Newsday: Is it time to rebuild again?

[Dutch Frost]

Wang to Staple-For the good of the New York Islanders organization, it is in our best interest to revoke your press credentials, effective immediately.

Staple to Wang-Yipeeee!

considering the fact that we have a college radio station calling our games and our press core is filled with bloggers who do it for free. I dont think Wang/Snow really care.

Just another example of how this NHL team is run like a minor league mickey mouse franchise.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

considering the fact that we have a college radio station calling our games and our press core is filled with bloggers who do it for free. I dont think Wang/Snow really care.

Just another example of how this NHL team is run like a minor league mickey mouse franchise.

They don't care Dutch, they really don't.

 

[The Underboss]

Oh my god...



He goes on to talk about trading off Vanek and other pieces. This is a complete disaster..

http://www.newsday.com/sports/hocke...028/time-for-isles-to-rebuild-again-1.6554713

IF you rebuild the rebuild Wang better FIRE EVERYONE including HIMSELF. Every single freaking person. Clean house from top to bottom. Even fire the rats that crawl within the bowels of the NVMC. EVERYONE GONE!!!

WTF....NO just go and spend some money and get some decent pieces...

We have solid players in place...we need to add defense and goaltending..
Staple just lost a lot of credibility with me...

Also Barclays wont allow the Isles to go through another rebuild...and what would our captain think???

It would be an extremely fast rebuild 1-2 years max, not this 5-7 year crap.

 

[Levi Walking Bear]

IF you rebuild the rebuild Wang better FIRE EVERYONE including HIMSELF. Every single freaking person. Clean house from top to bottom. Even fire the rats that crawl within the bowels of the NVMC. EVERYONE GONE!!!





It would be an extremely fast rebuild 1-2 years max, not this 5-7 year crap.

Agree, would be a quick rebuild with the right architect, not Wang and every one down.

 

[Richie Daggers Crime]

I don't get how legends like Bossy work for this organization.

Bossy went through a lot of lean years after he retired. He was pretty outspoken back in the day... probably ruffled some feathers. I'm guessing that he's just glad to have a hockey related job.

 

[MattMartin]

The next quote is exactly why the Blackhawks, Kings, and Penguins rebuilds differs from the Islanders rebuild.



IMO, and I said it a couple of seasons ago, the flaw in Snow's rebuild is this idea that you can rebuild exclusively through the draft. That was destined to fail from the beginning because you're putting too much of your chances in the hands of Lady Luck.

The draft is a crapshoot. Even the best drafting teams will only get 2 or 3 NHL players in a given draft. And that's not even saying they'll be NHL stars. Just NHL players who could very well be 4th line forwards or bottom pairing defensemen their entire careers. So for a team to rely entirely on a draft to rebuild, you're basically hoping that a]you're smarter than every other team when it comes to drafting and b]you're incredibly lucky.

Every time someone mentions "rebuilding through the draft", they compare the situation to what lead to the Pens, Hawks, and Kings becoming the contenders that they are. Problem is, look at the veterans that those teams brought in along the way, and look at the veterans Snow has brought in. Those teams built through the draft, but they supplemented that with quality veterans. They didn't do what Snow is doing and basically just surround their talent with castoffs and hopefuls.

So even if Snow decides to blow it up a bit and "rebuild again" like the article suggests, it's still going to be doomed to failure unless he changes one key aspect of his strategy: adding veteran talent to augment the prospects/draft picks along the way. Otherwise, you'll be reading this same article 7 years down the road.

All IMO, of course.

The million dollar question STK. Was it Snow's idea or Wang's cheapness? We have argued this tooth and nail and not one answer has ever came out of this. I have always fallen back on the idea that if it's Wang's money, why in the world would Garth not want to spend it? The only logical conclusion I could come up with is... Wang is/was more concerned about the area surrounding the NVMC then he ever was about the Islanders.

Just imagine if Wang spent all the time and passion he used to help draw up the blueprints on how to win a Cup instead of how to build a a mini NYC.

 

[Axe Man]

The million dollar question STK. Was it Snow's idea or Wang's cheapness? We have argued this tooth and nail and not one answer has ever came out of this. I have always fallen back on the idea that if it's Wang's money, why in the world would Garth not want to spend it? The only logical conclusion I could come up with is... Wang is/was more concerned about the area surrounding the NVMC then he ever was about the Islanders.

Just imagine if Wang spent all the time and passion he used to help draw up the blueprints on how to win a Cup instead of how to build a a mini NYC.

I agree. I have always felt that owning the Islanders was just one small piece in a much bigger venture for Wang. If the Islanders were his number one priority I think things would be very different for this franchise right now.

 

[IslesFanatic]

Charles Wang is a grade A *********. Cheap *******. Snow is a clueless GM. Bad combo. Need to rebuild again? That's friggin brutal. Yeah that worked out last time with these two *******s running the show. They both suck.

 

[Macch]

Sure. We should rebuild every year

 

[frankieboy]

This team needs an Alfredsson-like player.

I agree, but the team needs a lot more than that. We need a guy like him in goal and on D. Plus, we could use 2-3 of him at forward. That is the problem.

 

[frankieboy]

Al Arbour couldn't win with this squad.

I feel your frustration, but I think he could. The team might not be in first in the division, but we would have won many more games. He would have guys like Bailey and Grabner playing better. He would be playing Nelson. He wouldn't be playing Regin and PMB. At least these are my guesses based upon watching the man coach for almost 20 years (I was too young to be much of a fan the first couple of years).

 

[A Pointed Stick]

IF you rebuild the rebuild Wang better FIRE EVERYONE including HIMSELF. Every single freaking person. Clean house from top to bottom. Even fire the rats that crawl within the bowels of the NVMC. EVERYONE GONE!!!

It's all speculation by Staple though. I don't get the level of nausea expressed in here like an Islander executive said it.

But I do find it puzzling that Staple feels comfortable enough to state that. The last time a reporter for Newsday was slightly critical he was frozen out by Snow.

 

[kpap57]

It's all speculation by Staple though. I don't get the level of nausea expressed in here like an Islander executive said it.

But I do find it puzzling that Staple feels comfortable enough to state that. The last time a reporter for Newsday was slightly critical he was frozen out by Snow.

Very true. Usually they are fluff pieces. Makes me wonder if tere is more to this. Maybe a piece to prepare the fans for the trade deadline.

I tell u one thing, if this team decides to rebuild again I am done for a while. Been fan since 96'. So basically my whole fandom has been through a rebuild.

 

[leeroggy]

Al Arbour couldn't win with this squad.

I don't agree with that at all. When he inherited the team in their second year, with FAR less talent then they have now compared to the rest of the league he set ONE GOAL for the second year - CUT DOWN ON THE GOALS AGAINST!

Which they accomplished! They went from 347 GA to 247 GA in ONE YEAR! In year three they went to 221 GA and took a huge step forward when some of the young talent started scoring. This team needs to duplicate that approach to truly move up to contender status.

The fastest way for this team to turn around is to bring in an NHL-experienced coach that would duplicate that effort for the rest of the season and not worry so much about the rest. One such person would be Andy Murray, currently the head coach at WMU. He would be the perfect pick to teach the kids the way to play defense responsibly. Then as the kids mature they are given more of a leash, which is exactly how Arbour did it too (and BTW, Coach K and John Wooden did the same thing too).

This team, which DOES HAVE TALENT, does not have a lot of defensive structure, particularly from the forwards (I love JT but if everyone were being honest he is a real defensive liability in his own zone this year, as just one example). Just getting the team's forwards to be more disciplined in their d-zone positioning would help a lot. Then when the defense corp matures that makes it easier on the goalie.

None of our goalies really have a chance right now because so many of the shots on goal are quality chances. Arbour's defensive strategy was not to worry about how many shots on goal the other team got, but from where. He focused on keeping the shots coming from the wings, not the slot, keep everything wide. His defensemen were more physical back then, making this easier to accomplish. Ours are not so you have to play a more packed in strategy, which means being less aggressive in committing yourself in the zone and when breaking out. Our breakout is trying to utilize speed but we don't have the players who are really good at outlet passing yet and too many neutral zone turnovers are the result.

Arbour would have simplified this team's approach, as would Murray or someone like him (such as a Hitchcock).

Or as Herb Brooks used to say: "Men, you don't have enough talent to win on talent alone". We are trying to play a style that we are not good enough defensively to play well enough to win.

Time to teach our kids a more defensively responsible approach and that approach needs someone like Murray to teach.

 

[A Pointed Stick]

Al Arbour would have walked out of the room in the opening interview after Wang says, "And I will approve everything you do, and I will make changes without your input."

He would never allow himself to be used by an ego-maniacal hockey know-nothing. His pinky has more self respect than the entire Islander organization combined.

 

[Isles Junkie]

This team is an epic failure.. never in my wildest dreams did I expect us to regress this poorly. It is like 2011 all over again.

what value does Okposo and Bailey have now? Grabner gets you nothing. Amac is more worn out then a pole dancer at Queens Blvd strip club.

Rebuild the Rebuild?? We never stop!!!

How on earth could you not see it coming? We have the worst defense in the NHL, and one of the worst goalie situations in the NHL, and one of the worst 5 on 5 teams in the NHL. Of course we were doomed for a lousy season.

 

[Isles Junkie]

Snow has to get fired. That's all there is to it. The rebuild as of right now is a failure. His tenure as GM right now is a failure.

unfortunately Wins & Losses are not how he's being judged as a GM.

 

[Isles Junkie]

How about before trading guys away we bring in a professional coach and see how they do?

Nobody on this team has shown any improvement in their game (JT aside). Whether it be supposed top-six forwards like Bailey/Grabner/Nielsen or checkers like Cizikas and Martin or dmen like Hamonic and AMac, veteran additions like Bouchard and Regin, everyone seems to either plateau or regress when playing for Capuano (not going to count Okposo until he proves he can play without JT).

You play for Capuano and your development stops. That can't be a coincidence. That has to be the first move. If we bring in a real coach you can get rid of the guys that aren't succeeding. But first you have to give them the chance.

Not only is firing cap the right move, it's also the easiest & cheapest move.

 

[Team Cozens]

WTF....NO just go and spend some money and get some decent pieces...

We have solid players in place...we need to add defense and goaltending..
Staple just lost a lot of credibility with me...


Also Barclays wont allow the Isles to go through another rebuild...and what would our captain think???

How do you rebuild when you are handcuffed with your 1st round draft pick in either 2014 or in the highly touted 2015???

 

[MJF]

If the rebuild starts in the owners suite, I'm all for it.

Until that happens, a rebuild will be pointless because Wang's Islanders are not about winning first. They are about managing a budget.

 

[On Edge]

How about before trading guys away we bring in a professional coach and see how they do?

Nobody on this team has shown any improvement in their game (JT aside). Whether it be supposed top-six forwards like Bailey/Grabner/Nielsen or checkers like Cizikas and Martin or dmen like Hamonic and AMac, veteran additions like Bouchard and Regin, everyone seems to either plateau or regress when playing for Capuano (not going to count Okposo until he proves he can play without JT).

You play for Capuano and your development stops. That can't be a coincidence. That has to be the first move. If we bring in a real coach you can get rid of the guys that aren't succeeding. But first you have to give them the chance.

If there is ONE reason that Capuano should be fired, this is it. Of all the reasons - and there are many - that justify letting Capuano go, this is #1 as well as a good reason to let Snow go too.

How can can any organization who is looking to improve through player development allow virtually all of it's players to regress without addressing the problem? The reason? The owner does not give a damn.

 

[Sparksrus3]

Rebuild again? 8 wins 22 losses. 5 regulation wins in 30 games. We are hot on the heals of buffalo. Don't change a thing. What's the point? 4 more years and JT is off to TML. There is no shot at a rebuild. It's never or never. Time to rebuildus

 

[MikeT98213]

There is no point in another rebuild as long as Snow is the GM. He's proven time and again that he's clueless and I'm not giving him a pass because of any budgetary restrictions. He's gotten by on his drafting of Tavares and a couple of waiver wire finds but his overall body of work sucks which is why it is last season's playoff team that was the aberration.

Sadly, he and Wang are fused at the hip so there is literally no hope unless and until Wang sells and a real GM is put in charge.

I've stopped watching since it is just too painful. The team is deficient in too many areas and I put the blame squarely on Snow who did NOTHING to address any of those weaknesses. The idea that he felt the defense and goaltending was at least NHL average is an absurdity and, as fans, we should all be tired of being subjected to this brand of hockey "management."

Milbury and Snow...could there be two worse GMs in the history of any sport?

 

[lacunacoil777]

People are ungrateful and are complaining for nothing. YOu are all forgetting, we are the only team not overpaying anyone --in pro sports. We have no long term money tied up in anyone...so we can sign those future great players we have like that josh bailey..kyle okiposo...oh hes going to be a good one that kyle...we gotta have cap room so we don't have to trade palyers away after winning our first cup like those unlucky Blackhawks had to since they didn't plan ahead to keep the payroll way under the cap...we are priming for a great team with this cap room! Thank god we got such a smart GM and owner who gets it!......<----How many of these posts did we read the last 6 years?

 

[CaptDenisPotvin]

Do we have to rebuild the rebuild? My answer is yes AND no....yes because some of it is useless, mainly bailey who was supposed to be part of the "core" is a disaster at this point and has to go. Mcdonald of defense imo was supposed to be part of the "core" is way overrated and also has to be shown the door along with Viz because of his advanced age, his talent can get us something at the deadline. Others that should go are regin, PMB, Carkner and possibly Grabs if we get a decent return.

The "No" portion is because when we started this rebuild we didnt have ANYBODY with serious talent at the NHL level or in the minors. Now we have talent like JT and Hammer long with Strome and all the defensive prospect in the minors. I dont think its so much a rebuild as it is a cleansing of the trash that we have hung on to for too long.


On a side note, i hope Moulson continues to struggle in buffalo and he realizes he needs JT as much as JT needs him. In the long run it might have cost the islanders a 1st and a 2nd (or even less if they flip Vanek for a pick) to find out it wasnt as much of a one way street as everyone thought. Hopefully we didnt burn a bridge to badly with Moulson and next year we can just forget all about this season.