The Bobby Nystrom Goal better get its 'History Will Be Made' ad
by Dominik on Mar 31, 2010 12:19 PM EDT
in Islanders of Yesteryear
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PrintThe NHL's ad campaign for this year's playoffs is brilliant in so many ways: First, it's cheap: Recycle some old footage, add a song -- only one surprisingly effective song needed -- and a tagline, and you have an instant tear-jerker for most NHL fans. (Every time I see the Mario Lemieux one, I suddenly get a few allergens in the eyes thanks to where I was and who I was with when that goal happened.)
Second, it's ready-made to go viral, and perhaps best of all, it's the inspiration for what will be countless ax-grinding imitations and truly hilarious various parodies. Make no mistake, even if the NHL doesn't endorse videos making fun of Kerry Fraser or poor Patrick Stefan (minus points for not being a playoff event), the fact signature moments from league history are being spread and replicated is good for the NHL. It's educating a new generation of fans on the history that makes this league so damn addictive.
History ... "history" ... say, that reminds me. You know what clip absolutely has to be included in this campaign? Of course you do. It's the goal that started the league's only true uninterrupted "dynasty" of the last three decades. It's a goal that helped define a franchise. A goal scored by a player who so embodied that franchise, he has the team's annual fan-vote MVP award named after him.
At 7:11 of OT on the afternoon of May 24, 1980, history was made. What if Nystrom didn't beat his man?
If you need any more evidence, ask yourself this: With apologies to Uwe Krupp, how many times has a competitive Stanley Cup been won with an overtime goal?
And if we really want to get into what-ifs, we could extend the campaign forever: Two years later, the only team in NHL history to win 19 consecutive playoff series would never have accomplished that feat if John Tonelli hadn't tied it up 2-2 (assist: Coliseum ice) with just 2:21 left in regulation in the decisive opening-round Game 5 against the Penguins. Tonelli being Tonelli, he then won it on a Herculean effort in OT after first being hauled down on a breakaway. Without those heroics, the Cup streak stops at a very Penguins- or Oilers-like two in a row. No dynasty.
What if Tonelli didn't get up? [Video of each after the jump.]
Tonelli Ties it up against the Penguins with 2:21 left in Game 5
Tonelli Wins it in OT
This is not just one more Isles fan digging up the increasingly ancient past; no, this is one of the league's greater moments from the past 30 years. It belongs in this playoff ad campaign, and teenage Western Conference fans whose home broadcast teams pan up to all those white, orange and blue banners -- during their lone visit to the Coliseum every other year -- deserve to know why, and how, those banners got there.
It's not just Islanders nostalgia; it's part of the league's glorious mystique which, some days, is the best asset it has.
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LOL
Watching any old hockey footage reminds me just how far players have come. I’d love a time machine to figure out which stars were stars simply because they discovered this thing called “fitness” or “backchecking” before it became mandatory.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
Does everyone look like they are moving so much slower because there is no advertisment anywhere on the ice or boards? Kind of like watching an airplane against a clear blue sky, it almost looks like it is standing still.
It also appears checking is illegal except if the player actually has the puck.
Those ad-free boards sure make the rink look bigger.
Checking, like backchecking appeared to be something that happens only when you’re angry or in close-and-late situations.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
the rink looks bigger also because it WAS bigger in relation to A) players average size and B) equipment size, both having increased probably by 5% for players and 15-20% for equipment
NY Islanders Hockey: Where MRI's are addictive
And don't forget
The RBK EDGE Uniform System™ has increased player speed from 3 to 7 percent!!!
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
Two things...
1) I can almost guarantee the Isles get no love, but they run a Game 6 Conference Finals one of Messier, whom you would never know was a part of the Oilers franchise. How quick did he dump his past, by the way?
2) Why haven’t the Isles retired #27 for the original JT? He’s all over the Dynasty videos, and was huge for them. Is there a reason? Did they have a falling out?
by billymac23 on Mar 31, 2010 12:59 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
On (2), it seems like with all those stars, they thought they had to draw the line somewhere? That’s the most I’ve ever heard/read. So Nystrom is the only one who isn’t in the Hockey Hall of Fame, but he was an Islanders lifer.
But yeah, while I think each team should have its own standards for jersey retirement (except Colorado with Bourque; that was just pathetic and sad), Tonelli’s number would definitely be up there by a lot of NHL teams’ standards.
The worst part is, after Peca they really cheapened that number. I mean Randy Robitaille? Darryl Bootland? At least make a guy earn it.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
What are you talking about? Darryl Bootland, currently of the Vienna Capitols, is a living legend! I mean 56 points AND 390 PMs in one AHL season is the stuff legends are made of.
We're doomed. Doomed!
by David Hanssen on Mar 31, 2010 1:25 PM EDT up reply actions
Bootland
Don’t pick on Darryl!!! He’s actually doing VERY well in Austria.
tough guy can fight and score occassionally. Wish we had kept him!
www.7thwoman.blogspot.com Updated almost as often as PointBlank, but not quite.
tough guy can fight and score occassionally
As can half of the AHL. I had completely forgotten Bootland played in the organization. He kind of just blended in with the Morencys, Brennans and Keiths.
We're doomed. Doomed!
by David Hanssen on Apr 1, 2010 1:58 PM EDT up reply actions
Eric Godard on line 1
Eric Godard, line 1…
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
They started an Islander Hall of Fame and then inducted Bob Bourne and then left the idea to die. What a mess this orgnaization has turned into, they can’t even promote themselves properly. How about Tonelli, LaFontaine, Flatley, Persson, Jonsson or Palffy and of course ED WESTFALL that could all be added to the Islander HOF without having to retire the numbers. Number retirement should be strictly for HHOF members.
I agree. Although Ed Westfall would have to be next. He was the Captain of the team when the team stunk.
La Fontaiine will never get his number retired on the isles. I thinkhe isloved more in Bufalo than the island or the Rags.
Get out of the sticks, Charles, move to Queens!! Come, Get some respect a Professional team deserves!!
La Fontaiine will never get his number retired on the isles. I thinkhe isloved more in Bufalo than the island or the Rags
Yet it was our fanbase who he went to with his wonderful hospital charity run, and our fanbase who donated. :)
Let Us Go, Islanders! (Ever notice how strange that sounds without the contraction?)
by TheMetalChick on Apr 1, 2010 12:13 PM EDT up reply actions
The NHL won’t do anything with the Islanders. You forget this is Bettman’s NHL, there is no history in the league before the mid to early 90’s when they left Minnesota, Winnipeg, Hartford and Quebec (You know, places where there is actually Ice outside during the hockey season) for the hockey hotbed of Sun Belt.
We're doomed. Doomed!
Their lone pre-90s exception: Bobby Orr
They said they have seven in the can. So far we have Bobby Orr, Mario Lemieux, Bourque (really?! really?! Lanny McDonald would have been far more appropriate), Messier (vomit, but whatever. It was undeniably big), supposedly one with Roy is coming (vomit. it should be his last game ever where the Wild went wild).
They won’t touch Hull, of course. Yzerman’s OT goal wasn’t in the finals. The excellent 1987 final didn’t have a signature moment. I bet they might add Fleury’s save at the end last year. They probably need a Devils one, so they could do Arnott.
(Yes, I’ve spent way too much time thinking about this.)
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
vomit. it should be his last game ever where the Wild went wild
I think his “Statue of Liberty” against the Red Wings would be more appropriate.
“Suck it Detroit! oh wait…”
We're doomed. Doomed!
by David Hanssen on Mar 31, 2010 1:58 PM EDT up reply actions
Yahahaha, that’s true. I loved that moment so much I could kiss it.
“What if Patrick hadn’t shown off?”
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
Speaking of poor goalie play, have you seen the Davison Goal parody?
What if Toskala could stop a puck?
We're doomed. Doomed!
by David Hanssen on Mar 31, 2010 2:57 PM EDT up reply actions
Oh yeah. How sad is it that I wasn’t sure which Vesa goal the video was going to show?
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
I’ll bet any money that once the Isles pull themselves into a top 10 position in the league and find a new home (wherever that may be) Bettman/NHL is going to jump on the bandwagon in the form of all star games, commercials/promos, talk on his show (is that still on the NHL network?) and whatever form he can think of. If you think about it the Isles are a really good snapshot of the NHL. They were a once proud team that has suffered due to mismanagement that is building for a better future. If Bettman can get all the stars to align and the Isles emerge from the 20+ year funk (minus 1993) Bettman will be one of the first people to tell everyone how much faith he had in the franchise and all the work that he did to help preserve a portion of hockey’s history.
I think soon after that you might find pictures of Bettman in a diaper in woods of Long Island with a high chair and a tub of vasaline in the not so far distance. Sorry Hans that image is what I was truely envisioning when you told that story yesterday.
Please let Roloson and Biron be the guest announcers on some Chicago playoff broadcasts...please hockey Gods!
by metalcoconut on Mar 31, 2010 5:34 PM EDT up reply actions
Actually, you’re probably right. With a shiny new building and some more lottery goosing the Isles get held up as a salary cap/parity (parody?)-era success story.
And then we suddenly get 1984-ish history rewrites of Bettman as a die-hard teenage Islanders fan.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
F*%^&@g MSG
I’m flipping through the channels a few minutes ago and noticed they’re playing game 6 of the 1979 Isles vs. Rags playoff series. Is this what it’s come to MSG? Reliving the glory years of 1979 when you lost in the Stanley Cup finals 4-1 to the Candians?
At least there’s the solace that in the end the joke is on the Rangers since we all know what happened the next year. And the year after that. And the year after that too. And the next year.
We're doomed. Doomed!
by David Hanssen on Mar 31, 2010 4:49 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
MSG +2 POISONING
Hans, my man, I think you just answered a question I’ve had for years. During each Islander telecast, usually right after a comercial break I feel a bit lethargic… soon followed by a throbbing headache and the desire to hit Ryan Holleweg across the face with a hockey stick.
Wang doesn't need to fire Gordon, just ask him how to address the third period meltdowns... and he'll just walk away.
So does that mean you’re getting traded to Hockey Wilderness for a 6th round draft pick?
We're doomed. Doomed!
by David Hanssen on Mar 31, 2010 6:01 PM EDT up reply actions
What if Chico
… isn’t leaning against Lanny. Could you imagine a string of events that tallies the Isles 6 straight cups, 27 straight series wins…. Resch is in the HOF and Billy is doing color on OHL games…(becasue there’s no way he would last doing NHL color… hmm… wait a second… the capitals have somebody who I’m pretty sure can be considered “learning disabled” or “mentally challenged” doing their color.}
“See Sid, when I played you didn’t even try to get in there cause I’d whack you with my stick… this guy is just a puss”
“Billy… there are kids watching”
“Oh sorry… that’s right… for you kids out there… especially if you’re goalies… remember when you hit somebody with your stick make sure you get them with the edge… this way they don’t come back… oh… and Sid.. is that my beer?… DON’T TOUCH MY &&&&ING BEER!!!”
Wang doesn't need to fire Gordon, just ask him how to address the third period meltdowns... and he'll just walk away.
Man I love when you drink over lunch.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
Are you hiring?
Wang doesn't need to fire Gordon, just ask him how to address the third period meltdowns... and he'll just walk away.
a little jt in ko?
I can’t be the only one who sees a lot of Tonelli in young Kyle Okposo. Watching the second and third efforts after getting knocked down on that second clip, well, that’s how Kyle plays the game. We can only pray that he finds the success and plays in the big moments like JT did.
What If...
Dale Hunter isn’t a huge douchebag and takes the loss like a man. Lets not even consider the implications for that years playoffs (Do the Pens take a Turgeon lead Islanders team more seriously?) but one of the reasons Maloney traded Pierre was because of his belief that he wouldn’t return to his pre-injury form. The trade for Muller got Maloney fired and gave us a decade to forget.
Turgeon? He only managed to tally a point a game for his career till the twilight years, during a period more known for its Defense then offense.
Come on Isles! 11-0-0 or 10-0-1 I'm not picky! Playoffs!
That’s a fine and fascinating what-if. I’ve naturally thought about life without Hunter a lot, but not quite in those terms.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
AND, of course.....
….win a Cup – the ONLY Cup – for Dallas. Dumb, DUMB move by Dave’s bro!
Some belated further thoughts…..
I wonder if Botta could do something to revive the Islanders HOF, and if Ziggy were to be rightfully inducted – if he were to let bygones be bygones – I’d surely make the trip down for THAT!
Are you referring to Turgeon?
If so, he wasn’t in Dallas yet for their ’99 Cup. He retired Cup-less.
The Hall of Honor, or whatever they started with Bourne, really should be resurrected in some way. You’d think if/when a new venue arrives they’ll do something proper. And it’d be good to involve players like Palffy and Turgeon and LaFontaine — guys not part of the dynasty who captured the hearts of fans young and old.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
Don’t forget Steve Webb. Wow the Isles need another Steve Webb. I know there are a bunch more but he is a bright spot in a dark period.
Please let Roloson and Biron be the guest announcers on some Chicago playoff broadcasts...please hockey Gods!
by metalcoconut on Apr 2, 2010 11:54 AM EDT up reply actions
Even if he had won a Cup in Dallas, he was steady but wasn’t great for Dallas. Another one of those million vets they signed who were solid, intelligent players but weren’t game breakers.
Come on Isles! 11-0-0 or 10-0-1 I'm not picky! Playoffs!
I never understood that signing by Dallas. I feel like they wasted his final years. Sign Turgeon when you have Modano and Nieuwendyk already? So make one of them a third-line center or, later, try to force Turgeon to be a left wing? It was ridiculous.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
Mostly for the humor of having Kirk Mueller and Pierre on the same team.
Pierre always seemed like a guy who didn’t like the spotlight and being the #1 guy for a team. Considering he was a bit older, I guess it was a good fit for him to not be the #1 guy for once.
Of course he might have played with everything he had during his contract year (82 Points was the most points he had in 5 years) and a great playoff run (15 Points in 15 games) just enough to get the Stars hopeful he had a lot left in the tank.
Come on Isles! 11-0-0 or 10-0-1 I'm not picky! Playoffs!
He really did have a great contract year. Had the Stars not mismanaged that roster, I think he would have been effective. But I was so bitter the Blues let him walk for nothing, I actually have a Stars Turgeon protest jersey.
Lighthouse Hockey: What's wrong with lotteries? I've been in lots of lotteries.
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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.
