Wang Again Overspends For Fanbase 30th Supporting Team With John Tavares

New York Islander Fan Central | 7/07/2013 07:50:00 AM | |
Updated 10pm 7/7/13: Charles Wang another exclusive interview with NY Times.

“We will still be local,” Wang said. “We’re not moving away from our roots because Brooklyn really is part of Long Island. The Islanders will be just a train ride away for our fans.”

 “There’s no time for what I call the could-haves, should-haves and would-haves,” Wang said. “You make your choices, you learn and you make the best of it. We spent 13 years trying everything possible to stay on Long Island. It wasn’t meant to be. At some point, you have say, ‘Enough,’ and move on.”

“John buys into the program. or he wouldn’t have committed to this number of years.”

“If I really wanted to sell, the team would have been sold.”

“The cup is not half empty; it’s full because the Islanders are still here,” he said. “My advice is to give the train a try.”
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I enjoyed taking off 7/5 letting my prior entry speak for itself.

Charles Wang's arms must be hurting again from writing checks, our fan base not so much for tickets.

For a man who claimed in 2003 the church will not be opened  forever still does all he can with absolutely no help from anyone. 

I suggest folks be extremely grateful Charles Wang allowed Garth Snow to do more than he should have as usual with no financial support from the 30th fanbase in the NHL that refuse to fill the building for John Tavares.

In a building where Wang's Smg sublease (at 3m per year) finally gives him the privilege (sarcasm) of getting all his ticket money, concessions, ad money, and parking, (all the things teams in modern buildings receive automatically with naming rights) while many get a nice tax exemption check every year worth tens of millions plus NHL revenue sharing.

This is also with local government officials willing to do whatever it takes for their hockey team as a public trust, unlike Nassau/TOH, who did everything possible to get a check from someone else soon to replace the New York Islanders after ignoring them (and Nassau Coliseum) for well over two decades.

Only Charles Wang knows if he finally got his first ever revenue sharing check for the 48 games or even qualified with his ticket sales. 

I understand many fans do not care, they just want an owner to sign more players, and maybe they will come back only for a few playoff games again after finishing 30th in league attendance unlike all the fan bases that fill the building for every weeknight game starting in October.

Perhaps once again when the New York Islanders play their first weeknight home game in 2013-14 that announced 10-11,000 looks like 6,000 with most of that the families/kid crowd who will be supporting the Islanders AHL/ECHL replacement in a few years, you'll understand why Charles Wang cannot do any more, or why free agents when all things equal would rather play in from of 20,000 die-hards with a media to sell their careers when they get asked about that NTC, and what teams they waive it for. 

Perhaps by then you will understand why I'm writing this. 

Free Agency:
There goes Charles Wang again locking up Travis Hamonic for seven years, who sure seems thrilled to want to stay like everyone else who comes here. I guess Wang did that one for the real estate too unlike all the Coliseum bidders who never signed a player or owned a team less Dolan, who gets his taxpayer money yearly in perpetuity, and wants more. Florida took a standard buyout on a player meaning they get charged the full cap hit to remain cap compliant, unlike Rick DiPietro, who got a compliance buyout meaning the burden is on the owner to spend more.

Garth Snow finally overpaid to resign the most consistent goalie he's had since Rick DiPietro got hurt in 2008. The alternatives were horrible, Nabokov not only played very well over 48 games, he was outstanding/consistent/durable. Nabokov I guess still does not really want to sign here.

No doubt resigning Nabokov was the correct move. If Poulin, Nilsson are healthy/protected one will make a serious run at being an NHL starting goaltender, perhaps both. Unqualified Mikko Koskinen is out of the organization so a high draft pick was wasted.

Snow overpaid for Bouchard, an frequently injured player with concussions. This player got double what Brad Boyes received a year ago, and could end up next to John Tavares?  Look in the mirror if you refuse to attend games, and want better than Bouchard if he's that player.

New York got smaller losing some serious depth in the forward department, even if unproven.

Bottom Nine:
Who's going to score among Regin, Boulton, Nielsen, Clutterbuck, McDonald, Martin, Bouchard, Cizikas because they are not going to scare anyone offensively while Okposo tries to improve on a four goal season?

Keith Aucoin did not score often here, he did setup two of the three goals in game six. Marty Reasoner between one injured season, one forty eight game was never the player who produced in Florida beyond some defensive plays/vs lost step or three.

It's not going to be easy to replace the size/potential lost in Niederreiter, Ullstrom, and Joensuu, who got two years from Edmonton. On paper from Bridgeport it's Nelson, Strome, Lee, Persson, Sundstrom, Kabanov which basically ends the depth unless something is done with one of the forwards just drafted, or something is worked out to give Kirill Petrov (hardly a proven answer) a chance in North America which is folly we have read before. 

Nothing replaces Mark Streit's offense/puck distributing or ability to cut to middle on a rush. Radek Martinek's skating, ability to move puck is also something needed but depth chart screams no with Calvin deHaan still in mix.

Bottom Line:
Little Caesar's/Amway/Detroit Red Wings came to the Eastern Conference (with now only fourteen playoff spots for the next three years) with a load of new free agents (I guess Alfredsson is just like Yashin) so did Columbus with the revenue in their modern taxpayer funded building to hype anything John Davidson (not the general manager) does.

A lot of teams shuffled deck chairs. Ryan Clowe can go back to be a struggling offensive player again in the limited New York NHL media.

The NHL as usual spent very well for Phoenix in free agency while the next owner will get his fifteen million every year from the Glendale taxpayers if one can be approved before a schedule is released. 

Charles Wang as usual overspent a lot for a team that will not fill the building from October-April to see John Tavares, who's local government (not some folly referendum destined to fail as cover for Mangano's actions) kicked them out likely for Dolan's AHL LI Rangers in a week or so. but ultimately because they surrendered the privilege of having an NHL franchise. 

The same fans who complain, but refuse to pay for tickets will be the first to walk around with their shopping list. If reading four entries here in seven years at New York Islander Fan Central (among thousands of them) putting burden directly on the fan base bothers some or writing it on twitter angers you  I'm sorry.

I'm sure those same people will be more bothered/angry when the team finally moves, and has it's brand changed because of poor fan support.

As for myself, please feel free to read another Islander related website among the many only selling themselves who will write anything you want to read for attention, do not follow me on twitter. 

Sure it could work on the ice for the New York Islanders, any team can win with the right chemistry in a league loaded with parity. Many of these free agents come with huge baggage who are not worth the risk at any price. 

Next we'll see what happens at prospect camp, the invite list is sometimes more important, but Bridgeport has a full roster of players.


Updated:
Nino Niederreiter is not attending Wild's prospect camp either Roster.