Some random links from around the Island amid a six-game losing streak. As always, fans and bloggers are welcome to add more interesting links in the comments ...
- Islesblogger wrote this up before the Columbus loss, but it's still a thorough assessment of what the Isles do wrong when they go wrong.
- Newsday has a somewhat gimmicky "how to fix the Islanders" point/counterpoint. Fine, but there's nothing new there (and the shot at Wang is outdated). Although judging by some of the comments Botta gets (see below), maybe people do need to hear it again and again. 7th Woman says yes, fine, "just fix it" already.
- Chris Botta is trying to calm crazies who are "tired of hearing about the future," or who want Ted Nolan and Neil Smith back, or who ... etc. I'm amazed any eyes-open fans can think this way. We're in a rebuild, people -- a long overdue one. There will be pain. There will not be shortcuts. Any shortcuts (see: last seven years) require starting all over again. Let's make sure we only have to rip the bandaid off once, shall we?
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B.D. Gallof also did his part to try to calm the masses with reason. I'll echo, and say it again: Hate the individual performances all you want, but long-term you just can't look at this season in wins and losses, or you'll eat yourself up. This is about steps (many of them painful), and about trying to find the entertainment in those steps -- before you start kicking dogs.
- Isles19 at The Rivalry says only in hockey can teammates get a high-salaried player like Sean Avery booted off the team. I pretty much avoid all sports not containing two goals, two goalies and ridiculous salaries, but I suspect he has a point.
- Not exactly rocket science to have expected it, but Mike Sillinger's groin injury is not a surprise after the layoff and repair job he had.