Islanders News: Coliseum revisited; no Franson no cry; Lee’s life choice

Day three of The Great Bye Week (That’s Not Quite A Week) of 2018 is upon us.

Islanders Reading

• Commissioner Gary Bettman, Isles owner Jon Ledecky and areener operators toured Nassau Coliseum yesterday. They want to see what needs to be done to make it an interim home. Which, I mean they already gave it a new paint job and a centered scoreboard so what’s left to do? All parties confirmed attendance but declined comment. [Newsday | Isles Insight]
• Revisiting Anders Lee’s most glorious decision to choose hockey over football, which came more naturally to him. [MSG]
• The way 2017 ended and 2018 began, you might be hard pressed for first-half Isles success stories. But if you think about it, you know what they are. [Newsday]
• One team waived Cody Franson and 29 teams passed on him yesterday. We argued the Islanders could use him. [LHH]
• Two more shutouts for Ilya Sorokin and more points for David Quenneville. [Isles Prospect Report]
• Meanwhile, Sebastian Aho and Tanner Fritz reflect on the (very different) feelings in their NHL debuts, probably influenced by the fact Aho had already played in the top pro league in his country while Fritz was in the ECHL two years ago. Cool that Sunday’s matinee meant people back in Sweden could easily catch Aho’s big game. [CT Post]
• Elliotte Friedman’s 31 Thoughts has a few Isles speculations: Brock Nelson being hard on himself and his name “starting to creep” into trade rumors if the Isles go after a defenseman. (Like FRANSON you mean? Sorry, not sorry.) Also: Friedman wondering if they’d trade for Robin Lehner. [Sportsnet]

Elsewhere

Last night’s NHL scores included the Capitals winning at home, the Jets winning yet again, and the Blackhawks winning without Franson and Brent Seabrook a healthy scratch.

• Where would the Islanders be without the gifts from the Oilers? The Oilers are somehow in worse shape, with a GM revising history about how they got there. [C&B | HockeyBuzz]
• But wait, who is Canada’s most depressing team? [DGB for Sportsnet]
• Anthony Duclair, hidden gem of the NHL trade market? A case can be made. [Sportsnet]
• Excellent profile of the unintentionally entertaining referee Wes MacCauley. [Puck Daddy]
• The AHL All-Star Game will be televised on NHL Network. [AHL]
• Fitz and the Tantrums will headline All-Star Friday entertainment in Tampa, so. [NHL]
• Erik Gudbranson feels like he’s better equipped to handle a trade. Last time, he was on safari. [Sportsnet]