Islanders website: Garth Snow comments on the signing of Frans Nielsen to a multi-year contract.
Newsday: Greg Logan reports former Leafs coach Paul Maurice will be the first who will interview for the head coaches job on Monday with the list of confirmed coaching candidates including John Tortorella and his assistant, Mike Sullivan. Snow still is waiting for approval to interview Bob Hartley and Providence Bruins coach Scott Gordon on a list that will also include Joel Quenneville and Gerard Gallant.
NYI Fan Central Comments:It should be noted just the other day Bruins assistant general manager said the Islanders had not asked for permission to speak with Scott Gordon. Obviously this is going to be a long process for Garth Snow and the club, it will be interesting if a team does not allow the Isles permission to speak with someone but most teams do want to reward their current employees or try and get the financial hit off the books with their former employees.
Newsday: Greg Logan has another article that is mostly a recap of last weeks articles on the problems between coach and general manger that now includes the problems began last summer when they were unable to add free agents. Again it has the full summary of all the un-named players and what supposedly transpired behind the scenes but now adds how Miroslav Satan was not handled properly by the coach, that several players caught Nolan in false statements and the coach was fuming with the general manger saying the club had underachieved with a lot of speculation not supported by a single quote from anyone.
Only actual quotes here are from Garth Snow earlier this week who talks about his plan to add youth and that the club did make some offers above what some other clubs did last summer that did not include any comment about front-loaded contracts or bonus money.
NYI Fan Central Comments:I do not read this much dirty laundry aired by reporters for other teams who fire coaches or have problems? Like I wrote the other day when there is good news around the club it's barely touched upon much less given the same sustained hype this kind of information is. This would be a little more tolerable if the same applied to all things Islanders when reported in the paper and for me raises fair questions as to the motivation at Newsday to cover the club in this manner given Newsday did not have an Islander centric feature update on Sunday from Mr Logan all season but did have Mr Zipay write the Sunday NHL feature that always had a Ranger slant.
This does not even begin to address the mistakes/contradictions in reporting or retractions by the paper.
Bottom line unless Garth Snow or Ted Nolan have something new to say or a player wants to give his name and say what happened is this really necessary?
Boston Globe: Fluto Shinzawa reports the Islanders will play a second preseason game against them on October 4th in addition to the one on September 23rd in Moncton.
Boston Globe:Fluto Shinzawa has some very interesting comments from former Sound Tiger coach Greg Cronin who also used to coach at the University of Maine which is Garth Snow's alma mater that he spoke to the Islander general manger last weekend briefly and never brought anything up along the lines of a coaching change and that Monday's announcement surprised him but he had heard the stories about friction but never through the general manager and is quoted as saying the gm and coach must both have the same vision and gives us a Mike Milbury story when he was coaching in Bridgeport...............
"I remember asking Mike, 'What are we? What are we doing? Are we a big, strong, physical team? Are we quick?' He got all [upset] at me, thinking I was questioning his direction. I was trying to prepare guys for the NHL and wanted to know what identity we were trying to replicate down here."
"He threw a napkin at me and told me to shut up," Cronin said with a laugh. "Something about, 'You're the All-Star coach in the AHL so you think you know everything.' Mike was all about balance. I know that isn't a real sexy word. But he wanted bigger defensemen with mobility and forwards for a fast-paced game, forwards that relied on possession."
Mr Shinwaza also has comments from Ben Walter's agent (named Fee) that he needs to be on the first three lines to be effective but will work hard regardless of his role and that he fully expects his client to become an NHL player while the writer gives us some background.
NYI Fan Central Comments:Do not like putting the quotes in from the paper but this is a registration site.
Ct Post: Michael Fornabaio in his Sound Tigers blog has a few words on the club signing Frans Nielsen with a lot of other items.
Quick hits:Dick Ebersol is expected to announce he is stepping down from NBC sports after the upcoming Olympics so hopefully that ends the very cozy relationship with Madison Square Garden where the Network used to have a small stake in Msg.
