Archive for the 'Rick DiPietro' Category
The Wings signed Star forward Henrik Zetterberg to a 12-year, $73 million deal this week. Wow. That’s an average of more than $6 million a year. We like Zetterberg and think he’s a great player but 12 years for a 28-year-old is kind of risky, don’t you think? The Red WIngs were smart to frontload the contract, meaning Zetterberg will get more money in the first half of the deal than the latter half when he’s likely to be less productive. For example, he’s due to receive just a $1 million in each of the final two years of the pact.
Because we’re Islanders fans, long-term contracts always catch our eye. Rick DiPietro’s $67 million, 15-year-deal could lool like a bargain next to Zetterberg’s. DP is in the third year of his deal and is just 27-years-old. Plus, his deal averages to about $4.5 million a season. Some might call that a bargain.
We’re sort of just messing around with this post. At this point in their careers, you can’t compare the two players at all. Zetterberg is a multiple Stanley Cup champion and was the Conn Smythe winner last season when he set a franchise record with 27 postseason points. The guy has been to the mountaintop and played big.
You know we like DP enough but the jury is still out on him.
Our suspicions became reality yesterday when the Islanders announced franchise goaltender Rick DiPietro will sit out the remainder of the season to take care of his twice surgically repaired bum left knee.
The news comes as the Islanders have a vice-like grip on the worst record in the league with just 29 points, 10 points worse than the nearest competition in Ottawa and Atlanta. Yann Danis and Peter Mannino will share the goalkeeping duties until Joey MacDonald comes back in about a month from his groin injury.
The season has been ugly by any measure for DiPietro and the team. The Islanders haven’t won a game in 2009 (0-7-1), have scored the fourth fewest goals (113) and allowed the third most (163). Do they play hard? Sure they do. Are they any good? Hell no.
But this is just one season and it can be forgiven if the team progresses the next few years and is actually building a winner, something GM Garth Snow seems convinced about. The major concern here shouldn’t be the 2008-09 season. In fact, a lousy record will give the Isles a better shot at bigtime prospects John Tavares and Victor Hedman in the draft.
No, the real concern is the fate of Ricky DiPietro, the face of the franchise and, more importantly, its largest investment.
DiPietro is just three years into a record-setting 15-year, $67 million contract. In the past two years, he’s had two surgeries on his left knee, and a procedure on his left hip that ended his 2007-08 season early. He has played in just five games this year.
The Islanders and their physicians say the knee should get better with rest and allow DP to make a healthy return in the 2009-10 season. They better be right. The Islanders have spent DP’s entire career trying to convince fans that DP is the building block to a championship club. He has been amazing in spurts, average in others, and now legitimately carries the label “oft-injured.”
Since joining the club in the 2000-01 season, DP has gone 117-112 with 8 ties and 21 overtime losses. He has posted a 2.79 GAA and a .905 save percentage. By comparison, Roberto Loungo, the keeper DP esssentially replaced, has a career GAA of 2.59 and a save percentage of .919. Surefire Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur has a career GAA of 2.20 and a .913 save percentage. Statistics can be tricky because so much of a keeper’s performance depends upon his teammates and the system in which he plays. Still, DP’s numbers seem like an accurate representation of his career – good but not great.
DP is 27. Are his best years ahead of him? They should be. Which means he has time to become the dominant keeper the Islanders envision. But these injuries are a major concern and are threatening to derail not just a promising career but the entire organization’s strategy.
The story of the 2008-09 Islanders’ goaltending woes just got a new chapter. Wade Dubielewicz, the spunky former backup keeper with the Isles, was supposed to make his triumphant return from Russia and take the keys to the Isles’ net until Rick DiPietro was healthy enough to return. Doesn’t look like that’s happening.
Several news agencies are reporting Dubie instead will be going to the Columbus Blue Jackets, who claimed his rights off of waivers earlier today. That leaves the Isles with Yann Danis, Peter Mannino and, don’t forget, Goalie Coach Mike Dunham (who made himself available in a pinch the other night) and about a million question marks.
To review, DP has played five games this season, Joey MacDonald stepped up and did a decent job for 37 games before getting hurt earlier this week, and now Dubie has slipped through the team’s hands. Don’t get us wrong. We love Dubie but we certainly didn’t expect him to turn this horrific season around. It just, you know, would have been nice to have something work out. Maybe the draft? Too soon to hope?
What new in Islanders Country? Plenty, but none of it good. First off DP’s getting ANOTHER doctor’s opinion on his knee. The $67 Million Dollar Man has started just 5 games for us this season.
Next, one of the few bright spots this season – the emergence of Joey MacDonald as a solid netminder, hit a snag as Joey Mac was hurt just 6 minutes into last night’s game with the Rangers. There are rumors of the Isles talking to Doobie (who’s playing in Russia) about bringing him back.
And finally, another loss. To the Rangers, no less. After leading 1-0 after one period, two quick Ranger goals in the second doomed the Isles. Officially the NHL’s worst team, the Isles have just two wins since November 29th. Tavares or bust.
So much for getting the Rangers at the right place and the right time. The Blueshirts buzzed the Isles with four third period goals and skated away with a 5-4 victory. The Isles fought hard for a while but were on their heels the entire third period.
The $67 Million Dollar Man sat out yet another game. Coach Scott Gordon scratched DiPietro a few hours before the game to give his keeper more time to get over his groin injury. Gordon said he didn’t know when DP would be back in the line-up.
“With a strain, you’re pushing the envelope where you can get through a practice or get through a game, but then if you hurt it, you’re worse off than when you started,” Gordon told Newsday. “So it’s not like there’s a definite timetable.”
DiPietro has played 10 periods this season. The Islanders have one win in December. They’re dead last in the league in points. Is there a silver lining somewhere with this team? Anywhere? I don’t see it.
This might be just what the Isles need to take their recent feisty play to the next level – a road game against the Rangers. The Rangers sit atop the division and the Isles have the fewest points in all of hockey but, the Blueshirts have a way of bringing out the best in the Coliseum Heroes, especially when they play at the Garden.
The Islanders beat the Rangers 2-1 on Nov. 4, in their only meeting at MSG this season. They are 6-2-2 at the Garden in their last 10 contests. Everything I’ve read says Rick DiPietro will be back in net again tonight, and if he’s healthy enough to play that should aid the Isles’ cause. Add to the mix the Rangers’ three-game losing streak and you might want to find your local bookie and put some green down on the OrangeAndBlue.
I’m not saying it’s going to happen but this could be one of those right place at the right time games for the Islanders. And let’s face it, they need all the help they can get.
Oh – and the Jets just fired Eric Mangini. Good riddance. The guy had promise but he never made any progress. He was awful at in-game adjustments and constantly made poor decisions in the heat of battle. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out, big guy. The 2008 Jets were a monumental waste of talent. Favre and Mangini killed that team. Now Woody needs to go get Bill Cowher. OK – enough of this Jet crap.
Let’s Go Islanders!
Rick DiPietro returned from a 27-game absence to grab his first win of the season as the Islanders ended a miserable 10-game losing streak with a 4-1 victory over Toronto. Cue “Welcome Back Kotter” theme song.
All of the problems that have dragged this team down this season are still around but for one game, the Isles gave their fans a good show and looked like a complete team. I’d love to see these guys again. Let’s hope they remember the way to the rink.
Bill Guerin scored twice, with the second tally giving him 400 goals for his career. Good job Billy. Keep ‘em coming.
The geniuses at the NHL Marketing Department were at it again this weekend, with the debut of “Super Saturday” – all 30 teams playing on one night. Great concept, poor execution. Please tell me why they picked an October Saturday with College Football in full swing, the World Series going on, and no games on Versus? As a bonus, there were absolutely no games last night.
Had a family thing Saturday night, so all I saw were the late night highlights on the NHL network. There were quite a few from the Isles/Hurricanes matchup – 57 Islander shots, 54 saves by Cam Ward, a potential game-tying penalty shot with less than 1 second left in regulation, and this…BOOM!
Doug Weight absolutely crushed the ‘Canes rookie Brandon Sutter at center ice with a legal hit. Sutter was knocked unconscious, and spent a couple of nights in the hospital for observation. He’s been released. The hit started a lot of debating about the legality of the hit and what the NHL can do to protect players from hits like these. It certainly doesn’t help the NHL’s image when players are knocked out and taken off the ice like this, but I don’t know how you legislate this out of hockey. Making it some kind of referee’s judgment call on “intent” or “blow to the head” is just going to make it worse. One odd thing about this hit is that Sutter (6′3″) has 4 inches on Weight (5′11″), I expected the opposite when I looked this up.
Around the rink…
- Islanders 3rd jersey unveiling tonight at 5pm before the NYI/NYR game.
- DP out for tonight. He’s being checked out by team doctors today, and then the Isles will come back and tell us nothing. Unless they have to do something drastic like amputate a limb, he will be listed as day to day.
- And finally, speaking of new jerseys check out these sweet new sweaters for this year’s Winter Classic. Funny thing is, Chelios wore the same jersey in his rookie year back in 1926.
Friday night, the Yanks don’t play until 10p, so how about the Islanders Army “Bag of Pucks” link dump makes an appearance this summer?
Haven’t heard any updates on DP’s hip, but his mask continues on in the Tournament of Logos Blog Best Goalie Mask Brackets. After narrowly defeating the Av’s Peter Budaj by just 20 votes, DP faces Tim Thomas of the Bruins and his mask. It’s another nail biter and voting ends on Sunday.
