ISLANDER REPORT CARDS: FORWARDS

Even with the Islanders' recent struggles in the 2010-11, some of the youngsters have proven a lot and produced a great amount of points through the difficult times.

In this piece, I will grade all of the Isles' forwards from A-F.

Josh Bailey: Josh is a very talented winger for the Islanders, but hasn't proven much this season. After being sent down to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, he recorded quite amount of points which led to the Isles calling him back up. Since being back on the Island, he only has three goals. Bailey's going to have to prove a lot more to stick around next season. C

Blake Comeau: Comeau brings a great amount of size and physical play to the Islanders team, and doesn't let the youngsters get pushed around. He can also put the puck in the net when a goal's needed, but he's in a scoring slump as of late. Only time will tell if Blake will be in an Isles uniform next year. C+

Trevor Gillies: Trevor, a fan favorite, brings great energy to the game and doesn't back down from anything. The problem is, he's having trouble producing which causes him to sit in the press box most of the season. If he goes to the net and works hard, the goals will come. D

Michael Grabner: For a guy that was picked up off waivers in the beginning of the season, Grabner isn't bad at all. His 15 goals show why he was picked to participate in the skills competition at the 2011 All Star Game. A

Zenon Konopka: Just like Gillies, Konopka brings great energy to the atmosphere and can get physical at times. He has an outstanding face off percentage, and his only disadvantage is scoring some goals. B

Matt Martin: After being called up from Bridgeport in late October, Martin put a few pucks in the net and earned himself some fights. As of late, he hasn't been producing much or getting into scraps, but he's a great fore checker in which case the Isles need. C

Matt Moulson: The former 30 goal scorer has 17 goals on the season, one away from his buddy John Tavares. Moulson gets in the dirty areas and can certainly put pucks in the back of the net, but the question remains: Will he be traded? A

Frans Nielsen: Nielsen only has five goals this season, but it doesn't matter to him or his coaching staff. He's been listed as a "play maker" thus far in the season as he kills penalties, gets the puck to the net, and sets up great plays. Scoring doesn't matter to him, what matters is giving the team a chance to win every night, and Frans does that. B-

PA Parenteau: For a former AHL'er and third liner on the Rangers, Parenteau shows that he belongs on this Islander team. From playing physical to setting up plays and scoring, PA brings it all. A-

Rob Schremp: Rob has a great set of hands, and it comes in handy at times. But with only seven goals, Schremp's going to have to prove more than his hands to get him a spot on the Isles roster next season. C

John Tavares: Tavares has great hand eye coordination, and can make some great plays. His lack of skating fast effects him at times, but he can definitely light the lamp as he leads the team with 18 goals. A+

* = Not listed due to number of games played:

Kyle Okposo*
Trent Hunter*
Jeremy Colliton*

Will Nabokov eventually report to the Island?

Claimed off waivers Sunday, reports indicate that goaltender Evgeni Nabokov will not report to the Isles, as he wants to play on a "winning team."

I contacted Nabokov's agent, Don Meehan. I asked him if his client would join the Islanders team, and he replied:

"He has decided not to report."

ESPN Pierre LeBrun reached Nabokov through the phone Sunday afternoon during the Islanders 5-3 loss to the Sabres, which caused even the Islanders MSG announcer to bring it up.

Nabokov stated that he has "decided to stay home" and that "there was no point in the Isles picking him up."

Later in the day, Katie Strang from Newsday spoke to owner Charles Wang. Wang said that apparently, the goaltender hung up on Isles GM Garth Snow the day he was claimed but was confused on who called him. His agent, Don, reportedly said Nabokov would call Snow back but never did.

Strang also reported that both Garth Snow and Evgeni Nabokov made plans to speak today. So far, everything is "status quo," according to Katie.

Things even got more interesting when Peter Botte tweeted that Alexi Yashin, whose contract was bought out from the Isles a few years ago, has been in contact with Nabokov trying to motivate his former Russian teammate to play for the team.

What the Islanders could do if the goalie doesn't report

The Islanders hold the cards in this one. Nabokov is now property of the Islanders, as he's even listed on their roster.

1. They could either toll his contract, which means the goaltender cannot play anywhere in the NHL but the Islanders until he finishes out his contract (one season). He would not become a free agent on July 1st.

2. They could also try to trade him, but he'd have to clear waivers first

3. They could suspend him, which seems likely if he doesn't report.

The Islanders' GM, Garth Snow, has yet to state what he wants to do with Nabokov, but an action will certainly be taken if he doesn't report.

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This piece can also be seen at SportsHaze

What To Do With Nabokov

On Friday afternoon, the Detroit Red Wings signed goaltender Evgeni Nabokov to a one year contract. Since Nabokov played in Europe this season, he would have to clear waivers to play for the Red Wings. I think it is safe to say that everybody knew Nabokov would not be playing for the Wings as someone was bound to claim him off waivers.

Everybody knew this. His manager even made it publicly known to Bob Mckenzie of TSN that Nabokov would report to any team who claims him as long as he could be a starter.

Enter the New York Islanders.

On New Years Day, the Islanders traded goaltender Dwayne Roloson for defensive prospect Ty Wishart of the Tampa Bay Lightning. In the game immediately following the trade, Rick DiPietro left with a groin injury and did not return for about two weeks later. So the Isles turned to 27 year old rookie Nathan Lawson, and 20 year old rookie Kevin Poulin to hold down the fort. As Nabokov was being put on waivers, Lawson was playing for the Islanders in Buffalo on Friday night, and he injured his left knee in the process. According to Katie Strang of Newsday, Lawson will be out for the next 1-2 weeks with an MCL strain.

So that left the Islanders with an oft-injured goalie in DiPietro, an injured 27 year old rookie goalie in Lawson, and a 20 year old rookie in Poulin who the team would rather have develop properly in the American Hockey League.

Obviously the Islanders would make a claim for Nabokov with a goaltender situation like they have now.

And that is exactly what they did. It was announced by Mckenzie around 12:05 Saturday afternoon that the Islanders had indeed claimed Nabokov off waivers.

That should not surprise anybody.

However, what happened next surprised everybody. Mckenzie was told by Nabokov's agent an hour or so after Nabokov was claimed that he would not report to play for the Islanders.

Now that came less than a full day after his agent said that he would report to any team who claimed him.

Garth Snow would later say on Saturday afternoon that he had left messages on Nabokov's phone, but had yet to actually speak to him. He said that everything was "on the up and up" and that they were "making his jersey as we speak."

Today, Nabokov finally spoke. Not to the Islanders, not to Garth Snow, but to Pierre Lebrun of ESPN. Nabokov said he was surprised that he was claimed by the Islanders and said "Wow, what's the point?" Nabokov also claimed that he was not left any messages by Snow.

Another development in this story was brought to light by the Associated Press. Apparently Nabokov hung up on Snow when Snow called him yesterday. What allegedly happened was Snow identified himself, and Nabokov immediately hung up. Snow was then called by Nabokov's agent and immediately offered an apology.

But for now, everything is the same as it was yesterday. Nabokov is property of the New York Islanders. Nabokov still refuses to play for the New York Islanders.

Now it is time for Garth Snow to make a decision. He could be the nice guy and let Nabokov go back on waivers and get claimed by another team. Or he could suspend Nabokov and prevent him from playing in the NHL for any team this season.

Personally, I would suspend Nabokov. I would not let Nabokov get what he wants. He knew the rules. He knew that he would be claimed by another team. He and his manager even said he would play for any team if claimed. Either they lied, or they forgot that the Islanders existed. I'm willing to bet that they did the former.

Nabokov should not be able to pick and choose and essentially bend the rules to his liking. He knew the rules and he should abide by them as every other player in this league does.

Because of this situation, and Garth Snow's stance on this situation, my respect level for Garth has gone up quite a bit.

So with that said, I have a message for Garth, and I think many Islanders fans will agree with me on this: Suspend Evgeni Nabokov and make sure he doesn't play in the NHL ever again.

Will Nabokov Report To The Island?

After being claimed off of waivers yesterday afternoon by the Islanders, there was indication that Evgeni Nabokov refused to report to the Islanders.

I reached his agent, Don Meehan and he stated:

"He has made the decision not to report".

ESPN contacted Nabokov himself just a few minutes ago.

"I think I'm going to stay home for now, I'm sticking with my decision," Nabokov told ESPN.com from his home in San Jose. "It's nothing against the Islanders and their organization. It's nothing to do with that. It's just that I'm at the point in my career where I want to help a team win in the playoffs. I don't see how I could help the Islanders or what I could do for them. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me. And I hope they understand that."

"I understand the rules," said Nabokov, who signed a one-year, $570,000 deal with the Wings. "We're not stupid, we knew what was going on before we made the decision. But I made this decision because the goal was to play with Detroit."

However, Katie Strang Tweeted moments ago that Garth Snow was apparently on the phone with the goaltender, or so Wang says.

For up to date information, please follow me on Twitter @NickMcGuireNYI...

Breaking News: Isles Claim Goaltender Evgeni Nabokov Off Waivers

(SportsHaze)

UPDATED: Nabokov's agent, as many others, have informed me that "He has made the decision not to report."

Wow.

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As first reported by the Isles official Twitter account, the Islanders have claimed goaltender Evgeni Nabokov off waivers.

Nabokov was recently signed by the Detroit Red Wings, but in order for him to be a part of their club, he was required to go through waivers. All Evgeni has to do now is report to the team, and he will be property of the Islanders.

That shouldn't be a problem, anyhow, as Nabokov's agent stated yesterday that "he would report to any team that claims him".

The 35 year old has played a total of 563 NHL games, with a record of 293-178-29. Last season with the San Jose Sharks, he held a record of 44-16.

No word yet if he'll start tomorrow afternoons game against the Buffalo Sabres, but it's certainly likely.

OKPOSO RETURNS AS THE ISLES FACE THE CAPS TONIGHT

(This piece can also be seen at SportsHaze)

Tonight the Islanders will battle against Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals at 7PM E.T. Starting in goal will be Rick DiPietro, who missed practice yesterday and Sunday with the flu.

The moment we've all been waiting for is finally here. Kyle Okposo will be in the lineup tonight after missing all games played in the season with a shoulder injury, that was surgically repaired. Here's what Kyle had to say about returning:

"I've been waiting a long time for this, and I'm ready to go."

“I’m sure I’ll be pretty amped up and have to almost control my emotions a little bit and remind myself that I have done it before and you just have to go play,”

Head coach Jack Capuano stated that Okposo could see some powerplay time, but "We'll have to see how the game goes".

Frans Nielsen, who's been out the past two weeks due to a groin injury, will also be in the lineup tonight on a line with Okposo.

The full lines from yesterdays practice are the following: (via the Islanders official website)

Forwards
26 Matt Moulson – 91 John Tavares – 15 PA Parenteau
57 Blake Comeau – 12 Josh Bailey – 37 Jeremy Colliton
40 Michael Grabner – 51 Frans Nielsen – 21 Kyle Okposo
17 Matt Martin – 28 Zenon Konopka – 14 Trevor Gillies
44 Rob Schremp

Defensemen


47 Andrew MacDonald – 36 Travis Hamonic
24 Radek Martinek – 38 Jack Hillen
8 Bruno Gervais – 42 Dylan Reese

Goaltenders

39 Rick DiPietro
52 Nathan Lawson

MOULSON TO BE DEALT?

(This piece can also be seen at SportsHaze)

Under the trade rumor category, the name "Matt Moulson" has certainly appeared a lot this season. Many would probably ask themselves "why in the world would the Isles trade one of their best players?". Well now, it seems more and more likely.

Moulson, 27, who's best friends with line mate John Tavares, currently has 26 points (14 goals, 12 assists) and is fourth on the team under the stats section.

Matt was signed by the Islanders in the 2009 free agency period. In his first season with the Isles, he recorded 30 goals and 18 assists for 48 points, which gave him the team lead.

Rumors have been heating up, especially yesterday, that the forward could be a possible trade candidate.
TSN Bob McKenzie tweeted yesterday the following:

"If the NYI are trading Matt Moulson, as has been reported/rumored elsewhere, I am told it's not to Boston."

On the other hand, Eklund from HockeyBuzz reported that Moulson is generating serious interest from the Bruins.

My take: I truly don't believe the Isles will trade Moulson. Garth Snow always states that he "doesn't want to break up his young core". I believe that the Isles will do whatever it takes to resign the youngster before just trading him away. You also got to remember, as I stated before, Moulson and Tavares are best friends and have great chemistry on the ice, and that might effect Tavares' development with Moulson not around.

*

In other news, the Islanders sent forward Jesse Joensuu and goaltender Nathan Lawson back down to Bridgeport, which indicates that Rick DiPietro is healthy after sitting out yesterday's 5-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils.