Islanders to Suffolk County now, too

As I eluded to in a previous post, more and more viable (and not so viable) locations for the Islanders will be thrown into the news every so often, with the Lighthouse ordeal in limbo. This week, Newsday featured a story about the team moving to Suffolk County, which would be a home run for me and all of us in Eastern, Long Island.

"If it does fall apart in Nassau, we would pursue it," Suffolk County executive Steve Levy told Newsday. "If [Charles Wang] is ready to talk to us, we'll be willing to work with him very vigorously. If you change the personalities on the local level, it could make all the difference in the world."

Levy said there are "three or four" possible locations for the Islanders, but did not mention where. Many figure the Pilgrim State Psychiatric Center property in Brentwood could work. It's been rumored that the county has been interested in bringing a minor league hockey team to Yaphank, also. I highly doubt the Islanders would go that far out onto the island, though.

There is also Kansas, Oklahoma, Quebec, Queens and Brooklyn as possible locations. More to come as the story expands in the coming months.

(Photo from Newsday, of Steve Levy and Lighthouse diagram)

Dipietro makes big stride

It's sad when you all you have to look forward to is your injured goalie's rehab schedule. But that's the case for most Islanders fans early in the season. John Tavares is great to watch, but he's no Rick Dipietro - not yet, anyway.

For a short time, Dipietro was just taking shots on one end of the ice in a controlled environment from one teammate at a time. Yesterday, he took live shots with six skaters on the ice. He took breakaways, random shots from all over the ice and was flawless, according to Newsday reporter Mark Herrmann.

"It's your job as a professional athlete, when you're coming off an injury, to do as much as possible without setting yourself back; giving yourself the best opportunity to come back better than when you went down," Dipietro told Newsday. "I personally am not going to be satisfied if when I come back I'm not playing at the level I'm accustomed to be playing at."

Isles to Queens?

It's just a possible situation - the first of many to come over the next month or so- but Charles Wang already has one offer, just days after he told Kate Murray and the Town of Hempstead to pounce off.

The plan, presented by Queens Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice President Jack Friedman, would have the Islanders playing in Willets Point, Queens, close to where the Mets play at Citi Field.

"Option number 1 should be Queens," Friedman told Newsday. "We are ready for him. You're talking about a property that has access to the Long Island railroad, the subway system, the airports. It already has a huge parking lot because of Citi Field. It already has the parkway access. It's so ready for a development like this. The Lighthouse project would be a perfect fit.""

Friedman believes a potential new home for the Islanders would fit perfectly as a centerpiece in the city's plans for the Willets Point area, he told Newsday. If the plan was accepted - which is a longshot right now based on the entire situation, which is turning out to be a debacle - then it would not have an official ground-breaking for a few years. This is fine since the Islanders have a lease agreement at the Nassau Coliseum until 2015 anyway.

The positives are that fans from Suffolk County still have about a 45 minute drive to see the Islanders - it's just straight down the LIE, instead of taking Northern State to the Meadowbrook to Hempstead Turnpike. It's also nice for Mets and Islanders fans to house both of their teams in a similar area, like many other cities do. If only the New York Jets played in New York - that's an entirely different story, for an entirely different blog.

(Photo on StadiumPage.com - shows a revitalization shot of Willets Point with Citi Field on the left and a fictional stadium for possibly hockey on the right)

Opening night, deadlines loom

Tomorrow is the deadline for Charles Wang's Lighthouse project - which just so happens to be the opening game of the 2009-10 season for the Islanders. It's day that could possibly live in infamy for Isles fans. Only time will tell.

A day after a lease was announced that will keep the Islanders at the Nassau Coliseum until 2030, Islanders fans and Long Island enthusiasts are anxious to see what will happen by tomorrow. Will the Town of Hempstead wake up and come to an agreement with Wang? Will Wang become angered and do something drastic if Kate Murray says the Town is not interested in the Lighthouse?

Here are some key points about the deadline and what Wang may or may not do:

-He could sell the team, but the Islanders would have to remain at the Coliseum until 2015, the year the current lease expires.

-He could move the team after 2015. According to Newsday, he has about eight offers to house the team from places like Queens, Brooklyn and Kansas to Hartford and Hamilton, Ontario.

-He could take a punch to the gut, do absolutely nothing and wait for the Town to make any sort of decision.

Stay tuned for a weekend post about opening night on Saturday against the Penguins. It should be a fun time - win or lose.

Isles add scoring threat

With the season starting very soon, the Islanders, lacking in all categories but in goal, decided to add a scoring threat to the roster.

They claimed former first round draft pick Rob Schremp off waivers from the Oilers yesterday. Schremp, 23, was chosen in the 2004 draft, but has never made the big club's roster. In junior hockey, he was a major offensive threat and the Islanders are hoping he can turn his game around.

"He's a highly skilled, offensively gifted player with great vision. He's at an age where he is still maturing as a hockey player and a person, so there's upside there for our organization," Islanders general manager Garth Snow told Newsday. "To take a chance on a player like this, it seemed like it was a no-brainer to claim Rob."

"It's exciting. It's a new situation and I can't wait to get back on the ice," Schremp said by phone to Newsday. "I'm not expecting anything. I'm going in with open arms and am ready to learn. I just want to stick around and see what happens."

During his final season in the OHL (2005-06), Schremp scored 145 points in 57 games. Don't expect him to put up those numbers in the NHL - or anywhere near them - but he is in a fresh situation on a beautiful island that seems ready for some strong hockey.

(Photo courtesy NHL)

Long Island's Scuderi brings Cup home

This might be old news, but since the Thin Ice blog did not exist over the summer when this occurred, I felt it would be good to mention ...

Rob Scuderi became the first Long Island native to bring the Stanley Cup to the island and have his name engraved on the trophy. It was raised at the Coliseum when the Islanders won in the early 1980s, but this was unparalleled when Scuderi, who hails from Syosset and attended St. Anthony's High School in South Huntington, brought the Cup all over the island, including Newbridge Park in Bellmore, where he played recreationally.

"We'd have three-minute shifts, then the buzzer would sound and that was the end of the shift -- even if you were on a breakaway," he told Newsday in July. "This is where I'm from, where I started playing hockey. I wanted to bring it back here."

Scuderi won the Cup with Pittsburgh last season, but signed with the Los Angeles Kings this past off-season.

Okposo hurt in pre-season

Flames defenseman Dion Phaneuf knocked Kyle Okposo out of a pre-season game with a vicious hit the other night. Phaneuf left his feet at the Credit Union Centre to land the hit.

Okposo doesn't even remember the incident and was rolled off the ice on a stretcher.

"I don't want to get into whether it was dirty or not," Okposo told Newsday. "It's part of the game and it's an unfortunate situation. Obviously, it's frustrating. You want to play--I'm a competitive guy and I want to be on the ice--but in this circumstance that can't happen."

There is no room for hits like that in the pre-season and the league should review film from that game.

(Photo courtesy NYI)