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."

Dipietro left out of opening day

For those Islanders fans wondering why Rick Dipietro's name was not mentioned during the introductions for the home opener on Saturday night, it's because team officials made a mistake and left him off the list of injured players.

There were a handful of players wearing suits, who stepped onto the ice and gave a wave, including captain Doug Weight, but Dipietro was not one of them. According to Newsday's Katie Strang, "Rick DiPietro absolutely did not decline to be a part of last night's introduction ceremony."

Islanders president Chris Dey told Strang, "We made a mistake and left Rick out of the introductions. It was nothing intentional, but we are glad to hear that fans wanted to hear him introduced by the team. We are all looking forward to his return to the lineup."

It's a minor mistake, but many fans were curious about their beloved goalie.

Training camp underway

The Islanders are holding training camp in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, a foreign land to Long Islanders, but a quiet respite to fine tune the dormant game of Islanders players anxious to begin a new season.

John Tavares has seemed comfortable thus far, Rick Dipietro is taking shots in net for the first time in over a year and everyone seems to be having a good time, according to reports from multiple news sources.

On Wednesday night, the rookies will take an hour bus ride to Prince Albert, Saskatchewan to play the local university there.

On another note, don't forget about the Lighthouse Zoning hearing Sept. 22 at Hofstra University's Adams Playhouse. It starts at 9 a.m.