On the Islanders Beat

You’re not going to believe this, but the Islanders are issuing an injury report that contains timely details and a recovery timetable. Don’t know if this is the start of a welcome trend or not, but I’ll shoot a report out to the blog first and ask questions later.

It seems defenseman Freddy Meyer underwent sports hernia surgery today. Amazingly enough, the timetable for his return is only two to four weeks. Meyer suffered his injury in the third period against Carolina last Saturday and has missed the past two games. Based on what coach Scott Gordon said earlier this season, two to four weeks means back on the ice in about two weeks with a chance to return somewhere in the following two-week window.

The Islanders have 15 games this month, so figure Meyer to miss anywhere from half to all of them. His loss hurts because he has been solid all season and has provided a physical edge to his play, especially with his hip checks at mid-ice.

ISLES FILES: There’s good news when it comes to injured defensemen. Radek Martinek (undisclosed shoulder injury) was on the ice at the optional morning skate today. He was injured Oct. 11 and has missed the past seven games. If his shoulder injury is comparable to Chris Campoli’s earlier this season, Martinek could be back in a week or two.

Enforcer Mitch Fritz also skated along with Jeff Tambellini, who was a healthy scratch in Philadelphia Thursday, rehabbing forward Mike Sillinger and backup goaltender Yann Danis.

Had a chance to talk to defenseman Mark Streit this afternoon before his first match against his old Montreal team tomorrow night at the Coliseum. The results of that interview will be in Saturday’s Newsday.

The Islanders have clarified goaltender Rick DiPietro’s status regarding his placement on the injured reserve list. Although his name didn’t show up on the list until Thursday morning, his IR status is retroactive to last Sunday.

That means DiPietro is assured of missing Montreal’s visit to the Coliseum on Saturday night because he’s not eligible to be activated until Sunday at the earliest. Obviously, there has been no indication of a timetable for DiPietro’s recovery from the undisclosed lower body injury he suffered against Carolina last Saturday.

An update on DiPietro’s physical condition is expected sometime this weekend. He could return Monday against Columbus or be out for the season for all anyone knows. However, given that he is coming off arthroscopic right knee surgery in June, the fact that he was not allowed to play in the first four games of the regular season and the fact he lasted only seven periods over three games in eight days after he was inserted to the lineup, the signs suggest he’s not in tip-top condition.

DiPietro earned his first All-Star selection with his stellar play in the first half of last season, but he simply has not been the same goaltender since the All-Star break when he suffered an injury in a skills competition that was the first indication he would require a second hip surgery in as many seasons. He underwent that operation last March.

This much we know. It appears the healing process for DiPietro has been something short of miraculous. He’s struggling to come back, and if the Islanders know the reasons why, they haven’t yet revealed it.

That's right. Mark Herrmann has a new NHL blog. You can read it here.

Standing 6-8 and weighing in at 250 in the blue trunks and white jersey, it’s Mitch Fritz making his NHL debut as the Islanders’ enforcer against Philadelphia tonight at Wachovia Center. At the ripe age of 27, Fritz wasn’t quite sure if this day would ever come, but it’s here at last.

Reaching for the right words to describe the feeling, Fritz didn’t have to strain for the right analogy. “It’s unbelievable,” Fritz said of his debut. “It’s the thing you always have in the back of your mind. You always hope you’re going to get it, and now, it’s right there in front of me. I guess to other people, it would kind of be like the Phillies winning [the World Series] last night. That’s what I feel like right now.”

Phan-tastic. There might not be a better venue for an enforcer than Philadelphia, considering their history as the Broad Street Bullies. In the other corner, it’s possible Fritz could find himself tangling with Riley Cote or even former Islander Arron Asham, who spent last season with the Devils but migrated down the New Jersey Turnpike when the Flyers offered a two-year deal.

“My first camp I was 19, and I was in Montreal with Ash,” Fritz said. “He’s done well for himself. I saw him this year [at Iceworks]. He was there skating with us for a couple of days before he left for training camp. I don’t know him really well, but I know him well enough…Cote was in the minors when I was in Springfield, but I don’t know if we ever played against each other.”

Fritz was called up earlier this season and traveled with the islanders on their two-game trip to Florida. But if there ever was a likely game to circle for his debut, it’s the one tonight. The Flyers are the kind of opponent Isles GM Garth Snow had in mind when he signed Fritz to have him available on an “as-needed” basis.

But Fritz tried not to get his hopes up. “It’s tough for me to circle games because you get disappointed if you’re not there. In this side of hockey, the whole East Coast seems like every team is a tough game. It doesn’t matter whether you’re playing the Rangers, the Flyers. They all have tough teams, and they’re coming at you. Even a team like New Jersey doesn’t have a super heavyweight, but in exhibition season, they came at us hard. [Sheldon] Brookbank came after me after I put a hit on Elias, and even [Mike] Rupp stepped up and fought me. You wouldn’t expect those guys to be coming after you in exhibition, but you never know.”

As a native of Osoyoos, British Columbia, it was kind of late notice for Fritz to airlift his parents across the continent to attend the game. So, they’ll have to watch on the NHL’s “Center Ice” TV package. If Fritz does engage in a scuffle, he showed during the exhibition season a facility for switching hands in mid-fight that could serve him well.

“When I started out in junior, I only threw with my right,” Fritz said. “I think it’s just a natural thing. If your right side is up, you’ve got to use your left. It was just learning that way. It kind of evolved from 11 years ago when I started doing this in juniors. I was completely right-handed one year, and the next year if slowly came. Now, it doesn’t really matter [which hand he uses].”

Recalling how he developed in the Western Hockey League, Fritz added, “I think I had one fight before in my life in Junior ‘B.’ I did OK just because I was 6-6 or 6-7. Then, when I went to Western, you really run into some tough guys. That’s how it is in pro. It doesn’t matter if you’re a checking line guy, you’re tough. So, now, I’m taking that step again to where everyone has that man-strength, and they’re that much tougher.”

Fritz has a chance to be the Islanders’ most effective enforced since Asham, who left before last season as a free agent. Asham really is a middleweight, but he was fearless, had great technique and could skate and score the occasional goal with a slapshot once timed around 100 miles per hour.

The decision to come to Philly was easy for him when he was a free agent again last summer. “I thought Philly was a place where I’d have a better chance to win the Stanley Cup,” Asham said. “They had a great run last year. They play hard every night, they’re a gritty team, and I thought it definitely fit my style.”

Asham has nothing but praise for the Islanders organization, especially owner Charles Wang and Snow. But he’s the enemy now, and even though he’d be giving away a lot of height and reach, it’s possible he’ll have to challenge Fritz tonight. “When you go in there, you’re not worried about fighting,” Asham said. “You go in to win a hockey game. If it comes to [fighting], it comes to it. We’ve got one of the top guys in the league with Riles [Cote], and I can look after myself. So, we’re definitely not going in intimidated.”

With just one assist and a minus-four rating through eight games, forward Jeff Tambellini was the obvious choice to sit when coach Scott Gordon made the decision to go with enforcer Mitch Fritz in the lineup against a physical Philadelphia team tonight at Wachovia Center. Gordon declined a formal announcement at the morning skate, but Tambellini skated extra with backup goaltender Yann Danis and assistant coaches John Chabot and Dan Lacroix.

“They’re looking for a little more toughness in the lineup tonight,” Tambellini said when he finally came off the ice to an empty locker room. “For my part, as a scorer, I’ve got to score more. Simple as that. I’ve got to do my job better. I’ve just got to do what got me here.”

Asked to describe Gordon’s message, Tambellini said: “He wants me to play tougher. What you have to do is score goals. Simple as that. You’ve got to find the spot in front of the net, and you’ve got to get the loose pucks. That’s what I expect out of myself every day, and that’s what he expects out of me. It’s nothing different. I know what I have to do to get the job done here. If I’m not doing it, it’s his call to make those decisions. I’m just going to go to work today, tomorrow and just find a way back in the lineup.”

The Islanders plan on calling up enforcer types on an as-needed basis this season, so, there’s no reason to think he won’t return Saturday against Montreal or Monday against Columbus. But Tambellini is taking nothing for granted. It’s obvious this move stung.

No one wants to succeed more than Tambellini, but for some strange reason, his prolific scoring touch in the AHL, where he had 38 goals in 57 games last season, hasn’t translated to the NHL. Over the past two seasons with the Isles, Tambellini has scored one goal in 39 games. He has gone without a goal for 27 straight games in which he has produced only four assists.

In Gordon’s high-tempo forechecking system, Tambellini’s speed should be an asset in going after loose pucks and creating turnovers on the forecheck, but he has struggled to control the puck in the offensive end while generating only 16 shots on goal despite getting more than 14 minutes of ice time per game.

At this point, it has to be a mental challenge to maintain any degree of self-confidence. “It’s a different league,” Tambellini said. “I’ve got to find a different way to score. It was the same thing in the American League when I first broke in. I don’t think I had a point in the first five games. I didn’t play one night, and then came back and found a way to get to the top of scoring in that league. Hopefully, it can be the same thing here. I have to buckle down. This is a great shakeup to me.”

Back later with more from Fritz and one of his potential Flyers sparring mates, ex-Islander Arron Asham.

It was just by accident that Andy Sutton began playing for the Zurich ZS Sea Lions during the NHL lockout four years ago. Sutton and his wife were in Paris, celebrating their wedding anniversary, when they received word that the team in the Switzerland National A League had an opening because NHLer (and former Islander) Randy Robitaille was injured.

"Just kind of in the right place at the right time," Sutton said after practice at Nassau Coliseum today, in preparation for his season debut at Philadelphia tomorrow.

"We were just talking about this last night. My first week or so there, I came home from practice and mentioned to her there was one guy I had seen in particular that I was so surprised he wasn't in the NHL, he's such a great player," Sutton said. "It was Mark, and he was over here a year later."

That was Mark Streit, the stellar native Swiss defenseman, who wasn't quite sure he was up to playing in the NHL. IHe probably would have made The Show anyway, but it sure didn't hurt to hear from an NHL veteran that he was ready.

"At the end of the season, he told me, `You've got to come over, you've really got to try to make it to the NHL.' That's what I did. I was drafted by Montreal, they signed me and I didn't hesitate," Streit said after practice, during which he and Sutton were defensive partners.

"For sure, when you play with guys like that and they encourage you that you've got all the tools to play in the NHL, that you've just got to come over and prove yourself," Streit said. "Obviously, it was always my dream and my goal to play in the NHL. But when you have guys like that who have played in the NHL a long time who tell you, `You know, you have the ability, just go over and do it,' that gives you a lot of confidence."

Sutton and Streit are likely to be paired tomorrow night and they would appear to be the Islanders' top defensive unit: Sutton's stay-at-home muscle,and Streit's versatile, mobile, puck-moving creativity.

It will be a big night for Sutton, who worked hard all offseason to come back from a hamstring tear only to sustain a hand injury in his first preseason game. He said the hardest part will be fighting the temptation to try to do too much.

Getting asked about Streit and Zurich evoked good memories for the veteran. "It was one of the most wonderful experiences I've ever had, to be honest with you," he said, adding that he and his wife "toured probably eery mile of the country.

"The schedule was great, you were home with your family every night, you really play only on weekends. The atmosphere is very much like European soccer. It's a blast, it really is.

"The food was good," he said. "It took some getting used to. They love their gravy.They love mystery meat and gravy."

He is really looking forward to resuming his familiar role as a no-frills, steak-and-potatoes defenseman. "I have to try to not do too much, just skate and be a solid presence back there."

--Mark Herrmann, after practice at Nassau Coliseum

Scott Gordon spent an extra few minutes on the ice at the end of practice, talking with Joey MacDonald. It looked like both a technical and jovial conversation between a couple of goalies. "He's a goaltender, too, he's played the game. He knows what he's talking about, so I'm always listening," MacDonald said.

Today, unlike yesterday, there was no sign of Rick DiPietro in the stands or in the dressing room (although his dad was around, chatting up Isles people). The Islanders had no news on the goalie's condition or timetable. He was not expected to travel with them to Philadelphia for the game tomorrow night. "I haven't seen him," Gordon said.

Suffice it to say, MacDonald is The Man for the forseeable future. Gordon said that Joey Mac's improvement this year is a matter of having worked a lot on technique this summer, rather than just relying on reflexes and athletic ability. Whether anyone ever considered MacDonald a possible No. 1 goalie in the NHL, he is the Isles' de facto No. 1 now.

* * *
Some new line combos during the workout: Kyle Okposo switched to the left wing on a line with Frans Nielsen and Trent Hunter, with Jeff Tambellini moving to left wing with Mike Comrie and Jon Sim. That's interesting in that the Islanders had put so much faith in the line with Tambellini, Nielsen and Hunter. Gordon said he just wanted to move things around a little, giving a more physical presence to Hunter's line. He also wanted to give Sim's abrasiveness, aggressiveness a shot with Comrie.

* * *
Mitch Fritz scored on each end during line rushes. Obviously, when you say "punch" and Fritz, you're not talking about offensive punch. Maybe it was some kind of Freudian slip, but he lingered along the boards while the power play units were meeting right after that. He had to be summoned out of there. He said, "There's always hope!" Gordon recalled Comrie saying something to the effect of, "No there's not."
* * *
There's an item (an upbeat one at that) on the Isles in the LI Golfbeat column tomorrow, of all places.

--Mark Herrmann

Hey guys, Katie Strang filling in for Logan at practice today. I'm working on a story about Kyle Okposo and his much-anticipated first goal for tomorrow's paper, but just wanted to include a couple quick hits from practice:

-D-man Jack Hillen has bent sent down to Bridgeport in anticipation of Andy Sutton's scheduled start on Thursday. Thursday will be Sutton's season debut after spending this initial first portion of the season sidelined with a hand injury.

-Freddy Meyer, who was announced at last night's game as day-to-day with an abdominal strain, did not practice, and is unlikely to play against Philly.

--No additional information was released regarding DP's status, although he did spend a good portion of practice watching from the stands in streetclothes. When he left the Coliseum he seemed to be walking gingerly with a slight limp, but I'm not even gonna try and speculate what his lower-body injury may be...

--Mark Streit left the ice a little earlier than the rest, but Gordon said he told him to use his discretion when to take some rest, as he's been seeing a lot of ice-time/heavy workload.

--Gordon said he met with the captains this morning in his office to discuss some things. First time, he called the meeting; this time the vets--Richard Park, Bill Guerin, and Doug Weight--took the initiative, something he said he was pleased to see. They understand the rebuild concept, he said, but the group also expressed their sense of desire, and urgency to win.

--PS a shout-out to Billy Jaffe, one half of everyone's favorite color commentating duo, who was nice enough to introduce me to his secret stash of extra pens at the Coliseum today. Proof that there are actually some U of M alums that even a Spartan like myself can appreciate...and for that I won't even bring up the Wolverine's most recent loss:)

Hey guys, Katie Strang filling in for Logan at practice today. I'm working on a story about Kyle Okposo and his much-anticipated first goal for tomorrow's paper, but just wanted to include a couple quick hits from practice:

-D-man Jack Hillen has bent sent down to Bridgeport in anticipation of Andy Sutton's scheduled start on Thursday. Thursday will be Sutton's season debut after spending this initial first portion of the season sidelined with a hand injury.

-Freddy Meyer, who was announced at last night's game as day-to-day with an abdominal strain, did not practice, and is unlikely to play against Philly.

--No additional information was released regarding DP's status, although he did spend a good portion of practice showing his support for the team by watching from the stands in streetclothes. When he left the Coliseum he seemed to be walking gingerly with a slight limp, but I'm not even gonna try and speculate what his lower-body injury may be...

--Mark Streit left the ice a little earlier than the rest, but Gordon said he told him to use his discretion when to take some rest, as he's been seeing a lot of ice-time/heavy workload.

--Gordon said he met with the captains this morning in his office to discuss some things. First time, he called the meeting; this time the vets--Richard Park, Bill Guerin, and Doug Weight--took the initiative, something he said he was pleased to see. They understand the rebuild concept, he said, but the group also expressed their sense of desire, and urgency to win.

--PS a shout-out to Billy Jaffe, one half of everyone's favorite color commentating duo, who was nice enough to introduce me to his secret stash of extra pens at the Coliseum today. Proof that there are actually some U of M alums that even a Spartan like myself can appreciate...and for that I won't even bring up the Wolverine's most recent loss:)

The Islanders have done their best to shroud the issues surrounding goaltender Rick DiPietro’s health in mystery, obfuscation and misdirection. They issued a statement last night that was like a skeleton picked clean of any meat by buzzards.

“Lower body injury”… “unrelated to previous injuries”…“day-to-day pending assessment and treatment.”

I’d ask them to define what they mean by “unrelated to previous injuries,” but trying to get a straight answer is like trying to see Major Major in “Catch-22.” You only can go in to see him when he’s out.

Despite the news blackout, when you listen to little snippets here and there from players and coaches, there’s a feeling the Islanders are battening the hatches and preparing for the worst in terms of the length of DiPietro’s absence. Maybe it’s just a case of being prudent.

But DiPietro is almost five months removed from arthroscopic right knee surgery and has worked hard to get in shape in time to play this entire season. Yet, something prevented him from starting the opener and something led to his removal after one period on Saturday and seven periods total this season. And this is a guy who started 33 of the first 35 games last season when he was coming back from hip surgery.

Call it speculation on my part if you like, but something – “unrelated” in what sense to his previous knee surgery? – has stopped DiPietro from playing twice in a span of 17 days. Refer back to the concussions he suffered 12 days apart two seasons ago. Those injuries were unrelated to his current injury physically, but not in the way they were handled.

You remember the term used to describe DiPietro’s head injury – “general body soreness.” That was the classic dodge of all time. Of course, it fooled no one, and in the end, the Islanders looked foolish when DiPietro suffered a repeat of the same injury after four games. Those concussions were “unrelated” in the sense that they occurred on two separate occasions.

But hey, what do I know? Maybe DiPietro has a minor bump/bruise/paper cut, and he’ll be back in goal in a game or three.

Can’t wait until “further information is available,” as the Islanders’ statement said. I just hope it’s not further from the truth.

ISLES FILES: With all the focus on DiPietro’s injury, there was no room in today’s newspaper for a few other interesting comments following the Islanders’ 4-2 loss to the Rangers. So, I’ll address them here.

After four straight losses, coach Scott Gordon was asked if the Islanders need to see something tangible in the form of a win to maintain their effort in the new system: “Just because you don’t have success with what we’re doing now doesn’t mean we’re going to have success doing anything else,” Gordon said. “There wasn’t a lot of success last year. The first half of the season, I’ve been told the team came out pretty strong, but a lot of the success was due to Ricky’s goaltending, too. The way I look at that is we’re trying to move in a direction, not just for this year, but for down the road. We have to create some habits that are our work ethic and our way of playing that are more consistently like what we saw against Carolina [with a franchise-record 60 shots on goal].”

Rookie Kyle Okposo on the 11 penalties taken by the Isles last night: “We’ve taken some penalties we probably shouldn’t have. You can say it’s the refs’ fault, but it’s not. We’ve got to control our sticks and keep our heads.” That statement is a reflection of Gordon’s message to the team, which is to stop yapping at the refs and maybe gain a little respect that way.

Bill Guerin on the decline in the Islanders’ play in the last 30 minutes against the Rangers: “I don’t think it was Rangers pressure. They played a good game, but if we don’t stay in our system, if we have one guy going off on his own page, it’s going to screw things up. From there, everybody feels like they’re just chasing and you just waste energy and everybody’s out of position. We came away from our gameplan. It’s not that we can’t do it. We’re missing discipline in our system, and we’re missing discipline by going to the penalty box all the time. If we correct those two things, we’ll do much better. Those are fixable things.”

The following statement on Rick DiPietro’s condition was just released by the Islanders:

“The New York islanders announced the Rick DiPietro incurred a lower body injury Saturday night unrelated to his previous injuries. Rick has not dressed for tonight’s game [Editor’s comment: Duh, the statement was distributed in the final minute of the first period] and is day-to-day pending additional assessment and treatment. No further comments related to this issue will be made until further information is available.”

[Additional editor’s comment: We’re all day-to-day.]

Please return to Arthur Staple's live blog.

Hey Isles fans! Katie here to blog you through tonight's game against the team's hated rivals, the NY Rangers. As expected, DP is not playing. No word yet on his injury situation, although that's certainly not surprising these days.

Isles unveiled their third jerseys tonight...and as NYDN'er Peter Botte pointed out, the Isles had a Stanley Cup Champions banner from 1983-1984 hanging in the exhibition hall. Must've been wishful thinking...but the mistake was quickly fixed as they brought it down before the unveiling event occurred.

OK guys, you know the drill. Have fun and keep it clean.

It hardly comes as a surprise, but Rick DiPietro is not in uniform to face the Rangers tonight. Joey MacDonald is starting and will be backed up by emergency callup Yann Danis.

DiPietro underwent a medical examination earlier today. The Islanders are planning to issue a release just before game time. It’s not likely to include much detail, but an update will be posted here when the statement comes out.

Doug Weight said today there has been a pit in his stomach ever since he laid out Carolina rookie Brandon Sutter on Saturday night with a clean open-ice hit that was not penalized. It’s not the hit itself that troubles Weight; it’s the unfortunate result. Sutter suffered a concussion when he was knocked out.

But when Weight heard comments from Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford that criticized him for taking advantage of a vulnerable rookie, the veteran Islanders center reviewed the details and concluded he did nothing illegal under NHL rules or unethical in his own mind based on his 17 seasons of experience.

“I admire Jim Rutherford’s loyalty [to his player],” Weight said. “But [Sutter] wasn’t vulnerable. He made himself vulnerable after I committed to the hit. I don’t know what he was thinking, but I couldn’t change directions and go with him without blowing my knee out. He reached for the puck, and his head dropped eight inches. Look at the video. I didn’t come up with my elbow.”

Pressing both arms tightly against his sides as if in a shell, Weight added, “I was like this.”

The hit occurred in the third period of Carolina’s 4-3 win as Sutter was rushing up the left side across the red line. As Weight noted that night, the puck was “bobbling” on the ice and danced away in front of Sutter. Sensing a chance for a breakaway, he leaned forward to retrieve it a split-second before Weight delivered a check intended to stop his progress.

“I wasn’t licking my chops,” Weight said. “I was trying to stop him from going around me.”

Rutherford told columnist Bob MacKenzie of The Sports Network in Canada: “The league should stop saying it’s concerned with hits to the head because it’s not.”

The Carolina GM reserved most of his anger for the league, but he’s well-acquainted with Weight as one of the standup guys on the Hurricanes’ 2006 Stanley Cup champions. “I like Doug Weight,” Rutherford said. “He’s a good guy and a good player and we had him here when we won the Cup. So there will be a lot of people who will say Doug has no history of that type of thing, that he’s not the type of player to intentionally hurt someone and that’s fine. But you also can say Doug isn’t the type of player who hits a lot, anyway, and here’s this 19-year-old kid in a vulnerable position and Doug took advantage of that.

“It can cut both ways. I know Doug didn’t like the hit that separated his shoulder [in the Stanley Cup Final against Edmonton], and I don’t think, if he was on the receiving end of this one, that he would like it either. At this point, I just hope Brandon is going to be okay.”

So does Weight and the rest of the Islanders. But one player who asked not to be identified said it’s impossible for players to expect to differentiate between naïve rookies and a veteran trying to sneak a breakaway past a defender when play is moving at high speed. “This is the National Hockey League,” the player said. “Keep your head up.”

Islanders coach Scott Gordon offered this take on the play by Weight. “Two things come to mind,” Gordon said. “We’re obviously very concerned about Sutter and hope he's doing well. It's like I said to Dougie this morning, ‘It was a hard hit, but he did see you coming.’ I watched it and replayed it. He looked at Dougie. I can only imagine he saw [Weight coming]. He made the decision that, ‘If I get this puck by him, I’m going in for a breakaway.’ I think Dougie went into it with the mindset that, ‘If I don’t get the man, this guy’s going on a breakaway.’ They both probably went in with a good thought process. Unfortunately, you don’t want to see anybody get hurt. You want to see Sutter get healthy quick.”

ISLES FILES: Backup goaltender Joey MacDonald is prepared to start in place of Rick DiPietro, who is scheduled to undergo an examination of his surgically repaired right knee today. The club has indicated it will make an announcement about DiPietro’s status later today…Defenseman Brett Skinner will make his NHL debut in place of Freddy Meyer, who has an undisclosed injury…Yann Danis was on the ice and is expected to serve as MacDonald’s backup tonight…Making a sly reference to the Islanders’ non-disclosure injury policy, Daily News reporter Peter Botte said the new backup goaltender should be referred to as “Yann Da(lower body) because we’re not allowed to say, ‘knee.’” Ba-dum-bum. That’s a rim shot for Botte.

Thank you to all those readers who understood the blog I wrote yesterday about Scott Gordon’s decision to pull Rick DiPietro after one period against Carolina was intended as a satirical, ironic sendup of the Islanders’ non-disclosure injury policy. The team’s decision to withhold detailed injury information has frustrated media and fans alike because it lends itself to speculation by purposely hiding the truth.

The circumstances surrounding DiPietro’s departure from the 4-3 loss to the Hurricanes invited skepticism because he committed the kind of mental and physical errors that could prompt a coach to pull a goaltender for poor play. After the game, the refusal of Gordon and DiPietro to provide any concrete information about his condition created more unanswered questions.

My friend and fellow blogger, Chris Botta of Islanderspointblank.com fame, said he disagreed with my “conspiracy theory” questioning how seriously DiPietro was hurt. As I later explained to him, that misses the point, which was that it was difficult to know what is right or wrong because of the team’s refusal to provide basic, credible information. It’s not a matter of right or wrong about the injury. It’s a matter of right or wrong about providing truthful injury information.

When I later quoted a report by Botta that said DiPietro has been ruled out of tonight’s game against the Rangers and that Joey MacDonald would start and be backed up by Yann Danis, I described his blog as “team-sponsored,” which it is. If I were writing something about Cablevision, it would be necessary for me to mention Newsday is owned by Cablevision. It’s called full disclosure, and it lends credibility because it says you’re not hiding anything.

But Chris wrote: “There’s no question Greg tried to undermine my objectivity, credibility and desire to work hard and get the story right.”

In fact, the opposite is true. Because of his close ties to the organization and my experience working with Chris in the past, when he was vice-president of media relations, I expect him to provide credible reports. I believe his report yesterday about DiPietro’s injury and playing status for the Rangers game was generally correct, but I was stunned when the Islanders would not confirm that DiPietro is out of the Rangers game. They said it depends on the outcome of a medical examination today.

Once again, what we have here is a failure to communicate fully the pertinent details of DiPietro’s injury. Why not just admit the truth that DiPietro is not playing tonight?

Good question. Wonder where the answer to that one might lead?

Rick DiPietro will undergo a doctor’s examination of his undisclosed injury on Monday, an Islanders spokesman said this afternoon. However, the team official could not confirm a report on Chris Botta’s Islanderspointblank.com, a team-sponsored blog, that DiPietro will be replaced by backup Joey MacDonald as the starter against the Rangers Monday night at the Coliseum and that Yann Danis will be the backup.

According to the team, Danis has been called up from Bridgeport on an emergency basis for the morning skate in the event DiPietro is ruled out of tomorrow night’s game. But no decision on the starting and backup goaltenders will be made until after DiPietro’s examination. Given that set of circumstances, it’s still conceivable, depending on what the medical staff determines, that DiPietro could start or at least dress as the backup, as he did in the first four games of the season.

Near the end of the Islanders’ optional skate at noon today, Islanderspointblank.com reported: “Goaltender Rick DiPietro re-injured his knee last night and will be ruled out of the Islanders-Rangers game at the NVMC on Monday. Yann Danis will be recalled from Bridgeport to back up Joey MacDonald.” Botta also said DiPietro suffered his undisclosed injury in the first period of Saturday’s 4-3 loss to Carolina, which is why MacDonald replaced him at the start of the second period.

But the team spokesman was unable to verify the accuracy of that report by Botta, the Islanders’ former vice-president of media relations. The spokesman was authorized only to confirm that DiPietro would undergo a medical examination and that Danis and defenseman Brett Skinner would be at the morning skate on Monday on an emergency basis. Skinner was called up as a possible replacement for defenseman Freddy Meyer, who suffered an undisclosed injury against the Hurricanes but completed the game, assisting on a third-period goal by Sean Bergenheim.

The only Islanders who took part in today’s optional skate were defenseman Andy Sutton, who is on the mend from hand surgery, and rookie center Josh Bailey, who also has an undisclosed injury.

Responding to questions from Newsday about his team’s non-disclosure injury policy, Islanders general manager Garth Snow again defended the policy as a way to protect his players from being targeted by opponents, and he cited NHL rules that permit teams to withhold detailed injury information if they desire. Many teams choose to provide specific injury information, including recovery timetables, but others do not.

For reasons I respectfully decline to disclose, I remain skeptical about goaltender Rick DiPietro’s so-called “injured” status. If the Islanders continue to withhold detailed injury information from the media and their fans as a matter of club policy, then, I must institute a new personal policy of disregarding their intentionally misleading injury reports in favor of my own speculative reports.

In the past, I always have supported my reporting with a foundation of facts based on interviews with people who have knowledge of a particular situation. However, under these circumstances, I may or may not continue reporting that way. The Islanders and readers of this blog are free to speculate about whether I’m reporting the truth or not.

You can ask me for the facts at my disposal, but I won’t tell you as a matter of new Logan policy. I consider the details of my reporting an in-house matter, which means the only one I share information with is my wife, and she’s prohibited from discussing it publicly as a condition of her lifetime contract with me.

Honestly, – (I recently read that when you preface a comment with that word, there’s a good chance you're not being truthful) – I want to take Isles coach Scott Gordon at his word that he replaced his franchise goaltender with Joey MacDonald after the first period of a 4-3 loss to Carolina because of an injury to DiPietro and not because he made mistakes that put his team in a 2-0 first-period hole.

But in truth, -- or what passes for my interpretation of the situation -- it looked as though DiPietro made what even he called a “stupid play” by throwing a pass up the middle that was intercepted by Carolina’s Chad LaRose, who skated in alone to score less than four minutes into the game. Why do I think this? Well, I’ll make a one-time exception to my new policy and say that there was no press-box announcement during the game that DiPietro was injured. That was at odds with the previous game when defenseman Brendan Witt’s “lower-body injury” was announced when he didn’t return for the second period.

Also, when I asked Bill Guerin if the Isles were inspired to play harder in the second and third periods as a response to losing DiPietro because of an injury, he said, “I wasn’t aware of an injury.”

From that statement, I only can deduce that, if the Islanders didn’t know DiPietro was injured, then, they assumed he was pulled for the bonehead play. If that had been the case, it would have sent a message that Gordon isn’t afraid to discipline his star player for careless or selfish mistakes.

But when Gordon and DiPietro both attributed the decision to switch to MacDonald to an injury while refusing to specify the nature of said injury, when it occurred and how long it might affect the starting goaltender, the message was mixed and invited speculation. Gordon and DiPietro both expressed some discomfort about discussing the subject, which only added to the doubt about what really happened.

Were they ordered to lie? Cover up? Stonewall? And if so, to what end?

Was Gordon really upset with a goaltender who had five giveaways the previous game and then opened the Carolina game with another one that ended up in his net? Did DiPietro ask out? Did trainer Garrett Timms examine DiPietro between periods and rule him unfit to continue? Is DiPietro still struggling with the same issues revolving around his surgically repaired knee that prevented him from starting the first four games?

Who knows what the truth is? Actually, try Gordon, DiPietro, Timms and general manager Garth Snow, who invoked the non-disclosure injury policy. Snow has said he doesn’t want other teams to know the Islanders’ injuries because they might target them. Well, guess what? Unless an opposing player has been stranded on a desert island the past two years with “Wilson,” the volleyball, they know DiPietro has undergone surgery on both hips and one knee and has suffered a couple of concussions. It would be hard to hit him in a place where he’s not vulnerable.

So, pardon me if I remain skeptical about the exact nature of his condition in the absence of verifiable facts from people who know. Is that fair to DiPietro? Maybe and maybe not. I can’t tell you because it’s against my new policy to discuss the foundation of my reporting. I hope to treat DiPietro fairly as I do everyone I cover, but my new policy takes precedence. Who cares if I play the Islanders or the readers for saps?

The one thing I can tell you is that, if DiPietro is on the active roster against the Rangers Monday night, whether as the starter or the backup, then, the injury story after the Carolina game is a sham. I mean, it’s one thing to say he was healthy enough to serve as MacDonald’s backup for four games and then not use him when MacDonald gave up seven goals to Buffalo. But it would be quite another to say DiPietro left a game because of an injury, imply that it was related to the knee problem that kept him out of the first four games and then continue to leave him in uniform if he’s not completely healthy.

All I can say is that I’ll feel a lot more confident DiPietro really is hurt if Yann Danis is called up from Bridgeport to back up MacDonald until the main man truly is 100 percent again. In the meantime, I’ll insult the Islanders’ injury reports the way they insult my intelligence.

Hey guys! Katie here to blog you through the game tonight. Sorry I'm a little late...had to soak in the last remaining moments of my precious Spartans victory over the Wolverines just now. It's been awhile, so I had to savor it. I hope you all can understand. Anyways, Sutton and Witt are out tonight; Jack Hillen is back up.

Except for questions about injuries, which generally are undisclosed because of a club policy established by general manager Garth Snow, coach Scott Gordon has been remarkably forthcoming with his answers to media questions on a wide array of subjects, especially those having to do with the new aggressive forechecking system he’s trying to install.

He reminds me a little bit of former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy. Gordon has a long ways to go to build a resume comparable to the one Van Gundy had, but there are similarities in the sense that both are very cerebral and very committed to their philsophy and both can handle a good verbal sparring session with aplomb and a sense of humor. Van Gundy had a limited background as a small college basketball player, much as Gordon spent most of his hockey playing days in the minors.

Whenever Van Gundy reflected on his success with the Knicks, he always mentioned how grateful he was that players like Patrick Ewing and Larry Johnson “let me coach them.” By that, he meant that they gave him the respect to do it his way to the best of their ability even though they could have undermined him if they didn’t like working as hard as he wanted them to work on defense. Van Gundy had earned their respect as an assistant under Pat Riley. While Gordon has the strongest possible backer in Snow, he still has to earn the respect of the Islanders as he guides them through what looks as if it will be a painful building process.

It’s going to take patience on the part of players, coaches, management and fans alike, and Gordon recognized that as he dissected the Isles’ 5-3 loss to Dallas for the media yesterday. “I didn’t re-invent the wheel here,” Gordon said of his system. “We’re just playing a certain style like Carolina is playing a certain style. The difference is that Carolina has been playing that style for three years. Dave Tippett has been in Dallas for how long? There’s things he doesn’t even have to talk about because they’re used to what they’ve been doing. To think we’re going to be on a par with them after six games, we’re not. We’re going to have our ups and downs. For me, it’s about being patient. Like I told our guys, ‘Whatever you feel about that [loss to the Stars], we beat ourselves on the first three goals and that put us in a hole.’”

Looking back at the Stars’ three first-period goals, the Isles had a chance to ice the puck and failed on the first power-play goal; a misplay by defenseman Thomas Pock allowed Brendan Morrow to get open for a great feed from Mike Ribeiro for the second goal, and Bruno Gervais’ clearing attempt was knocked down by Ribeiro, leading to the third goal. In the second period, the Stars’ fourth goal deflected off a stick, and the fifth also resulted from a failed icing attempt by the Isles’ penalty killers.

“Those three goals set the tone of the game,” Gordon said of the Stars’ 3-0 first-period lead. “That’s the flavor of the game that we were getting outplayed. They were bad on our part, but other than that, there weren’t a whole lot of other opportunities for [the Stars] in the first period.”

The Isles hit two posts and had a shot slide along the goal line without crossing it during a 5-on-3 power play early in the second period, losing a chance to gain momentum. Shortly after Bill Guerin put the Islanders on the board, Dallas got the deflected goal to take the wind out of their sails. Still, Gordon said he saw significant improvement in the Islanders’ forehceck compared to their previous loss at Florida.

“From my standpoint, what I saw our team do that we didn’t do against Florida was we had depth to our attack; our defenseman were involved on the attack and in the forecheck; our transition was better in the neutral zone. Unfortunately for us, we got ourselves in a 3-0 hole on mental breakdowns. No matter what we do as a team systematically, that’s beating yourself, plain and simple. If those players make those mistakes, we’re going to lose a lot of hockey games if we consistently do that.”

Gordon went on to cite an example of how Sean Bergenheim made a play against Dallas that showed he had learned from a mistake he made in similar situations at Tampa Bay two games earlier. “Sometimes, there’s just not a play to be made, and you’ve got to cut your losses and not beat yourself,” Gordon said. “That’s where we’re struggling. At times, we beat ourselves…You know what? I don’t think that message has been brought to these guys. From what I’ve been told, it was more about effort [in the past under Ted Nolan]. As long as you were working hard, that was okay. Working hard is great, but if it’s not smart, at the end of the day, you’re going to lose games no matter how hard you work.

“Developing a team’s identity and its work ethic and mindset comes with time. As much as I’d like it to happen in the first 10 games, realistically, it probably took three years [in Providence]. Once it’s there, it’s there.”

Showing patience is bound to come more easily for Gordon than for some of his veteran players who are in the final year of their contracts and naturally are more interested in winning now than in building for the future. “I guess the biggest thing for them is it’s important for the team to do well,” Gordon said of the vets. “They either stay with us or sign with somebody else. They have to have good years. That’s their motivation. The motivation is to win, playoffs, Stanley Cup, and if everybody has the same mindset that, if we’re all successful together, we’re going to be successful as individuals.”

Gordon also offered some interesting takes on other subjects. Asked about the performance of Jeff Tambellini and Frans Nielsen, who had no shots on goal against Dallas, he said: “I’m not going to lie and protect them and say they can ‘t be better. But it’s not going to happen overnight. Frans expectations weren’t that high as far as where he was going to be on the depth chart. He’s going to slowly prove that he’s more than what he gave himself credit for. Jeff Tambellini is fighting what he had to go through last year, realizing that he’s got to find a way to have an impact. He’s making small steps. We’ve seen his speed. He’s got in and done some things on the forecheck as far as taking away time and space. These guys are young players. Frans and Tamby have not had the opportunity they’re getting right now. You can’t expect it to happen right away.”

On five giveaways by goaltender Rick DiPietro, whose long breakout passes sometimes ended up as neutral-zone turnovers: “In my discussions with him, it’s not so much about playing the puck more or less. It’s just about playing efficient because he can do it like few goalies can. I said to him, ‘If our ‘D’ are in a position to get the puck and you don’t have a play right away, let them have it. They’ve got the sticks for it. They’re going to be more a part of the play after they move the puck than if you move the puck and they wait for you to move it.’” Gordon said DiPietro’s long passes are fine if they allow the Isles to pressure on the forecheck, but otherwise, it’s better to settle for a clean breakout by the defense.

The measuring stick for the Islanders in Gordon’s first season should be whether or not they show steady progress. But the important thing is to stick with his principles through the ups and downs. As Carolina coach Peter Laviolette said of Gordon, “I think there’s an expectation, especially as a young coach coming in. You get an opportunity in an organization, and you want to have an immediate impact. Sometimes, it doesn’t happen right away. You have to stick with what you believe in. Obviously, he’s experienced success with the style that he plays, so, you hope that translates down the road and you start to see the results at some point.”

With Brendan Witt on the shelf for an undetermined period of time with an undisclosed knee injury, rookie Jack Hillen will be back in the lineup against Carolina tonight at the Coliseum. Andy Sutton took part in today’s optional morning skate, but he remains out while recovering from hand surgery.

This means the Isles’ defense is the highly mobile crew of Hillen, Freddy Meyer, Mark Streit, Chris Campoli, Bruno Gervais and Thomas Pock. But the undersized Meyer is the only true hitter in the bunch, although Streit has tried to step up the level of his physical play a notch and Campoli is willing to bang when he has a chance. Both teams will be going after the puck aggressively in the offensive zone, but the Hurricanes obviously have spent a lot more time in that type of system under Peter Laviolette compared to the Isles’ six games under Scott Gordon.

NEXT-GENERATION SUTTER ARRIVES: Carolina’s Brandon Sutter, who was born on Long Island when his father Brent was playing for the Islanders, is the first son of the Sutter brothers to make it to the NHL. He scored his first goal Thursday night in Pittsburgh. Brandon is the ninth member of his family drafted by the NHL, joining his father, who now coaches the Devils, uncles Brian, Darryl, Duane, Rich and Ron and cousins Shaun and Brett. Brent coached Brandon in juniors at Red Deer, Alberta before taking the Devils job last season.

STAY TUNED: I’ll be posting another blog later this afternoon, including Gordon’s reaction to Thursday’s disappointing 5-3 loss to Dallas and his view of his team’s progress in adapting to a new system of play.

While watching the Islanders’ youth movement endure more growing pains in a 5-3 loss to Dallas last night, it became increasingly clear how important it will be for this team to hit on its draft picks in the next few years. Looking back on the last draft, the decision by general manager Garth Snow and assistant GM Ryan Jankowski to trade down twice from the fifth spot to take Josh Bailey ninth overall remains open to question.

Yes, they multiplied picks and everyone who plays with Bailey marvels at his hands and hockey smarts. He’s “out of sight, out of mind” now in coach Scott Gordon’s words because of an undisclosed injury that has been slow to heal. No doubt, the Islanders needed help at center, and he should be a good one in the long run.

But going into last night’s games, defenseman Luke Schenn, the player Toronto took with the fifth pick from the Isles, led all rookies in average ice time with 21:39 per game. He ranked third on the Maple Leafs behind veteran stalwarts Tomas Kaberle and Pavel Kubina.

Of the four top defensemen in the draft, Schenn was the only defensive defenseman, which is why Drew Doughty, Zach Bogosian and Alex Pietrangelo went second, third and fourth. But defensive toughness might be the most underrated quality of all when it comes to assembling a perennial contender. Imagine how much the Islanders could use a 6-2, 216-pound ball of muscle on their blue line and in front of the net. If Schenn turns into Scott Stevens in terms of his hitting and leadership ability, then, the Islanders have missed the mark.

Along with Schenn, Islanders fans also will track the careers of Columbus sniper Nikita Filatov (1 goal) and Phoenix forward Mikkel Boedker (2 goals), both of whom are on the NHL roster. Boedker is playing a regular role for 16:31 per game, while Filatov, who is an 18-year-old waif at this point, has played only three games for an average of 7:33.

Judgment day on the wisdom of the Islanders’ draft strategy is a long ways down the road. But if the growth process is going to be as painful as it has been through the first six games, it would be a lot easier to take if the Isles had a guy like Schenn to mold as a future cornerstone on defense.

PRACTICE NOTES: No update on the status of injured defenseman Brendan Witt (lower body, best guess: knee injury) was given by Gordon today. Neither would he say whether Andy Sutton (hand surgery), who went through the full practice, is ready to step into the lineup. After the Dallas game, Gordon said that “might be pushing it.” But Sutton looks close, and Jack Hillen also is available. Gordon indicated one of the two would take Witt’s place. You never know, both could step into the lineup if Thomas Pock is scratched. Pock let Brendan Morrow get open for the Stars’ second goal Thursday night.

Hey Isles fans! Katie here to blog you through tonight's game against the Stars. Isles are well-rested and Stars are coming off a bad loss, Campoli makes his regular-season debut, and we get to see Sim v. Avery tonight. All good reasons to be watching.

Scott Gordon says there hasn’t been much recognition of the fact the Islanders have been playing with a short-handed defense. Maybe that’s because the current injury situation is mild by comparison to last season when the Islanders used 13 different defensemen and finished with only two of their current top seven in the lineup.

But the prognosis is looking up for the Isles’ health on defense. Chris Campoli will be in the starting lineup tonight for the first time in the regular season since Jan. 16. And 6-6, 240-pound Andy Sutton has been cleared to practice for the first time since undergoing hand surgery in the preseason and appears close to making his return.

Campoli figures to be paired with Mark Streit against Dallas tonight at the Coliseum, a pairing of offensive threats who could step up the pressure from the Islanders’ attack. “Obviously, his skating and offense and his ability to get up and down the ice is tremendous,” Gordon said of Campoli. “That’s something that would help any team.”

For the first time in his NHL career, Campoli plans to wear a visor. “It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while,” he said. “I practiced with it this week, and it was good. I’m going to try and make the transition.”

Tonight’s game would be a good one to add Sutton because the Isles could use his physical presence against a tough Dallas team. But that will have to wait a game or two. Sutton expects to practice full on Friday, and since he had most of training camp to learn the system, it won’t be surprising if he returns as soon as Saturday against Carolina or M