I hope we come out hitting bodies and burying pucks. We put up with a lot after the end of last season, and these are guys that made that season end, I hope we mess up the start of their season with the first of back to back wins over Buffalo!

:isles: 2007-2008

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<div ydlg-bd id="emailHeadline"><font size=3>New York Islanders - Preview: NY Islanders @ Buffalo - 10/05/2007</font></div>

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<div class="previewRecapHeadline" align="center"><span class="headline">Oct 5, 2007, 7:30 PM (ET)</span></div>

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<td><img src="http://cdn.nhl.com/images/tv_icon.gif" align="left"> &nbsp;<span class="strong">TV Information</span><hr size="1" width="100%"></td>
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<td style="padding-bottom:3px"><b>Local start:</b> 7:30 PM</td>
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<b>Local Home:</b><br>MSG (HD)
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<b>Local Away:</b><br>FSNY
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<p> The Buffalo Sabres' biggest priority coming into this season is finding ways to replace the scoring production of the departed Daniel Briere and Chris Drury. An injury to Ales Kotalik won't help that cause.</p> <p> The Sabres begin life without their top two centers from 2006-07, and also look to overcome Kotalik's absence when they open the season with a home-and-home series against the New York Islanders, starting at HSBC Arena on Friday.</p> <p> The Sabres (53-22-7) scored an NHL-best 282 goals and set franchise records for wins and points (113) en route to capturing the Presidents' Trophy, but their season ended in the Eastern Conference finals for a second straight year.</p> <p> Briere and Drury combined for 164 points in 2006-07, but both departed via free agency during the offseason, Briere signing with Philadelphia and Drury with the New York Rangers. Buffalo is counting on the 28-year-old Kotalik, who had 16 goals and 22 assists in 66 games last season, to increase his production and help fill that scoring void this season.</p> <p> Kotalik, though, is experiencing pain in his knee and has not been cleared to skate.</p> <p> "It doesn't look good for playing in the opener or this opening weekend, but I wouldn't project past that of him missing any more games," coach Lindy Ruff said.</p> <p> While the Sabres need Kotalik's offensive abilities, they may still be able to produce enough goals to remain a top team in the Eastern Conference. Center Tim Connolly, a former Islander, missed all but two games last season due to injury but returned for the playoffs and contributed nine assists in 16 games.</p> <p> Buffalo expects second-year players Drew Stafford and Daniel Paille to continue their development and support a still-deep corps of forwards that includes Thomas Vanek, Jason Pominville, Derek Roy, Jochen Hecht and Maxim Afinogenov. Hecht has become the new captain, replacing Briere and Drury, who shared the title.</p> <p> The Sabres will be looking to extend their dominance over the Islanders, whom they eliminated in five games in the first round of last season's playoffs. Buffalo is 7-1 in eight meetings with New York over the previous two regular seasons, taking all four matchups at HSBC Arena.</p> <p> Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller is 5-1-0 with a 2.85 goals-against average in six games against the Islanders since the start of the 2005-06 season.</p> <p> The Sabres will be without veteran defenseman Teppo Numminen for about three months after he underwent heart surgery Sept. 20 to repair a faulty valve.</p> <p> An improbable surge put the Islanders (40-30-12) in the playoffs for the third time in four seasons in 2006-07, as they won their final four games to reach the postseason. New York has failed to make it out of the first round each time in that span, though, and began an overhaul of its lineup following the loss to Buffalo.</p> <p> The Islanders bought out the contract of disappointing captain Alexei Yashin. The team failed to re-sign forward Ryan Smyth, who it acquired in a trade deadline deal with Edmonton, and also lost forwards Jason Blake and Viktor Kozlov as well as defenseman Tom Poti.</p> <p> New York responded by adding forwards <a href="http://islanders.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8467964">Mike Comrie</a>, <a href="http://islanders.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8456464">Bill Guerin</a>, Jon Sim, <a href="http://islanders.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8468172">Ruslan Fedotenko</a> and <a href="http://islanders.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8467416">Josef Vasicek</a>, as well as defenseman <a href="http://islanders.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8467304">Andy Sutton</a>, through free agency. Guerin is the team's new captain.</p> <p> The biggest factor in the Islanders' success may be the health of <a href="http://islanders.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=PlayerDetail&playerId=8468481">Rick DiPietro</a>, who enters the second year of a 15-year, $67.5 million contract. The goaltender missed nine of the Islanders' last 13 games because of post-concussion syndrome, although he returned for the final four playoff games. DiPietro is 5-5-1 with a 2.47 GAA in 12 appearances against Buffalo.</p> <p> He seemed to have no worries about the injury during the preseason, even engaging in a fight with Rangers goalie Al Montoya.</p> <p> The Islanders will be counting on DiPietro to be at his best as they try to improve their play defensively. They allowed 235 goals last season, only 19th best in the league.</p> <p> "There is no question we've been focusing on the defense right from the get-go," current Islanders and former Sabres coach Ted Nolan said. "From the first day of training camp, we emphasized our coverage of the defensive zone."</p> <p> The Sabres have won 20 of their 36 season openers, including 14 of 22 at home. The Islanders have lost four straight openers and have won only eight in the franchise's 34-season history.</p> <p> The home-and-home set concludes Saturday at Nassau Coliseum.</p> <br>

<em> <br>Associated Press</em>

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I just want to see chemistry.

BRING IT ALL FELLAS, DONT DISAPPOINT US!

Atleast a win out of the back to back.

THE DRIVE FOR 5 IS STILL ALIVE :punk: :punk: :punk:

Get the Al Davis quote in you folks....

JUST WIN BABY!!!

:banana:

i cant wait to get home and watch some Islander HOCKEY!!!!!!!!!!!!



don't let us down boys....

:worthy:

I'm so excited.

I wish it were in HD on Center Ice...

I want back-to-back wins, but feel we have a real shot a 3 out of 4 points.

Ultimately.

I'd like to see us undefeated this month. I think we'll get the rest and practice with a slow start and have something to prove.

:isles:

Early line from Vegas:

Buffalo favorites -185

Puck line (goals scored): 6o (more than 6) -120

Based on that, the odds look something like 5-2 Buffalo or 4-3 Buffalo.

I think they're wrong.

:nono:

Sim with a hat trick tonight! :banana:

:punk: :punk: :punk:

when did they go up to buffalo?

I believe they left yesterday.

at what time :letssee:

3ish? :dontknow:

Associated Press article.

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Rebuilt Islanders out to prove that new faces are as good as the old</b></font>
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By Ira Podell, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
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UNIONDALE, N.Y. - The New York Islanders' season started well before this weekend's home-and-home series against the Eastern Conference champion Buffalo Sabres.
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You have to look further north than upstate New York to find where this version of the team came together. The rebuilt Islanders, who spent the latter part of the summer replacing the loss of four of their top six scorers, headed to the Maritimes for a much-needed pre-season getaway that had as much to do with bonding as it did with hockey.
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Goodbye Alexei Yashin, Jason Blake, Ryan Smyth, Viktor Kozlov and Tom Poti. They were all Islanders in the spring for the team's five-game, first-round exit against the Sabres in the playoffs and were all gone in July when the free-agent shopping spree started.
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It looked as though the Islanders were left without a plan or a roster that could be competitive even in the parity-filled landscape created by the salary cap. The big names were gone from their team, and the others on the open market chose to play elsewhere.
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Enter Bill Guerin and Mike Comrie, a pair of former 30-goal scorers left without homes when the free-agent frenzy slowed. They spoke to each other and decided to come to Long Island as a package deal.
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With Ruslan Fedotenko also on board along with hard-hitting Andy Sutton, and forward Jon Sim, the Islanders believe they have the right mix to challenge for their fifth playoff appearance in six seasons.
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But the task is great.
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"We all know we have a job to do," Comrie said. "We're excited about the challenge. A lot of people thought since we've lost some players that we won't be competitive, but it's up to us to work hard and play the way we can."
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The Islanders lost 111 goals and 164 assists from last season, yet the culture in the dressing room has changed completely. Many already feel that is an important an alteration as there is.
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"It just seems like it is a little more alive," said Miroslav Satan, third on the team last season with 27 goals and 59 points. "We're excited and waiting for the season to start to prove that we can be a really good team this year."
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Guerin scored 36 goals last season while splitting time between St. Louis and San Jose. When he was officially introduced to Long Island days after signing his $9-million, two-year deal, the Islanders surprised him by putting the captain's 'C' on his sweater.
<BR><BR>
He inherited the title from Yashin, who never seemed comfortable in the role anyway. Comrie is signed for one season, but hopes to prove in that time he can be a first-line centre alongside Guerin and Fedotenko.
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"We have some real good character type of guys that are going to compete on a daily basis and lift the level of everybody else," second-year coach Ted Nolan said. "I'm really excited about this group of guys. We have a really good team."
<BR><BR>
A 10-day trip to Moncton, New Brunswick brought the group together for training camp. There were extra practices, and sessions focused on the power play. But hanging out off the ice might prove to be every bit as important.
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"I'm a real big believer that if you don't know someone, it's hard to play for them and hard to play with them," Nolan said.
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Yashin was the face of the franchise the past five seasons, for better or worse, as the Islanders waited for the offensive outbursts they thought he would produce when he signed a 10-year, $87.5 million deal after arriving from Ottawa in 2001.
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Often a disappointment, Yashin's time ended following benchings in the playoffs. His contract was bought out and the enigmatic forward signed a deal to return to his native Russia.
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That was the least painful of the departures.
<BR><BR>
All last season, the slogan that filled Nassau Coliseum was, "We're All Islanders." Then Smyth and Blake took off as quickly as they could.
<BR><BR>
Just hours into free agency on July 1, Smyth spurned the Islanders - who made a blockbuster trade deadline day deal to pry him from Edmonton - and Blake took his 40 goals to Toronto.
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"You can say we lost goal scoring, but we replenished it with some pretty talented players who have the ability to put big numbers up," general manager Garth Snow said. "We love the character of our team, the potential for players to produce offensively and I think we're better defensively.
<BR><BR>
"We think we've upgraded and we're happy with the personnel."
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Especially goalie Rick DiPietro, who is entering the second season of his landmark 15-year deal. He won a career-best 32 games last season but was sidelined twice late in the campaign by concussions. During the off-season, he underwent hip surgery.
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Keeping him healthy will be key for the Islanders, who had to scramble in the final week last season to grab the final playoff spot from the East after the Canadiens and Maple Leafs faltered at the end.
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"You can't look at the big picture," Comrie said. "Once you get into the playoffs, that's another season. Our goal right now is to be competitive every game and we know that the games in October are just as important as the games in February."


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woooo! 3 hours left! i cannot wait! :banana:

Buffalo is still a very good team and they are led by one of the best coaches in the league. The remaining Sabres will be brainwashed to overachieve in the absence of Briere and Drury so look out. That said, I think we have the most to prove of any NHL team based on how we're being viewed by all.
This should be an awesome home and home series to start the season, so strap in.......and drink up ! :cheers:

i cant wait to get home

the clocks seemed to have stopped

is it 4:30 yet???

Don't worry Canada, I'll have plenty for ya at the game tomorrow! :cheers:

too bad that has not been working for poor old Al :dontknow:

i think they will do fine as long as they work hard! and we know teddy will make sure they do that. i just pray that the rick does not run around overplaying the puck, he improved on that aspect last season and i hope he continues to progress. it will take a lot of work to get us intot he playoffs and beyond

:P dont you mean 4 1/2 hours ? :cheers:

:worthy: :isles:

:isles:

Why is the OPENING DAY IN BUFFALO count down at 17minand counting?

ok

this stanley cup game 4 is awesome.....

i've never watched a full championship game


they are hot-and unstoppable

awesome pre-season eye candy!!!!!

:cheers:

"drop the puck"

You said it IQ :cheers:

:banana: :banana: :banana:

:worthy: :isles:

Good news for DirecTv subscribers with Center Ice... we get them in HD too!!!

Unfortunately, FSN NY doesn't seem to have a listing for HD, nor does MSG... bug some of the games this year will be in HD. That is sweet.

Cain love that BATTLE SHIP - THE SS HUNTER :thumbsup:

:isles: LETS GO ISLANDERS :isles:

:worthy: :isles:

My dream , Isles81 made a reality...

I just ran out of beer... need to go to the store.

:cheers:

Got my JD, ready to rock an roll :isles:

vodka baileys on the rocks...

:cheers:

I like a nice, 10 year old, single malt scotch... but, the way I drink it, I wouldn't last until the 3rd period. :blink:

I can't drink the beer fast enough. :)

So, they didn't ID me tonight... it's off and on. Funny story, I had been buying a one store as a 20 year old for almost a year before they ID'd me... 27 minutes before I turned 21, I was buying for my party.

They made me wait.

I did.

:dontknow:

Will the pre-game start already... I'm babbling.

I'm pretty sure ya get Fsny in hd on Direct tv....
do a search thru the "sports" menu

Strike that...it's not listed...but I think it's coming

He's right cain, check your guide. For me in SI 624, is fny or alt chnl 627 will have HD. But if you paid for the HD which iam sure you did then you got it.

Is there gonna be any live feed at NHL Center Ice Online tonight?
I know it's too early to see the feed from Buffalo yet but both Blue Jackets vs Ducks and Canes vs Pens are still blacked out though their games starts at 7...
:dontknow:

center ice online free till 10/9

Hey Where's Deb :dontknow:

Spoke too soon

LET THE GAMES BEGIN ! :cheers: NYIC

:isles: LETS GO ISLANDERS :isles:

:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:

:worthy: :isles: :worthy: :isles: :worthy: :isles: :worthy:

Watch hockey all last night this morning this afternoon and now the evening. I need professional help. The dog is looking at me like aren't you gonna take me out for a leak ? LET'S GO ISLANDERS :isles: :isles: :isles: :isles: :isles: