As I mentioned yesterday, I was told that the videos from Saturday that had not been posted would be up on the Islanders site sometime on Monday (today). I am watching them as I post this, so check it out!

Update: It appears Puck Daddy (Greg Wyshynski) has picked up on the Favre jersey prank and even went as far as to speak about Tom, Blair and I speaking to Weight and Bailey. Thanks for the link Greg!

Update #2: The boys over at The Final Score also linked over here and discussed adding my blog to the blog roll. It was only fair that I would add them (I had actually forgotten to add them a while back - MY BAD!).

If I could sum up the afternoon today in one word, it would have to be FUN. The Islanders have set up these open houses so that everyone involved has an enjoyable experience, from what I could tell those in attendance certainly did. While I am too old to take part in the activities for the kids (BD and I thought we should have had a battle royale in the bounce castle), we had fun in other ways and got to chat with our media friends and those inside the organization.

For a recap, photos and video interviews on Islanders TV check out the Islanders site - it even features an interview with both Tom and I. You can also check out my photos, in my gallery.

Things got started off today with a phone call to Dee Karl (aka 7thwoman) to see where she was in the arena - we met up and waited for Tom Liodice of The Tiger Track. Following on the heels of Tom were B.D. Gallof of Hockeybuzz and his wife. With our little group complete we all caught up and started to discuss the game plan. Tom and I were selected for the 3 person panel asking questions to Weight and Bailey so we told them our questions and the divided up in search of where to go. While waiting for Corey Witt, a fan (apparently of both of our blogs too) came up to us and asked if we were the bloggers and had a nice discussion on the-yet-to-be-named coach. Garth Snow spotted Tom and I and came over to say hello (Yes, the GM knows us by face and name which was pretty cool).

Corey found us, and informed Tom, myself and Blair MacGregor (Son of Scissons on Islanders Mania) what the plan was - and gave us our questions printed out in the order we were to ask each player. He told us where to wait and that Radio Announcer Chris King would introduce us and we were to walk out on stage. This is when the nerves began for me, especially given the fact that the players were yet to be introduced by Bill Guerin. Guerin introduced Josh Bailey first, but naturally they couldn’t let the young player onto the team without a bit of hazing - so they handed him a number 4 Brett Favre Islanders jersey (much to the enjoyment of the crowd being Favre was less than a mile away at Hofstra). He then presented Bailey with his jersey and introduced him to the crowd. Doug Weight was introduced second, Weight (as we found out is extremely funny and will be a handful this season) engaged Guerin in a mock embrace and the captain put his head on his shoulder. He explained that Weight has worn the number 39 for almost his entire career, but “some other guy” on the team currently wears that number and handed him a number 93 jersey. The pair of players sat down and it was our turn to be called up.

There have not been may times where I had to walk out on a stage and speak in front of an audience. I could feel the sweat begin to bead and panic rush all over my body. I was freaked out, but decided to man up and deal with it. Tom was introduced first, noting the trip to Ottawa followed by me with the same note on the NHL Draft and then Blair.

Once seated, I looked around and actually had to find a place to look other than out at the crowd so I decided to look at the players while they were talking or the floor. Once things rolled on, it became easier as I was ignoring the fact that people actually watching this unfold. After an explanation by King we started with our questions. The following list is the order in which they were asked:

Round 1

Tom Liodice to Doug Weight: What are some of the factors that brought you to sign here on Long Island?

Michael Schuerlein to Josh Bailey: We were able to take a peak into the future during prospect camp, how did it feel to be playing on a line with Okposo - a potential NHL linemate?

Blair MacGregor to Doug Weight: If you were able to take Gary Bettman’s place as Commissioner of the NHL for one day, what’s the one thing in the league you would most like to change?

Round 2

Tom Liodice to Josh Bailey: What do you think of the team’s dedication to go with more of a youth-oriented base, their dedication to build though their farm system/draft and do you think that will help accelerate your chances of earning a shot at the NHL sooner, rather than later?

Michael Schuerlein to Doug Weight: Recent history has shown you to have a shoulder injury, has it healed or been repaired and will you be ready for camp in September?

Blair MacGregor to Josh Bailey: What is the most important off-ice attribute you feel you can learn from the veterans like Weight/Guerin/Sillinger, ect?

Round 3

Tom Liodice to Doug Weight: What do you know about some of the younger Islanders in the organization and which ones are you looking forward to playing with this season?

Michael Schuerlein to Josh Bailey: There is a lot of focus on veteran leadership and how it influences younger players, what are some of the areas you wish to improve on and gain knowledge from the vets?

Blair MacGregor to Doug Weight: What was the Islander-Ranger rivalry like for you when you first started your career and how different do you think it’ll be now that you’re on the other side?

Unfortunately, because I was on stage I couldn’t really record the answers, but I can tell you it will be on Islanders TV and I will post the video once available. The answers from Weight in particular, are a must hear because he is a character. Not taking anything away from Bailey, he did a great job too and was very honest in his answering. He seemed to take this whole transition into a professional athlete with grace and poise and the maturity just oozes out of this kid.

After the questions from the panel, there were a few questions asked by members of the audience and the event was wrapped up. On the way to find Dee and BD, Tom and I ran into Brad Kurtzberg of Inside Hockey (whom we have come to know during the last year) and then Chris Dey so we caught up a bit with them both. Afterwards, we found Dee and she was speaking with new Director of Communications Seth Sylvan. We all introduced ourselves and he was very outgoing and knowledgeable, and most importantly supportive of the Blog Box.

Looking back at it all, it was a great day and I had a really good time. Despite my initial discomfort with being up on stage, it was good to get the first time out of the way - hopefully it won’t be the last.

As you may have already read on the Islanders website, there is another open house this Saturday morning at Nassau Coliseum from 10am to 12pm. The events are usually organized well and offer many things to do and see. This Saturday, the Islanders are going above and beyond and will be introducing two of the newest New York Islanders in Doug Weight and Josh Bailey for the first time.

Per the Islanders website (excerpt):

The Islanders and the Islanders Community Events (I.C.E) Tour will open the doors to the Nassau Coliseum this Saturday morning, August 9th, and fans will be introduced to Doug Weight and Josh Bailey — two of the newest members of the Islanders family. Weight joined the Islanders in July after spending last season in Anaheim, where he had 10 goals and 15 assists for 25 points in 67 games. He needs 31 points to reach the magical 1,000 point plateau in his career. Bailey was the Islanders 1st round pick in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft after posting 96 points in 67 games last season for Windsor Spitfires of the OHL.

As part of the Re/Max Open House, Doug and Josh will field questions from a select three-person panel. The panel will consist of members from Islander Mania and the NYI Blog Box. Weight and Bailey will also take questions from fans in the crowd. This portion of the open house is available to all fans in attendance.

As luck would have it, I was asked by the Islanders during the week if I would like to take part in the three-person panel asking the questions. Of course, I jumped at the chance!

There are a few things that I want to ask, but I wanted to take this opportunity to open things up to you guys - the whole reason why I am even blogging in the first place, a chance to get their question out there. I am limited in my questions to each player (time constraints), but fire away in either the comment section, or the contact form and I will give each question consideration.

The other two individuals asking the questions are fellow Blog Box member Tom Liodice of The Tiger Track and Islandermania message board member Son of Scissons.

It should be a fun filled Saturday for sure, so check back in the afternoon for photos of the event.

As always, there will be plenty to do for the kids, as the Islanders RV, inflatables and other interactive games will be set up for them to enjoy. The Islanders will also be giving away free Islanders street hockey sticks to all kids in attendance - so get there early. Doors open at 10:00 AM and fans should enter through the Coliseum’s Box Office on the Marriott side of the building.

See you there!

Everyone may or may not remember that I created an excel document so you can import the teams schedule into your outlook and mobile calenders last season. For whatever reason the team did not do so last year, so I did one to fill the void. Thankfully, the team has released the mobile calender this season and saved me SOME effort (I had already started creating one).

You can can either download the file on the Islanders website, or in the instructions below!

Directions

On the Islanders site, they want you to follow these simple steps:

1. Save this file to desktop (or another location)
2. In Outlook, open the Calendar
3. Select File Menu
4. Select “Import and Export”
5. Select “Import from another file or program”
6. Select “Comma Separated Values (Windows)”
7. Select the file from where you saved it
8. Select which folder to import to (most likely “Calendar”)

After following these directions exactly, my calendar would not import into outlook so here is what I did to fix the problem. Either re-download the csv file, or rename it. Make sure the extension is in all CAPS and reads “NYISchedule0809.CSV” (no quotes).

Once I did this and re-imported I had no problems importing.

One thing that the team plans to do, is update the calendar throughout the season - but given the problem that I had and a duplicate entry problem that Murph brings up in the comments section, I don’t know if that is such a novel idea.

One other thing that Murph mentions, if you do not use Outlook as your default calander and use iCalendar or Google’s calendar check out Yahoo’s Islanders Calendar!

For those of you out there with an iPhone and whom use Outlook and Mobile Me with PUSH data - I can verify that this works with that setup. I made sure Mobile Me had a fresh Sync and within seconds my calendar was on my device.

I touched on this in a previous post, although back then it was only speculation and I couldn’t get confirmation from the team at the time. The 3rd jersey will return during the coming season, and the Islanders will be paying homage to the team of yesteryear in bringing back their inaugural jersey.

This jersey is the same jersey that was worn at the Retro night two seasons ago, most notably “the night Asham wore an afro wig”, and can be seen in the photos to the right and below (Asham with Afro wig and Blake Photo, Credits to AP).

Confirmation, comes from Howard Berger’s blog on Hockeybuzz:

The Isles are going back to their original road jersey from 1972-73, when they joined the NHL along with the Atlanta Flames. It is a royal-blue base, with broad orange and white stripes on the arms and at the bottom of the jersey. The uniform numbers – as they appeared during the club’s inaugural season – are orange with white trim. Player names will also be orange. The Islanders switched to white jersey numbers after their dreadful first year in the league; when they compiled a 12-60-6 record… worst, to that point, in NHL history.

Some would prefer the Islanders to go back to this jersey full time, while I like the retro version - the new styles have grown on me and I feel they would also be acceptable with a few slight changes. Third jerseys are back though and from what I have heard you may only be able to get these at the team stores or at the Coliseum once available.

Islanders forward Sean Bergenheim has singed a two year deal according to Greg Logan’s Blog.

One might think that this is simply Garth Snow tidying up some lose ends, but isn’t it a little bit suspect that he locks up two important pieces in terms of the “youth movement” and rebuild days after Nolan’s departure? What’s also great is that Bergenheim and his new agent progressed quickly in talks with the Islanders. Both contracts are great values and the length allows both players the chance to show the club, should they improve - they could be worth much more in the long term.

Per the Islanders release:

The New York Islanders and forward Sean Bergenheim have agreed to a two-year contract worth $1.725 million. The energetic forward will earn $800,000 in 2008-09 and $925,000 in 2009-10. Bergenheim has also voluntarily made a large donation to the Islanders Inspire.

“We’re very happy to have Sean locked up for two years,” said Islanders General Manager Garth Snow. “He’s another young player who we’re excited to see at training camp and competing.”

Last season, Bergenheim played in 78 games with the Islanders and scored ten goals with 12 assists for 22 points. Bergenheim scored eight of his ten goals in the final 34 games of the season. He also finished second on the Islanders in hits with 138. Bergenheim has played in 124 career NHL games over the course of three seasons and in that time has scored 15 goals with 18 assists for 33 points.

Bergenheim was originally drafted by the Islanders in the first round (22nd overall) of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.

This on the heals of Jeff Tambellini being locked up two more years, taking less than his qualifiying offer in exchange for a one-way contract.

Per the Islanders release on Tambellini:

The New York Islanders and forward Jeff Tambellini have agreed to a two-year, one-way contract worth a total of $1.175 million. The contract will pay him $550,000 in 2008-09 and $625,000 in 2009-10.

Tambellini split his season between the Islanders and the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the American Hockey League last season.

“We’re extremely happy that we have Jeff as a member of the Islanders organization for the next two years,” said Islanders General Manager Garth Snow. “We know that Jeff will come to training camp in shape and ready to compete in September and we look forward to it.”

In 31 games with the Islanders in 2007-08, Tambellini scored a goal with three assists for four points. With Bridgeport, Tambellini led the Sound Tigers with 38 goals and 38 assists for 76 points in 57 games and set a new team record for points scored. The two-time AHL All-Star, who finished tied for second in goals scored in the AHL last season, has played in a total of 79 NHL games and has scored four goals with 13 assists for 17 points.

Also signed were forwards Jeremy Colliton and Ben Walter who each agreed to their two-way qualifying offers.