The New York Islanders opened training camp today with their first on-ice session at IceWorks in Syosset, New York. While there should be no scouting reports made on the first day (or the second for that matter, or third), you can just evaluate how the players are skating, keeping a keen eye on any progress or lack thereof of lingering issues that they might have closed out 2014-15 with. What you can talk about however are issues that might have arisen over the summer that could potentially affect the on-ice product. Issues such as logistical concerns about the move to Barclays Center in Brooklyn and/or the lack of player movement by general manager Garth Snow to his roster that produced 47 wins and 101 points but once again, was bounced in the first round of the playoffs in a seventh game stinker against the Washington Capitals. And to a man, including the head coach, Jack Capuano, all were happy that Snow retained basically the same lineup on the basis of continuity and camaraderie, something that is often overlooked but so important in any professional sports locker room. Don't misread what I am saying however. The hard work that Snow and his scouting staff have done to rebuild what was once a barren and charred farm system has done wonders in the front office having the ability to go …show more content…
with what they trust in, with what they believe in. Not all teams possess the embarrassment of riches that New York does, with Michael Dal Colle, Joshua Ho-Sang (incident today notwithstanding), Matthew Barzal, Kirill Petrov, Ryan Pulock, Scott Mayfield, Kevin Czuczman and Adam Pelech - just to name several in the system, developing and getting hungrier for their shot at NHL stardom. While some may question the depth of the Islanders defense, there are no major pieces that need to be acquired there. Hence the key word, 'depth'. It's the primary reason there is still an offer on the table for Marek Zidlicky, formerly of the New Jersey Devils, and no trade offers pending for someone like Predators stud Shea Weber for example. The Islanders have always been a team - an organization - that values long-term service and stability from the top down. Sometimes it goes overboard and that loyalty has its faults (Mike Milbury anyone?). But it's a key reason why Jack Capuano is still the head coach. A major reason why Snow is still the general manager. And the reason for the belief in the roster that ended last season will improve on the ice without the need for a major addition. Does it always work? As I said earlier, no. But it's as much the Islanders way as is the policy of no training camp holdouts or their team building philosophy of 'You practice from day one with the entire team or you don't practice at all'. Whether you agree with both aforementioned policies, they suggest a strong unified structure. One where they really could care less how other teams are going about their own business. "We have the foundation here of what we need to be.
It's (Snow not adding players) very important. As a professional athlete, it's always in the back of your mind. You never know, coming to the rink, if you will be sitting next to a new teammate or losing a good friend. Heck, it could be you that's leaving. Last year, I remember when we went through a bit of a dry spell, they told us we were a group, we don't want to make changes. You need to figure it out, we believe in you. That goes a long way with how close this group is. That confidence that they show in all of us in this room is more important than anyone can imagine." Islanders forward Matt Martin told Islanders
Insight. Islanders defensive stalwart Travis Hamonic, coming back from a major knee injury suffered in the second to last game last season, agreed with his burly teammate. "We are excited to be back with almost the same group minus Grabs, who we will certainly miss for sure. It's a fun group to grow with and an even more fun group to win with." Kyle Okposo, in addition to mentioning that his surgically repaired eye is finally 100%, added "Yeah, it's definitely good that we have the camaraderie that we do and the chemistry that we developed last year is important to carry over. It's important to enter the season all on the same page and we feel that we certainly are...most times anyway." Youngster Ryan Strome is very excited looking ahead to the opening pre-season game Monday at Barclays Center against the Philadelphia Flyers with his teammates, the same ones he ended the year with. "It's good. One or two minor changes and you never know what can happen in the next couple of days, but we are very confident in this group. We were one goal away in a game seven that we did not play well in, at all. Who knows what could have happened. I like how Garth kept the team together. Now it's on us to take that next step. We have a great leadership group and the young guys are coming into their own." All preached a similar message. All sang a similar tone. Familiarity is good, stability is good. Hockey players are known to be creatures of habit and with the move to Barclays presenting a big challenge to that, any comfort that management could provide roster wise could be crucial to easing that transition. Many pundits agree that major changes were not needed and subsequently they didn't happen. As Strome alluded to, it's all on them (the players) now. Whether they succeed or fail this season won't because of the move to Barclays. And it certainly won't be because the roster simply wasn't good enough.
It took a disciplined mind, strategic, and vision to pull a team with this composition, these ego’s, to put aside their self-interest and egocentric tendencies to play as one, play for a nation. The term miracle on ice is one that will forever be linked to Her Brooks’ legacy, the fabled 1980 U.S. Olympic team which won the gold medal at Lake Placid, NY. According to Coach Brook’s, the team was mentally tough and goal-oriented. They came from all different walks of life, many having competed against one another, but they came together and grew to be a real close team. He pushed this team really hard. But they had the ability to answer the bell. (Herb Brooks Foundation, N.d.) Here Coach refers to the team or they, as the team they came together for a common goal. For anyone who has watched the movie or read the book it was obvious that it was his leadership was the cause of the team coming together to play as one. He addresses the team in a positive light and himself as the catalyst.
Fortunately for the NHL, they had/ have the Chicago Blackhawks, the Franchise to bring hockey back. The Chicago Blackhawks started the 2012-2013 series with a 24 point streak, meaning that they went 24 games with at least 1 point gained in each game. As many people don’t pay attention until the season has hit 20 or so games, the Hawks, had come to break the lockout of that particular attention span causing more attention towards not only the NHL , but for the Blackhawks themselves. As fans joined the progressing bandwagon, the NHL was gratefully coming out of the “drought” with numourus sponsorships with companies, and gaining profit from their
Nowadays in sports especially in hockey we see a lot of athletes come from across seas to play on Canadian and american hockey teams. Some of these players are premier athletes and
It’s Saturday Night, the crowd gone wild with an epic hit on the opposing team. The occasional drunk sitting next to you, as your kids enjoy delicious Dipping Dots. Right as the momentum is swinging towards the home team, a penalty is called. A powerplay opportunity is awarded to the defending team. With the home team fighting with all their might to defend from a goal, down 4 on 5, they run around like chickens with their heads chopped off, trying to get the puck out of their zone. Then when everything seems to simmer down, a fight breaks between the bulkiest guys on each team, punches being thrown, blood spattering across the ice. In hockey today, there are two main leagues in the United states: the NHL, and USA Hockey. Just like in any game, there are basic rules that must be followed. In these two leagues there are similarities and differences in basic “golden” rules, benefits from playing, and the official’s code of conduct.
The Beginning: A freshman, Steve Jacobs, and a senior, Steve Spady, met for the first time, and they began to brainstorm in earnest to put the Lincoln Ice Hockey Association together. After meeting with Bob Devaney, the Athletic Director, they got the paperwork going within a year and they were off to the races. The Ice Hockey Association held tryouts, elected their officers, and everyone that made the Lincoln Ice Hockey team got one official red uniform.
The first day we got there we had started off so wrong by arguing. We weren’t doing well and we argued most of the time. Us as a team, we honestly made ourselves look bad in front of the coordinators and other teams that were watching us. The coaches had given us a real big pep talking about sticking together as a team to make us better. Although we didn’t think we needed it, it actually
In the colonization of Turtle Island (North America), the United States government policy set out to eliminate the Indigenous populations; in essence to “destroy all things Indian”.2 Indigenous Nations were to relocate to unknown lands and forced into an assimilation of the white man 's view of the world. The early American settlers were detrimental, and their process became exterminatory.3 Colonization exemplified by violent confrontations, deliberate massacres, and in some cases, total annihilations of a People.4 The culture of conquest was developed and practiced by Europeans well before they landed on Turtle Island and was perfected well before the fifteenth century.5 Taking land and imposing values and ways of life on the social landscape
In the early 1990’s the crime rate in New York City was astronomical. Every category including the eight nature index crimes were all on the rise if not extremely high already. Mayor Giuliani a former federal United States prosecutor was elected into office and brought with him a reputation of viciousness against crime. His campaigns lead to the appointment of Commissioner William Joseph Bratton to hold the position of police commissioner of New York City. Giuliani learnt of Bratton’s amazing crime reduction plan that helped reduce crime in two other cities. He requested him for the position as police commissioner for New York City and was appointed in 1990. Bratton had previously helped establish an innovative policing program in Boston Back Bay neighborhood and Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority. Using the same approach he would attempt to reorganize and help the New
*Westchester County has nearly one million residents living throughout the 450 square miles and its population is larger than five states and 77 countries (Westchester gov.com, 2014). This region has a lot to offer historical; Westchester County played a key role in the American Revolution, cultural; arts, music, theater, museums, gardens, literary arts, cultural centers, and so on, geography; its locale is right along the Long Island Sound on the southeast and the Hudson River on the west, rolling hills, retaining rural characters, while adopting the urban and suburban lifestyles and New York City in close proximity, and population trends; the county’s population grew 3% between the 2000 and 2010 Census (Arts Westchester, n.d., Westchester
Global BC, "The NHL in Winnipeg: the economic impact." Last modified May 31, 2011. Accessed January 8, 2012. http://www.globaltvbc.com/the+nhl+in+winnipeg+the+economic
...during the game the captain should be involved for support or stopping depending on the situation. In small hockey towns, for example, all the young children in the town look up to the captain of the local hockey team. If the captain is seen doing something wrong, it is looked negatively upon; he or she must keep a positive status for themselves and for the team. The captain must have the intelligence to dissect problems that have to do with his or her team.
Jean Giddens (2013) defines culture as “a pattern of shared attitudes, beliefs, self-definitions, norms, roles, and values that can occur among those who speak a particular language, or live in a defined geographical region.” (Giddens, 2013). A person’s culture influences every aspect that person’s life. Beliefs affected by culture include how someone interacts within the family, how to raise children, the types of foods eaten, the style of clothes chosen, which religion is practiced, and the style of communication (including verbal, and body language, slang used etc.) (Giddens, 2013). In addition to these beliefs, health care practices are also affected by culture. The cause
As population continually increases in the Southern states, the NHL is moving teams into large Southern cities. In an effort to increase profits and popularity, the NHL has increased the number of teams in the league and moved into Southern cities that have never had hockey teams before. The problem is that hockey is not as popular in the South as it is in the North. This expansion in the South has lead to huge monetary losses to Southern teams and very low attendance numbers. The NHL should not have expanded the league into Southern cities and should keep NHL teams farther North.
Sink M. (2002, January 31). HOCKEY; Youth Game Postponed After Fight by Parents. Retrieved November 1, 2010, from New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/01/sports/hockey-youth-game-postponed-after-fight-by-parents.html
pucks, the rock hard ice floor and of Course the aggressive players. The helmet is the