Islanders Gameday News: In the birds nest; Weight writes; Early WJC roster joy and sadness

Fresh off a two-game stint in Florida that ended... poorly, the Islanders are in Pittsburgh tonight to face the Penguins. Nothing is easy.

FIG picks go here. Game time is 7 pm.

Islanders reads

• Arthur Staple’s latest mailbag from the road covers a wide range of topics, mostly related to keeping the puck out of the Islanders’ net.
• Doug Weight and Garth Snow know their goalies are struggling, but there are no plans to bring anyone else in, which should not be a surprise. [Newsday]
• Garik and special guest Carey Haber chatted on video about Islanders stats and whether the team should GO FOR IT this season. [LHH]
• If you didn’t read this Alex Prewitt Sports Illustrated profile on Doug Weight yesterday, be sure to read it today. Weight always gives interesting answers and Prewitt always asks interesting questions so it’s a good match. Lots about his communication style and giving each player personal attention. I want an Islanders notebook personalized from Doug, too.
• There were a couple of additions to the Tavares Encyclopedia yesterday. One was the Prewitt piece and another was a sugary, speculative one from ESPN that’s still making the rounds. One has new info, one has nice artwork.
• This seems significant: The Mohegan Sun casino has partnered with Webster Bank Arena, home of the Sound Tigers. Mainly for entertainment. But given the outstanding issues with the city of Bridgeport about the amphitheater next door (not to mention the Islanders arena situation), this feels like another piece being added to the chess board (or card being played at the Magic table for you kids out there). [Webster Bank Arena| CT Post]
• More Bridgeport notes, in which Seth Helgeson has a goal taken away from him. Sorry, dude. [Soundin’ Off]
• Prospect Watch: Kieffer Bellows was included on Team USA’s preliminary roster for World Junior 2018. He’s having a way better season than he did last year, in which he made the squad [Islanders]. But a bummer for David Quenneville, as he was left off Canada’s preliminary roster. He says he’ll use this as a learning experience. [MH News]
• Hey, the Islanders are looking for a Finance and Special Projects manager. [Sports Jobs]

Other stuff

• Last night’s NHL scores. The Metro gets no relief as both the Caps and Flyers win.
• Prepare for an NHL team in Seattle before long. Bob McKenzie and the TSN crew are already all over it. Gotta be called the Metropolitans, no? Bringing back old names (Senators, Jets) is the hockey thing to do. [Insider Trading | Seattle time, baby | Relocation candidates]
• Ken Hitchcock might be in Dallas now but he and St. Louis GM Doug Armstrong will always be friends. [Stars]
• This was the worst hockey fight ever. [SBN]