Good Morning, Islanders Country.
The New York Islanders practiced again on Tuesday, preparing for their first game north of the border since the 2020 playoffs in the Toronto bubble. The matchup with the Montreal Canadiens will be just their second game in 11 days as they look to add to their five-game point streak.
In this edition, Zdeno Chara’s inauspicious start to the season has been the focus for many fans, but head coach Barry Trotz isn’t as concerned. Aatu Räty shares his thoughts on moving to his new club, a new Islanders book has hit the shelves, and a peek into suite life inside UBS Arena. Let’s dive in.
📰 NEWS: Following Tuesday’s practice, Trotz answered questions about Chara’s performance through seven games and provided insight into how the team uses video when breaking down their game.
🗣 QUOTEBOOK
CHARA’S GAME: “There’s an adjustment period. Analytically you look at some stuff, he’s started off not great, but look at his last number of games he’s looked pretty good. What we’re looking for with Z is can you defend in your own end and can kill penalties? He can. I’m not looking for offense.” - Barry Trotz on Zdeno Chara
WATCH AND LEARN: "I think it’s pretty important. Video doesn’t lie. We didn’t have video a number of years ago. We didn’t have all the stimulants that we do: iPhones, iPads, and all that. I think the new-age player, for the most part, they rely on video. Verbally, they don’t comprehend as easy as maybe players in the past. They rely on video for validation” Barry Trotz on the team using video as a tool in the early going
ROAD WARRIORS: “We’re building our game. We’re building it for the long haul here and we have a lot of improvements that need to be made. You have to take advantage of this because we’ve all seen the schedule. Moving forward, we don’t have many breaks like this again.” Anders Lee on the next phase of their long road trip
🏠 NEW DIGS: We don’t speak Finnish, but Aatu Räty seems pumped to be sporting a new uniform. Räty was loaned from Karpat to Jukurit after totaling one point in six games was seen in a video Tuesday morning talking about the move and his anticipation for getting more playing time.
🎭 HONORING THE PAST: Another week, another new mask for Ilya Sorokin. Images of an alternate Sorokin mask surfaced on social media Tuesday, with a design paying homage to Isles legends. “The mask is a tribute to legendary Islanders players,” said designerDavid Gunnarsson. I made sketches direct on the mask of every Islanders player who has their number retired.”
💵 THE SUITE LIFE: UBS Arena officially opens in 18 days and there will be plenty of premium hospitality options for fans to enjoy. We got a sneak preview of the Belmont Suites on Tuesday, which come equipped with a custom minibar and premium stadium seats packed with the latest technology enhancing the comfort of your night.
👕 T-SHIRT TIME!: The Islanders sent out a tweet asking fans to vote for a t-shirt design that will be used for one of the team’s first promotional nights on Nov. 24 against the Rangers. The designs are the work of Justin ‘Lefty’ Lefkowitz, an artist, and Islanders fan that has been featured in MSG commercials. Vote Here!
🎥 BRIGHT LIGHTS: A new video project teaser appeared on social media from Barstool Sports producer and die-hard Isles fan, Frankie Borrelli, that will focus on the Islanders’ brand new home.
👩🏫 SOUND SMART: With both the NHL and NBA seasons in full swing, it was pointed out that Zdeno Chara, who stands at 6’9, is actually taller than 72% of the players in the NBA today. Chara at his height is in the same category as LeBron James, Blake Griffin, Tristan Thompson, among many others.
🗓 ISLE REMEMBER: On this date in 1974, the Islanders defeated the Boston Bruins 3-2 at the Nassau Coliseum to move to 7-1-2, the best start in team history. Although the Isles would go 0-6-1 in their next seven games, the good start helped the team finish 33-25-22 (88 points) and earn a trip to the post-season for the first time.
⏭ NEXT UP: One more off day before the Isles are back at it again against the Canadians on Thursday. They then play three nights out of four, before having another three-day break next week.
📊 STANDINGS:
🔗 With time to rest and prepare, Islanders ready for next leg of long road trip, by Peter Schwartz, WFAN.com: “Following this past Saturday’s 3-2 shootout loss in Nashville, the Islanders were off for Halloween and were back at practice on Monday. Knowing what twists and turns were in front of them on this road trip, the Islanders had a plan mapped up in advance including how to handle the time off.”
🔗 Scott Mayfield Part of Conference Call as Union Votes on Whether Outside Review is Needed, by Christian Arnold, NYIHockeyNow: ““Obviously it’s a very tough situation. It’s something that never should have happened,” Scott Mayfield said. “I think everyone can say that. I think the biggest thing with the union is making sure we figure out if it could have been prevented and if there is a hole in the system, what went wrong and what needs to be done. That was what the call is about.”
🔗 Islanders second line carrying offensive load for team, by Mitch Anderson, Eyes on Isles: “That’s right, with 13 combined points – Bailey has five, Beauvillier has four, and Nelson has four – the Isles second line is leading the team for offensive share with 35%. The next best line is the top line (Barzal-Lee-Palmieri) with 21% offensive share.”
🎧 Island Ice Podcast Ep. 117: The magic number, a lifelong quest fulfilled, Newsday: Andrew Gross discusses the Islanders' goal-scoring needs and more about the team. Neil Best joins the podcast to explain his desire to cover the road game in Winnipeg.
🎧 Oliver Wahlstrom off to a nice start, Zdeno Chara continues to struggle, listener questions, and more Arthur Staple opens up the mailbag and answers questions about Bridgeport players Anatolii Golyshev and Jakub Skarek, the possibility of UBS Arena not being ready for the Isles’ scheduled home opener, and Arthur addresses some concerns about the future of Islanders coverage at The Athletic.
And we leave you with this…Arthur Staple of The Athletic has written a new book, “100 Things Islanders Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die.”
Between now and December 10th, you can get a 25% discount by visiting TriumphBooks.com/100Islanders and using the code ISLANDERS21
Thanks for reading! Follow us on Twitter for regular updates until tomorrow’s newsletter.
And please check out our newsletters about the Knicks and Mets, too.