The Islanders' Future Captain?
by BCISLEMAN on Oct 23, 2009 10:41 PM EDT
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Saku Koivu tribute video 1995-2009 as a Montreal Canadien (via HFBladesofSteel)
We all were disheartened by the awful performance of the Islanders against the Canadiens Thursday night. Throughout this season, the constant complaint has been the Isles' failure to put in a full 60 minute effort. Arguably, this team might have 2-3 more wins if it had put in a full 60 minutes each night.
An article in Newsday, cited in a Fanshot of mine, points up a possible solution to the Isles' periodic listlessness. Garth should sign a well-respected and still productive veteran to be the team captain. Saku Koivu may be the perfect answer.
Impact describes Koivu, who it rates as the 10th best captain in NHL history, as "the epitome of class...the focal point of one of the most demanding markets in the NHL. His grace and courage in handling medical setbacks, including cancer, should serve as an inspiration to any player lucky enough to wear a hockey sweater."
At the end of the season, trade a draft pick to Anaheim for Koivu's rights. Then put on a full court press to sign him for a three to five year term. BTW, the Impact issue referred to offers excellent insights on leadership in hockey. There is a lengthy discussion of the depth of leadership on the Islander championship teams.
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I say stay the course. If the Islanders are going with youth we should stick with a current vet this season and probably next season. Then hand Tavares the C. Look to the Penguins and their recent rebuild. No need to send a pick out.
Then hand Tavares the C.
Or Okposo. It’s interesting: At the 2008 draft and last year, Bailey was the whispered future captain. Since then, Okposo’s intensity has come to the fore. By May, I’m sure we’ll have more info about what each young guy is made of and who they have in their sights as a future “C.”
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Give Saku three years
There simply is no better team leader in the NHL today. Linden isn’t even a close comparison. And unlike Weight, Koivu still has star quality. I think he would find it especially appealing if we seemed like an organization that was really developing a Cup winning core.
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1979-80
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May 24, 1980: Tonelli to Nystrom. At long last, the steady build of the New York Islanders from expansion doormat to surprise semifinalist to annual contender reaches the promised land: Buoyed by a late season trade for Butch Goring that gave the team the depth up the middle GM Bill Torrey had been seeking, the Islanders knock off the Philadelphia Flyers in six games.
The victory justified the faith in coach Al Arbour who guided them from their second season to their first Stanley Cup seven seasons later. The Islanders would not be the first expansion team to win the Stanley Cup, but they would be the only one capable of a dynasty.
1980-81
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May 21, 1981: This time it was much easier. After falling to "only" 91 points in the 1979-80 season, the Islanders returned to their division title tradition, piling up 110 points -- a whole 13 points over second-place Philadelphia.
Between the quarterfinals (where they beat the upstart Oilers in six games) and the finals, the Islanders reeled off eight consecutive wins -- with a four-game sweep of archrival Rangers in between. As they defeated the Minnesota North Stars in five games for their second Cup, their goal difference in the final was a combined +10.
1981-82
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May 16, 1982: Another year, another landslide title. The Islanders won the Patrick Division by a whopping 26 points over the second-place Rangers, and were seven points clear of their nearest competition for the President's Trophy, the still-not-quite-ripe Edmonton Oilers.
A first-round scare against the Pittsburgh Penguins turned in the Isles' favor thanks to John Tonelli's heroics, and a true dynasty was on its way: Past the Rangers in six games, then an eight-game sweep of the Quebec Nordiques and Vancouver Canucks to run away with the Stanley Cup.
1982-83
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May 17, 1983: Not so fast, whipper-snappers. The Edmonton Oilers' steadily rising challenge for league supremacy took them all the way to the finals for the first time, where the New York Islanders summarily dispatched them in a four-game sweep. For the Islanders, the Dynasty was secured. For the Oilers, it was a powerful lesson in where talent ends and the demands of playoff hockey begin.
Four years, four Cups, 16 consecutive playoff series wins (a record that would grow to 19 until the rematch with the Oilers the following year). Mike Bossy scored 60 goals yet again, and Wayne Gretzky became acquainted with Billy Smith's crease.
