Well, hi everybody.  I’m going to make this short and sweet for now.  Just kinda wanted to update everyone and let them know that I am indeed alive and still love this blog very much.

The fact of the matter was that there were some stuff in my life that I needed to take care of for my own sake that forced me to take my attention off hockey for a few weeks, not as serious as you may think…but I just kinda needed to get my life back on track.

I’ll be back with a more full updated report after I get home from my new job (I’m starting today!)  Wish me luck…

Thanks again everyone…

You know, I was writing something completely different, watching ESPN2 and the Giants/Nationals game, and with one swing of a bat by Barry Bonds, everything I was writing got pushed aside.

First off, congratulations to Barry Bonds for hitting career home run #756. He absolutely CRUSHED the ball and he and everyone else knew from the moment it left his bat that it was out of there.

Now, lets put away all of this debate of steroids-this and steroids-that, this is an absolutely historic moment that will be remembered for a long time. This was THE record in all of sports to break, and someone actually did it. You’re not going to see this everyday folks.

Kudos to Hank Aaron for preparing a pre-taped speech and for the classy words he said. He didn’t have to do that, but he did, and I applaud that.

Kudos to Mike Bacsik for tipping his cap to Barry afterwards. He didn’t have to do that. His name will now be etched in history, just like Al Dowling when he gave up Hank Aaron’s homerun.

We also saw a very rare moment of emotion by Barry, recognizing his father, Bobby Bonds, up in the heavens. It was something that we’ll probably never see again, just like this moment.

I just missed home run 755 by a few innings, I’m extremely grateful to see this live on TV.

I don’t know about you, but this was a very historic moment and I’m going to revel in it for a little bit. For those who watched this moment on TV just like I did, you should too…

Wow, has it really been since the 11th since I’ve updated this?  Wow, well I do have my European trip excuse.  Which was beautiful by the way.  Not much has happened in Islanders Country since I’ve been gone, and I guess you can say that’s a good thing.

Onto some news, it looks like the Islanders will visit the Bridge again this preseason for an exhibition game against the Devils.  This will be the second year in a row that these two teams will be tilting at Harbor Yard.  I, for one, love these games and it brings up some fond memories for me.  the first game I covered was an Islanders preseason game at Bridgeport in 2003 against the Boston Bruins.  I remember it vividly…Islanders 5-3 win over the Bruins, Steve Stirling led the Islanders to a perfect 7-0 preseason that year.  Ah…the memories…

Oh, more good news.  I’ve been named as one of the first members of the NYI Blog Box!   I’m very excited for the opportunity, and in kind, have created my own blog, The Tiger Track.  Over at the Tiger Track, I’ll be focusing on all the former Sound Tigers that are now playing with the New York Islanders in the NHL.  Guys like Trent Hunter, Chris Campoli, Sean Bergenheim, Wade Dubielewicz, and much more.

I’ll also be doing some retrospectives on some of the greatest games from the Bridgeport Sound Tigers last season as well, from my perspective as a writer being enthralled with the action.  It should be fun.  I’ll place a link in the sidebar as well for easy clicking.  And you’ll be sure I’ll be pimping it every chance I get!

That’s it for now, I’ll be back very soon…

(Yeah, Chris Botta stole my would-be-”Slapshot” reference!)

Well, what a couple of days can do for Islanders fans. Just a few days ago, Isles fans were writing this team off as quickly as their income taxes with the departures of Smyth, Blake, Kozlov, Poti, and Zednik, and honestly, I didnt blame them. I was on the “Rome is burning” bandwagon just like everyone else, but I also held out hope as well that Garth and Teddyhad some sort of plan in their back pockets.

Billy Guerin and Mike Comrie instantly make up for the goal production lost from Blake and Smyth.  Ruslan Fedotenko is almost a perfect replacement for Kozlov, providing that he can return to his 26-goal form in the 2005-2006, plus he seems like a player that Ted Nolan can get the most out of with his speedy and relentless play.  And Jon Sim is a nice little gritty 3rd-4th line center that can pop 10-15 goals.

I think this team is getting better and better.

Also have some other minor signings and trades to report and analyze.  I will get to that in a bit.

Until then…

Nope, that’s not referencing Toronto Blue Jay’s DH Frank Thomas, but for many Islander fans, July 1 really feels like a kick in the proverbial gut.

July 1 is free agent day, and the rumours were flying.  Excitement was in the air at Islanders Iceworks during the Islanders Prospect Camp.  But as the day progressed for Isles fans, the news got dimmer and dimmer…very…slowly…

Lets take a look at who has been lost…

~Jason Blake - Toronto (5 yrs./$20 mil)
~Viktor Kozlov - Washington (2 yrs./$5 mil)
~Richard Zednik - Florida (2 yrs./$3 mil)
~Tom Poti - Washington (4 yrs./$14 mil)

and finally… Ryan Smyth - Colorado (5 yrs./$31.25 mil)

Now, I totally can live with the loss of Zednik (who wasn’t even qualified) and Kozlov.  They won’t be missed much by me.  Poti’s loss hurts, but IMO, he’s not worth $3.5 million a year.  He needed another year to prove that worth.  The loss of Blake was obviously expected, and I wasn’t surprised to see the five years out there.   The Smyth loss though, that hurt the most.  I knew Colorado was the obvious suitor that was trying to lure Smytty away, so that wasn’t surprising.  The fact that surprises me is that Smytty took LESS money to go to Colorado, as opposed to stay here on Long Island.  One would think where Smyth was traded from Edmonton because he wasn’t being offered enough money, that would go to the team that offered him more.  We always knew to expect the unexpected with the ISlanders, and this one certainly came as a shocker for sure.

But now, the Isles have some serious issues to address.  They just lost this season their top three scorers (Smyth [granted w/ EDM], Yashin, Blake), their most reliable defenseman (Poti), and another 20-goal scorer (Kozlov).   When you look around the league, I see the Flyers getting Briere for a ridiculous 8-year deal, the Rangers inking Drury and Gomez, Kariya (who was strongly rumoured as a potential backup to Smyth) going with St. Louis, and all the Isles have to show for it is Jon Sim.  Not a very impressive opening IMO.

Garth and Co. better be making waves instead of splashes now, because the pool is draining…

You know, I was gonna come on the blog and do a little Islanders Draft review. But something happened in the sports world on Monday that made me sick to my stomach and has really garnered all of my time in researching and reading the news for the past two days. And since it’s been a little bit since I’ve gotten my personal feelings across, this is a good time to delve into the mind of Tom Liodice.

For those that know me personally, know that I have always been a huge fan of professional wrestling, mainly WWE, but I appreciated the art and sport of professional wrestling. I’ve even interviewed with World Wrestling Entertainment, and am still in the hunt of finding a job there. Sure, there were the over-the-top storylines, the crazy characters, and high-flying action that appealed me as well; but to sit down, and watch an actual solid WRESTLING match, and still be kept on the edge of your seat was most satisfying to me.

There was one man who could pull that off for the past ten years or so, and that man was Chris Benoit. Benoit was arguably my favorite wrestler and I always looked forward to watching him perform. Watching him ply his craft in the ring was almost a thing of beauty. His matches with Chris Jericho, Kurt Angle, Shawn Michaels and HHH were classics that will always be replayed in my mind and in my DVD player for a long time.

Benoit could carry a broomstick to a five-star match, that’s how good he really was. He was a man that commanded respect, both in and out of the ring, and it showed. From the stories I’ve heard, he was a very reserved man, but always made time for the fans to say hi and chat with them. He also apparently put his family above anyone else.

But when my brother knocked on my door around 6:30 on Monday and told me the news about his death, I was devastated. My favorite performer was gone. And then I find out not only him, but his wife and son were also found in the home with him, made me feel even worse. Not only was my favorite performer gone, but his whole family as well. Something had to be amiss. I had first thought it was carbon monoxide poisoning…that seemed like the only logical reasoning from the very few facts we had known when the news broke Monday evening.

As I was watching the Benoit “tribute” show late Monday night, I was still combing the internet, hoping to find anything new that was being reporting. Hoping to find a reason to explain why my favorite performer and his family are now dead. When the show was over, I decided to head over to WWE.com, hoping that they would have some more information. What I found out was shocking, and moreso sickening and very disturbing.

It’s very hard to look at Chris Benoit’s career the same way again. It’s hard to watch some of his greatest matches without thinking to myself, “This man killed a seven-year-old boy.” And not even just a boy, his SON. The circumstances are bizarre. The story is bizarre. Everything surrounding the cause of the deaths, and the mindset he was in is just strange. There really has to be more to it. But for now, I’m angered and saddened at the same time, that such a tragedy has taken place. But moreso angry, knowing I had cheered for a man for the past ten years, who just happens to be now a child murderer.

Stories like this make you really think about life, and how precious it is. Just that night I had an argument with my mom that left a sour taste in my mouth the next morning. I felt bad about the argument, and made sure to go out of my way to give her a call and apologize and let her know I love her. That’s really what everyone should do. Cherish each day you have, and make sure to let your loved ones know how you feel about them. Make sure you appreciate everything you have and everyone around you.

For now, this tragic and bizarre story continues to unfold, and will continue to sadden me for quite a while.  But remember, cherish what you have, for life can be strange, and you never know what is ahead…

Wow, what a turn of events the past few weeks.  From the looks of things, it seems like the New York Islanders organization is moving in the right direction with the buyout of Alexei Yashin.  My thoughts…

Buying out Alexei Yashin was the only logical thing that could have been done in order for the Islanders to become a true viable contender next year.  I was discussing this with my dad a few days after it happened and he thought that Yashin just didn’t work out just like Michael Peca.  I’m sure this what some think, because I’ve actually heard that comparison from a few people.  But I don’t think that it didn’t work out, it was just that Yashin overstayed his welcome here on the Island.  Yashin, like Michael Peca and even Chris Osgood, were what the Islanders needed in order to get to that next level (ie: making the playoffs) after a last-place finish in the 2000-2001 season.  That trio arguably had their last best season in their careers here in the 2001-2002 season and the Isles succeeded made a great playoff run.

In the subsequent year, Osgood was traded to St. Louis to pave the way for Rick DiPietro to mature into the goalie he is now.  Michael Peca was traded for Mike York in order to make room for Miro Satan to come here.  From my perspective, Peca, Osgood and Yashin were only temporary placemats to make room for the Hunters, the DiPietro’s and the new blood like Sillinger and Smyth.  It was like “Thanks for your help guys, but we’re good now.”

But for now, the New York Islanders are moving forward into a positive direction, a direction without the shadow of Mike Milbury and Alexei Yashin looming over them.  A direction that exemplifies a hard working, gritty, never give up team.  I’m looking forward to it…

Hi all. I figure with the season over I’m going to do a weekly update for news concerning the Isles and Sound Tigers. This seems like a good format idea to me, and I’ll be open to suggestions if anyone doesnt think otherwise. Let’s get on to the news, and there is many…

~Sound Tigers Head Coach Jack Capuano has a new assistant, and it’s a pretty familiar face in the form of Pat Bingham. Bridgeport fans know Bingham best as assistant coach for Dave Bassegio during the 2005-2006 season.

~Some prospect signings to report on. The Isles signed Sean Bentivoglio and Andrew MacDonald to three-year deals. Bentivoglio was an undrafted free agent and got a shot with Providence this past year on an ATO and impressed greatly. He played at Harbor Yard late last season with the P-Bruins and really shined scoring a goal and two assists. McDonald signed an ATO with the Sound Tigers late last year and went scoreless in three games. I unfortunately did not get the chance to see him play since I was covering the Devils playoffs during that time, but I’ve heard good things about him.

~Welcome back ECHL’s Utah Grizzlies to the organization!

~Congrats to Kenny Morrow, who signed a multi-year deal and continuing his position as Director of Pro Scouting. Couldn’t go to a classier guy.

~The Sound Tigers ambassador program is underway. Great promotion to get fans more involved so all should sign up.

~Music of the week: Maroon 5, “It Won’t Be Soon Before Long” Great stuff and VERY long awaited by Maroon 5, since it’s been five years since 2002’s “Songs About Jane”. More dance-oriented than their previous outing, but it’s fun to listen to and great to have in the background when you need to relax.

That’s it for now. Maybe I’ll get that music-related post out soon…

~Bridgeport announced yesterday the hiring of new equipment manager, Michael Burkhead.

~It’s good to see Ottawa finally getting far in the playoffs. It seemed like every year was supposed to be “Ottawa’s year,” but it would always end very quietly in the post-season for them.

~On a related note, for Isles fans, how good is it to see Buffalo struggle this easily? (credit: Fantom)
~On a related note to the related note, I’m not that surprised Ottawa are owning the Sabres in this series. The Sens made the Devils and their defensive mastery look absolutely silly in Round 2.

~An Anaheim/Ottawa finals would be a lot of fun to watch.

~Dubie, you deserve the job. Good work.

~Linkin Park’s new album, Minutes to Midnight is incredibly solid. A huge departure from their previous works, but in a maturing kind of fashion with much stronger songwriting and less emphasis on the hip-hop/rap stuff. I’ll have a review up on Associated Content within the next few days once it gets published.

~Speaking of music, I think I’ll put up a music-related post in the next few days. I’ve been thinking about doing it for a while and now that hockey season for me is done, I think it’s due…

Thanks for now. Will be back in a few!

I just wanted to wish all the mom’s out there, especially my mom, a very Happy Mother’s Day.

And if you could, make sure to give your mom a special “I love you” and tell her how much she really means to you.

Love ya mom.