Over the course of the last decade Islanders fans, me included, have had to put up with a lot. There was the fisherman logo, the disco ball, the addition of a ‘Family Guy’ sound clip to goal celebrations, all Mike Milbury decisions, ownership carousels, the fact that Coliseum is falling down around us and of course the Ice Girls.
All these things distract from the fact that the team on the ice is not getting any better and that us, as fans, are being treated like minor leaguers.
Going to an Islander game is now more akin to going to see the Long Island Ducks. The days of Trottier and Nystrom are so far removed from the product on the ice (even though there are 5 minute homage’s to both player at every home game).
It used to be that you could go to the Coliseum and talk hockey. Fans knew the difference between offsides and icing. They appreciated a good open ice hit. The hip check was art. These days are all gone.
Not that those fans don't exist. You just can't hear them over the blabbering of TV timeout promotions.
During the first period at Tuesday’s game they actually showed a note on the scoreboard that the Islanders have clinched the season series against the Rangers, as if that matters to anyone. The only thing more laughable was the fact that they showed playoff ticket information. Not to mention that the crowd was at least 70% Ranger fans to begin with.
That brings me back to the Ice Girls. Do you think if the Islanders were as good as they were in the 80’s that there would be Ice Girls? Of course not. There are no ice girls in Montreal, Calgary, and Detroit. The difference between all those teams and the Islanders? They all have a better shot than the Islanders at making the playoffs this year.
Comments (45)
Let's see, three blogs posting from this clown, all negative and all over the top anti-Islander.
http://blogs.trb.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=42&search=jonathan+mccarthy
Seventy percent Rag fans? So how come Msg has been packed with Islander fans all season and for years?
How many city writers noted the " You can't beat us chants " from Islander fans at Msg.
What a shock someone with an agenda uses the ice girls as a reason to blame the Isles for everything but global warming. How come you failed to point out the Rags had them too until a sexual harassment suit against Garden employees (what's new) caused this to end. the Rag ice dancers.
Talk about some angry
anti-Islander fan with a grudge, did Dolan pay you to write this for the pathetic Garden and their no playoff wins in a decade?
How can Newsday allow someone this uninformed to write a blog filled with such lies.
This whole Keyboard Quarterback section is Newsdays equivalent of the Ice Girls. Get rid of them both.
Montreal hasn't clinched, and I don't think Calgary has yet either...but the Devils have, and last time I saw the Isles play on their ice, they had ice girls that didn't even skate!
Point taken, though. Since the mid 90s there's been plenty to distract us from the product on the ice. I'll still go, though, always, and will still cheer.
And now that I read closer...Columbus???!!! They're not even close! But perhaps they can make up 20+ points in two or three games :)
I hope Flukeqvist get's reprimanded by the league and fined, he has no business hitting anyone working for a living with his stick, talk to the official if you have a problem and act like an adult.
Does this blogger work for Dolan....LOL
your a pig
blame it on the ice-girls--
what they did to a female is wrong
your attempt to take our pride is a disgrace to Newsday
but its not working...
Just a small side note, The Islanders are NOT the only team in the League with Ice-Girls... so this guy may want to his research before he opens his big mouth
Hey idiot McCarthy,
First of all, who the Hell are you??? I've been reading Newsday for 10 years and this is the first time I've ever seen your name. Columbus didn't clinch a playoff spot, so stop pretending like you know hockey. The goofy gimmicks at home arenas occur at every sport, and I think alot of it is incredibly irritating as well. But the Islanders, specifically, need to increase home ticket sales, and so I have no problem with them trying to attract the younger fans. And by the way, tons of NHL and AHL teams have adopted the Ice Girls or something similar, and I have heard many times that the Islanders were first to do it.
What comical is the Rags did it too but as usual sexual harassment charges
(Courtney Prince) which also got Rag beatwriter Jason Diamos of the Times fired (and a woman named in his spot) but somehow only the Isles are the issue.
Who's the editor of Newsday? This should be this person's final blog and it would be best if this one was deleted.
Why does every Islanders fan assume that anything critical of the Islanders is written by a Rangers fan? He says it right at the top that he's an Islanders fan.
Typical ignorant Long Islander. You read only what you want read.
First off some of those teams have not clinched the playoffs and Columbus isnt even close. The Atlanta Thrashers do have ice girls as well as many teams in the league. Go straight to the Thrashers web site and to fan zone and the "blue crew" and you will see. It is called research and reporting learn it before you bash an organization. This guy wants to talk about going to the coliseum and talking hockey? when he learns some hockey knowledge he can act high and mighty. Hockey fans dont show up in suits like the garden faithful.
I live in Manhattan and am a live-long Islander fan, as far as I'm concerned were New York City's team and you should be contracted.
As for media between Dellapina, Brooks there is no such thing as an objective Ranger media person. They either want to work for Msg and need Dolan or they are Ranger fans and want to take their kicks at the Isles.
One bought cup from Edmonton since 1940, why do they even have a team when Devils fans take over their building come playoff time?
Devils fans don't even fill their own building during playoff time.
Go check out the tapes of game four at Msg, thousands of Devils fans and at ticketmaster sections of seats available.
And no way game four was close to a sellout, when Elias scored to sweep you it sounded like a Devil home game.
Umm, the factual mistakes here create serious credibility issues for you. I'm an Islanders fan living in
Atlanta and yes, the Thrashers do have ice girls. It's simply a fun addition to the game. No need to get so worked up--but, if you insist on it, at least do a little fact checking.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks for pointing out that Columbus won't make the playoffs. That was an editing mistake.
Incredibly sad what this organization has come to. Goes back to Mad Mike who set this franchise back 10 years with his decisions. Imagine a team built around Luongo, Brewer, Redden, McCabe, Bertuzzi, Spezza, Jokinen and either Heatley or Gaborik. All were Isles that MM traded or passed up because of trades he made (Spezza in the Yashin trade and Heatley or Gaborik when MM took DiPietro after trading Luongo). Never has a GM given up so much, and received so little.
Thanks Newsday....you just convinced me to cancel my subscription.....how are the Ice Girls at fault here??? Aren't the Islanders better since Wang took over the ownership???? We won't make the playoffs because of parity...not lack of effort....oh and maybe because our goalie played his heart out and got hurt. The blogger and this paper are pathetic....I'll stick to TSN.ca for my hockey news, thank you.
To Fed Up, you forgot Zdeno Chara. Sounds like quite the lineup the Islanders could have had but for Milbury. Amazing that he got promoted.
To Sickened Isle Fan, I also forgot to mention that Mad Mike fired Darcy Regier when he was the Assistant GM. Of course, the Sabres were thrilled with that decision considering what a great job he is doing there.
The author has hit the nail on the head. What are a trio of girls doing interrupting the players during an NHL game. Henrik stays in goal during breaks at every arena in the league. The on-ice help works around him. It is his crease. He and the other players on both teams are why we true hockey fans come to the games - not to see the "Ice Girls". That's like saying you go to a fight to see the ring girls. I wonder what George Foreman or Mike Tyson would have done if a ring girl had tread into their corner between rounds.
Vancouver Canucks have two guys and two girls come out to clean the ice. The girls are hot too and we call them ice girls. However, they definatly don't mess with the goalie's space.
We also had a local sports caster who constantly put down our local Football team. This continued for years with quips like "I am going to talk about Football now, not that anyone goes to the games". Especially frustrating when I just spent hours watching as nail-biter that ended with a last second field goal.
Then one year it was looking like the team was going to fold. He finally clued in that he was killing his own meal ticket.
The only thing I do agree with is the constant noise at NHL games that drown out the fan atmosphere. Just give me a big old organ and fans screaming at the ref and players!
Kevin T.
Victoria BC
Canada
couldn't agree more with the blog. the islanders are an embarassment to the league. let's go rangers!
oh by the way, when the islanders play at msg, there are not a lot of islander fans there, but at the mausoleum, when the rangers are there it is the only time the islanders sellout, because at least half the crowd is made up of ranger fans.
You've obviously never been to any game of any sport anywhere else in the world. Many NHL teams have ice girls as well. And I'm sick of people like you who obviously know nothing about hockey talking about it. Just shut up if you have nothing intelligent to say. PS. Jonathan McCarthy, you could not be more correct. great post.
At least 70% Ranger fans? This guy must never go to games or must lister to Sam Rosen's bs. I was at the game in March and crowd was at least 70-30 Isles fans. Who is he anyway as I've never heard of him. Typical Newsday though. This is front page news but when the teams play competitive, meaningful games it is usually buried in sports section. Believe me, this is not selling more papers for your joke of a newspaper. Stick to the games and the playoff race for both teams.
Aftr looking at two ugly teams, why wouldnt you put the ice girls out? How can you blame them for anything as they clean the ice? I think we should blame it on GW
How pathetic is the Islander organization as a whole? You would think that missing the playoffs or atrocious attendance in a minor league arena would be of greater concern than these 2 "incidents". They contacted the league over what amount to this, in the words of the 2 IslanderGirls or whatever they are called:"the tip of my squeegee kind of hit the tip of his stick" and "All of a sudden, my back got wet".....maybe Wang can give them 30 year contracts to compensate them for their grave injuries.....luckily the league considers this joke closed....I never liked the Islanders but at least in their glory days they were easy to respect. Not anymore.
don't forget the mascot - A RED DRAGON (arena football) in a hockey jersey !!!!!
The flames do have ice girls,do some research before you write about hockey.
It's an NHL rule to have the crease cleaned at every TV time out so if Queen Henry doesn't move then he should be penalized. Once again the league favoring the rags over everyone else. 100 years in the league 3 Cups when there were 5 other teams and 1 cup bought from Edmonton. Spent nearly half a billion dollars in payroll from 1999 to 2004 and no play offs. What organization is more pathetic then a sexually harrassing Rag one. Oh and by the way thanks for the 15 million you guys pay us every year to be on your pathetic cable network.
The simple mentioned of the ISLE's meant CERTAIN DEATH for the caps, pens, devils, flyers and rags ANY HOCKEY NIGHT. Please, the Islanders of the '80's and the real NHL are gone forever. I left Long Island so did MY ISLANDERS...
Mr. McCarthy, stay away from writing about the Islanders. It's obvious you dont spend any time at the coliseum or watching the team and you're just spouting at the mouth. It's media midgets like yourself that gives the Isles a bad name, when you only come out of the woodwork to critisize and take shots at our team. Where were you in January when we were tearing it up? You are a dope.
It's pathetic listening to Rangers fan's attempting to bash the Islanders while there down. Yes, any Isles fan can admit that there are always Ranger fans a.k.a - scum- at the Coliseum. I would hope so since both teams play within 25 miles of each other and each team has fans all over New York. As for the blogger who wrote this article, get a clue. The Isles first came up with the ice girls during the 2001-2002 season. The Isles were near the top of the division that whole season and sold out over 50% of the home games that year. It couldn't have been that bad of an idea since many NHL teams picked up on the idea. Also please get your NHL facts straight before printing this garbage Newsday finds to be blog worthy. Yea, the Isles have some pretty cheesy gimmicks but so do all the NHL teams. If you are embarrassed to go to games do us a favor...put on a Rangers jersey and go to the Garden.
Sideshows and gimmicks in professional sports are not an Islanders exclusive.
Many years ago the Mets fired their organist and replaced her with a DJ and garbage music every time you breathe. All sports have quarupled their advertising and their dumb promotions with their payrolls. Go to a Cubs game at Wrigley field for a pure baseball experience. But look where the Cubs are--about to be dumped by your company! The business and entertainment environment has changed.. Hockey is battling to stay alive, so expect MORE gimmicks. (I happen to like the ice girls, btw, and if the RULES say "ice must be cleaned during TV breaks" then they are doing their JOB, and if you don't like it, get the rule changed.
Islanders are out of the playoffs. So we will bring the cup to new york for you guys.
Hey ranger fan4life,
You're really on top of your current events. The Islanders are STILL ALIVE for the playoffs.... And you can't count on the rangers. The've brought home the Cup ONCE in the last 67 YEARS!
Man, they give anyone a job at Newsday. Nice blog douche
This blog was retarded.
This guy's an idiot. The Islanders not going to the playoffs has anything to do with the Ice Girls? So what's the reasoning for the Atlanta Thrashers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Dallas Stars, and Vancouver Canucks, all of which employ ice girls? The ice around the goal needs to be cleaned, that's the rule. Who cares who does it?
Islanders fans like to see Ice Girls clean the ice while Rangers fans like to watch middle aged men do it. Whats that say about the Rangers fans? GAY!
Looks like all of you morons who blathered that the Isles were OUT of the playoffs were wrong!
I HAVE TO AGREE WITH SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU MENTIONED IN YOUR COLUMN. I WAS RASIED IN A TIME OF THE ORIGINAL SIX. I PLAYED SEMI-PRO ROLLER HOCKEY THEN AND FOLLOWED THE RANGERS AND THE BLACKHAWKS. I DID HAVE THE GOOD FORTUNE OF GOING TO THE 8TH AVE. GARDEN MANY,MANY TIMES. NO DELAYS IN ICE HOCKEY BACK THEN.(NOT EVEN FOR BOBBY HULL) WAY TOO MANY RIGHT NOW. NO OFFENSE TO THE ICE GIRLS. THEY ARE GETTING EXPOSEUR AT THE WRONG RINK.AS AN 80`S FLYER FAN, IT HAS CHANEGED VERY MUCH AS FAR AS THE AVERAGE FANS KNOWLEDGE OF THE GAME.YOU GO THERE TO WATCH HOCKEY. NOT TO DRINK BEER ALL GAME AND GO HOME STONED AND START FIGHTS IN THE STANDS AND THE PARKING LOT.THE ISLES HAVE THER WORK CUT OUT FOR THEM. THOSE 80`S SEASONS ARE FAR GONE AND WON`T BE BACK FOR A LONG TIME UNLESS MILLBURY SPENDS THE $$ THE RIGHT WAY .GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF YOU. GOOD COLUMN. LETS GO ISLES AND WAKE UP !PEACE
J.C.SPEEDY RASMUSSEN.(# 10, ERIKS COUSIN ON THE DEVILS).
Imus: Sacrificial Lamb for Wrong Cause
Eighty percent of the people who listened or know Imus are against his firing, citing the real person they know compared to his ridiculous comment. Those who took his statement at face value were 55 to 45 percent in favor of his firing, those against citing “free speech” as reasoning to keep him around.
Hate should be terminated as a commodity of free speech, just as violence has no place in society in that it is illogical and extortion. Is Imus though really a racist, and do the people who protested him really have an ulterior motive?
First I doubt that the Rutgers women even know Imus, so they were probably told of this shock jock’s comments since his demographics don’t include people under the age of 30, let alone 40. While being proud of their accomplishments, it is now somewhat diminished because of their “staged devastation” at someone they never heard. Also missing is the motivation to be hateful to women Imus can’t even name.
Do you remember the flight KALN shot down by the Soviet Union, and how Imus tore down their flag in Rockefeller Center and then raised money for the victims, never questioning who was black, white, or Korean of the casualties? Or a radio show that raised millions for charities for people of all backgrounds?
The fight against bigotry and hate has taken a step backwards in citing someone who clearly isn’t prejudiced, just stupid as part of a routine. Will we now edit what Don Rickles, Joan Rivers, Chris Rock and Eddie Murphy have to say? If Howard Stern said this would he have been given a pass since his sidekick is Robin Quivers, and there is this unspoken “friend of ours” mentality since Ms Quivers is in his employ?
Therein lays the true motivation for the actions Sharpton and Jackson took, the latter calling MSNBC “all white, all night, all the time.” They were less concerned with how unfair the target, than with getting a little representation, or boycotting those who fail to succumb to their demands.
Isaiah Washington of Grey’s Anatomy was given the chance for purification through sensitivity rehab; why not Imus? Why is their no forgiveness from a group of people who consider themselves “men of the cloth?” There is further agitation over the individuals who have lead this boycott who have done more to harm race relations than to cultivate our similarities. We have now had a week long “yeah but why haven’t you,” rather than a true discussion of what’s appropriate amongst us all.
I suppose I will no longer have to listen to rappers denigrate women as part of their genre, will never hear that white people have no rhythm, or witness movies stating “white men can’t jump.” Chris Rock will clean up his act, and we will edit old episodes of “All in the Family,” and “Sanford and Son.”
Do we really want a world where we are so thin skinned we can’t laugh at one another? That’s real racism disguised.
there are ice girls in detroit