Islanders “News”: Staple has got one of the best Garth Snow stories I’ve heard in a while

Today is the last day of March. Normally, April means it’s almost playoff time. Who knows when we’ll actually get the playoffs this year, though. Or even if.

March flew by in real life terms. But at the same time it felt like it dragged on and on since we’re stuck at home and have no hockey, or any sports for that matter, to distract us. The days are crawling and the weeks are running.

Anyway, here’s some tidbits from the Islanders world to keep us somewhat connected to the game and team we love. It’s all Islanders today!

Islanders News

• Times are tough right now, but many of the Islanders recorded video messages to wish us well. Here they are in one handy article.
• With New York state banning any non-essential construction, work at the Belmont arena has ceased for the time being. [LHH | Newsday]
• But Lou Lamoriello is fully behind Gov. Andrew Cuomo on that one. Cuomo, after all, did pull some strings to ensure the Islanders won Belmont. [Islanders]
• The NHL also gave the Islanders (and maybe every other team, I don’t know) about the COVID-19 pause. [Islanders]
• With all this time to kill, Arthur Staple said he’s gonna bring us weekly stories about what life has been like for the last decade as the Islanders’ beat writer. This week, it’s how he’s always on a flight during major Islanders moves. There’s a hell of a bit in there about Garth Snow’s get-up in a hotel room. [The Athletic]
• John Tavares did the video conference that Anders Lee did last week and during it, wished Long Islanders and his ex-teammates well, knowing that the virus is especially bad here right now. [Newsday]
• Shannon Hogan, AJ Mleczko, and Jennifer Botterill comprise the first NHL broadcast with three women on it and they are the highlights of the broadcast on many nights. [Islanders]
• Isles’ 2017 7th-round pick (201st overall) Logan Cockerill has been named the captain of Boston University’s hockey team for the 2020-21 season. Another nice feather in his cap. [BU Athletics]
• To keep you updated on all the Islanders of the Day since the last Bits, here’s Terry Crisp and Marc-Andre Bergeron.
• PODCAST: The Lighthouse Lookback podcast catches up with Keith Aucoin, who spent one season as a reliable 3rd-line center for the Islanders after spending most of his career in the AHL. [LHH]
• In the late 1980s, Terry Simpson took over behind the bench for the retired Al Arbour. But Bill Torrey was able to coax Arbour out of retirement in December 1988. [Maven’s Memories]
• Did you know that on March 25, 2003 Alexei Yashin recorded his only four-goal game against the Blackhawks? It turned out to be his last hat trick, too. [Islanders]
• Here’s the schedule for the week’s Islanders re-runs from earlier this season on MSG+.