Islanders News: Tavares frustrations, 4th-line production, fan evolution, Long Island connection

In preparation for a back-to-back Friday (in Detroit) and Saturday, yesterday the New York Islanders placed Michael Grabner on IR and sent Griffin Reinhart to Bridgeport. That means good things for upper body brothers Travis Hamonic and Johnny Boychuk.

On the Island or across the Sound

• With John Tavares clearly frustrated on the ice -- something discussed around here quite a bit -- Arthur Staple assessed that and the first line LW topic, nailing it: "These are nagging problems, not headlining ones." [Newsday]
• The official site talks to the fourth line about their recent elevated play. Capuano says players do well when they know their role. [Isles]
• The SNY IPB podcast with Brian Compton had a very extra special super-duper guest. He lured me into questioning the divinity of Frans, sending me straight to confession. [soundcloud]
• "Transforming from an apathetic fan to one that's invested in expectation is a hell of a thing." [Altar of Bossy]
  
• Great video on the connection of the Isles to Long Island (more on that video later this a.m. in Dan's Q&A with the creator) spurs Islanders Insight to discuss the impact of the Brooklyn move. [Islanders Insight]
  
• No mumps here, the Sound Tigers did their local hospital visits. [BST]
• But Mike Halmo's injury looks to be not minor. He was evaluated in New York. [Soundin' Off]
• See how the losses, and then the win over the Hawks, affected the power rankings and media punditry. [LHH]
  

Off the Island

• The Oilers are willing to swap rosters with anyone. (Not really. But maybe?) [LHH Zeitgeist]
  
• James Neal is a diver, this we know / Cause history and now an NHL fine tells us so. [Puck Daddy]
  
• "Is this Russia? This isn't Russia." Could the ruble's Neal-ian dive endanger the KHL? [SI | Puck Daddy] Mikko Koskinen demanded a trade but Kovalchuk and Radulov will "be taken care of" because "creativity is not dead." Well I'll be poot-poot-Putin.
  
• Tom Kurvers, the man traded for the pick that became Scott Niedermeyer (when the Leafs desperately scrambled to keep it from becoming Connor McDavid-I-mean-Eric-Lindros), dealt away from New Jersey because of a logjam on defense as the Russians arrived. [Sportsnet video]
• In the AHL, the Phantoms scored three times in 36 seconds...the first 36 seconds of the game. [CBS]
• The Jets must face the music...from a six-year-old girl. [CBC]
• Behind the funny, snarky Dallas Stars jumbotron. [Puck Daddy]
• Eugene Melnyk and his fantastic profile shot talks about where the Senators will play, how their budget isn't limited (sounds familiar), and how he wasn't at all involved in promoting the coach he's been tied to for the last decade. [6th Sens]