Isles Fans Have Suffered Enough

This off season was a particularly difficult one for all hockey fans. So many lost, way too young; addiction, mental illness, and a plane crash no one could control. Yet, all hockey fans stood together, remembering the lost and looking to the season ahead. Many memorials and much love for those lost. As a fan, you feel these losses deep down for the families and hockey teams affected.

My thoughts on the Isles thus far is that they are not the same team we saw in the second half of last season. They were showing so much promise then, and had the confidence in the locker room to back it up. I will not go in depth about that Feb friday night against the Pens, but I felt it was huge. A young team stands, brother to brother and defeats the elite Penguins. Oh, what a sight it was.

Some will agree with me, and some not, but Zenon Konopka was a huge part of that confidence. I really miss Z, I think he meant a lot to the young players. Love that Doug Weight is an assistant coach, because he carries that same passion.  It's not enough. I truly believe that Konopka is/was better for the Isles than Reasoner. I do not understand that move at all. I have not understood many things that the Isles have done, but more often than not they seem to work out. I will never understand the Roloson move, and I think Wishart will do nothing for this team..oh yeah, he's still in Bridgeport after we waived him. My point is, that some players, who may not be overly talented, still can contribute in a major way.

Thoughts on the season thus far: The boys can't buy a goal. It is an abomination that we have so much offensive talent, but can't score in a shootout. Our defense, including goal tending is just fine. Our PK is outstanding, as is our GAA. So why can't our million dollar baby offense score? Guys like Moulson, Grabner, Comeau and Bailey can't manage to get there. When they do, they are high or wide and hit an occasional post.

All I can say, is that something is very wrong. The calls tonight in the game with San Jose were ridiculous.  I think the officiating in the NHL has severe issues. They really need to look at that. Honestly, it looked like the officials were intentionally trying to take the game from us. I have always thought that there is anti Islander sentiment in the NHL, but now they are getting Brass Ballsy about it. No one disciplines them, so they do what they want. I am disheartened by this. The officials need to answer to a higher "GOD" as well as the players. Sometimes, bad calls determine the outcome. That happened tonight on Long Island, and it was wrong.

Nassau is Not Dead Yet

Ok, well, first of all, I have not given up on Nassau, I know that many people feel Nassau does not deserve this team, but that is not the whole story. Many young people have leftNassau because of the high cost of living and taxes, and you can't blame them. The folks who are here, and have been here for 50 years, cannot spend more. Most are on fixed income and ready to give up the homes they raised their children in, because they can no longer afford it. Some young people do no understand this, they say all the old farts should go to hell. YOU ARE WRONG!, These people, many of which abstained from the vote for me, brought their kids here for a better life. The kids have left, and these "old farts" are still trying to keep their homes, and cannot survive.
.I will continue to fight to keep my Isles in Nassau. By the way THEY ARE WANTED HERE. The people who blame the seniors, on fixed incomes in Nassau county, clearly do not understand the economics and politics that the residents have always faced.
If they go to Bklyn or Queens, IT WILL STILL BE LONG ISLAND, but again, I have not given up. I am one of those people who campaigned vigorously. I still believe, after 10 years of bipartisan BS in Nassau, there could be hope. I am sure, as a lifelong resident, that I am fooling myself. Yet, I hold on, hoping to never become another Atlanta. I spoke with so many Atlanta fans this year who lost two hockey teams. They are my age, pushing 50 fast and hard, yet we hang in there. Some of them have rolled over to become Islander fans. Maybe cause they feel our pain, maybe they are just gluttons for punishment. However, all I can say is that we as hockey fans seem to hold each other together. Hockey is like that, very passionate and emotional.
The love of this sport goes a long way with the people who live and breath it, everyday.
I can say this, politics has ruined Nassau. The vile words that go back and forth sicken me. I am not a writer, this comes completely from my heart and soul, and I am sure to have made grammatical mistakes, but my love for my Islanders pushes me through.
Tonight, I leave a group called "Bring NY Islanders to NYC" originally named "Bring NY Islanders to Queens" People are angry, but need to take a minute to understand why this referendum was voted down.
For me, personally, I will be happy to see our team stay on LI, no matter where it may be. My preference is Nassau County

Grabner Signs for Five!

This has been a very busy week for Islander fans. Hope again springs eternal in Islander Country. We are all extremely excited that Michael Grabner and the NYI's have come to a five year contract agreement. The Calder  finalist, with 34 goals (6 shorties) in his rookie year, is by far a fan favorite, and all are very excited. Grabs is excited too, not only for his new contract, but the whirlwind year he has had. He is a new dad, now has a lengthy deal and is looking foward to playing in a new arena on LI. I hope the latter is not a disappointment.

Politics in Nassau county is a very tricky business, as I mentioned in my last post. This is a GOP initiative, and as a DEM I do support it. We do not need a black hole of hopelessness in the middle of our county. Neither Dems or NIFA were included in this process, which has made a lot of folks angry. I do think that this referendum can pass on August 1st, but I think it will require more than I have seen thus far from Mr. Mangano and the Islander organization.

Primarily, I think that this announcement on wednesday was premature, given the facts. To me it was a glorified pep rally, with not much to back it up. As a lifelong Nassau county resident, I expected that there would be answers to questions asked. That was not the case. Mr. Mangano had no numbers to speak of, no answers to the what if's, really no specifics at all on how this would happen without costing taxpayers more dollars in Nassau. He did, however state several times that it is not their "intention" to cost taxpayers a dime. WAY TOO VAGUE.

In the meantime, I would have liked to see a huge PR campaign by Mr. Wang and the Islanders, immediately following the presser. Signing Grabner is great, but you need the whole county behind you. My neighbor, has no idea who Grabner is, but does understand that you always vote NO in Nassau. Many residents here are so sick of politics and do not wish to invest in anything except their next meal.

All of this being said, I support this referendum. I pray that Mr. Mangano is truthful when he says his intentions are not to cost Nassau taxpayers more dollars. In my thoughts; this is a leap of faith. A faith in the county I have always lived in, and a faith in a team I have always believed in.

New Arena Would be Great, However..

I have lived in Nassau county my entire life, and have seen it go through many changes. When I was younger, Hempstead Tpke. was a 2 lane road with many mom and pop shops along the way. I have watched the county blossom and grow, and then start its decay. I live in East Meadow which has had its share of empty store fronts, but they fill up rather quickly with new excited business endeavors. Levittown, is another story on the pike, given it seems to be owned exclusively by one realtor, and major businesses leave and the properties remain empty for years.

I would certainly welcome anything that would bring much needed revenue to our county, right?? Maybe not so fast. I drive past empty lots every day such as the old Kmart site and the Waldbaum's across the street. I tend to blame this on the landlords, who obviously charge ridiculous amounts of rent. Or do they? I really don't know, but I do know that all this empty real estate is not good for Nassau county. These properties do not seem to have upkeep either. I am disgusted with the TOH and NC. Taxes are unbearably high; seniors on a fixed income cannot stay and neither can their grandchildren. Middle class, or what once was middle class in Nassau cannot survive.

I am a huge Islander fan, and have been since the inception of the team. Ed Mangano's announcement today of the plans to build a new arena for my beloved Isles has many people excited. However, many of these excited folks do not live in Nassau county as I have been reading all day on twitter. They all feel that this is a great deal, many of them commenting that they don't care because they are not Nassau residents. Problem is, they need to care, because this will only happen if the county residents want it.

I think this will be an extremely hard sell for residents as we have some of the highest property taxes in the nation. Also, NIFA seems to be upset as they were not "in" on this proposal. Dems seemed to be behind Lighthouse, and this plan is the Republican baby. When you have lived here for 40+ yrs, and still cannot understand the politics here, there is a huge issue. The Pols will fight with each other just for the sake of the fight and nothing will get done.

I hope that this referendum will go through. I feel as though it is not only the last hope for my Islanders, but perhaps the county as well. We need to turn this town of Hempstead around, create a place where people want to come, and a place where professional hockey players would wish to call home. Politics has long played a role in TOH and NC progress, I hope we can all come together on this plan.

Enjoying playoff's..Cannot wait until next season!!

Hi! My friends. Hope you will follow me. As my friends on Twitter know, I am an Islander fan from the beginning. I have never been as excited as I am now for the future of our team. A little backround:

My Dad is and has always been a sports fan. When I was a kid, my dad and I listened to sports on the radio. (1960's). Wow, I really feel effing old. Mostly listened to the Knickerbockers..loved BBall because of my dad, and met Willis Reed as a child. Really, I was frightened, as I just surpassed his knee in height at the time.

Then, Hockey came to Long Island. Before cable....or at least before we had it; I needed it. I was 10, and I could not get enough. To this day, I can still really enjoy a radio broadcast from Hofstra; and I want to be the one broadcasting the game. Think it was WGBB 1240 back in the day..please correct me if I am wrong. Mom and I had season tickets for a few years and would like to again.

Anyway, I usually have plenty to say about hockey and the NHL in general and would like to share with you. Will share my thoughts during the playoffs and off season until Isles play again...Can't wait!!