Vote Yes 8/1/11

I want to take you guys back about 40 years, to December 30, 1971 when entrepreneur Roy L.M. Boe rallied 19 partners and completed the transaction to bring Long Island its first NHL team, the New York Islanders.  On this day a franchise was born, and it was destined for greatness.

Although one couldn't tell from the beginning years of this franchise's existence, this team would indeed achieve greatness in accomplishing a feat which hasn't been repeated since it was done by them in the early 80s, win 4 Stanley Cups in a row. But before winning those Stanley Cups, the Islanders were terrible, achieving solely 31 wins in 156 NHL games. 

However, this was a different time. It was a time when the Islanders didn't have a core, but different players put together through two drafts. It was a time when the Islanders weren't the Islanders, for they had to yet reach an identity of their own. However after a few years this identity came into place. 

The Islanders created their identity through the drafts, with, general manager, Bill Torrey drafting goaltender Billy Smith in the 1972 expansion draft. Bobby Nystrom in the 1972 amateur draft. Denis Potvin in the 1973 amateur draft. Clark Gillies and Bryan Trottier in the 1974 amateur draft, and last but definitely not least Mike Bossy and John Tonelli in the 1977 amateur draft. 

With these 6 Islander legends, this team quickly rose through the ranks and reached the playoffs every year from the 1974/75 season to the 1987/88 season, during which they notoriously won 4 Stanley Cups in a row, as mentioned before, and also set the record for the most consecutive playoff series victories with 19.

Now, move forward 40 years and you have an Islander team trying to do the same as the team that was put together by Torrey 40 years ago. The Islanders are in the process of creating an identity for themselves, and similar to that team 40 years ago, the Islanders are doing it through the draft. Through the past few years the Islanders have stuck to a rebuild which is pointing to success by drafting players such as John Tavares, Nino Neiderreiter, Kyle Okposo, Calvin DeHaan, Travis Hamonic, Josh Bailey, and most recently Ryan Strome.

However the one difference that exists between the team of then, and the team of now is that while the Islanders of then had a brand new arena to play in, the Islanders of now are playing in what is being called by its own fans "The Old Barn".  A referendum, which will take place on August 1st, has been put into place to vote for a new arena, and for Christ's sake I can't see a reason why people would vote no to it. 

To help visualize the situation, I took a look at statistics and took down a few notes I decided to share with you. Currently, the Nassau Coliseum costs Nassau County $1.5 million a year. On the other hand, Nassau County also gains around $4 million on a yearly basis from the Coliseum. Another interesting statistic is that there are currently about 8% of Nassau County's residents who are unemployed. However, the most important fact which I found, is that if this referendum doesn't pass, the Coliseum will close its doors permanently. There will be no more Billy Joel concerts, no more WWE visits, no more hockey, no more anything. 

With the new arena, that 8% of unemployment should decrease through the guaranteed generation of around 1,500 construction jobs, and 3,000 permanent jobs, which will also help stimulate the economy. The New Coliseum will also guarantee an annual gain to Nassau County of $18 million, a $14 million dollar difference.  The new arena will also generate approximately $1.2 billion for Nassau County residents, which will be enough for arena construction, and bond cost, while still maintaining $403 million of profit. One more fact which residents should pay attention to is the development a new stadium would bring to the area which surround the Coliseum. 

This further development will help construct more stores, and more importantly more jobs. Also, it's important to identify the contribution a new arena would give Hofstra University, which is located only a few blocks away from the current Coliseum. Hofstra already uses the Islanders to help attract students to attend their university, and having a brand new arena next door can do nothing but attract more students to the university. 

For Islander fans debating on whether to vote yes or not, this team is headed towards future success. Do you really want to watch another city celebrate those future successes?

For Nassau County residents in general debating on whether to vote yes or not, if you won't vote yes on August 1st to maintain the only professional team Long Island has on Long Island, and you won't vote yes to keep the Nassau Coliseum open, then do it for your fellow residents. What will you say to your unemployed neighbor who has been desperately seeking a job for months, and whose only remaining option to keep a roof over his family's head and food on his family's table is this arena? "Sorry but I really don't feel like paying an extra $58 a year". $4.83 a month is all that stands between 4,500 unemployed residents having jobs, a new coliseum being built, and Long Island's only professional team being maintained.  

Ehrhoff-Islander Talks Dead

Contract talks between Christian Ehrhoff and the Islanders have officially died, as first reported by Newsday's Katie Strang.

Although somewhat upsetting, the news shouldn't be too surprising. The best defenseman in this year's UFA class wasn't very likely to sign with the first team that approached him with an offer. Ehrhoff knew he had several options in the free agency market once Friday afternoon came, and probably saw no true reason to sign with the Islanders over other better teams.

One of these teams would be the Detroit Red Wings, which according to rumors are looking at Ehrhoff to replace the hole left in their defense by the retirement of Brian Rafalski. Without a doubt, Ehrhoff would definitely take less money to play on a much better team in the Red Wings. The Red Wings are Stanley Cup contenders year in and year out, and who would say no to the chance to play alongside a defensive legend like Nicklas Lidstrom.

Islander fans, however, shouldn't be too disappointed by the fact that Ehrhoff didn't sign with them. Would he have helped the power play produce, and the younger players mature? Of course, but would he have made the Islanders immediate contenders? Not quite. However as good as Ehrhoff may be, he's no franchise player who would make any team immediate playoff contenders. He might've given the extra push a team needs to clinch a playoff spot, but there's plenty of players in the NHL that can have that type of effect on a team.

The one positive that one can take from this whole fiasco is that the Islanders have become fully committed to becoming true playoff contenders. Also, if anybody doubted Wang's ability to open the checkbook to other players, those doubts should be long gone after this move.

Not too long from now, players will be taking notice of the Islanders as future contenders, and when that time comes players will start accepting these type of offers that players like Ehrhoff, Paul Martin, and Ilya Kovylchuk have so graciously turned down.

Also, if the Islanders are still looking to sign a defenseman out of free agency, there are still options. Although James Wisniewski will likely sign with the Columbus Blue Jackets (his rights were traded by Montreal earlier today), and Ehrhoff will, as mentioned before, likely sign with the Detroit Red Wings, there are still options in Tomas Kaberle and Ed Jovanovski.

Between the two, Ed Jovanovski is the more likely option. A big body, with a hard shot, and a lot of NHL experience. He's spent the past few years playing in Phoenix which means that he won't be denying offers from lower level teams, but will instead look for the team which will pay him the most. If the Islanders truly want Jovanovski, there's little chance any team in the NHL can outbid them.

Personally, I believe that the Islanders will still make a splash come Friday afternoon, and will get at least one top free agent signed, but I, personally, believe that this time it will be a forward. Also, don't be too surprised if the Islanders become involved in a trade or too in the next few days. There are a few names which the Islanders might be interested in offloading in order to make space for free agent signings.

UPDATED: The Islanders have traded the rights to Christian Ehrhoff to the Buffalo Sabres for a 2012 4th round pick.

Islanders Trade for Rights to Christian Ehrhoff

I'd like to start by saying thank you for reading my first ever entry on my blog, the Islanders Hockey Blog.

Now, as first reported by TSN's Bob McKenzie, the Islanders have traded their 4th round draft pick to the Vancouver Canucks for the rights to Christian Ehrhoff. Ehrhoff was a great influence on the Canucks success in the regular and post season, posting 14 goals and 50 points during the regular season, and 2 goals and 12 points in the post season.

It had become rather clear that Ehrhoff wasn't going to re-sign with the Canucks after they re-signed Kevin Bieksa to a 5-year deal worth $23 million, basically choosing Bieksa over Ehrhoff. Since then the discussion over a new contract between Ehrhoff and the 'Nucks became more and more complicated every day. The news came out this morning that the Canucks were open to trading Ehrhoff's rights to other teams, and it seems rather obvious that Islander GM, Garth Snow, was listening.

If the Islanders can get this deal done, it would be a huge improvement to both offense and defense. As noted before, Ehrhoff knows how to put the puck into the back into the net, and would be a great point man, along with Mark Streit, on a struggling power play. Ehrhoff is also very solid in his own zone posting a very respectable +19 last season, the 3rd highest of 12 other Vancouver defensemen. One other plus his signing would provide is experience and tutoring for offensive defensemen prospects like Calvin DeHaan, Aaron Ness, and Matt Donovan.

All this of course is one very large IF. Snow will almost undoubtedly give Ehrhoff an empty check, but will Ehrhoff sign with the Islanders? Will this arena situation cost the Islanders not only a chance at a great player like Ehrhoff but also the 4th round pick they gave up to get his rights? I, personally, don't believe that Snow would trade for the talented defenseman's rights, without being at least somewhat secure that he would have a good chance at getting him signed.