Moving right along today in an afternoon filled with jubilant Islanders news, RFA Defensive prospect Jack Hillen has been signed to a two year contract after refusing to sign his qualifying offer early last week. Chris Botta reports it is as a one-way contract.

In his first year pro last season, Jack Hillen showed a great amount of poise and patience in his position. He has an effortless skating stride and had come a long way from his brief stint with the team the end of the season prior to last. He is one of those players that Snow obviously saw something in and took a chance on, I am excited he has been locked up and cannot wait to see him continue to grow with the team. With Hillen locked up, the team can focus on Blake Comeau, another player whom opted to not sign their qualifying deal.

Here is the official release:

The New York Islanders today announced that they have signed defenseman, Jack Hillen to a two-year contract.

Hillen was originally signed by the Islanders on April 1, 2008, at the completion of his senior year at Colorado College. He played in two games at the end of the Islanders’ 2007-08 season and recorded an assist, his first National Hockey League point. Last season, Hillen played in 40 games for the Islanders, registering a goal and five assists for six points. The tally was his first in the NHL and it came on March 5 against Henrik Lundqvist and the New York Rangers.

“We are happy to have Jack signed,” said Garth Snow, General Manager, New York Islanders. “He proved to be a reliable defenseman and should continue to be a productive player for our team.”

The Minnetonka, MN native had an illustrious career at Colorado College, winning the Defenseman of the Year Award and being named First Team All WCHA. In 151 games played for the Colorado College Tigers, Hillen totaled 19 goals and 57 assists for 76 points.

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Just got word that 2009 First Overall draft pick John Tavares has been signed to his rookie deal – marking the start of what we hope is a long successful career in the NHL and with the New York Islanders. Monetary terms were not disclosed, but the deal is three years in length and said to be paying him in the mid $800k range with bonuses that could bring him into the mid $3 million range. It’s your typical max rookie deal – much like Steve Stamkos recieved from Tampa last year.

This is a big day for both JT and the Islanders organization as a whole. Tavares is a KEY PIECE to Garth Snow’s grand master plan – now that his contract is behind him Tavares can concentrate on doing whatever he needs to make sure his transition into the NHL goes smooth.

Congratulations John, you are bow OFFICIALLY part of Long Island and the New York Islanders – we cannot express OUR excitement enough.

UNIONDALE, NY, July 15, 2009 – The New York Islanders announced today the signing of John Tavares to a three-year entry level contract. Tavares was selected by the Islanders first overall in the 2009 National Hockey League Draft.

Tavares, a native of Oakville, ON, played in 247 career Ontario Hockey League games over four seasons, compiling 215 goals and 218 assists for 433 points. His 215 tallies surpassed Peter Lee’s former OHL record of 214 goals, which Lee held for 33 years. In 2007, Tavares was named the Canadian Hockey League Player of the Year, after breaking the OHL record for goals in a season with 72, a milestone previously held by Wayne Gretzky. Tavares played in 38 career OHL playoff games, recording 20 goals and 36 assists for a total of 56 points.

“It’s an exciting time for the Islanders organization as we develop our young talent into a contender,” said Garth Snow, General Manager, New York Islanders. “John provides another important piece to help us achieve our ultimate goal of winning a Stanley Cup.”

Last season, the 19-year-old center, led the OHL in goals (58) and points (104). Tavares recorded 50 points (32 goals and 18 assists) in 24 games after he was traded to the London Knights about halfway through the 2008-09 season and tied for the league lead in power-play goals with 14. Tavares also finished ninth in OHL playoff scoring with 10 goals and 11 assists for 21 points.

“I’m excited to officially become a part of the New York Islanders organization and begin my professional career this upcoming season,” said Tavares. “I look forward to joining the Islanders and be part of a team that’s ultimate goal is to bring the Stanley Cup back to Long Island.”

Tavares won back-to-back gold medals with Team Canada at the 2008 and 2009 World Junior Championships. He was named the 2009 tournament MVP and World Junior Top Forward. Tavares tallied eight goals and seven assists for 15 points at the 2009 Tournament to complete his all-time tournament scoring marks at 12 goals and eight assists for 20 points. His career World Junior goal total of 12, ties him with fellow Canadians Eric Lindros and Jeff Carter for most goals in a career at the World Junior Championships.

Tavares is the fourth number one overall pick selected by the Islanders. In 2000, the Islanders selected goaltender Rick DiPietro first overall. Denis Potvin was picked first overall at the 1973 NHL Entry Draft and in 1972 the Islanders selected forward Billy Harris.

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You know I barely paid any attention to my phone today and I missed out on the start of action, albeit a small one. The Islanders have traded forward Ben Walter and a contional pick in 2012 to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for the rights of 2006 6th round pick Tony Romano.

Just got a confusing press release from the Isles that says WE got the conditional pick:

The New York Islanders have acquired Tony Romano and a conditional pick in the 2012 National Hockey League Entry Draft from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for center Ben Walter. 

Romano played the last two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League.  The Smithtown, NY native was the leading scorer for the Peterborough Petes last season, scoring 36 goals and 33 assists for 69 points in 65 games.  The year prior, Romano skated in 66 games for the London Knights and registered 22 points (12 goals and 10 assists).  Romano was drafted in the sixth round (178th overall) of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft and played that same year for Cornell University where he totaled nine goals and 10 assists for 19 points in 29 games. 

Walter spent the last two seasons with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers where he accumulated 116 points.  He played in a total of 12 games for the Islanders during his two seasons with the organization scoring one goal. 

Per NHL.com:

The New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders swung a small trade Tuesday. The Devils sent Tony Romano to the Islanders in exchange for Ben Walter and a conditional draft pick in 2012.

Walter, a former fifth-round pick of the Boston Bruins, has 22 games of NHL experience spread over four seasons, including two with the Bruins and the last two with the Islanders.

He played in four games last season while also wracking up 50 points in 65 games with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the American Hockey League. Walter has averaged 20 goals and nearly 56 points per season in the AHL since turning pro in 2005 after spending three seasons at UMass-Lowell.

Romano, 21, the Devils’ sixth round pick in 2006, has spent the last two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, first with the London Knights and then with the Peterborough Petes. He had 69 points in 65 games last season with Peterborough.

Ok so Romano is a 21 year old prospect (and Smithtown, NY native) who has not played at all in the NHL just yet, not really any different then Walter and his cup-o-coffee. Romano is listed at 5′7″ and 170lbs but his offensive numbers seem to indicate he uses his lack of size well enough to get to scoring areas. I am unsure if he played with Tavares at all, but it just seems they seem to be targeting players from the same systems and organizations – for whatever that is worth. You can read more about Romano on Hockey’s Future.

Like I said, this isn’t exactly the same as the Rangers shipping Scott Gomez off to Montreal for Chris Higgins, but it’s a start. Only two more days till the free agent frenzy begins.

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It’s that time of year again. I’ve been bad at pumping up the draft this time around – especially because I WILL BE THERE again.

Well, we all know how my draft wish ended up last time around, hopefully this year now that we have the number one overall selection, things will end a bit differently.

In the hopes I get this right, let’s just reuse most of the first paragraph of that post last season:

Not since the likes of one Zigmund Palffy have I been more excited or intrigued by a player like John Tavares. It’s not because he is the next Canadian sensation – (although it helps), but it’s because of the way he makes skating and other hockey skills (save for that pesky alleged defensive zone ineptitude) appear natural and free-flowing. Everything I have heard of Tavares, I have liked. He knows what pressure is like and feels that the New York Islanders would be a great team for him. He is excited about the prospect of returning glory to our storied franchise, digs the history behind the team, LOVES Long Island (although Hedman loves the women…) and wants to jump headfirst into the NHL.

Tavares is a sniper, plain and simple. He is the guy that just has a nose for the net and finds himself time and space to get open and put the puck in the net. His faults can be augmented by strong play by his linemates. So what, he may be less then stellar in his own end – the kid can score. He has broken tons and tons of records and has excelled as he progressed from level to level. He has been in the spotlight since he was 14 and been touted as a potential first rounder since then.

I know Chris Botta already used information from McKenzie’s article on TSN, but I have had the tab open in my browser since it came out. Several quotes like

“I don’t envision us moving the (No. 1) pick,

“That’s the plan right now,” Snow said. “Don’t you think (the suspense) is a good thing? Don’t you think that’s the way it should be?”

He said suspense, think about a PACKED Nassau Coliseum with thousands of screaming fans not knowing who the selection will be, but praying for John Tavares. Do you think they are excited for Victor Hedman or Matt Duchene? Each of those players will be great in their own right, but do you honestly feel all the hoopla is for either of them? As of yesterday, the Islanders have given away over 18,000 free tickets to their Draft Party. That is a staggering number. With all the fallout from trading down from number five, to seven and then to nine for Josh Bailey at the very small draft party last year, I am going to be estatic that I am in a different country if things do not happen this way this time around. Charles Wang won’t even have to pay for demolition of the Coliseum to pave way for his Lighthouse Project, the place will be torn apart one section at a time for free Friday June 26th at around 7:15pm.

When prodded about how long he has known who he would pick, Snow replied:

“Well, when we won the draft lottery (on April 14) I was asked if I knew who we were going to take,” Snow said. “I said at the time that I had a pretty good idea but that I wasn’t firmly committed to it until we went through the process of doing our due diligence on all the top guys. Let’s just say the process re-affirmed what I thought back then. We want the same guy now that we wanted back then.”

If the consensus pick was John Tavares, their pick is Tavares.

Yes, the Islanders did due diligence in interviewing all of the top three. They had each player visit Long Island and spend time with Garth Snow, current players and even alumni. In the end, the player who spent the most time here, made a large impact on management and Doug Weight? John Tavares.

However, McKenzie gets the following warning out of Snow near the end of the page:

“Honestly, and this isn’t an indication of who we’re taking or not taking, but we can’t be concerned with public perception of what people think we should do,”

Public perception is funny, should we take any hints from what he says then at that point? Misdirection for the purpose of confusing your opponents is one heck of a way for a GM to make a name for himself. If you aren’t going to listen to fans and then have 18,000 of them show up – why should we even listen to your rhetoric? It’s a two-way street Garth.

I have been saying Tavares or Bust for months – I still feel that way right now. It may even make people forget that they passed up on Nikita Filatov last season, a player that most likely the same fans were just as excited about.

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Remember all the rumblings earlier this off season about the Islanders bringing in an assistant coach with Islanders ties (not literally ties that go with a suit…)? It turns out that the rumors were indeed true. Dean Chynoweth whom played defense for the Isles from 1988 to 1996 (per the Media Guide) and amassed our goals and had 18 assists in 241 games is expected to be named an assistant to Scott Gordon sometime tomorrow. This is all following his sudden departure as head coach of Swift Current in the Western Hockey League.

Chris Botta had stated he felt this was going to happen earlier today, but he was just trumped by Greg Logan whom received solid confirmation through a “knowledgeable NHL source” (Does anyone else think Botta told Logan….?).

This now leaves only one of two open positions for the assistants from the previous season to return. Scott Gordon is well on his way to changing the dynamic of this team. I am going to go out on a limb here and say Chynoweth will be in charge of the defensive aspect of the game – being he was a defenseman, so hopefully our penalty kill will get a boost.

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Call it a ray of hope, if anything a slight glimmer of hope – but Nassau County, Long Island was NOT on the Forbes top 10 most miserable sports location list. Unfortunately for 10 other locations, they were – but for once the Islanders were spared any further embarrassment.

Not really sure what goes into the thought behind these types of lists, playoff record, championship record or a combination of arenas, location and the aforementioned records combined.

Here is a quick rundown of the top 10 most miserable:

1. Seattle, Washington
2. Atlanta, Georgia
3. Buffalo, New York
4. Phoenix, Arizona
5. Houston, Texas
6. San Diego, California
7. Denver, Colorado
8. Cleveland, Ohio
9. Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota
10. Kansas City, Missouri

What makes me chuckle deep down inside after reading the list, was coming to the Kansas City listing at number ten. For all the talk of the potential relocation of the Islanders to KC – they sure do rank low in terms of a valuable sports location.

Check out the whole article-slideshow on the Forbes website.

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