The New York Islanders announced that they have assigned Greg Moore and Trevor Smith to the organization’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and Calvin de Haan has been sent back to the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey League.
No major surprises here -- although I was starting to wonder if the Isles wanted to keep de Haan, 18, for a nine-game trial first. But with no current injuries on the blueline (knock on wood), and de Haan himself listed day-to-day with Islanders Groinitis, that was starting to look like fantasy talk. Nonetheless, de Haan did everything the Islanders hoped and more. Pending his bulking up his frame a little, this is the beginning of a very nice relationship. For now, his junior team needs him.
For Greg Moore, 25, such is his lot: AHL player with potential injury call-ups for his adherence to the system. There appears to be no offensive upside there.
For Trevor Smith, 24, it's more of the same: A demonstration of how tough this league is even when you have notable offensive skill. If you can't convince a team -- even the Islanders -- that you deserve the proverbial "top six" minutes, then you have to morph into a diligent two-way player with defensive stamina and versatility. The world's elite level of hockey turns a lot of gifted forwards into such players, so there is a long line of them waiting to crack every lineup. Ask Richard Park about how to master that.
Speaking of which, Saturday's lineup (and injuries) are not yet set. Will we see the debut of Rob Schremp Hockey? And if so, pray tell, what will it look like?