Welcome to Long Island John Tavares!!!

So after all the posturing, waiting, slide of hand, and rumors out the butt, Garth Snow went to the podium last night and selected John Tavares with the 1st overall pick in the 2009 Entry Draft. Nasssau Coliseum exploded with excitement when the pick was announced and most if not all fans in attendance looked happy. JT is an immediate injection of talent into our line-up. With some of the young guns currently on the team and the addition of JT this team will seem pretty exciting to watch come fall time. Thank you Garth for doing the right thing!



Sal

So with....

less then 2 1/2 hours till draft time, who is Garth Snow taking? Tavares, Hedman, or Duchene? Everyone has their favorites. But in Islander country only one name will make most happy and that name is...






John Tavares!!!

With so much on the line for the near future and the longevity of this club on Long Island, the team can not get this wrong. The tension is Islander country is so thick you can cut it with a knife. Hopefully after tonight the tension is a lot less and most fans will be pleased with our selection.


Garth, the clock is ticking...

Congratulations....

Congratulations to the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions Pittsburgh Penguins! ! !

What a series. Just when you thought it was over with a game 5 blow out from Detroit, Pittsburgh battle back in game 6 to even the series again. In a series where the home team won every game so far, it was almost as if the Penguins were doomed to lose playing in Hockey-town for game 7. But the unlikely Max Talbot scored 2 goals, one of which ended up being the game winner. The Penguins held off a hard charging effort from Detroit in the closing seconds, and fans watched the Crosby era team hoist it's first Stanley Cup.


Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins! ! !


Sal

My Draft Take

So here we are about a month and a half away from the draft and Islanders fans are absolutely clueless as to who the club may be taking a the draft. The NYI released recent news that ticket sale inquiries have risen since getting the number 1 pick. Fans have been all over the message boards fighting between Tavares, Hedman and Duchene.

So whom do the Islanders need? A good scoring forward in Tavares? A good puck moving/scoring defenseman in Hedman? An all around good player in Duchene? It is anyone’s guess who Garth and staff will pick on draft day. The major consensus is that the Islanders take Tavares, but fans are making an argument for the Islanders to take Hedman.

My take, the NYI have to take Tavares. We have a late first rounder from San Jose that we can use to take a solid defenseman. The New York Islanders need scoring, plain and simple. One might wonder if Garth can put together a package that Tampa Bay would bite on for us to take the 2nd pick also. Could you imagine Garth landing both Tavares and Hedman? Islander country as a whole would have a collective heart attack.

As if the debate has not been intense enough among fans, it will only get more intense as draft day approaches. I honestly feel the Islanders can’t go wrong drafting either Tavares or Hedman, both will turn out to be stars.

So Garth, Who you taking at number 1?




Sal

Isles Extend Veteran...

The New York Islander have extended the contract of center Doug Weight for the 09-10 season. Doug Weight is an excellent veteran who will mentor the kids extremely well. Doug Weight came to Long Island with something to prove, that he still had gas left in the tank to play the game. Weight before his injury was doing just that, proving he still had gas in the tank. Some of our young kids already look up to Weight, such as our rookie center, Josh Bailey.

According to the article on NHL.com Weight has loved Long Island and has been treated extremely well there. Here is a small quote from the article; "Long Island has been a wonderful place for me and my family," Weight said. "It was an easy decision to come back for another season. The Islanders have been a first-class organization and I’m looking forward to helping our team continue its development into a contender."

It is really great to here a veteran like Weight talk so highly of Long Island and the organization. Maybe other free agents will takes notice and realize Long Island ain't that bad. Welcome back to Long Island Dougie, this fan looks forward to seeing you next year.



Sal

LightHouse Support

Show your support for the LightHouse project, contact The Town of Hempstead:

http://toh.li/content/home/contact.html


Tell them you support the LightHouse


Sal

Big Gun Coming out in Support of Lighthouse

Tom Suozzi has called out Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray. Mr. Suozzi want to "Work it out". The Town of Hempstead has been dragging it's feet on the Lighthouse project since day 1. Should the Islanders not get the Lighthouse built Mrs. Murray should be held personally responsible. You can read more of what Suozzi had to say at Newsday.com

Islander fans are fortunate in a way that we have an owner who is willing to finance the entire project, that within itself is a huge benefit. Taxpayers will not be burdened with the expense of renovating the Coliseum. The Islanders have needed a new home for some time. With there lease set to expire in 2015, the Islanders will need a new home sooner rather then later. Think of how nice it will be to win the Stanley Cup in a "new" building?

With an economy going further and further into the gutter, we have a chance to put some people back to work. This project would be considered STIMULUS. The project will stimulate the local economy, which is exactly what this current economy needs. I don't want to bring politics into this blog, but this is exactly what President Obama wants people to do, STIMULATE. Stimulating the local economy will not only bring jobs to the construction site but to areas around the construction site too. Workers will utilize eateries in the area, hotels (if the workers are coming from afar), gas stations, coffee shops all will benefit when this project is started.

What this whole thing basically comes down too is strength. Whoever flexes there muscles the strongest will win. Nassau County as well as the Town of Hempstead know what will happen if the Islanders were to leave. It would mean a further decline of the area as well as millions in lost tax revenues which will result in increased taxes to make up the short fall. And for what it's worth Nassau resident's are taxed enough and then some.

So Kate Murray, GET IT DONE, NOW!!!


Sal