Hello, my name is Kevroc and I am covering the Isles for GeekJock this season. I was excited to get busy and write a blog entry full of hope and promise but, then came the preseason scrimmages….

Boom, Mark Streit (shoulder) out six months. Bang, Kyle Okposo (shoulder) out two months. There goes arguably the best d-man and forward on the team. When you think Islanders and “injury”, a certain Rick DiPietro comes to mind. Well, he is supposedly healthy coming into this season, so there is a positive. If he can’t go, Dwayne Roloson and his 40+ year old self will be in the nets, as Marty Biron is now wearing a rags jersey.

The power play is going to suffer the most with the losses of Streit and Okposo. The burden is really going to fall on the (shoulders) of Tavares, Moulson and Bailey. It will be interesting to see if Trent Hunter has anything left as he has surely lost a step or two over the last couple seasons. Also, I am very curious how much Rob Schremp will/can contribute to the club this year. He has the skills and will get his chances to climb the depth chart. Blake Comeau finished last season with an eye opening flourish and can surely improve. Frans Nielsen has been an unsung stud. On any other team he could be a showcase player, I’m actually surprised he still wears an Isles jersey. Looking forward to another season of watching him.  The off-season moves were more of the defensive nature and little if any scoring punch was added. Losses of Bergenheim and Tambellini are hardly tempered by the addition of P.A. Parenteau!First round draft pick Nino Niederreiter is just 18 years old but, don’t be surprised if he gets a chance to contribute. Yes, there is a lot of youth out there and some fragility but, have no fear! The off-season move that will probably end up being the fans favorite move was the addition of enforcer Zenon Konopka. Only 6’0 205 but, this scrappy personality rolled up 265 PIMs last season with the lightning and I look forward to seeing him mix it up out there.

But, the blue line is most definitely deeper with the acquisitions of Jurcina, Eaton and Wisniewski. That depth will be called upon early with Streit on the shelf for six months. As it remains to be seen at the time of this writing if they will make a move for one of the d-men currently on the waiver wire. The most prominent names on that short list are Sheldon Souray, Wade Redden or 40+ year old Mathieu Schneider. The returning d-men from last year are not a bunch to get overly excited about either though. Radek Martinek has an ambulance that follows him around the ice just in case, Bruno Gervais seems like a stalled talent. He seems to have topped out and frankly is a disappointment in my opinion. The two returnees that I look forward to watching are Jack Hillen and Andy MacDonald. Hillen has wheels and will see a huge leap in icetime. MacDonald was super impressive in my eyes last year. The 24 year old who has spent many years in the AHL, has made very few mistakes and has proven to be ultra-reliable.

While most of the goal scoring will most likely come from the Tavares, Moulson, Bailey and Neilsen, Scott Gordon will have to be creative on special teams. The power play is in need of a quarterback during Streit’s absence. Martinek can move it a bit, and perhaps Doug Weight who returns for another season. The PK unit is going to be an adventure. I’m sure Jon Sim will be a big part of it but, the loss of Richard Park is disasterous. He was a penalty-killing gem.

All in all, I would like to say that this team could battle for a bottom four playoff spot but, with their best d-man missing the first six months and team leader Okposo out for two months… it looks like a possible lottery pick finish. But, with that being said, this is still a team worth watching this season. There is a ton of budding talent here and there will no doubt be some highlight reel action. The expectations are low but, there will be excitement. Especially if you are studying sports medicine or physical therapy.

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