard of the surgery, too. The Isles take the line Bill Belichick does with the Pats and don't offer much regarding injuries.

Radek Martinek is also listed as day-to-day (but aren't we all) and is rocking a walking cast on his right leg. I guess this means more lessons from Professor Witt for young master Bruno Gervais.

The big news today is that Kyle Okposo signed his entry-level contract and will be with the Isles at the end of the World Junior Championships. Okposo has, from all accounts, been playing well for the US team, with a goal and two assists. American teammate (and Islander prospect) Rhett Rakshani scored in the US opener and is playing on a line with Okposo.

Robin Figren of Sweden has 3 goals and an assist for four points. Sweden faces tournament overlord Canada tomorrow at 1:30 eastern time. Check out his freakish goal below.

SHAWN BATES LIKELY TO PLAY WEDNESDAY

BATES LIKELY TO PLAY WEDNESDAY
Courtesy: New York Islanders
Nov 27, 2007

Ted Nolan said today after practice that Shawn Bates is likely to dress for Wednesday's contest against the Ottawa Senators.

Bates has been out with injuries since January 30 of last season. In 318 career games with the Islanders, Bates is 58-112-170, including 13 shorthanded goals.

"Shawn has worked extremely hard on his conditioning and spent a few games down in Bridgeport," said head coach Ted Nolan. "So we'll probably more than likely see him tomorrow night."

In practice today, Bates centered a line with Richard Park and Sean Bergenheim.

Bates will return to the lineup to help the Islanders stop a menacing force in the Ottawa Senators. Last season, Ottawa took all four games against the Islanders. Nolan told reporters this afternoon what he said to his assistants today about their matchups from last season.

"Last year it was like boys playing with men," said Nolan. "They out-worked us, they out-did us in every aspect of the game, but this year we have a different staff and a lot of new players, and hopefully a different result."

Carolina tomorrow night...and your official Soundtigers Update!

It seems like forever since we last had an Islander game to watch...and it has been. Let's not forget to OT thriller last Saturday night against the Devils when Bill Guerin scored with less than 4 seconds left in the extra period.

This week has probably been a difficult one for the coaches and players.

Sure, it has given guys like Brendan Witt some time off from blocking
shots every which way so hopefully he is feeling a bit better. Bryan
Berard, too, may have caught a break. If he's expected to miss anywhere from 2-4 weeks with the injured groin, well, he sure didn't have to worry about missing too much time since the boys have been off for a week.

The boys on the Bridge have been off to a bit of an even steven start;
sitting at 3-3 after 6 games. The Soundtigers are heavy on toughness
this year (thanks, Kip Brennan!) and now that Darryl Bootland has been
sent back to Bridgeport, he should be able to chip in here and there and play many more minutes a night than he's been seeing with the big club.

Veteran defenseman (and former Wolfpack-er) Joe Rullier was signed to a
25 game PTO this week by the Tigers, who are boasting a veteran
leadership core of AHL vets like captain Mark Wotton and Tim Jackman.
AHL rules permit only five "veterans" of over 320 AHL games can play per game so once Rullier is ready to contribute, according to my math,
they'll be right on the limit.

I think it is safe to say that Bootland was sent to Bridgeport because
Shawn Bates is almost ready to play. He's been practicing some and has
traveled with the team at times, according to Newsday. Where Bates fits in is hard to determine. We've seen that coach Ted Nolan is real big on working your way into the lineup so Bates will have to prove himself in practice before he'll dress for a game. Bates last played in January, which was a heck of a long time ago if you have the same calendar that I have.

In other Islander-related news, Freddy Meyer was dropped by the Coyotes
and cleared waivers. Also, it looks like every Islander fan's favorite
villain, Darcy Tucker, has a partial tear in his ACL and is going to try and wear a brace to keep pushing on through the season. Wow. I mean, I am no fan of Tucker's but in this case, you have to admire his
tenacity--even if it is expected to blow up in his face. A guy with
that kind of injury who plays the style of hockey that Tucker does is
going to have a hard time playing up to his own standards.

Don't forget about the SI story about Chris Simon. It's about what you
would expect in the situation but a good read besides.