Blogging about the New York Islanders, the NHL and everything else hockey
In case you missed the (yawn!) oh-so-exciting news out of Toronto last night, the NHL held the 2008 Draft Lottery last night in Toronto. Absolutely nothing changed - Tampa Bay ended up with the #1 pick, Islanders the #5. What was the point of last night again?
Anyways, Sean Leahy’s got some humorous pictures from last night and fake Bossy quotes on his blog. Check it out.
So I was just cruising the NHL Auctions site for Islanders gear - some interesting stuff up there. At first I was scared when I saw Guerin and Comrie’s locker room nameplates for sale - does the auctions staff know something we don’t?? But there are a lot of locker room nameplates up there, including DP and I’m pretty sure he’s not going anywhere.
Need skates? I wish they told you what size they were - Comrie’s look barely used and $80 for Bauer XXX’s is dirt cheap.
You could get the “new RBK-style” Bossy jersey signed for $65, but I’d rather have the “classic” style for just $46.
Act fast…Ryan Smyth jerseys are almost all sold out. $99…yeah right. Maybe if you paid ME $99.
It appears all of the game-worn jerseys from the “Core of the Four” ceremony are available online. Here’s DP’s. Hey, wait a second…DP didn’t even play that night. Oops…false advertising!
Finally, the one thing that really caught my eye was the lineup card from Kyle Okposo’s debut, signed by both coaches. No bidders, bidding starts at $25.
Check all the Islanders auctions here.
It’s nostalgia time over at NHL.com as they speak with some of today’s current stars and ask them who was their favorite NHL player while growing up? The oddest choice has to be 8-time suspended thug Chris Pronger’s choice of 3-time Lady Byng winner and all around classy guy, Mike Bossy.
“I loved watching Mike Bossy,” Pronger says. “He was my favorite player when I was growing up. I just loved watching him go down the wing and take that slapper – quick release, great shot, always had a knack for being open in the right spots on the ice. You are able to learn a lot from watching players like that. Becoming a defenseman, you are able to learn a lot from watching that in learning where not to let people stand.”
So if Bossy taught him where not to let people stand, who taught him how to swing his stick at people’s heads, stomp/kick other players, and throw vicious elbows to the head? Pronger needs to go back and watch some more Bossy videos.
While we’re on the subject of “The Boss”, here’s a good link I found on the Legends of Hockey Network.
Bossy was and remains outspoken about violence in hockey. As one of the most gifted and talented players ever to grace the game, he was often the target of thugs. However Bossy took great pride in never stooping to retaliation. The three time Lady Byng Trophy winner who accumulated only 210 PIM in his career, Bossy was often criticized for not fighting back. Critics passed him off as not tough enough. Bossy’s sweet revenge would however often come in the following 2 minutes after the cowardly attacks. Bossy - perhaps the greatest power play weapon in the game’s history - would score on the man advantage, and that would only upset the other team even more. Of Bossy’s 573 career goals, 181 were scored on the power play.
A chronic bad back forced Bossy to retire prematurely. Oddly enough, the back injuries that still haunt him to this day were caused by the constant abuse he had to take on the ice. In his final season he tallied 38 goals, the only season in which he did not record at least 50 goals. Bossy termed the “failure” to score 50 goals as his biggest disappointment. In actuality he probably shouldn’t have played that year either, as his back was just that bad. Bossy’s love of the game outweighed doctors advice. But by doing so Bossy forever silenced his critics. He played through immense pain and showed the hockey world just how tough he really was.
It is an absolute shame Mike Bossy had to call it quits so soon. He is perhaps the greatest goal scorer the game has ever seen. But he also took great pride in working on his all around game, and became a very dependable defensive player and underrated playmaker
Pronger has 126 PIM this season and averages about 100 PIM/year.
Real quick update for you, I moved yesterday and are hooked up to the Internet via cell phone. Nice article on NHL.com about the Isles’ Core of the Fore festivities this weekend.
Also Bossy, Nystrom, Morrow and Trotts were at the NHL store (yesterday?) - I had no idea. Way to publicize that one Isles. Screw moving, I would have been at the NHL store yesterday had I known.
Isles win in a shootout last night…woot! Missed it, and the highlights aren’t up yet. I get my satellite hooked up tonight.
As part of the “Core of the Four” festivities next weekend when the Islanders will honor the players who played on all four Stanley Cup Championship teams, the Islanders have arranged a special fund raiser next Saturday night. “Skate With The Greats” will take place at RexCorp plaza across from the Coliseum and will allow fans to fulfill their dreams of taking to the ice with the Islanders Championship Dynasty.
Ever wanted to skate on an outdoor rink with Mike Bossy, Bryan Trottier, Bobby Nystrom and your other Islanders heroes…and have the Stanley Cup nearby?
You can when the Islanders host “Skate with the Greats” on Saturday night, March 1 at 7:00 pm at Rexcorp Plaza. The night is a benefit for the New York Islanders Children’s Foundation and is limited to just 100 guests so you’ll have plenty of “time and space” on the outdoor rink to rub elbows with the legends.
“Quite simply, the Islanders have never had an intimate event as special as ‘Skate with the Greats’ is going to be,” said Bossy, the greatest goal scorer of his generation and a hero to countless Islanders fans. “Because it’s for the Islanders Children’s Foundation, we wanted to make it first-class for our benefactors. I promise you that my teammates and I are going to make this a night you will never forget.”
Not only will you have the chance to meet and skate with your favorite Islanders legends from the past, but the Stanley Cup will be also be in attendance for photo ops. There will be a silent auction during the evening, which includes cocktails and dinner. Appetizers and beverages will also be served rinkside when the “Core of the Four” members skate from 7 - 8:00 pm before the evening moves inside to the gorgeous Rexcorp Atrium.
“I look forward to meeting our fans and getting the rare chance for me to skate alongside them,” said Hall of Famer Bryan Trottier. “It’s going to be a blast and best of all it’s for a terrific cause, the New York Islanders Children’s Foundation. I’ve talked to a bunch of the guys and they’re really looking forward to it.”
Tickets to this event are $325 and are first come, first served. The event is limited to 100 people. I’m seriously thinking about doing this. The order form is located here.
Here is the schedule for next weekend’s festivities:
Saturday March 2nd, 2pm: Isles vs Philadelphia, Fan Appreciation Day
Saturday March 2nd, 7pm: Skate With The Greats
Sunday March 3rd, 2pm: Walk of Champions from Marriott to the Coliseum
Sunday March 3rd, 3pm: Core of the Four Celebration
Sunday March 3rd, 4pm: Isles vs Florida
And your honored guests:
Bill Torrey
Al Arbour
Mike Bossy
Bob Bourne
Clark Gillies
Butch Goring
Lorne Henning
Anders Kallur
Gord Lane
Dave Langevin
Wayne Merrick
Ken Morrow
Bob Nystrom
Stefan Persson
Denis Potvin
Billy Smith
Duane Sutter
John Tonelli
Bryan TrottierTrainer Ron Waske and equipment manager Jim Pickard, who were with the team for all four Stanley Cups, will also be honored as part of the event. Hall of Fame broadcaster Jiggs McDonald will serve as the Master of Ceremonies.
Interesting post over at Islanders Outsider regarding Versus’ latest NHL ads, and one GLARING omission.
Versus is currently running a commercial for its NHL coverage that centers around Alexander Ovechkin’s quest for 60 goals. To build up the prestige of the accomplishment, the ad displays the names of great NHL goal scorers who previously reached the standard for which Ovechkin is now shooting. I’m doing this from memory, so forgive me if my recollection is faulty. The names we see in the commercial include Gretzky, Lemieux, Brett Hull, Esposito, and Lafleur. Can you think of anybody else whose inclusion would have been appropriate in a list of great goal scorers who put sixty pucks in the net? And it’s not as though Mike Bossy occupies some lower quadrant of this list.
NOBODY disses The Boss on my watch and gets away with it. Four times The Boss lit the lamp 60+ times in a season, same as Espo and Mario, and the same as Hull and Lafleur COMBINED. I’ll be watching for the “new and improved” commercials Versus. Don’t make me start up a Bossy Boycott on your punk asses.
[Update] Now featuring the offending video.
From IslandersTV comes this radio clip of Gary “Bababooey” Dell’Abate from The Howard Stern Show. Before Gary was Bababooey, he was a 19-year old intern for WLIR on Long Island and was sent over to the coliseum to get some hockey interviews. He interviewed The Boss shortly after “one of the Islanders 4 Stanley Cups”. From Gary’s interview question, “It seems like it was easier this year than last year, what was different?”, I’m guessing it was 1980-81.
Click here to hear the clip - it’s on IslandersTV, but it’s just an audio clip.
We scourer the internet everyday to bring you the best, most interesting NY Islanders articles out there. Sometimes, things slip through the cracks though. That’s when we rely on tipsters…like my mother…to bring the news to us. The Boss will be at the NHL Store on Thursday before the Isles/Rangers game. No autographs, but Boss will taking fans’ questions about all those goals and those 4 beeeee-utiful rings of his. Thanks Mom!
Don’t miss your chance to meet Islander great, Mike Bossy as he remembers the glory days with the New York Islanders and his 4 Stanley Cup Wins. Fan questions will be welcomed! Thursday November 29, 2007 4:00-6:00 p.m., prior to the Rangers vs. Islanders Battle at Madison Square Garden, Presented by Steiner Sports.
OK this week off thing was kind of cool at first, I was able to do all the blog updates I had planned to do in September before the season started, but now I needs me some Islanders hockey…soon! We do get to watch the Devils and Rags beat each other up tonight, but it’s still not the same. Here’s the latest links out there, and be sure to check out our new “Recommended Links” section which will be updated frequently each day even if I don’t have time for an actual post here on the blog.
During his ten years in the league, Bossy scored at least 50 goals every year except the last which was cut short by a back injury which ended his career. In 1980-81, Bossy became the first player since Maurice Richard in 1944-45 to score 50 goals in the first 50 games of the season. He also led the New York Islanders to four straight Stanley Cup victories (1980-83). By the time he retired, he had scored 573 goals in just 752 regular-season games. Bossy was also an advocate of clean hockey and was one of the most gentlemanly players in the game.
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