Captain Bill Guerin did not accompany the Islanders to Philadelphia for their game against the Atlantic Division-leading Flyers tonight at Wachovia Center. Guerin was hit in the eye by a puck in Saturday’s home win over the Devils and is suffering from a condition known as hyphema, which is bleeding in the anterior chamber of the eye.
When Guerin was hit by the puck, it caused a blood vessel to burst and essentially turned the eye red and made it difficult to see when he took two brief shifts at the start of the third period. The Islanders described Guerin’s condition as day-to-day while he waits for the swelling around the eye to subside and for his vision to clear.
The good news is that the swelling has receded faster than expected. It’s possible Guerin might be able to play Thursday in Pittsburgh, but Isles coach Ted Nolan sounded cautious. Another hit to the same area could cause a recurrence of bleeding into the eye.
“It’s one of those things that has to take a few more days to settle down,” Nolan said. “There’s no concussion issue, just more of an eye injury where we have to wait for things to settle down. It’s day-to-day, not long-term.”
Fortunately for the Islanders, the timing of Guerin’s injury was good in the sense that forward Sean Bergenheim (shoulder, finger) was set to come off the injured list. Bergenheim will return to his regular spot at left wing on the second line with center Josef Vasicek and right wing Miro Satan. Forward Richard Park, who was subbing for Bergenheim, will shift to Guerin’s spot at right wing on the third line with center Mike Sillinger and left wing Andy Hilbert.
“Bergenheim is ready to go,” Nolan said. “His hands were a little rusty this morning, but that’s to be expected. I’d rather have some rusty hands than a rusty attitude. One thing about him is that he’s full of energy and he should add a little spark to us.”
The fourth line will remain the same as it was against the Devils with Ben Walter centering rugged wingers Chris Simon and Tim Jackman. Asked if he’d like to see that crew set a physical tone against Philadelphia, Nolan emphasized the need to play as smart as the Isles did against the Devils when they were not called for a single penalty.
“We want to play physical, but you don’t want to play ‘goony,’” Nolan said. “That’s two different things. We’d like to have an attack, and those three guys are energy guys we want to get on top of the puck and create some kind of body contact and create some opportunities and tire the other team’s defense. Hopefully, they can do that for us.”
Comments (50)
Greg, no word on if berrads coming back tonight and if so whos going to sit out?
my roommates a flyers fan and hes been running his mouth all day today...just going to make it all the more sweeter when we get them tonight
LETS GET 2 BOYS!!
Big loss at a bad time. Let's see what they are made of.....Big raod trip to not have the Capt.
STEP UP BOYS !!!
i think Berard is back as well tonight. I think he is ready and believe it might be a game time decision.we ll have to see
lets go islanders !!!
Hope Guerin recovers soon. Good contributions so far, and I imagine that he's contributing as much off the ice as well.
As for the game tonight, I think we're past the point where we can hope to catch teams off guard now. It was a nice homestand that the Isles put together, but now they're on the road and won't have the benefit of always getting the right matchups. I'm curious to see if guys like Comrie can step up defensively if they end up out there against other teams' top scorers like Briere tonight. I thought the Isles played the game vs. NJ very much like a road game, and if they keep that up, they have a chance to come back here Wed. (I think they're back home Wed...) in pretty good shape.
I bet Park gives a little jump to the Sillinger line.
I wonder what Walter could do with scoring wingers.
"come back here Wed."
^ next Wed.
Agreed Upstate, I would like to see what Walter can do with scoring wingers.
A big young center can do some damage.
Big game without Captain, hopefully Berard will be back tonight because although Bergeron has not been playing really bad, he has coughed the puck up in many situations.
Looks like Avery should keep his mouth shut:
ON the fan590: Sean Avery had made a comment about Blakes cancer in the pre-game shuffles
Also:
"Much of the chatter surrounded the incident during the pre-game warmup, when Darcy Tucker and New York’s Sean Avery exchanged pleasantries and shoves near the players’ benches. Tucker claimed that Avery instigated the situation and he twice called the Rangers’ pest “classless”. A gaggle of reporters waited in the New York dressing room for a response from Avery, but the wait was in vain. Once he realized what was going on, Rangers’ GM Glen Sather summoned his media relations rep, Sammy Steinlight, into the back room, where the players shower and change. Seconds later, Steinlight emerged to say that Avery would not speak, and was heading straight to the team bus. I walked down the hallway with Sather, who admitted he put the kibosh on Avery.
“Absolutely I did – there was nothing to gain from talking further about the incident,” Sather said.
A member of the Rangers’ traveling party told me that Avery is known to go beyond the normal range of verbal indignity when yapping with opposition players. “He can say things that are absolutely unbelievable,” the person explained. Perhaps that is why Avery was held back by Sather from talking to reporters. Heaven knows what might have come out of his mouth had he been told that Tucker called him “classless”, on the record.
LOOKS LIKE SOME OF THE VETERANS ARE GETTING SICK OF DEFENDING HIM
Guy wears makeup and yaps to people stricken with cancer. Class act.
I walked down the hallway with Sather, who admitted he put the kibosh on Avery.
“Absolutely I did – there was nothing to gain from talking further about the incident, besides have you ever seen that guy without his makeup on,” Sather said.
WTF? This dumb troll isn't even ragging on the team anymore, now he just types crazy garbage that doesn't make the slightest bit of sense. He just puts retired Islander players names into random sentences.
Yeah...gotta say the troll gets a D for the effort on this one. He's just going through the motions today.
Fact of the matter is.......
It wouldn't surprise me if Avery and the board troll are one in the same.
yep, there's only one player in the nhl, or all of sports for that matter, that would degrade someone for having cancer and that player is sean avery! i thank god for cris neil and for the great play he made in nailing this guy. i only wish that he did more damage to him. maybe someone else will have the chance.....soon!
from what i heard. Shannahan spoke with him before the game and they did not let Avery speak b/c it happened. i have a feeling it will be in the papers soon.
There is a line.and if this was said...it is way past the line
Yeah, to me, this transcends hockey rivalries, gamesmanship, whatever... it's a human issue. If Avery baited Blake about his cancer, he is a lowlife -- there is no excuse for that.
I am re-posting something I put at the end of the previous thread so 19 Isle in NJ 22 will see it, since it responds to his post: George Vecsey of the New York TImes, who has been covering sports (and occasionally other subjects) for almost 50 years has written that the Islanders' dynasty was the greatest team he has seen in any sport.
505 -- Hear hear on great minds thinking alike. And yeah, Vecsey is a terrific sportswriter.
By the way, since you mentioned Messier: He is one of greatest players and leaders in the history of the league and deserves full props on his Hall of Fame admission from all fans of the game of hockey, regardless of their team loyalties.
KH: Messier is one of the greatest players. i have been having an argument over his number being retired as MSG. Me personally, his number should have never been retired there. I know he won the cup with them and that is the only reason they retired it.
Also, they knew Edmonton was going to retire it and he won 5 cups with the oilers. He is an oiler. They should have acknowledged him but his number should not be retired. His speech on Saturday did not mention one thing about the rags.and he left for the canucks at that one point. I remember him getting booed on his arrival back the MsG as a Canuck.
any thoughts?
Greg, glad to have you back although Mark Hermann did a very good job in your place. Reiber should stick with the yankees as his facts were not always accurate. Meyer was claimed on Re-Entry waivers. Who had the right to claim him or did the Isles have the first right to re-claim him? In addition to Walter looking good I think Jackman has looked very quick and is also a scorer and with time and either Park or Bergenheim I could see them scoring if Nolan is ready to bench Simon once Guerin comes back. Assuming he does not feel obligated to play Bates once he is healthy.
325cpa: we did not have first dibbs on Meyer.it was speculated that the devils or canucks would take him. I forgot how they figure out re-entry waivers though
Hmmmm,
From the "There's Your Sign" file......
I just went online to get tkts for the Isles/Avs matchup in Denver and the little code that ticketmaster makes you type in was...
Get this...
"arbor"
Gonna miss the last 2 periods tonight due to a prior engagement....
Start of the first big road trip folks..
Let's hope they start off with a bang.
GO ISLES!!!
505-if you're gonna miss the game get a dvr recorder. Directtv makes a receiver with one built in. I just got mine yesterday. Got it ready for tonights game until I get off. Let's go isles. I hope witt wears the "c" in guerins absence
MJ -- I have to disagree with you... I think it is completely appropriate for the Rangers to retire Messier's number. I know we like to rag on the Ranger fans about the fact that their one Cup team in the modern era was basically the core of a dynasty from another city that could not afford to keep its talent. However, from the Ranger perspective, Messier revitalized the franchise -- he, more than any other single player, brought them the most important thing they've ever accomplished -- winning a Cup in living memory, in a league with more than 6 teams. The Ranger fans embraced Messier as they've never embraced any other player, and he embraced them in return. If I were a Ranger fan, it probably would bother me on some level that "Mr. Ranger" won 5 Cups somewhere else and only 1 as a Ranger, but it would not change the fact that he is Mr. Ranger. Basically, Messier is the identity of the Ranger franchise until they win another Cup (and by the way, I think they will win another one at some point in the Lundqvist era unless some Dolan mismanagement intervenes... I think we'll see a Ranger Cup and an Islander Cup in the next 5-7 years if both teams stay on their present course).
In fact, Messier loves the Ranger franchise and its fans so much that he is moving back to NYC in hopes of becoming GM of the Rangers at some point in the future. There is no denying the intense bond between Messier and the Ranger fans and of course his performance in a Ranger uni was elite and deserving of number retirement on the merits. He also would not be the first player in pro sports to have his number retired by more than one team... For instance, Frank Robinson's number was retired by both the Reds, where he played for 10 seasons, and the Orioles, where he played for 7 seasons, winning 2 titles. I am sure there are several other examples.
Just got back from micro-ice....My pal again talked to me about our new kid #29 Ben Walter. Reminded me how talented he is and how he led the Providence B's in goals last year and was Captain. He says he has got to be put with skilled players and he will put up nice numbers. Let's not forget how good his pops was!
Wow, three atrocious plays by MAB already, giving the Flyers their first good scoring chance, messing up our power play, and then failing to clear the front of the net and costing us a goal! So far he has regressed from his recent improvement...
Park and Hilbert on the same line? My head just exploded
Seriously I like the effort so far this year. It's great to see Sillinger get a goal, and nice tenacity shown by Simon to not take no for an answer on the doorstep. I think DP didn't play that breakaway as best he could've, and an atrocious play by Fedotenko and MAB led to that first goal that really wasn't much of DP's fault.
Overall I think we're having a good game but we need to tighten up in the 3rd period. Let's get 2 points tonight, guys.
This GAME, not YEAR. Wow, I didn't even go to work today, no idea why my brain is shot.
One thing I really like about this team is we rarely just clear the puck, we almost always play it out of our zone and go on the attack. The skill level, the positioning, the confidence all contribute to this, and it is a far cry from Islander teams of recent years. And it seems like the Flyers play a similar style -- this has been a very entertaining game with all the end to end action.
And another atrocious play by MAB leads to a shorthanded breakaway and a goal. He may be making Ted's job easier once Berard comes back.
DP is also having an off game. He misplayed the breakaway, and he had a chance to dive forward onto the puck that became the 3d Flyer goal instead of falling backwards and trying to kick it out... I don't know what that was.
The Islanders just played a strong road game and the worst player on the team cost us a point. MAB cannot ever put on skates for this team again. He was out of position at least 6 times. His blueline presence is comical. His shot is strong, yet NEVR on target. Get rid of this guy TONIGHT !!!! That short handed goal was because of him and no one else. Because of him the Flyers had 4 odd man breaks. No BS, 4 odd man breaks b/c he was out of position.
I do not mind losing to good teams, but leaving a point b/c of that guy drives me nuts!
Only other person that continually gets on my nerves is Comrie. I know he leads the team in points, but how many times a game is he going to do the fake slap shot and fake pass??????? The other team does not even fall for it anymore. He is not a first line player in my opinion.
Coach Nolan better work his magic before we play Pitt, b/c they are way over due to break out. Hate to say it but we may be in for a long road trip!
This was a big loss, b/c it was a point wasted.
MAB suks, he cost us the game, how many times was he out of position and the flyers capatilized. they need to bring back berard..i know he is fully healthy........MAB stay in the pressbox because thats teh only place you will do something positive for the team.........again to reemphasize...........MAB single handedly cost us the game........thank you for letting me air out my feelings.
funny thing is you watch the islanders. you are posting to people who feel sorry for you. Do you need help? In all honesty you need to grow up. Get help. Your only hurting yourself. A lot more to life kid.
Oh the poor troll showed his cards. Yankee fan ? LOL How many NEW RINGS you got tough guy? LOL Who is your 3rd baseman? Who is your 1st baseman? Who is your catcher? Closer? Where Is old man Clemens? Where is Pettite? LOL
Enjoy the new century with no hardware Troll!
Bwahahahahahaha
I will now be blasting you every second you open your ignorant miserable life. See you on the Ynakee blog which I will now destroy thanks to wee lil Gary!
Isles Power Play Game Plan:
A) Puck to the point for Bergeron shot
B) ????????????
When the other team is smothering your plan A you need another option.
I know I have violated this several times myself, but I advise ignoring the troll. He's already revealed that he doesn't care about facts, logic, reason, etc. He's just, as MM (a Ranger fan) pointed out, trying to irritate people because he wants attention. Also, his posts disappear very quickly these days thanks to Greg... I just kind of automatically skip over them now.
Steady, I agree... MAB was at his worst again. For all the smart moves Garth has made, that acquisition was a dud. And unfortunately, MAB's also killing his trade value. Given Ted Nolan's well-deserved reputation as a coach who can get the best out of his players, you have to wonder if other teams are even going to think, "Well, Ted couldn't get him right, but we will."
I couldn't believe Comrie didn't score on that turnaround shot. So close. I think the Isles should eliminate that "pass the puck to the other team" move from their playbook. It's not creating very many opportunities for them. Overall, I didn't think they looked that bad. A little sloppy at times...three times, really, and they paid for every mistake they made, but they were able to get some good pressure going, too.
Thought Bergy did some little things that might fly under the radar. He was the first guy in on just about every successful forecheck for that line, even if it was just to quickly tip the puck to Satan.
Glad other people got to MAB before I did. Can we please stop saying he's good on this board now? :)
The funny thing was he looked most uncomfortable with the puck on the PP, which is supposed to be his "specialty". Benching him to send a message was pretty useless. I don't think anyone questions his effort. He tries out there, he just doesn't have what it takes upstairs to make good decisions at the NHL pace.
One more thing...anyone else notice Comrie's renewed sense of purpose out there? He's hitting, fighting through hits, and just giving an effort the last three games that wasn't there before. He's a good hockey player when he keeps himself focused.
I hope Nolan re-introduces the bench to MAB. After looking better the past few games, he really regressed last night and made way too many contributions to losing.
It's a shame we lost that game. It was a reall good road effort and had we played well on the PP we would have gotten at least a point.
Clean it up and we can still have a succesful road trip.
Who would have thought it would be Richard Park that got Sillinger going. Park seems to breed life into whatever line he plays on. He is a very versatile player and very valuable to the Islanders.
The NHL has summoned Sean Avery to Toronto on Tuesday for a hearing as part of an investigation into a pre-game incident with Darcy Tucker and other Maple Leafs on Saturday night at the Air Canada Center.
Avery exchanged words first with Jason Blake, and then Tucker, who shoved Avery and the two pointed menacingly with their sticks at the red line. Players from both sides gathered before Avery skated away. Avery and Tucker fought in the first period and Avery refused to talk to reporters after the game. A source said he was told by Rangers general manager Glen Sather to clam up.
"He's pissing guys off," Wade Belak told The Ottawa Sun. "He'll bring harm to himself and not too many guys around the league are going to be sad to see it. If he keeps this up, someone is going to kill him."
****Not just us that feel this way...Not a good human being!***
I feel like I'm at the bottom of a huge, empty volacano and all I can hear is the continual echo of "MAB sucks, MAB must go, I hate MAB". Look at all the posts finally acknowledging how bad MAB has become. The pattern here has been well documented in the past by myself and although a few bloggers generously wanted to give the Mad Bomber the benefit of the doubt, it's clear the time has come to close the book on him. He came with baggage from Edmonton and while he added a momentary spark to a faltering PP last year; he's clearly become the anchor sinking the backend of our team on both the PP and his regular shift this year.
Let's get Berard back in there and hand MAB a clip board till Garth can move him.He's got to be bringing the whole team down with his continual poor defensive decisions. For someone who thinks he's a marquee player, a proven veteran; he's sadly mistaken.
Miggsey, I don't think you ever heard most of us say that he was a good player. I think with Berard out he became the best option to fill that spot, and he sincerely tried to be better on the defensive end. When all's said and done, as someone else pointed out, MAB just might not have what it takes to become even a solid NHL defenseman. Most people were applauding his efforts, since he seemed to get better before that awful regression last night. Others, myself being the most vocal, advocated a switch to the wing to take advantage of his offensive skills while minimizing the potential damage he could do defensively. With Ben Walter showing me something, and my boy Freddy Meyer back in the organization (I still maintain my positive stance on him - he can take the body and has offensive upside, I swear), it may be time to close the door on MAB permanently. Let's see if we can get a solid prospect or depth player for him, since he's like that fireballing relief pitcher who can't throw strikes. Someone will fall for the triple-digit radar gun readings and think they can fix him. It may be time to declare this noble experiment dead on the Islanders side.
I'm so upset with MAB I can't even take my usual shots at "First Base" Hilbert. Let's take care of the MAB situation and then send Hilbert somewhere.
Finally, I had the pleasure of watching Oilers/Flames on Hockey Night in Canada Saturday. Anybody think that the Islanders could swing a deal for Eric Nystrom?
Quick thoughts.
Nolan said in the post-game inteview that any time you allow 17 shots on the road, you've done a good job. He added that sometimes the bounces go your way and you win when you shouldn't and sometimes it works the other way. Well said.
As for MAB, Nolan said the PP needed to get going and he indicated he's eager to get Berard back in the lineup as soon as possible, i.e., "Au revoir, MAB." He had his chance.
Merrick, I agree with that. Let's face it, we had a good effort last night. The difference boiled down to a giveaway by Fedotenko combined with MAB getting caught out of position, DP misplaying a breakaway, and MAB getting caught out of position combined with bad rebound control by DP. It happens, let's be ready to take 2 from Pittsburgh on Thursday.
Also, I've been thinking - given the stretch of games we'll have, when is the proper time to get Dubie into a game?
That game was a very tough loss. But it was 'tough' for a good reason. The Isles absolutely DOMINATED that team for most of every period. And for that reason it should've been an Isles win, hands down. THAT'S why it's so tough. And it's also why I'm pretty happy, in spite of the loss.
They played a very good game. Period. Yes, they made some mistakes (Fedatenko). And yes, MAB should sit on the bench for a long, long time. And Ricky absolutely needs to work more on his fundamentals and his balance. He was all over the place and looked uncharacteristically uncomfortable on the odd-man rushes.
But DAMN, they looked good as a team. Hunter, Comrie, Vasicek... they all had a good game. A and what about Miro? The gguy was an absolute FORCE last night.
MAB sucked, and Ricky let in 3 goals in 17 shots. He was less than stellar. But the team played GREAT hockey. THAT"S why it's a tough loss.
Was Edm/Cal a good game this time? I watched the first tilt, and wasn't impressed at all. I always heard that the rivalry is "more intense than the Islanders/Rangers," so when I got Center Ice this year, I was really looking forward to it. When it came around, the crowd was silent, Edmonton didn't come close to showing up, there was no hitting, and I was asleep mid-way through the second period.
Coral Springs: "Who would have thought it would be Richard Park that got Sillinger going."
Ah, well, I may dislocate my shoulder patting myself on the back here, but:
"Posted by Upstate Isles Fan | November 12, 2007 14:13 I bet Park gives a little jump to the Sillinger line." :)
"when is the proper time to get Dubie into a game?"
They have a back-to-back on Thurs. and Fri. I imagine Dubie will get the call Friday in New Jersey?
Biggest positives for me in the Edmonton/Calgary game were Jim Hughson at the mic and being able to see Eric Nystrom live for the first time. Given his tenacity and connections to an Islander legend, he may be the only player who can get "First Base" Hilbert off this team (yes, I know it's a tad on the obsessive side - he just makes me very angry).
I also agree with Cincy's take there. Satan looks like a whole new player, and he's showing a side of himself we've NEVER seen at the NHL level. The puck support has been great and they really do play together. Jaffe pointed out during the game that the Islanders made too many low-percentage plays, and that's really the only fault I can find with their attack. They try to be too perfect at times, and the powerplay seemed to rely way too much on MAB. Berard's return and 2 days of intense practice should cure that in advance of Pitt on Thursday.
Ha, not obsessive at all Nick. Your anti-Hilbert kick is about where I've been with MAB. Although, I still think Hilbert has redeeming qualities as a good shut-down forward, whereas MAB is hardly even qualified as a "PP specialist" anymore (there I go again).
Satan's looking great...but the red flag may be that he's always been streaky. I figured he'd pick it up and wouldn't play all season like he did early on, and now I'm pretty sure that he'll cool down and disappear for a bunch of games again sometime in the future. But he's absolutely a fun player to watch when he's going. What he lacks in speed he makes up for in hands, patience, and a great wrist shot. Wish some of his poise around the net would wash off on...Hilbert!
When you start to see all the regulars, the well thought out bloggers and even the casual observers all in unision on one player, you know it's time to say "Bye, bye, so long, farewell, Au Revoir MAB". You were deservedly under the microscope for questionable play and poor judgement and after one average effort two games ago you've let your true colours rise to the top. That was a horrible effort for someone on the brink of press box demotion.
Dismissed.