On the Islanders Beat

good stuff. didn't catch this live, glad to see a little bit of it! The longer we dont hear anything, the more i'm all for signing Sourey (if he wants it). I really think he set his anchor real high when FA started. He probably saw his market value drop when he didn't get signed asap, and now is in damage control (relatively speaking...i'd like to be choosing between numbers with that many zeros myself...). His agent is probably playing the field like a fratboy at an all-girls school. I say go for it- i'm not too worried about his +/- as I've said earlier, and his size and shot would be intimidating to anyone in our div.

Just read on Hockeybuzz that Souray is looking for $5-6 million/year for 6 years. That's a bit much.

its better than giving up young talent for a similar player via a trade...

What a nice video. I'm sure Islander fans will be lining up to buy tickets. Maybe the Islanders won't even finish DEAD LAST in attendance one again.

what is mattias ohlund's contract situation?

Steve;

Are there statistics to support your claim that the Isles finished dead last in attendance this past season?

lol
I was just thinking the same thing.

$3.5m per, this year and next.

Who you thinking goes the other way?

Ohlund has $3.5M/year for two years remaining.

either satan or hunter. maybe bergie.

Even if it would be even, I wouldn't do it for Hunter. Satan makes more sense. The way he's making it sound though, the deal would be a lot more than a one for one swap. If Vancouver is looking for cap room, there has to be a lot more involved. Maybe building off of something like Ohlund and Morrison for Satan and Campoli? I think even more than that would be involved though.

That's a very interesting idea...Where are you guys reading this information?

Nick,
It's just a rumor on hockeybuzz.com that Vancouver has a major deal in the works with a team from the east coast. Me and Question were probably thinking along the same lines when we saw it (what if the east coast team was the Isles?). They've also been saying the Isles were working on a mojor deal. We're just having a little fun playing GM, factoring all the rumors together, and seeing what we come up with. Any thoughts?

Ahh, right, this is the one time I'm away from the computer all day so I didn't see that post. I think, given that information, the pieces generally fit that we could be looking at somebody like a Mattias Ohlund. However, if I'm Garth Snow there's no WAY I move somebody like Satan in a deal such as this. I would center a package on Campoli since frankly he and Gervais are cut from the same mold and I like Gervais' upside far, far more.

However, looking at the Vancouver depth chart (via hockeysfuture.com), 2 of their 3 best prospects, Bourdon and Edler, are defensemen, so maybe they'd rather clear space for these guys than get a defenseman in return. I think it would center around somebody like Petteri Nokelainen, because the Islanders organization really thinks Bergie is the ultimate Nolan player, and Nokelainen has been regressing badly this past season. My gut is that, if it's Ohlund, we won't be sending a d-man back. Thoughts?

I think I need to put out an APB for our man in Vancouver, Kevin T, for his take on this.

I hate to be spamming the board, but it's also pretty solid that the Canucks are sweet on Brian Gionta. Maybe we could be able to spin a player to Vancouver that would then be sent to Jersey along with someone whose existence I'd rather not acknowledge.

(Cory Schneider, former goaltender of my alma mater's arch nemesis, for the record).

I know I'm getting a bit out there, but that's part of what's fun about this.

Ok, I see what you're saying, but Nokelainen can't be enough for a top pairing d-man like Ohlund. Is Noke and a Round 2 enough? Again though, that's not a "major" deal. If it's a major deal, there has to be multiple players involved. Naslund has been mentioned as trade bait. He would make it a major deal. If he's involved, they have to be asking for Satan. Both are entering the final years of their contracts. Ohlund and Naslund for what? Satan, Nokelainen, and ?

Now we're getting interesting. OK, let's think about Ohlund, Naslund, and Brendan Morrison for Satan, Nokelainen, Campoli, Bergenheim/Tambellini (either/or), and the 2nd round pick acquired from Edmonton in the Rourke/set up an offer sheet deal.

Of course, a package of Naslund, Ohlund, and Schneider would have to make Tampa consider giving up Vinny or St. Louis. Tampa could definitely be considered an east coast team.

We're definitely talking major now, but I think Vancouver giving up both Morrisson and Naslund would cause a revolt. I still think Morrisson is the better one for them to deal, especially if they're considering signing Yash (gulp). And I really hope Snow has no ideas in his head about trading Bergie.

That's absolutely true, though having seen Schneider live in big games you couldn't pay me to take him. I think Vancouver could be looking for a new generation to step up, with younger players anchoring the offense. Schneider is wholly expendable because Luongo is a) light years better, and b) locked up long-term. They have a great d corps coming up, so who knows.

However, that deal would probably only go down if more salary went Vancouver's way since Ohlund and Naslund make almost 2 mil more than Lecavalier and 4 million more than St. Louis. Who knows, that sort of deal would make sense from Tampa's perspective, and Vancouver has the chips.

By the way, did anyone else notice the Vancouver marketing department's slogan is "We're All Canucks"? 100 bucks says Kevin T told them to steal our slogan. Don't deny it, man.

Does spelling count?
Introducted? :)

The rumor that I read was Ohlund and Morrison for Elias and another player.

There are no PROOFREADERS on the net. he he he he...

whats this video BS? did we get McCabe back yet or what!? geeeeez! come on!

MY TUMMY HURTS..........please get someone good today garth.....make meeel better.

campoli for ohlund? are you kidding?for ohlund campoli would at best be a throw in.satan alone isn't enough.

Introducted? Captin? I know the word "ginormous" made the most recent dictionary, but no sign of these two words. Let's get the spell checker out.

Introducted? Captin? I know the word "ginormous" made the most recent dictionary, but no sign of these two words. Let's get the spell checker out.

Hahaha hopefully Logan didn't post that video. "Introducted" is pretty freakin moronic. I couldn't think of anything "stupider" than that. ROFLMAO

Delete Satan off your lists. News in Slovakia are saying he will stay at Long Island...

However, anything can happen but I see Miro as a very happy man at LI and he will definitely not request a move... The problem is that it's not he who will have the final word on this trade...

Btw., what do you guys think about Jeff Friesen? He looks like he was born to play under Nolan... Darren McCarthy is the same case...

Guys, don't always look on the top of the UFA list. There are some other very attractive names. I would like to see Sutton, Berard or O'Neill in Isles uniform. Any thoughts?

JP -

I completely agree with you about Gervais. He was a beast after his return from his injury. He's ready for a breakout year. And Campoli will never be a defensive force in any sense of the word. His upside is all offense. What we've seen of his D is all we'll ever see. (Sorry Miggsey).

Steady - I'm totally with you, Maven-man, on Drury. He was a great pickup for the right price. But the Gomez deal was just way too much for his value. The guy is excellent, but $7.4 per for 7 years??? No way. And now you're watching Sather struggle with the cap and the season hasn't even begun. Even if they lose somebody (probably Cullen), they'll be right up against the ceiling. Thne what happens next year when they need to sign Rozsival, Mara and Straka? Even if they let Straka walk, there still won't be enough cap room. Not to mention they'll have reached Jagr's option year (HIS option). Short of winning a cup this year, the Gomeez deal was a bad one.

I think they could have gotten Gomez much cheaper...he wanted to play in nyc pretty bad.

Forget about what Satan wants, no team will take his streaky goal scoring for the money he is making. We are probably stuck with him for this season. If he has the right linemates, it's very possible he could score 35 goals as he did for us 2 seasons ago. If he can score that many, then it's worth it to keep him here for the duration of his contract.

As far as the pending big trade in the works, I guess we are all hoping for the Isles to be included in that saga. Listen everyone, if Snow continues to shake up the organization by pulling in a bigger name player (maybe Ohlund as some of you think), it means we will have to give up some of our youth, like Campoli or Nokie, etc. Let's be reasonable, how many of you really think Chris Campoli is going to be the missing link to any NHL team ever. He had a great rookie season as an Islander but last season he demonstrated that he just can't cut it defensively. Being that he IS a defenseman, if he were to be included in a package for a bigger name player, I think that would be a move Snow would have to make.

It seems like many Isles fans are agonizing at the thought of losing some of our youth. I mean between Campoli, Gervais, Meyer, Bergie, Nokie, Tambellini, Nielson, one or two might be expendable. Let's not forget we are trying to build a competitive NHL team and not an all-rookie/sophomore team.

CANDYMAN-
Satan played the best hockey ive ever seen him play in the final minutes of game 5 last year.....other than that i can tell he does'nt really see himself as a huge presence on the ice.

he was playing those final minutes with fire....if he played like that every shift he would be one of the premier players in the nhl.

Piero - Good to hear from you, man. Honestly for this year I'm all for keeping Satan, because if Nolan can make him a centerpiece of the offense the way he did for Blake he could easily put 35-40 in the net. Satan's been misused in his time here and needs to be able to have constant linemates who will contribute offensively. I've thought for a long time that McCarty would be a great grinder to have on the team, especially since he can join the offense when he needs to and knows what it takes to win. Friesen had an off year last year, but if he can be had at a cut-rate price (1-1.5 million), I would take a flyer on him with a team option for next year to see if he still has it. He's still young even though it feels like he's been around forever.

Cincy/Candyman - Excellent points from you 2 as always. With Gervais busting out of his shell toward the end of last year and guys like Kohn and O'Neill in the system, I would totally be willing to part with Campoli. As per Candyman's point, it's not quite that I'm upset at the thought of giving up youth. For me, I'm agonizing over WHICH youth I believe are expendable. As of right now I would deem Nokelainen and Campoli the most expendable, with Bergenheim, Tambellini, and Hunter pretty close to untouchable unless we get some tremendous value in return. We have some depth in the system and let's try to exploit it either through a deal or at the NHL level.

Sadly, it took until the final 5 minutes of the Isles elimination game against his former team that boo'd him outa town to finally light a spark under his a$$. If it takes that much, then he really might be a lost cause.

When he had that semi-breakaway with 10 secs left, it was the first time in a long time that I saw Satan really create his own chance. He made a pull-move along the boards then skated hard to the net and made an excellent move on Miller. Lucky save for Miller, with his back to the play. Satan has a deadly shot and scored many of his goals by just standing around, having the puck come to him, and taking his shot. He also scored quite a few tap-in goals. And he still had almost 30 goals. If motivated, he has 40 goal potential. But that's a big if.

And Former Disgruntled - I noticed that too. Satan is hardly the second coming of Yashin; if Nolan could show him video of himself from that last 5 minutes of game 5 and try to get it out of him all the time we could see the real true coming out party of Miro Satan.

All's quiet today. Anyone got any news?

RANGERS AGREE TO TERMS WITH HENRIK LUNDQVIST

New York, July 11, 2007 -- New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has agreed to terms with restricted free agent goaltender Henrik Lundqvist.

no word on for how much

When i met Satan last year before the season started at the season ticket holder picnic.....i asked him if he was gonna net 40 he kinda laughed as if he thought it was impossible...i kinda wonder if he has the right confidence.....if he cant believe in himself under a guy like nolan....i agree with you candyman, i dont think he ever will

Nick,

Agree agree. Campoli and Nokelainen would be my 2 choices for expendable players as well. Gervais showed much potential at the end of last season (although he is still an unproven NHL caliber defenseman). I wouldn't move him unless we received an established star defenseman.

an announcement could come as early as this morning that Lundqvist has agreed to a one-year contract worth approximately $2.5 million. that leaves the rangers at $7 million under the cap. it will probably only take $4 or $5 to resign both avery and hossa.
shanahan's contract included a $2 million bonus for playing in 10 games and another $800,000 for making the playoffs that won't hit the cap until next year. shanny can make $1.3 more than last year and count less against the cap.

I guess lquist will walk after this yea......win or lose

Former,
Don't forget Satan was living in the "soft Euro" shadow of Yash and Kozlov last year. If he is truly not self confident it probably affected him. I'm betting Nolan can coax a bit more confidence out of him this year (as well as defensive play) with his new linemates. He will no longer be seen as part of an unpopular group. I think it will play into things at least a little. Your thoughts?

i think he needs to drive to the next more...he has to stop relying on his sniping abilities and become a more versitile player....i think the new nhl so it is called...should have made him this way by now.

disgruntled isle fan - rangers are able to sign lundqvist to a long-term deal after Jan. 1. he will still be a RFA after next season, ranger's just don't have arbitration leverage on him. he cannot become a UFA until after the 08-09 season.

The rumor I'm hearing for Ohlund is the Rangers sending Cullen and Prucha to Vancouver for Ohlund.

Lundqvist will sign a long term deal after January 1 so he's a Ranger for a long time, nice try though Disgruntled!

Cincy~

What is the deal with Boogaard?

Cincy~

I agree about the contract on Drury...I was just pointing out to Matt that he is more then just a "Little League" champ.

L.L World Series, Hobie bake Winner, NCAA Champ with B.U, Stanley Cup Winner.......Like him or not, the guy is blessed!

90% of the Rags bloggers will now use this against us, b/c I just taught them something else they did not know. Not the Rag regular guys I might add....The one line wonders!

Just went on Newyorkislanders.com and looked at the roster and noticed that Hunter's name is not there. Can anyone confirm this please? Thanks

Steady -

Boogaard is a great fighter. But I think I'd rather have Simon. You give up some punching power, but Simon's got a whole lot more skill.

Look back at my last post. I agreed with you on the value of Drury. It was a good signing for the right price. The GOMEZ signing was way over-priced.

Trent Hunter isnt listed on the Islanders roster right now cuz he is a RFA.
He signed up for arbitration im sure the Islanders are talkin to him about a contract.
So dont get your panties in a bunch

ohlund was loved here for the last 12 hours. can't wait to read how ohlund really always sucked once the rangers get him. it will be just like gomez and drury. they were world class players in june and bums in july.

except for steady who did point out that drury has a tremendous resume since he was a kid. drury may not be a superstar but he's definitely a player every gm would want.

The reason I brought that up about Hunter is because Campoli to my knowledge is also a restriced free agent and is listed on the roster. Technically, if you're restricted you should still be listed on the roster cause you're still apart of that team, unless something happens.
I'm not trying to build something up, I'm wondering if it was an error on the web site.

It's nothing to worry about, Hunter will be there and everything will be fine. As for the Rangers, if they can add a guy like Ohlund it'd dramatically improve their currently weak defense. I think Drury will be worth every penny for what he brings in crunch time, and they grossly overpaid for Gomez.

Now that Queen Henrik is re-signed for $4.25 million next season, the cap troubles are coming to light again. A trade is the only possible way they can improve the D now.

wow, exciting video. yawn.

It was a difficult season for Satan. He was misused and in the Blake's shadow. Her wife gave a birth to his first child so now he can concentrate on hockey.

Btw., dont forget his shootout efficiency. I dont want to back him up just because he is from my country and its also to expensive to keep a player with his salary just because he is great in shootout, but still... Let him play next season and let decide what to do with him before next trade deadline in March...

sorry, I meant KING Henrik!

I am the real devil, playing in hell (Nassau Mausoleum).

Cincy, no need to apologize about your take on Campoli's supposed defensive woes. His upside will be realized and developed outside of a Ted Nolan regime and that's likely the best scenario for all involved. Snow is close to pulling the string on a significant trade and including Campoli in it will give give many bloggers some more whine to go with our history of trading them away.

i love it!

4.25 mil for the one year.... everyone was silly thinking he was gonna up for a year at the low 2.5 mil... his agent would have killed him! this is his year to make money.... what if he got injured over the one year contract? what if he has a shitty year? no... no agent would have let him sign for that little... and rags fans and the whole community was wishfully thinking on that one year.... and NOW the rangers CANT protect him with arbitration next year.... if he has another good year, watch for offer sheets that tear him away from the rags permanently!

so after shanny and lundquist, the rangers have what.... 2.75 to sign both avery and hossa?

good luck!

lol

This Gandler guy is funny...

''I think that what's making an impression on the teams is the fact that he received this huge buyout. I don't know what else is weighing on them.''

Looks like Yash wants to sign another huge and long term contract. I think he will go back to Russia where he can easily get much more than in the NHL...

For a few laughs!

From tsn.ca

Agent: Yashin not happy with offers
Alexei Yashin

TSN.ca Staff

7/11/2007 12:28:57 PM

Alexei Yashin, according to his agent Mark Gandler, is not happy with the contract offers he has received from NHL teams.

''We are still talking to some teams. So far the offers we have received we are not happy with,'' Gandler said in an interview with CKNW Radio in Vancouver. ''If we are not going to get what we are looking for than he (Yashin) will definitely go to Russia.''

''I think that what's making an impression on the teams is the fact that he received this huge buyout. I don't know what else is weighing on them.''

Gandler went on to say that he was looking to get near market value for Yashin and wouldn't take a fraction of market value just because Yashin got a buyout from the New York Islanders.

''I think that what's making an impression on the teams is the fact that he received this huge buyout,'' Gandler told CKNW. '' I don't know what else is weighing on them.

''I'm looking at players who are older and less productive and they are getting significant salaries. He just does not want to be the whipping boy. That's just not going to happen.''

Despite his disappointment with the offers so far, Gandler says there is still interest in Yashin.

''We have some ongoing discussions with some teams that are pursuing Alexei seriously, but as I said the level of which they are doing so does not make sense for us,'' Gandler told the Vancouver radio station.

Yashin had 18 goals and 32 assists this season, when he missed 24 games with a sprained right knee. He was scoreless in the Islanders' five-game first-round playoff loss to the Buffalo Sabres.

Hey Merrick, looks like we were reading the same article in one time ... and I was faster :)

blake -

Before you start celebrating Lundqvist's Ranger exit, you need to realize that they have from Jan 1 to July 1 to sign him long-term. No offer sheets allowed during that time. Expect Sather to do just that.

Sorry. Just a reality check.

No reason to be surprised about Gandler. He makes his agent's cut to say things like that about his clients. My gut feeling is that Yashin will go to Europe because they're willing to pay him more money and he won't be dogged by what happened to him with the Islanders. Satan, however, deserves to play out his final contract year as an Islander.

Also, I don't even know if it's worth mentioning the person who "corrected" me regarding Lundqvist wasn't me, but yea it wasn't.

And hey, with Gandler out there at least there's proof there are other delusional hockey people besides Mad Mike.

Not that anyone really cares about Yash anymore but does anyone really think Carol will leave the USA for Russia???? Nice try Gandler!!!

A blogger on hockeybuzz is reporting the Rangers are now $1.4 million over the cap. I'm trying to verify this, but if that's true it means salary dumping is in order

Verified....$1.4 million over

http://nhlnumbers.com/nyr.html

NHL sked released at 2pm today.

Piero, maybe you'll get a chance to watch Yashin live this year!

I tend to avoid a lot of the off-season trade talk because it's so hard for me to see the Islanders acquiring anything of value to fill a need without giving up something that creates an a deficiency someplace else. I'm also clueless on financial plans, including anticipated contract costs for two, three, and four years ahead.

And Migs, while I like Campoli, I still don't see him as a top four D-Man at this point, although I believe he has earned the chance to show that he can be such. I'm not uncomfortable with him at all in a third pairing, but do you really think his trade value is that high? I don't and his future value seems very speculative to me. In any event, I'm not averse to trading some of our youth, but not for guys who could be gone in a year --to me, that's my litmus test.

Perhaps I'm weird, but I'm far more interested in seeing the schedule when it comes out tomorrow and planning some road trips as well as managing my work sked around their home games! That will be enough to keep me occupied.

In the immortal words of Homer Simpson, "If you don't like it, go to Russia."

It is absolutely incredible that Alexei Yashin's agent thinks he can leverage any NHL team at this point. Yash has thoroughly worn out his welcome on both sides of the border.

Lundqvist isn't going anywhere. The Rag$ need an elite goaltender to compete with DiPietro (although Rico's still getting paid more!) and won't let him go. In fact, they CAN'T let him go. Imagine all that offencive talent with no defence AND no goalie--it would be an even more disastrous season than normal at M$G...

Merrick:

I think Campoli is one of those players that has a "high upside" as they say in the sports biz. As you said, speculative.

Me, I could take him or leave him. He's a solid third-pairing defenceman but his ceiling is probably a #3 or #4 blueliner skating 12-16 minutes a game. I think his talents might be more evident in a different system.

Put it this way--if he was playing on another team, I wouldn't be worried every time he took a shift against the Islanders.

And the schedule comes out TODAY--in less than a half-hour. I'm very excited to see when the Isles come up here to play Ottawa...ticket purchases are imminent.

I bet all the Islanders have their fingers crossed hoping the NHL doesn't stick them with a West Coast swing to open the season like they did last year...just another example of how the league screws this franchise.

Sorry guys. I am only hearing general stuff on the Vancouver Canucks. No specifics.

Here is an article that sums up the reports I am getting.

http://rumormethis.com/sources/journalists/elliott-pap/canucks-thinking-forward

However, I will keep my ears open.

Kevin T.

from hockeybuzz.com:

With the signing of Henrik Lundqvist today the New York Rangers sit at a cap number just shy of $52 million heading into the 07/08 season. To be exact, they're about $1.4 over the cap and they still need to sign restricted free agents Sean Avery and Marcel Hossa. That's why I think it would be easy to secure the services of Mr. Hossa. Why? The Niedermayer Principle.

Marcel Hossa isn't a great hockey player. He'd probably only marginally improve the roster at this point although I still think he's got the potential to blossom. Nevertheless, he'd be an easy and relatively inexpensive addition. What the club would be banking on at this point is Marcel enjoying his time in Edmonton...because it just so happens that his brother, Marian, is a UFA next summer. If Marian's brother is playing in Edmonton and happens to like the city and the playing environment, that's an attractive bargaining chip. Combine that with the presence of Ales Hemsky and some big dollars and you might just have a recipe fit for the courtship of Marian Hossa.

-----

A very creative colleague of mine gave me an analogy today and it was so good I promised to put it in the blog. He proposed that Kevin Lowe was like Thurston Howell III from Gilligan's Island. On a desert island with bags of money to spend, but nowhere to spend them. Seemed fitting enough.

Merrick/Matt, I'm in total agreement that Campoli isn't ready for 30 minutes a night; on the same hand he's deserving of a fixed spot on the D. With salary cap $$$ still available, he would have been an easy solution to well thought out defensive pairings that provided a learning curve for the long term. It appears all that is in the past now as Garth prepares to unload him as part of a major trade.

How many concussions do you think I'll get this year?