03-04 Championship run and has had a twenty six goal season and is signed for one year at 2.9m.
Not like Islanders gave him Gomez money for one twenty goal season in seven and only thirteen last season. I can see Fedotenko being listed in a top ten for bad signings because he only had twelve goals, but first?
Come on....
I have a theory that a lot of the younger folks may not understand to explain the Adam Proteau's and Scott Burnside's of the world who live to take digs at the Islanders, along with a lot of other media that seems to enjoy finding something to rip the Islanders about in Canada and to a small degree (Larry Brooks) in baseball dominated Manhattan.
Many of these old-time Canadian writers could never accept that the Islanders came into this league and won like virtually no other team. Four Straight Stanley Cups, Five Straight Finals, Nineteen Straight Playoff Series wins, Champions, Finals,
Semi-finals, nine times out of ten from 75 thru 84...
Smitty rubbing it in their faces in 83.
Islanders knocking the Habs off in the " Drive for Five"
New record Fifteen Game Winning Streak in 81-82 (no overtimes)
So many life-long Ranger fans in the media could never accept it in the 70's-80's, which is why the club got it's fair share of coverage but not what it deserved for it's incredible accomplishments.
No doubt it was also a very bitter pill in Canada for some of these writers to see a team they predicted 30th knock the Toronto Maple Leafs (their mealticket) out of the playoffs on the final day of the regular season with a backup goalie.
That said, a lot of things the Islanders have done in the past do deserve plenty of justified hard criticism, but some items just go well over the top like it's payback for them because of the past.
Ruslan Fedotenko, biggest UFA bust for a signing at 2.9m? Not buying.
Proteau gives sort of a response in his blog:
Other readers wondered why, if I was citing Ruslan Fedotenko’s lack of goal production in putting him on the list, I wasn’t also including new Ranger Scott Gomez and the 13 lousy goals he had for New Jersey in ’06-07. That’s fair comment, but I think we all know what Gomez brings to the proverbial table and what Fedotenko’s table is missing.