Islanders News: Brassard joins our merry band of misfits

I think Dom jinxed me when he said Bits yesterday were mostly a collection of GIFs. There was news galore yesterday! It would have been nice if the NHL decided to spread some of it out so we could have some mild entertainment every day instead of jam packing it into one morning. But hey, better than no news, right?

Islanders News

The big news from yesterday, at least around these parts: the Islanders signed C Derick Brassard to a one-year, $1.2 million deal to fill the hole at 3C. Low-risk move; hopefully, in the Barry Trotz System, he’s able to regain something of his old form. If he hits 30-35 points, it’s a win. [LHH | Newsday | Islanders]

• Get to know the new guy with 7 facts about him. [Islanders]
• He’s looking to have a bounce back season on Long Island. We’re hoping he has one, too. [Islanders]
• This article about where the Isles could look for top-9 forward help published only a couple hours before whispers of the Brassard deal came out, but Brassard wasn’t an option Shayna Goldman mentioned, so it still counts. [The Athletic]
• Thomas Greiss is hoping to form a nice bond with his new tandem partner, Semyon Varlamov. [Newsday]
• The Islanders site caught up with Casey Cizikas, finding out what he’s been up to this summer and what he’s looking forward to this season. [Islanders]
• The Sound Tigers and their Rangers-equivalent rivals, the Wolf Pack, will meet twice in the preseason. [CT Post]
• That and some acknowledgment of the Isles two RFAs that signed here. Also a reference to the death of Peter Fonda, and a link to the excellent Beatles song he inspired - one of my favorite Beatles songs, in fact. [Soundin’ Off]
• We were blessed yesterday with some critical information about the new LIRR Elmont stop that will serve us in our intrepid treks to the NYRA Coliseum. [Newsday]

Elsewhere

• The big news around the rest of the league is that the Wild have finally found their GM. Former Islander Bill Guerin, who was previously assistant GM of the Penguins, will indeed be heading to Minnesota, as was rumored last week. [Hockey Wilderness | The Athletic]
• Also somewhat important from yesterday was that the Senators signed RFA Colin White to a six-year contract with an AAV of $4.75 million. [NHL]
• It was rumored earlier in the week but now it’s confirmed that Mitch Marner asked the Maple Leafs if he could train in Zurich, Switzerland if he doesn’t have a contract by training camp. [NHL]
• Nicklas Backstrom and Braden Holtby are likely going to be involved in extension discussions with the Capitals as camp approaches. [NHL]
• Jesse Puljujärvi hopes to land a top-6 role wherever he goes. He’s either going to a terrible team or a vaunted team missing one piece, I’m predicting it now. No mushy middle for this guy. [Yahoo]
• We’re a culture of extremes. We love extremes, don’t we folks? This article has some of the worst teams of the last decade, but some of the best, too. The best of the best. [ESPN]
• He just won’t go away! Tanner Glass is back with the Rangers. But this time, it’s in a front office role. [Newsday]
• VOTE: What are you expecting from the 2019-20 NHL season? It’s a two-part poll! [The Athletic]
• Former “Miracle on Ice” and Rangers forward Mark Pavelich is charged with allegedly beating the shit out of his neighbor with a metal pole in Minnesota. [Newsday]
• RIP: We already reported this yesterday, but another farewell to Russ Conway, who exposed NHLPA corruption in his work. [ESPN]