Here are some notes from the morning skate…
- Probable goaltending match-up is Rick DiPietro versus Olie Kolzig.
- It looks like former Islander Tom Poti will be back in the lineup for the Capitals after missing the last two games.
- Newest Islanders defenseman Drew Fata will be in his usual No. 49 sweater tonight. He is the tenth defensemen the team has used this season, but it’s the first time the Islanders had to call a blueliner up from Bridgeport after carrying eight or nine defensemen on the active roster for the entire season.
- Without Brendan Witt in the lineup to try to shutdown Caps’ ace Alex Ovechkin, the task will fall on Radek Martinek and the Jo Vasicek shutdown line. Of course, Ted Nolan pointed out to the media this morning that Rick DiPietro is the team’s ultimate stopper.
- Visiting teams in the nation’s capital have been using Rainbow Busses and a particular bus driver named Joe for a long time. How long? Butch Goring remembers having Joe as a driver all the way back in the 1970s.
Showing posts with label Morning Skate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Morning Skate. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Thursday, February 7, 2008
I get by with a little help from… Howie Rose
Not too much news from the morning skate for tonight. Same lineup for the Islanders other then Jeremy Colliton (# 72) being inserted for Miro Satan. Rick DiPietro will go against Ty Conklin in net.
So with that said, I have a story to share…
It starts when I got back into my hotel room last night after dinner at 10:30-ish. Tired, I figured I would do some quick ironing for today and then go to bed. I took out the suit jacket I was planning on wearing to see how it faired through the travels and it was good. Next up was the pants… Which I quickly remembered were still on Long Island in my closet. Uh oh.
I’ll quickly interrupt the story to give you a trade secret. On two-day trips (travel one day, play a game the next and come straight home), most everyone just brings one suit -- the one they’re wearing. For longer trips, it could be two or three suits which guys just rotate through. Don’t worry, we bring plenty of shirts and ties to help the illusion.
So, I decided to go with two suits on this four day trip which is more then enough considering I also brought with me a pair of khaki pants for the off day in Minnesota. Before 10:30 PM last night, I thought I was all good for this trip.
Anyway, down to only one suit I quickly called my fiancée to see if she could FedEx the missing suit pants to Minnesota so I could at least switch suits in Minnesota. But as I called her, I realized that Islanders play-by-play man Howie Rose stayed back on Long Island to celebrate his wife’s birthday. BTW, Happy Birthday Barbara!
By 11:00 PM last night, I texted Howie to see if he was still up. He was and more than willing to help me out. The pants were brought to his house early in the morning and packed with his luggage.
They’re now in Pittsburgh and don’t need to be ironed in case you were wondering.
So, to steal a line from the Beatles, I get by with a little help from Howie Rose. Thanks Rosey!
So with that said, I have a story to share…
It starts when I got back into my hotel room last night after dinner at 10:30-ish. Tired, I figured I would do some quick ironing for today and then go to bed. I took out the suit jacket I was planning on wearing to see how it faired through the travels and it was good. Next up was the pants… Which I quickly remembered were still on Long Island in my closet. Uh oh.
I’ll quickly interrupt the story to give you a trade secret. On two-day trips (travel one day, play a game the next and come straight home), most everyone just brings one suit -- the one they’re wearing. For longer trips, it could be two or three suits which guys just rotate through. Don’t worry, we bring plenty of shirts and ties to help the illusion.So, I decided to go with two suits on this four day trip which is more then enough considering I also brought with me a pair of khaki pants for the off day in Minnesota. Before 10:30 PM last night, I thought I was all good for this trip.
Anyway, down to only one suit I quickly called my fiancée to see if she could FedEx the missing suit pants to Minnesota so I could at least switch suits in Minnesota. But as I called her, I realized that Islanders play-by-play man Howie Rose stayed back on Long Island to celebrate his wife’s birthday. BTW, Happy Birthday Barbara!
By 11:00 PM last night, I texted Howie to see if he was still up. He was and more than willing to help me out. The pants were brought to his house early in the morning and packed with his luggage.
They’re now in Pittsburgh and don’t need to be ironed in case you were wondering.
So, to steal a line from the Beatles, I get by with a little help from Howie Rose. Thanks Rosey!
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
MORNING SKATE: Sens at Isles
After a nice weekend off for everybody other than Rick and Chris Botta, the Islanders swing back into action tonight at the Coliseum versus the Ottawa Senators… Here are some notes from the morning skate.
- Rick DiPietro will be in goal for the Islanders and after missing practice yesterday, Ray Emery will take a back seat to starter Martin Gerber. DiPietro is 2-0-0 versus Ottawa this season and has a 1.44 GAA.
- Ted Nolan announced that Andy Sutton is under the weather and is a game-time decision. He did not specify if Bryan Berard or Aaron Johnson would go in his place if need be.
- Aside from the injured Dany Heatley, Patrick Eaves looks to be a scratch for the Sens along with Cody Bass. Nick Foligno has been recalled by Ottawa for tonight's game.
- Former Senator Mike Comrie enters tonight’s game two points away from 300 in his NHL career. In the first three games of the season series, Comrie has a goal and two assists versus Ottawa.
- Newsday’s Greg Logan is off until Friday, so Mark Herrmann is covering for them tonight.
- Rick DiPietro will be in goal for the Islanders and after missing practice yesterday, Ray Emery will take a back seat to starter Martin Gerber. DiPietro is 2-0-0 versus Ottawa this season and has a 1.44 GAA.
- Ted Nolan announced that Andy Sutton is under the weather and is a game-time decision. He did not specify if Bryan Berard or Aaron Johnson would go in his place if need be.
- Aside from the injured Dany Heatley, Patrick Eaves looks to be a scratch for the Sens along with Cody Bass. Nick Foligno has been recalled by Ottawa for tonight's game.
- Former Senator Mike Comrie enters tonight’s game two points away from 300 in his NHL career. In the first three games of the season series, Comrie has a goal and two assists versus Ottawa.
- Newsday’s Greg Logan is off until Friday, so Mark Herrmann is covering for them tonight.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
MORNING SKATE: Isles at ‘Canes
The Islanders finish off a home-and-home series on back-to-back days with the Carolina Hurricanes while they also start a two-game, four day road trip which will also take them to Boston for a game on Thursday.
Here are some notes from today’s morning skate…
- Today was an optional skate for both teams. About 14 Islanders took the ice after a team meeting.
- Wade Dubielewicz will start for the Islanders tonight while it looks like Cam Ward will be back in net for the Hurricanes. There were some talks that John Grahame would start tonight, but it doesn’t look that way.
Just like other players, Islanders head coach Ted Nolan said that “Dubie has earned his ice-time and deserves to play.”
- Unfortunately, there won’t be a Ted Nolan/Brandon Nolan match-up this season. Brandon, a top prospect for the ‘Canes, is currently with their AHL affiliate in Albany.
- The last time the Islanders were in Carolina, they won 4-1 off a stellar performance from Dubielewicz and Marc-Andre Bergeron who burned Carolina with two power-play goals and an assist. By the way, Carolina enters the game with the league’s worst penalty kill unit.
Here are some notes from today’s morning skate…
- Today was an optional skate for both teams. About 14 Islanders took the ice after a team meeting.
- Wade Dubielewicz will start for the Islanders tonight while it looks like Cam Ward will be back in net for the Hurricanes. There were some talks that John Grahame would start tonight, but it doesn’t look that way.
Just like other players, Islanders head coach Ted Nolan said that “Dubie has earned his ice-time and deserves to play.”
- Unfortunately, there won’t be a Ted Nolan/Brandon Nolan match-up this season. Brandon, a top prospect for the ‘Canes, is currently with their AHL affiliate in Albany.
- The last time the Islanders were in Carolina, they won 4-1 off a stellar performance from Dubielewicz and Marc-Andre Bergeron who burned Carolina with two power-play goals and an assist. By the way, Carolina enters the game with the league’s worst penalty kill unit.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
MORNING SKATE: Flyers at Isles
The Islanders are back home for an Atlantic Division tilt versus the Philadelphia Flyers. It’s the first time the Flyers have visited the Coliseum this season. Here are some notes from the morning skate.
- Defensemen Chris Campoli, Radek Martinek and Brendan Witt are indeed all out for tonight’s game. Both Martinek and Witt took the full skate and looked pretty good to the naked eye, but Islanders head coach Ted Nolan told the media that Marti is about a week away and that Witt could possibly play on Monday.
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- With that news, Aaron Johnson returns to the lineup and at his natural defenseman position. In his five games earlier this season, Johnson mostly skated as a fourth-line forward. Johny said the coaches told him he’ll be eased back into the lineup, but is excited to finally get back into an NHL game.
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- In the uber-tight Atlantic Division where the top and bottom teams are only separated by six points, the Islanders enter tonight’s contest only two points behind the third-place Flyers. The Islanders are only four points out of the Atlantic Division lead.
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- The probably match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro versus Martin Biron.
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- The Islanders third-best penalty kill will get a good test tonight if the need arises against the Flyers who own the NHL’s top power play unit. They click at a 24.4 percent rate.
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- Before the game, Islanders forward Sean Bergenheim and Flyers goaltender Antero Niittymaki will partake in the photo-op with the youth Finnish hockey team from Ilves, Finland, who is participating in the International Division of the Lighthouse Tournament.
- Defensemen Chris Campoli, Radek Martinek and Brendan Witt are indeed all out for tonight’s game. Both Martinek and Witt took the full skate and looked pretty good to the naked eye, but Islanders head coach Ted Nolan told the media that Marti is about a week away and that Witt could possibly play on Monday.
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- With that news, Aaron Johnson returns to the lineup and at his natural defenseman position. In his five games earlier this season, Johnson mostly skated as a fourth-line forward. Johny said the coaches told him he’ll be eased back into the lineup, but is excited to finally get back into an NHL game.
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- In the uber-tight Atlantic Division where the top and bottom teams are only separated by six points, the Islanders enter tonight’s contest only two points behind the third-place Flyers. The Islanders are only four points out of the Atlantic Division lead.
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- The probably match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro versus Martin Biron.
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- The Islanders third-best penalty kill will get a good test tonight if the need arises against the Flyers who own the NHL’s top power play unit. They click at a 24.4 percent rate.
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- Before the game, Islanders forward Sean Bergenheim and Flyers goaltender Antero Niittymaki will partake in the photo-op with the youth Finnish hockey team from Ilves, Finland, who is participating in the International Division of the Lighthouse Tournament.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
MORNING SKATE: Habs at Isles
The Islanders are back at home tonight at the Coliseum to take on the Montreal Canadiens. Here are some notes from the morning skate…
- Ted Nolan told the media that Ruslan Fedotenko is fine and will be in the lineup tonight after taking a blow to the head in Ottawa.
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- Is No. 8 No. 1? With injuries to Brendan Witt and Radek Martinek (the team’s top two defensemen), Nolan praised the play of Bruno Gervais by calling him the team’s best defenseman over the past few games. Nolan’s trust in Bruno definitely shows on the ice.
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- With tonight’s game being broadcasted nationally on Versus, Joe Beninati was speaking to Rick DiPietro following the skate. He asked Rick how many sets of pads he goes through in a season thinking it was three or four, but was shocked when Rick said “Between 25 and 30”. Responded Joe: “30! Wow!” Rick apparently doesn’t like it when the pads get too worn in a broken down.
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Beninati, who calls the play-by-play action for the Washington Capitals, will be joined in the broadcast booth by Eddie Olczyk. Rounding out the three-man crew will be the Islanders own Billy Jaffe, who will be their roving reporter tonight.
This is some nice vacation for Howie Rose, but if there is anyone in this business who deserves a break every once in a while, it’s him. If you think about it, between the Mets and Islanders, he hardly gets a break! We miss you, Howie!
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The match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Christobal Huet for the Canadiens.
- Ted Nolan told the media that Ruslan Fedotenko is fine and will be in the lineup tonight after taking a blow to the head in Ottawa.
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- Is No. 8 No. 1? With injuries to Brendan Witt and Radek Martinek (the team’s top two defensemen), Nolan praised the play of Bruno Gervais by calling him the team’s best defenseman over the past few games. Nolan’s trust in Bruno definitely shows on the ice.
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- With tonight’s game being broadcasted nationally on Versus, Joe Beninati was speaking to Rick DiPietro following the skate. He asked Rick how many sets of pads he goes through in a season thinking it was three or four, but was shocked when Rick said “Between 25 and 30”. Responded Joe: “30! Wow!” Rick apparently doesn’t like it when the pads get too worn in a broken down.
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Beninati, who calls the play-by-play action for the Washington Capitals, will be joined in the broadcast booth by Eddie Olczyk. Rounding out the three-man crew will be the Islanders own Billy Jaffe, who will be their roving reporter tonight.
This is some nice vacation for Howie Rose, but if there is anyone in this business who deserves a break every once in a while, it’s him. If you think about it, between the Mets and Islanders, he hardly gets a break! We miss you, Howie!
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The match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Christobal Huet for the Canadiens.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
ROAD TRIP BLOG: Day 10 / Isles at Sens
Sunday, January 13
After a day away from the rink yesterday, the Islanders got back on the ice this morning with a mandatory morning skate. Here are some notes…
- The match-up in goal tonight looks to be Rick DiPietro versus Martin Gerber, who did not start last night for Ottawa.
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- Ted Nolan announced that Islanders winger Miroslav Satan will be back in the lineup tonight after missing one game with a sprained knee. That means Jeff Tambellini will be returned to Bridgeport.
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- Nolan also announced that Brendan Witt will miss tonight’s game. While talking about his defense pairings, Nolan credited Freddy Meyer as his most reliable defenseman over the past few games.
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- Although Ottawa had an optional skate, their players were still available to the media. It was confirmed that Dany Heatley will be out four-to-six weeks with a separated shoulder. When told of this news by the Ottawa media and asked if this makes Ottawa a less dangerous team, Nolan replied: “No, they still have Jason Spezza, Daniel Aldfredsson and a lot of talented guys.”
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I’ll check in tomorrow with some final thoughts of the road trip.
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Total miles traveled so far: About 6,467
Miles to be traveled tonight: 390
Friday, January 11, 2008
ROAD TRIP BLOG: Day 7/8 / Isles at Flames
Friday, January 11
The Islanders are still in Calgary as the play the Flames tonight.
Here are some notes.
The match-up in net will be Rick DiPietro versus Mikka Kiprusoff. And if you thought Wade Dubielewicz played in so few games, Flames back up Curtis McElhinney has only played in four this season for a total of 131 minutes.
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The Calgary media was shocked that Rick would speak to the media on the morning of the game, which is something that he does often if requested ahead of time. Not only were they appreciative, they were very complimentary as well as most goalies in the NHL don’t go anywhere near a mic on the morning of a game. Rick is an All-Star, All-Ways.
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According to Wade Dubielewicz, and we don’t have any reason not to believe him, Calgary is actually closer to his Invermere, BC home then Vancouver was. So he’ll have plenty of friends and family at the game tonight. Current total is 44, but we could see that number go up.
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Miroslav Satan is a game-time decision after receiving some bumps and bruises after a crushing third period hit in Vancouver. If he can’t go, Ted Nolan said the team will go with seven defensemen with Bryan Berard being inserted back into the lineup.
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Flames forward Eric Nystrom – yes, that one – is out for tonight after suffering facial injuries a game ago. According to the Flame’s Mike Keenan, it was a doctor’s decision.
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Islanders GM Garth Snow sat down the Fan 960’s Rob Kerr this morning for a radio interview. At around 6:20 PM tonight, fans can log onto their website (click here) to listen to it. Islanders TV will also have a copy of the interview at a later time as well.
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Miles traveled so far: About 4,266
Miles to be traveled tonight: 2,208
Oy!!!
The Islanders are still in Calgary as the play the Flames tonight.
Here are some notes.
The match-up in net will be Rick DiPietro versus Mikka Kiprusoff. And if you thought Wade Dubielewicz played in so few games, Flames back up Curtis McElhinney has only played in four this season for a total of 131 minutes.
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The Calgary media was shocked that Rick would speak to the media on the morning of the game, which is something that he does often if requested ahead of time. Not only were they appreciative, they were very complimentary as well as most goalies in the NHL don’t go anywhere near a mic on the morning of a game. Rick is an All-Star, All-Ways.
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According to Wade Dubielewicz, and we don’t have any reason not to believe him, Calgary is actually closer to his Invermere, BC home then Vancouver was. So he’ll have plenty of friends and family at the game tonight. Current total is 44, but we could see that number go up.
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Miroslav Satan is a game-time decision after receiving some bumps and bruises after a crushing third period hit in Vancouver. If he can’t go, Ted Nolan said the team will go with seven defensemen with Bryan Berard being inserted back into the lineup.
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Flames forward Eric Nystrom – yes, that one – is out for tonight after suffering facial injuries a game ago. According to the Flame’s Mike Keenan, it was a doctor’s decision.
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Islanders GM Garth Snow sat down the Fan 960’s Rob Kerr this morning for a radio interview. At around 6:20 PM tonight, fans can log onto their website (click here) to listen to it. Islanders TV will also have a copy of the interview at a later time as well.
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Miles traveled so far: About 4,266
Miles to be traveled tonight: 2,208
Oy!!!
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
ROAD TRIP BLOG: Day 5 / Isles at Canucks
Tuesday, January 8
Following an hour and a half flight from Edmonton to Vancouver last night, Ted Nolan canceled the morning skate and kept the team away from the arena.
No decisions have been made on the lineup, so I can’t even guess if any changes will be made.
The team will stay in Vancouver tonight and fly to Calgary tomorrow afternoon. Practice has already been canceled for tomorrow. If there’s one thing I know about Ted it’s that he makes sure his players aren’t overworked and are rested when it counts.
The team will practice in Calgary on Thursday where Wade Dubielewicz and the Flame’s Eric Nystrom will pose for a photo-op with Dubie’s mask. Wade has a picture of Eric’s dad, Bob, scoring his famous 7:11 goal in the 1980 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
No decisions have been made on the lineup, so I can’t even guess if any changes will be made.
The team will stay in Vancouver tonight and fly to Calgary tomorrow afternoon. Practice has already been canceled for tomorrow. If there’s one thing I know about Ted it’s that he makes sure his players aren’t overworked and are rested when it counts.
The team will practice in Calgary on Thursday where Wade Dubielewicz and the Flame’s Eric Nystrom will pose for a photo-op with Dubie’s mask. Wade has a picture of Eric’s dad, Bob, scoring his famous 7:11 goal in the 1980 Stanley Cup Playoffs.Miles traveled, so far: 3,609
Monday, January 7, 2008
ROAD TRIP BLOG: Day 4 / Isles at Oilers
Monday, January 7
As a heat-wave hits Edmonton (the temperature is around freezing), the Islanders take on the Oilers tonight. Here are some notes…
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The Islanders will use the same lineup tonight with Bryan Berard as the healthy scratch. Former Islanders prospect Robert Nilsson looks to be a healthy scratch for Edmonton tonight. Raffi Torres, another former Islanders prospect, is out and it was announced today that he will undergo season-ending knee surgery.
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The goaltending match-up is Rick DiPietro versus Mathieu Garon.
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This is Marc-Andre Bergeron’s first trip back to Edmonton since the trade that brought him to the Island last season. Literally, his first time back. He said he didn’t even come back to sell his house over the summer. He said: “It feels a little weird.”
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Bergeron jokingly asked an Edmonton writer if he will be booed tonight. The writer said: “Edmonton fans treat home and visiting players alike… They boo everyone!”
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It really felt like we were in Toronto or Montreal with the media this morning. I asked an Edmonton journalist this morning how many media members would be here today and he said “a few camera and a handful of writers. Not too many” Well, it was more like ten cameras, ten writers and a bunch of radio guys. Talk about being in a fishbowl. Sorry Ted, MC and Berger!
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Miles traveled so far: About 2,836
Miles to be traveled tonight from Edmonton to Vancouver: 773
As a heat-wave hits Edmonton (the temperature is around freezing), the Islanders take on the Oilers tonight. Here are some notes…
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The Islanders will use the same lineup tonight with Bryan Berard as the healthy scratch. Former Islanders prospect Robert Nilsson looks to be a healthy scratch for Edmonton tonight. Raffi Torres, another former Islanders prospect, is out and it was announced today that he will undergo season-ending knee surgery.
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The goaltending match-up is Rick DiPietro versus Mathieu Garon.
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This is Marc-Andre Bergeron’s first trip back to Edmonton since the trade that brought him to the Island last season. Literally, his first time back. He said he didn’t even come back to sell his house over the summer. He said: “It feels a little weird.”
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Bergeron jokingly asked an Edmonton writer if he will be booed tonight. The writer said: “Edmonton fans treat home and visiting players alike… They boo everyone!”
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It really felt like we were in Toronto or Montreal with the media this morning. I asked an Edmonton journalist this morning how many media members would be here today and he said “a few camera and a handful of writers. Not too many” Well, it was more like ten cameras, ten writers and a bunch of radio guys. Talk about being in a fishbowl. Sorry Ted, MC and Berger!
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Miles traveled so far: About 2,836
Miles to be traveled tonight from Edmonton to Vancouver: 773
Saturday, January 5, 2008
ROAD TRIP BLOG: Day 2 / Isles at Avs
Saturday, January 5
The Islanders face-off against the Colorado Avalanche, who will be sans Joe Sakic and Captain Colorado Ryan Smyth, tonight at the Pepsi Center in Denver, CO. The Islanders will use the same lineup as they did on Thursday night. Here are some other notes:
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The big talk at the morning skate was the altitude – and yes you really do feel it. Ted Nolan said the game plan would be for guys to take quick shifts of no more than 30 seconds. According to the local media, teams don’t feel the altitude’s effects until the second period when the Avs take advantage. Of their 115 goals scored this season, 49 have been netted in the second period. They have scored 27, 37 and 2 in the first period, third period and overtime, respectfully.
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Wade Dubielewicz returns to Denver for the first time as a player since his colligate career at Denver University. Dubie won a couple of WCHA goaltending titles here and was a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.
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Newsday’s Greg Logan tried tracking down Smyth, but was unable because of Colorado’s team policy of not allowing injured players to talk to the media. Someone should have reminded them that the New York media doesn’t care about his injured ankle. Logan did speak with Nolan and GM Garth Snow and is a resourceful reporter, so he should have something on his blog or in a story later at Newsday.com.
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(Corrected, thanks to Peter Botte of the NY Daily News... I added an extra "0".. opps.)
Miles traveled yesterday: Roughly 1,800 from Long Island to Denver.
Miles to be traveled tonight/tomorrow morning: Roughly 1,036 from Denver to Edmonton.
The Islanders face-off against the Colorado Avalanche, who will be sans Joe Sakic and Captain Colorado Ryan Smyth, tonight at the Pepsi Center in Denver, CO. The Islanders will use the same lineup as they did on Thursday night. Here are some other notes:
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The big talk at the morning skate was the altitude – and yes you really do feel it. Ted Nolan said the game plan would be for guys to take quick shifts of no more than 30 seconds. According to the local media, teams don’t feel the altitude’s effects until the second period when the Avs take advantage. Of their 115 goals scored this season, 49 have been netted in the second period. They have scored 27, 37 and 2 in the first period, third period and overtime, respectfully.
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Wade Dubielewicz returns to Denver for the first time as a player since his colligate career at Denver University. Dubie won a couple of WCHA goaltending titles here and was a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.
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Newsday’s Greg Logan tried tracking down Smyth, but was unable because of Colorado’s team policy of not allowing injured players to talk to the media. Someone should have reminded them that the New York media doesn’t care about his injured ankle. Logan did speak with Nolan and GM Garth Snow and is a resourceful reporter, so he should have something on his blog or in a story later at Newsday.com.
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(Corrected, thanks to Peter Botte of the NY Daily News... I added an extra "0".. opps.)
Miles traveled yesterday: Roughly 1,800 from Long Island to Denver.
Miles to be traveled tonight/tomorrow morning: Roughly 1,036 from Denver to Edmonton.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
MORNING SKATE: Panthers at Isles
Here’s the round-up from today’s morning skate at the Coliseum…
The probable match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Craig Anderson for the Panthers. Anderson was one of two Panthers to skate this morning and it didn’t look like it was because the other skater needed someone to shoot at.
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DiPietro is thinking about wearing a new set of pads tonight. The weird thing is, is that they are all white.
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Other than the addition of DiPietro and Mike Sillinger (and the subtraction of Joey MacDonald and Ben Walter), the Islanders will go with the same lineup tonight.
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Panthers’ broadcaster Denis Potvin was seen walking the hallways this morning as well. It looked like he was filming something for FSN Florida by the Islanders Hall of Fame wall mural outside the team’s locker room. Looked like a neat piece and we’ll try to get a copy of it for Islanders TV.
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Richard Park will be named the Sharp Player of the Month prior to tonight’s game.
The probable match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Craig Anderson for the Panthers. Anderson was one of two Panthers to skate this morning and it didn’t look like it was because the other skater needed someone to shoot at.
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DiPietro is thinking about wearing a new set of pads tonight. The weird thing is, is that they are all white.
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Other than the addition of DiPietro and Mike Sillinger (and the subtraction of Joey MacDonald and Ben Walter), the Islanders will go with the same lineup tonight.
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Panthers’ broadcaster Denis Potvin was seen walking the hallways this morning as well. It looked like he was filming something for FSN Florida by the Islanders Hall of Fame wall mural outside the team’s locker room. Looked like a neat piece and we’ll try to get a copy of it for Islanders TV.
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Richard Park will be named the Sharp Player of the Month prior to tonight’s game.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
MORNING SKATE: Devs at Isles
Just some quick notes to pass along from this morning’s morning skate at the Coliseum:
Ruslan Fedotenko, Aaron Johnson and Rick DiPietro skated this morning. Tank is a go for tonight and said his hand injury isn’t going to bother him at all. Ted Nolan announced that Rick will be a game-time decision.
This was Johnson’s first full-skate with the team since his knee injury sidelines him over a month a go. He said he felt good and that it was good to get back on the ice with the boys. He skated on his own the past few days.
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Blake Comeau is fine after taking an inadvertent stick to the eye yesterday at practice. He said his contact got knocked out of his eye, but that he’s fine.
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No surprise here, Martin Brodeur will start for the Devils. He has 38-19-4 career record versus the Islanders.
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Coming off a 2-1 shootout victory over the Buffalo Sabres last night, the Devils only skated five players today.
Ruslan Fedotenko, Aaron Johnson and Rick DiPietro skated this morning. Tank is a go for tonight and said his hand injury isn’t going to bother him at all. Ted Nolan announced that Rick will be a game-time decision.
This was Johnson’s first full-skate with the team since his knee injury sidelines him over a month a go. He said he felt good and that it was good to get back on the ice with the boys. He skated on his own the past few days.
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Blake Comeau is fine after taking an inadvertent stick to the eye yesterday at practice. He said his contact got knocked out of his eye, but that he’s fine.
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No surprise here, Martin Brodeur will start for the Devils. He has 38-19-4 career record versus the Islanders.
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Coming off a 2-1 shootout victory over the Buffalo Sabres last night, the Devils only skated five players today.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
MORNING SKATE: Isles at Sens
Bit of a quiet morning at the ScotiaBank Place this morning. With both teams playing last night, there was optional ice for both squads after meetings. Here’s what we learned…
The goaltending match-up tonight looks like it will be Wade Dubielewicz versus Martin Gerber. Both goalies played last night.
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Mike Comrie makes his return to Ottawa. Last spring, Comrie helped lead the Senators to the Stanley Cup Finals. Will he be booed by the Ottawa faithful? The local media doesn’t think so.
Comrie on his time with Ottawa: “I had a lot of great memories that will always be with me… There was a sense of wanting to finish some unfinished business we had last season [after reaching the Cup Finals], but I’m real happy with my choice to be on Long Island.”
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Ted Nolan was asked who would have been his emergency goalie last night if something happened to Dubie. His answer: Ruslan Fedotenko. “We had a small game with some [of the team’s] family members over the holiday break and Tank put on the pads. His glove hand was a little weak.”
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Mike Sillinger brought his son Owen on the trip because he’s playing in the Bell Cup Tournament this week. It’s one of the biggest hockey tournaments in the world and it’s held every year up in Ottawa. Owen is 10 years old and is a member of the Long Island Gulls. His team plays tomorrow.
The goaltending match-up tonight looks like it will be Wade Dubielewicz versus Martin Gerber. Both goalies played last night.
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Mike Comrie makes his return to Ottawa. Last spring, Comrie helped lead the Senators to the Stanley Cup Finals. Will he be booed by the Ottawa faithful? The local media doesn’t think so.
Comrie on his time with Ottawa: “I had a lot of great memories that will always be with me… There was a sense of wanting to finish some unfinished business we had last season [after reaching the Cup Finals], but I’m real happy with my choice to be on Long Island.”
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Ted Nolan was asked who would have been his emergency goalie last night if something happened to Dubie. His answer: Ruslan Fedotenko. “We had a small game with some [of the team’s] family members over the holiday break and Tank put on the pads. His glove hand was a little weak.”
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Mike Sillinger brought his son Owen on the trip because he’s playing in the Bell Cup Tournament this week. It’s one of the biggest hockey tournaments in the world and it’s held every year up in Ottawa. Owen is 10 years old and is a member of the Long Island Gulls. His team plays tomorrow.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
MORNING SKATE: Leafs at Isles
Along with the much anticipated return of Jason Blake to the Nassau Coliseum was the return of the Toronto Media. You gotta love those guys… And there’s not a good media relations person in the NHL who wouldn’t like to have the headache that comes along with working with that many reporters if it meant that much more coverage for their team. But I digress…
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Even the New York media came out for the morning skate for a chance to catch up with Blakey. I believe Mark Herrmann is writing a separate column on his return for tomorrow’s Newsday. Jason was in good spirits this morning when we caught up. The last time I saw him smile like that was after the trade deadline has passed last February. Let’s just hope he keeps the first period hat trick in the bag tonight.
After coaching him for a season, how does Ted Nolan plan on to defending the speedster from Minnesota? “We’ll play him tight because you know he’ll be flying around the ice tonight.”
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Rick DiPietro will be the Islanders’ goaltender tonight and according to the (radio) Voice of the Islanders (Steve Mears), Andrew Raycroft will be in net for the Leafs. Razor’s last game was back on November 24 at Phoenix. He was also in net for the 8-1 Leafs victory over the Islanders back in October.
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The Coliseum really needs to look into getting better glass behind the nets. An unknown Leaf punched a nice sized hole out of a pane of glass which was in the same place as the one that Marc-Andre Bergeron broke last week.
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If fans see a much younger Sean Bergenheim look-a-like tonight in the stands, it’s his brother. Now we know was Sean looked like about 10 or so years ago.
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Even the New York media came out for the morning skate for a chance to catch up with Blakey. I believe Mark Herrmann is writing a separate column on his return for tomorrow’s Newsday. Jason was in good spirits this morning when we caught up. The last time I saw him smile like that was after the trade deadline has passed last February. Let’s just hope he keeps the first period hat trick in the bag tonight.
After coaching him for a season, how does Ted Nolan plan on to defending the speedster from Minnesota? “We’ll play him tight because you know he’ll be flying around the ice tonight.”
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Rick DiPietro will be the Islanders’ goaltender tonight and according to the (radio) Voice of the Islanders (Steve Mears), Andrew Raycroft will be in net for the Leafs. Razor’s last game was back on November 24 at Phoenix. He was also in net for the 8-1 Leafs victory over the Islanders back in October.
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The Coliseum really needs to look into getting better glass behind the nets. An unknown Leaf punched a nice sized hole out of a pane of glass which was in the same place as the one that Marc-Andre Bergeron broke last week.
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If fans see a much younger Sean Bergenheim look-a-like tonight in the stands, it’s his brother. Now we know was Sean looked like about 10 or so years ago.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
MORNING SKATE: Caps at Isles
Not a lot went on this morning for the Islanders. With only three members of the Orange and Blue skating, a Washington Capitals coach said: “Well, this is one of the lightest morning skates you’ll ever see.”
Same lineup and line combinations for tonight’s game for the Islanders.
Marc-Andre Bergeron broke yet another pane of glass at the Coliseum. The scary thing about it is that it didn’t even look like it was off one of his hardest shots.
Rick DiPietro versus Olie Kolzig looks to be the match-up in net tonight. Olie the Goalie is 26-10-2-0 all-time versus the Islanders. He picked up a lot of the wins when the Capitals were rolling off victories against the Islanders for many years. But recently the luck has started to turn as DiPietro is 7-3-0-1 lifetime versus the Caps. Rick’s GAA against Washington? 1.99.
All children 14 and under will receive a secret holiday gift courtesy of the Islanders Children’s Foundation when they enter the Coliseum for tonight’s game.
Same lineup and line combinations for tonight’s game for the Islanders.
Marc-Andre Bergeron broke yet another pane of glass at the Coliseum. The scary thing about it is that it didn’t even look like it was off one of his hardest shots.
Rick DiPietro versus Olie Kolzig looks to be the match-up in net tonight. Olie the Goalie is 26-10-2-0 all-time versus the Islanders. He picked up a lot of the wins when the Capitals were rolling off victories against the Islanders for many years. But recently the luck has started to turn as DiPietro is 7-3-0-1 lifetime versus the Caps. Rick’s GAA against Washington? 1.99.
All children 14 and under will receive a secret holiday gift courtesy of the Islanders Children’s Foundation when they enter the Coliseum for tonight’s game.
Friday, December 21, 2007
MORNING SKATE: Isles at Penguins
Both teams were at the rink for meetings today and both had optional skates. Here’s what we learned at the morning skate for tonight’s game:
- The match-up in goal tonight should be Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Dany Sabourin for the Penguins.
- By moving Richard Park up to the team’s top line with Mike Comrie and Bill Guerin, Ted Nolan reiterated that the best players will continue to get playing time and be rewarded for their hard work.
- With the same notion, Freddy Meyer will remain in the lineup on the blueline.
- On the team’s “so-called fourth line”, Andy Hilbert will center Blake Comeau and Tim Jackman, who will play on the left and right sides, respectively.
- Nolan doesn’t expect any extra emotion between the teams due to the Chris Simon/Jarkko Ruutu incident from last week.
- The match-up in goal tonight should be Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Dany Sabourin for the Penguins.
- By moving Richard Park up to the team’s top line with Mike Comrie and Bill Guerin, Ted Nolan reiterated that the best players will continue to get playing time and be rewarded for their hard work.
- With the same notion, Freddy Meyer will remain in the lineup on the blueline.
- On the team’s “so-called fourth line”, Andy Hilbert will center Blake Comeau and Tim Jackman, who will play on the left and right sides, respectively.
- Nolan doesn’t expect any extra emotion between the teams due to the Chris Simon/Jarkko Ruutu incident from last week.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
MORNING SKATE: Sabres at Isles
With the Islanders set to square off against the Buffalo Sabres in their fourth and final meeting of the regular season, it looks like the probable match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro versus Ryan Miller.
According to Ted Nolan at the morning skate, Freddy Meyer returns to the lineup tonight and will be paired Andy Sutton on the blueline. Only six defensemen will skate as Marc-Andre Bergeron and Bryan Berard are the scratches.
Ted Nolan on Meyer: “Freddy has been the ultimate team guy for us and he’s been working his tail off.”
Blake Comeau will skate on what Nolan describes as the “so-called fourth line” with Richard Park and Tim Jackman.
Ted Nolan on Comeau: “Blake has some young legs and hopefully he can provide some energy for us like Sean Bergenheim has.”
According to Ted Nolan at the morning skate, Freddy Meyer returns to the lineup tonight and will be paired Andy Sutton on the blueline. Only six defensemen will skate as Marc-Andre Bergeron and Bryan Berard are the scratches.
Ted Nolan on Meyer: “Freddy has been the ultimate team guy for us and he’s been working his tail off.”
Blake Comeau will skate on what Nolan describes as the “so-called fourth line” with Richard Park and Tim Jackman.
Ted Nolan on Comeau: “Blake has some young legs and hopefully he can provide some energy for us like Sean Bergenheim has.”
Saturday, December 15, 2007
MORNING SKATE: Pens at Isles
The Islanders faceoff against Atlantic Division rival Pittsburgh tonight at the Coliseum. The last time the Pens were in town the Islanders won 3-2 on Al Arbour night.
Here are some notes from the morning skate…
- The entire team skated this morning after receiving a day off yesterday.
- The probable match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Dany Sabourin for the Penguins. Sabourin was once a highly thought of prospect a few years ago and according to Penguins beat writer Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he outplayed Roberto Luongo in Vancouver a few games ago.
- At the end of practice, Marc-Andre Bergeron was showing off his strong slap shot to the fans in attendance for the second-half tickets open house event. After the cracking a first pane of glass behind the net by accident, Bergeron had some fun with the fans and broke three more. His teammates broke two more to send the Coliseum staff scrambling to replace them.
- I don’t know if Josef Vasicek is an environmentalist or not, but trees be warned. JoVa got in a shipment of sticks this morning. That’s nearly 50 wooden sticks. Jo is the only Islander currently using wood sticks.
- Penguins' defenseman Sergei Gonchar is rumored to be out tonight and the Pens will make a roster move to get an extra skater up for the game. Forward Erik Christensen is also out for them.
Here are some notes from the morning skate…
- The entire team skated this morning after receiving a day off yesterday.
- The probable match-up in goal tonight is Rick DiPietro for the Islanders and Dany Sabourin for the Penguins. Sabourin was once a highly thought of prospect a few years ago and according to Penguins beat writer Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he outplayed Roberto Luongo in Vancouver a few games ago.
- At the end of practice, Marc-Andre Bergeron was showing off his strong slap shot to the fans in attendance for the second-half tickets open house event. After the cracking a first pane of glass behind the net by accident, Bergeron had some fun with the fans and broke three more. His teammates broke two more to send the Coliseum staff scrambling to replace them.
- I don’t know if Josef Vasicek is an environmentalist or not, but trees be warned. JoVa got in a shipment of sticks this morning. That’s nearly 50 wooden sticks. Jo is the only Islander currently using wood sticks.
- Penguins' defenseman Sergei Gonchar is rumored to be out tonight and the Pens will make a roster move to get an extra skater up for the game. Forward Erik Christensen is also out for them.
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