Kelly's firing the wrong move?

The decision made, Paul Kelly was officially dismissed as NHLPA executive Director at 3:30 this morning. According to the official press release the board overwhelmingly voted to relieve Kelly of his duties due to what is being reported by TSN “Whispers of unhappiness with Kelly's distance with some players and perception Kelly may have been too close to the NHL commissioners office.” With that weak excuse the NHLPA will have a lot to answer to today when or if they address the media.

Kelly who took over the job in 2007 has had the support of many media and blogger personalities From Tsn and the The Hockey News to Puck Daddy and HockeyBuzz’s Dee Karl. Now all of them are asking what’s next? Who will take Kelly’s place? And why was fired in the first place? Many have now started speculating what the aftermath could be and several have even mentioned another work stoppage in the near future. Although the thoughts are a tad radical they are not out of the question, but in any event this situation does not bode well for the fans or the league. The league, more notable the players take a major PR hit for their more or less shocking news to let Kelly go and have instantly taken a beating left and right for firing what seems to have been a qualified labor lawyer doing a good job of watching out for his players but also managing to work with the NHL cooperatively. Looking at the other side of the spectrum, the fans now have to watch and wait to see who is appointed the new Executive Director and how he will operate with the league, owners and players and if this will have in any way an impact on how the game is played and even another possible work stoppage (which would be a major hit to the league possible alienating their fans once again.) So in short this mess NEEDS to be addressed, and fixed as quickly as possible so no permanent damage is done.

"Silli Times" and DP finally speaks!

After spending 17 years in the NHL, the last 3 of which he spent on Long Island Mike Sillinger hung up his skates for good yesterday ending a career in which this NHL journeymen played for a record setting 12 different teams throughout his career.

"Today is a sad day for my family and I, but it's a new beginning. I'm so grateful to have played so long in the NHL," Sillinger said. "I thank the organizations and teammates who made my career a great success. I'm leaving hockey with many accomplishments and memories."

Following two procedures on his left hip, Sillinger said “things did not feel right and it wasn’t due to old age or his body not healing right “ giving that as his only concern.

“We were very fortunate to have Mike as a member of our organization,” Snow said. “There will be a lasting effect with the impressions he made, especially on our young players.” But Garth snow has decided to fill the void from within but added “they are big shoes to fill.”

In other news the Islanders finally brought Rick Dipietro out of witness protection to address the unintentional challenge by Islanders point blank’s Chris Botta. The very next day after Botta posted on both his site and SNY the Islanders GM and Rick Dipietro called Islanders beat writer Katie Strang of Newsday to tell fans and the NHL world that Rick’s progress is right on schedule (whatever schedule that may be).

"So far, everything has been positive. I've done everything under the sun to get stronger and into better shape…….I'm going to come back and play when I'm 100 percent healthy. I'm not gonna make another mistake and rush myself back." Dipietro told Newsday over the phone.

He also mention his strict rehab schedule which they maintained all along and tried not to get away from. Rick also credits GM Garth Snow for adding depth at the position by signing Dwayne Roloson and Martin Biron.

The one thing of concern he mentioned in his interview with Newsday was he still has ambitions to play in the 2010 winter Olympics if he is healthy. "If I'm healthy……why would I not want to play?''
To answer your question Rick, SO YOU DON’T RE-INJURE YOURSELF! I understand the thrill and honor of representing ones country but right now your focus should be on coming back strong and healthy so you can live up to your contract and become a useful member of the Islanders (for other than looking pretty and signing autographs). So for now Rick is slowly coming back and he will be put back under lock and key to every fan and media member.

My Introduction and My first Blog

Hello everyone, my name is Eric Ritter and Christian A. has asked me to join the ranks of the Islanders Crazy Blog and I am very happy to do so. Some of you may recognize my name if you have seen any of my Youtube videos throughout last season, my channel name was TalkinHockey. Christian discovered me on there and asked that I join this blog and bring overall NHL coverage outside the normal Islanders he and other Long Island diehards post; and I will be happy to do so throughout the year. If you like my work, there are a few other places I'd like you to check out. One is hockeytube.com/us/ the domain owner for that website also discovered me on Youtube and ask that I be the NHL analyst for his site. It is a very new site and just launched and is still in its early stages, but as we get rolling closer towards the NHL season the site will start to take shape. The other place I'd like you to visit is my Twitter, please follow me at EricHockeytube. I promise no personal tweets, only short quips about the NHL that are noteworthy, but not necessarily deserving of an entire blog or video. Checking out my Twitter and hockeytube.com/us/ would mean a lot to me, but being a part of this blog is also important to me and I hope to bring reading worthy blogs to your fine site.
Below is the first blog I would like to post on your site, it is about the San Jose Sharks and I wrote shortly after they were eliminated from the playoffs back in April. So while the main idea of the article/blog may be a bit outdated, the general idea/opinion is still there, plus it gives you all an idea of my writing style and ability. I look forward to any and all feedback, questions and comments and look forward to spending this season with the Islanders Crazy blog readers. Thanks for welcoming me, I'm quite happy to be aboard!

Time For San Jose Roster Renovation is Now

It seems as if heading into October each of the past three seasons, all you heard was that “this is San Jose’s year.” With a new head coach in rookie bench boss Todd McLellan and a face lifted defense, that was enough for prognosticators to overlook three straight years of second round playoff exits and proclaim the Sharks favorites to win the Stanley Cup in the 09 season.
And when you consider the start San Jose got off to, many doubters started to become believers.
The Sharks burst out of the gate going 16-3-1 in the first quarter of their 08-09 campaign. They shot to the top of the league standings and camped there most of the season.
Despite struggles during the third-quarter of their season, the Sharks pulled it together down the stretch, setting team records for wins (53), points (117) and winning the franchise’s first ever Presidents’ Trophy.
Heading into the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Shark fans and players alike felt confident with their opponent. Anaheim seemingly did its best down the stretch to not make the playoffs despite getting in as the eighth seed. The Sharks won the season series 4-2 over the Ducks and boasted 11 more wins and 26 more points than their California adversary.
But six games in, the Sharks were out.
After an abysmal start to the 05-06 season coming out of the NHL lockout, it took the acquisition of Joe Thornton to turn the team and the season around. Thanks mainly to the Thornton trade and solid goaltending by Evgeni Nabokov, San Jose made the postseason that year, and the next two years to follow.
The Sharks had been good for one series win each of the last three years, but had also been good for getting the boot in the second round.
So how could San Jose regress and not even win a series the same year they set franchise records and lead the league?
When Detroit eliminated San Jose from the playoffs in 2007, the speculation of a roster renovation in the offseason began. But the team kept its primary pieces together, only to again get eliminated in the second round by Dallas last year.
But rather than redoing the roster, former coach Ron Wilson was fired, and McLellan was brought in. Having been groomed under Mike Babcock in Detroit, Sharks Vice President and General Manager Doug Wilson thought that the puck-possession style of play McLellan would teach the players would be more beneficial than blowing up the roster and starting over.
The success achieved in the regular season now means nothing since McLellan and the Sharks were sent home in the first round for the first time since 2001. The six game series loss gives San Jose a 20-21 playoff record since the lockout; a losing postseason record for a team that has won 197 games in the last four regular seasons.
The top players always receive the largest amount of blame, so fingers once again are likely to be pointed at the likes of Thornton, Jonathan Cheechoo and now former team captain Patrick Marleau, none of which are older than 30. The team as a whole is primarily young, the only two players on the opening roster that were over 35 were Jeremy Roenick and Rob Blake.
So, in a league where a large percentage of the superstars are under 25, why would San Jose want to have a fire sale and shake up the roster? The answer: Chemistry.
Chemistry is one of, if not the most important aspect of a hockey team. No matter how good a roster may look on paper, if there is no chemistry, there is no success. Just look at the rosters of the New York Rangers and Washington Capitals at the turn of the century for proof; all-star players littered their line up, but that still wasn’t enough to get either team close to the playoffs.
It’s apparent after four straight years of failure in the post season that San Jose has a group capable of great things during the regular season, but they also have a group that lacks the spark necessary to collectively raise one another’s game come April.
San Jose shouldn’t move any of the 25 and younger players on their roster, they are the true foundation. And Nabokov logically isn’t going anywhere. So revert to the aforementioned Thornton, Cheechoo and Marleau, trade them for pieces that could better benefit your team.
Thornton is one of the top set-up men and playmakers in the league, the type of center Columbus has been searching for to play with Rick Nash. Cheechoo can be a brilliant goal scorer; there's a team on Long Island that had trouble finding the back of the net last season, give them a call. And Marleau is a gritty veteran that can score but isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. There’s a mess in Ottawa a leader like him could certainly help to clean up and San Jose has shown interest in Dany Heatley. Heatley for Marleau anyone?
Big disappointments calls for big change, and after four years, it’s time for San Jose to pull the trigger on some blockbuster deals that’ll shake up the appearance, and hopefully success, of the team. With a solid cast of young players on both offense and defense, and one of the best goalies in the league manning their net, San Jose may be just a trade, or three, away from finally bringing a Cup to the fans at the Shark Tank.
-ER

This week in Islanders hockey (and patrick Kane's arrest)

Well my first post in over a week was going to be purely about the recent Islanders news, but low and behold I head over to TSN.com to see the following headline, KANE ARRESTED. That’s right, Patrick Kane Chicago’s star center was arrested along with cousin for allegedly assaulting and robbing a cab driver this morning in his hometown of Buffalo, New York. This is just the latest in series of summer messes for the resurgent Blackhawks, who made it all the way to western conference finals this past season. The off-season is where things have started to unravel. From the NHL investigation into the mishandling of qualifying offer contracts, the firing of Dale Tallon as GM, the bust that may be the Marian Hossa signing, and the ensuing investigation into his 12 year contract. Now Kane has added another chapter to this off-season to forget for Blackhawks fans.

Now back to news from Long Island, last Tuesday RFA Blake Comeau signed a 2 year, one way after initially rejecting his qualifying offer for more money and a one way deal.

Tuesday was the big Lighthouse hearing at Hofstra university which was covered by every Isles/hockey blog except mine. I wont be writing about it because by now its been all covered. If you still want coverage check out the blogroll.

Next on the list is The Hockey News’s preseason predictions are being revealed one by one each day and on the first day of revealing the predictions THN has them last in the eastern conference. Although there points are pretty dead on about why they could finish last in the Atlantic division, they fail to convince me why they could finish last in the conference. With the improved goalie situation and the improvement in the Isles young players I don’t see why they couldn’t at least be ranked 12 or 13. THN writer Adam Proteau isn’t as glum about the Islanders as his colleagues are giving them a shot to land anywhere between 12 and 14 in the east.

This Saturday individual tickets for the Islanders season finally go on sale after much anticipation following the release of their schedule. It features the yearly favorite Islander-Ranger rivalry games, but this years hot ticket will be the home/season opener which is a match up that features the defending Stanley cup champion Pittsburg penguins. Oh and to make the game even bigger it will be John Tavares’s NHL debut.
Tickets go on sale at 10 am at the team stores in Hicksville and Massapequa and it will be a fun event to stop by and pick up tickets because sparky, a couple islander players and chances to win Islanders prizes will be going on all morning.

That’s all for now check back later for more Isles new.

Chris Botta of Islanders Point Blank speaks: Focus on Tuesday's Lighthouse hearing.