Tag Archive for 'charles-wang'
…so consider the following SI.com photo gallery link 27,000 words about how the Islanders became synonymous with “suck”, “circus”, and “farce”. Thanks to an old co-worker/Toronto fan for the link. No really, you shouldn’t have. Great to hear from you too…how’s that Jason Blake signing working out?
Watch the Isles go from this proud moment - Stanley Cup Champions, top of the world…
To this confused mess, throwing money into a seemingly bottomless pit…
All your favorite Islander low-lites are accounted for…Ron Hextall, Fishsticks, John Spano, Alexei Yashin, Dale Hunter, Dave Chyzowski, Brett Lindros, Don Maloney, Kirk Muller, Mad Mike Milbury, Neil Smith, Cryin’ Ryan Smyth, and the aging Nassau Coliseum. Normally I’m not big on Vanilla Ice quotes, but “Will it ever stop? Yo, I don’t know!” is just too fitting for this franchise.
Cue the circus music. Charles Wang’s Three Ring (rink?) Circus is back in town. Citing “philosophical differences” Ted Nolan has left the Islanders.
Added Nolan: “While I am disappointed I will not be coaching the Islanders next season, there have been philosophical differences and we’ve agreed it’s a good time for me to move on. I want to thank the Islanders organization for giving me a chance to coach in the NHL again. I have tremendous respect for what the team is trying to do and I wish them well.”
You’ve got to be kidding me? Let’s recap…Isles hire coach Ted Nolan, former Coach of the Year, the move is generally applauded. Isles hire GM Garth Snow, former backup goalie, the move is ridiculed across the league and especially the hockey blogosphere. Just another punchline to the league’s biggest joke - Spano, Fishsticks, ice girls, sumo goalies, and backup goalies running the team. So when there are philosophical differences, who would YOU keep?
Dear Coach Nolan, Thanks for trying. You gave it your best with the players you had and overachieved in 2006/07. Last year, the team started down that same path until injuries took their toll. It certainly wasn’t your fault. I have the utmost respect for you and have a feeling it won’t be as long as last time before some NHL team starts calling you.
Oh those tricky Isles. Just when the hockey world figures they know what they are going to do next, Charles Wang reminds everyone who’s in charge here. The Isles traded down from the 5th overall pick not once, but twice to end up at 9th overall. Along the way they picked up two 2008 second round draft picks and a 2009 third round pick. Then they went and picked Josh Bailey, who was pretty below the radar - ranked 14th overall by NHL Central Scouting. Here are some Bailey highlights.
Another day in the NHL and another multi-year, multi-million dollar contract being signed. The Washington Capitals locked up super-stud Alexander Ovechkin to a 13-year $124 million dollar contract yesterday.
Crazy. Insane. Asinine. All these words were thrown around last year when Islanders owner Charles Wang signed Rick DiPietro to a 15-year deal. Here’s another word for you…trend! Philadelphia signed Mike Richards to a 12-year deal just a couple of weeks ago, now Ovie, who’s next? Sid the Kid is already locked up for another 4 seasons, but surely we haven’t seen the last mega-deal of this new NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Ovie gets $9 million a year for the first 6, and $10 million a year for the last 4. That buys a lot of Crocs, or even some real ^$@%! shoes.
In addition the awesome graphic above that I borrowed, our friends at FauxRumors had a nice write about Wang and Ovie’s deal. FAUXRUMORS: Wang: Visionary or Nut? Great title.
1) When it was announced late yesterday that the Washington Capitals have extended the contract for their super star left wing Alex Ovechkin to an unprecedented 13 years we couldn’t help but wonder if Mr. Wang was quietly chuckling to himself. After all, until this year such contracts were unheard of in non-Islander quarters.
2) You may recall that earlier this season the Flyers extended the contract for forward Mike Richards for 12 additional seasons. Is there a trend developing here? Did the NY Islanders/Wang know something that others didn’t last year when they signed Rick DiPietro to a 15 year deal? As we wrote after the Richards deal, many fewer folks derided the Flyers for that contract like the hockey media did when the Isles gave Ricky his. Now, only 16 months later Charles Wang is looking more like a visionary and less like a Kook (at least on this issue)
They have 4 more points to make…check out the whole article.
Just posted on NewYorkIslanders.com. More on Simon later tonight when I get home.
This afternoon, the New York Islanders released the following pair of statements from owner Charles Wang and veteran forward Chris Simon. As the statements indicate, Simon has been granted some time away from the team.
From Charles Wang:
“The actions of Chris Simon on Saturday do not reflect what the New York Islanders stand for. They were reckless, potentially dangerous and against our team concept of grit, character and heart.
“We know Chris as a respected teammate and as a gracious man away from the playing surface and believe strongly that he has earned our continued support. The Islanders are going to provide some time for Chris away from the team and give him the counseling he needs and the compassion he deserves. When Chris is completely ready, he will be a member of our team again.”
From Chris Simon:
“I want to start off by making clear that there is no excuse for my actions on Saturday night and I apologize to everyone involved.
“The Islanders and I agree that the right thing to do is for me to take some time away from the team. I have enjoyed a long career achieving my dream of being a player in the National Hockey League and I’m proud of my accomplishments. But I acknowledge that time and assistance is needed before I return to the game.
“I want to thank the Islanders for providing the environment for me to become a better player and person, and our fans for their support along the way.”
From the NYI Media Blog run by Corey Witt, New York Islanders Media Relations Coordinator, here are 5 of the 10 new things you’ll find at the Coliseum this season. Click over to Corey’s blog to see the whole list.
1) DP’s new pads – Ricky re-designed the goalie pads he’s worn for the last season and half.
2) Team Apparel – From hats to shirts to pucks, you’ll find all new NYI apparel from the 2007-08 season.
3) All White Dashers – What now? The NHL has a new rule that all dasher board signage must have a white background. Everything will look a bit crisper on the boards now.
4) New Halo Graphics – The NYI Game Ops. crew designed the graphics for penalties and whistles.
5) New Jersey’s – The Islanders will wear blue tonight and it’ll give most fans the first opportunity to see them in game action.
There is one glaring oversight by Corey - it was reported and confirmed on the Islanders Fan Yahoo Group that the Chicken Dance has returned to the Nassau Coliseum! Apparently someone finally convinced Wang that “suck” is not really a four letter word.
Dada dada dada da, dada dada dada da, the Rangers suck!
After just 48 hours of UFA signings saw the Islanders lose four players, sign just one 3rd-liner, and watched our division rivals add some of the biggest names on the UFA market, all is NOT well in Uniondale. From the NY Islanders Country message board, to the IslanderFans.com message board, and even Islanders Army’s own comment section, the reaction from fans has not been positive. People are calling the Islanders’ offices to complain, others are canceling season tickets, and others are calling Snow and Wang unprintable names.
Since yesterday’s “Patience” press release did little to soothe the masses, today the Islanders brought out the big guns…The Boss!
We believed that Garth made the right moves and that Ted got everything he could out of the players sitting in front of him on the bench and when he couldn’t, well, those guys didn’t play or received significantly less ice time. We believed that Garth and Ted had a plan for the future and weren’t going to waiver from that plan.
Since July 1st the plan hasn’t changed. We want players that want to play on Long Island and who will show what we all think Long Island deserves. A team that goes out every night with the right attitude, grit, character and dedication, to themselves, their teammates and fans. We tried to sign 2 of those players who fit exactly that mold. Unfortunately those 2 players chose to play out West instead of here. Whatever their reasons were, it does not matter anymore. What matters is that Garth and Ted are sticking to their guns and will not change their course of thinking.
Will it work to calm down fans? Probably not. But hey, we’re suckers for any Bossy-related news.
The Ryan Smyth era is over in Long Island. Unlike in Edmonton, there was no press conference and no tearful goodbye from Smyth this time. Instead it is us, loyal Islanders fans who are left crying over prospects and draft picks we traded away for Smyth, and our other UFA’s we neglected to sign because we thought we could sign Smyth.
Snow and Wang bet the house on #94 but the wheel came up double-zeros. Jim Baumbach at Newsday.com sums it up nicely.
You can give the Islanders credit for acting boldly and aggressively at the trade deadline. They traded for the best player available in the hopes of (a) a long playoff run, and/or (b) convincing Ryan Smyth to sign a long-term contract.
But if you’re going to put the future of your franchise on the line for such a move, you need to be certain that one of those things is going to happen. Of course neither did, putting yet another forgettable chapter in the Islanders history books.
Do you hear that sound in the distance? I think that’s laughter coming from Alexei Yashin’s Old Westbury estate.
The Islanders decision-makers must have woken up this morning in serious damage-control mode. The player they so desperately wanted to build around – Smyth – spurned them, big-time. He was en route to Denver this morning, around the same time the Islanders were probably scratching their heads.
So the Islanders have nothing to show for the two prospects, Robert Nilsson and Ryan O’Marra, and the 2007 first-round selection that they sent to Edmonton for Smyth. That’s a steep price to pay for what proved to be a rental player.
Of couse, there was an actual press conference yesterday, except it was in Colorado, where everyone was all smiles. Smyth even put on a good show and said all the right things about the Islanders organization when asked…without crying.
Question: Ryan, the sacrifices the Islanders made to get you, did you feel any duty or loyalty to them based on the chances they took to acquire you?
Smyth: That’s a great question because what they gave up at the trade deadline to acquire me. Right from the get-go, they treated us with a great deal of respect. They gave us every opportunity to want to come back there. I have a great deal of respect for that organization. I think for what went on at the start of the year, with Garth Snow taking over and Teddy Nolan head coach, they just treated us well. Yeah, it played a little bit of a role. They were right there to the bitter end. We were back-and-forth with a few different teams and obviously Colorado. I hope nothing but the best for them. They have a bright future of young players in their organization. I really do thank them for what they did.
Don’t feel so bad buddy, at least you got 2 prospects and a draft pick out of the deal.
This is it. The last time I mention Ryan Smyth until he returns to the Coliseum in an Avalanche jersey and we boo him every time he touches the puck.
Going, going…
An update from Kuklas Korner says Smyth’s agent was just on Leafs Lunch (Toronto sportsradio show) and that Smyth will test the market.
Don Meehan, agent for Ryan Smyth was just on Leafs Lunch. A once in a lifetime opportunity for Smyth to see what his value is. The Islanders have made an offer, but Smyth wants to see what he is worth on the open market.
Also, cap numbers have been set, Ceiling is $50.3M and floor is $34M and maybe some change.
Disappointing, but not unexpected. I’m sure the Islanders offer is still on the table, but they are about to have lots of competition. Plus you have to figure if Smyth really wanted to stay on Long Island, he would have taken Wang’s best offer by now. I think Smyth may have just become the Islanders most expensive rental player in team history. Three first round picks for 18 regular season games and 5 playoff games.
Garth, before you leave the office tonight, make sure you have Briere and Drury agent’s phone numbers saved on your cell.
Which of these two men would you rather say “no” to?With less than 72 hours until Ryan Smyth and all the other NHL Unrestricted Free Agents (UFA) hit the market, TSN is reporting the Islanders are preparing one last mega-deal to persuade Smyth to sign before the July 1st UFA market opens up.
There is a strong sense the Islanders are about to hit the 31-year-old with an offer he may not be able to refuse.
Speculation suggests the Isles are preparing an offer above $6-million per year over a 7 - 8 year term.
Since day one of the trade, the Islanders have said they were serious about keeping Smyth on Long Island. Considering all they gave up to get Smyth, it’s good to see the effort they are making to keep him here. Unfortunately the ultimate decision is not up to them, and even a blank check from Wang might not be good enough to keep Smyth here. At this point, I can’t imagine Smyth not at least testing the market to see what other offers are out there. I think there will be a good amount of news to report on next week.
