Good Morning, Islanders Country.
Hopes of waking up early to watch Mat Barzal as one of Team Canada’s centers were dashed on Tuesday as the NHL and NHLPA have reportedly come to an agreement to not have players participate in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
Coming up, why the decision was made and the impact no Olympics will have on the remaining schedule. Plus, an Islanders’ Christmas wish list, a look back at Kelly Hrudey’s first shutout and a fun beer run in Detroit.
Let’s dive in.
📰 NEWS: The NHL players badly wanted to return to the Olympics and the league pledged to do all they could to make that happen. But in the end, rising Covid cases, postponed games, and the uncertainty as to what would happen if a player tested positive in Beijing were too much to overcome.
While underlying concerns were present since the start of the season, the decision towards not participating accelerated quickly in recent days. On Sunday, the league postponed all cross-border games through the Christmas break and then on Monday, decided to start the break two days early. There have been 50 games postponed, including some earlier in the season, and 48 left to reschedule.
Beyond Barzal, few if any other Islanders were going to be selected to represent their country. However, head coach Barry Trotz had been chosen by Team Canada as one of three assistant coaches for Jon Cooper with Peter DeBoer and Bruce Cassidy being the others. Beijing would have been Trotz’s first Olympic Games, though the Dauphin, MB, native has previously represented Canada on the international stage.
🛑HOW DID WE GET HERE?: After not participating in the 2018 Olympics in South Korea, the NHL and NHLPA negotiated Olympic participation in 2022 and 2026 into the newest collective bargaining agreement with the caveat for that to change if the current NHL regular season was "materially impacted" by COVID-19 postponements.
At the December 10th Board of Governor meetings, Commissioner Gary Bettman discussed what it would take to pull out of the Olympics. "Let's assume a number of teams came down with major (COVID-19) outbreaks and in effect, we were missing lots and lots of games that had to be re-scheduled and it became clear that we couldn't re-schedule without doing something else including using some portion of the (three-week) break.”
That scenario happened.
🤷♂️ WHAT’S NEXT?: According to Greg Wyshynski, sources told ESPN that rescheduling could include currently postponed games or potentially moving up games that are scheduled for later in the season, but there could be a lack of arena availability during the break. “While the NHL asked arenas not to book events during the break in case players didn't participate in the Olympics, many buildings booked concerts and other events, seeking to make up for lost revenue during the pandemic,” Wyshynski writes.
For the Islanders, four games have been postponed this season. One against the Rangers had been already rescheduled for March 17th at Madison Square Garden. The others were a trip to Philadelphia, and then this week’s home games versus the Montreal Canadiens and Washington Capitals.
UBS Arena’s February Event Schedule:
While UBS Arena has booked a number of February dates (Monster Jam, anyone?) there should be enough availability to play two additional home games in February.
⏭ NEXT UP: We wait and see if this pause allows teams to get players back and if enhanced protocols will prevent players from testing positive. As of now, the Islanders’ next game will be Monday, December 27th against the Sabres in Buffalo.
📊 STANDINGS:
🎅 WISH LIST: Tis’ the season and Mike Fink of The Hockey Writers compiled a 2021 Christmas Wish List for the New York Islanders.
Islanders fans largely wish for better luck with 26 games played and 52 games remaining this season. However, there are also specific wish list items that hopefully can be fulfilled and help the Islanders rebound from a slow start where they have only won 8 of their 26 games
The list includes:
Speed At the Blue Line Alongside Dobson - Dobson’s speed and play-making ability have allowed him to contribute 1.2 defensive point shares and 49 blocked shots on the defensive end of the ice while also adding three goals and six assists to the offense.
Pageau & Later Line Scoring - Palmieri and Parise have been creating chances in the offensive zone and have helped open up ice for other skaters on the team, combining for 11 assists, but their scoring presence will ultimately put the forward unit and team over the top.
More Minutes For Wahlstrom - Wahlstrom averages 13:14 ice time per game which is in the same range as a forward on the third or fourth line and more minutes for one of the team’s best scorers is necessary for the team’s success in the remainder of the season.
👩🏫 SOUND SMART: Per Eric Hornick, with the NHL postponing the last two games Islanders’ games before Christmas, the Isles have played only 26 games at the holiday break - by far the latest in a full season. The Butch Goring led Islanders played game 27 on 12/14/99 - the previous record. The 99-00 team was 6-17-4 at that point of the season.
🗓 ISLE REMEMBER: Courtesy, Mike Commito, on December 21st 1984, goaltender Kelly Hrudey picked up his first career NHL shutout in his 25th career game. He stopped all 25 shots he faced in a 1-0 victory against the Whalers. “The way the game is going now, shutouts are going to be nonexistent,” Hrudey said after the game. ''The game has changed for the better. It's more exciting for the fans. Tonight? It's good for the goalie, but not the fans.''
🔗 Barry Trotz tries to keep the focus on 'today' for Islanders amid league-wide COVID outbreak by Andrew Gross, Newsday “Barry Trotz has stressed since Day 1 with the Islanders to focus on the immediate task at hand, be it that day’s game or practice or off-ice work. The bigger picture would always become clearer by stressing the daily details, the coach preaches. Except, now, so much is fuzzy. And the next team activity can’t be until Sunday with the NHL going into its holiday break early because of a league-wide COVID-19 outbreak.”
🔗 Dear Santa: Islanders’ 2021 Christmas Wish List by Mike Fink, The Hockey Writers “The Islanders hoping for a healthy roster, returning impact players like Pulock, who has been out of the lineup with a lower-body injury, and Barzal who was recently placed on the COVID-19 list. Likewise, the Islanders experienced the COVID-19 outbreak earlier in the season but with the league postponing games from December 22nd until December 27th, hockey fans are hoping that there will be a strong return to the ice.”
🎧 No Sleep Til Belmont: A show about the New York Islanders with Arthur Staple and guest co-host Scott Gordon “Arthur and former Islanders head coach Scott Gordon discuss how game cancellations and uncertainty about when the team is going to play next effects preparation and planning, the impact of Mathew Barzal’s absence, and two great examples of Barry Trotz’s coaching in Noah Dobson and Anthony Beauvillier’s respective games.”
And we leave you with this…warming up before the Islanders-Red Wings game last week, Dylan Larking hit the glass and inadvertently spilled a fan’s beer. Feeling awful, he connects with the team’s locker room attendant and gets $20 delivered which SHOULD cover one beer in Detroit.
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