After recent events, New York Islanders owner Charles Wang and GM Garth Snow must feel like children learning how to tread water at a summer swimming clinic. After adding defensemen Mark Eaton and James Wisniewski to thicken up the back end, the Isles have lost All-Star power play quarterback Mark Streit for what could be the entire season or a significant portion of it. According to reports, Streit may have suffered a torn labrum and rotator cuff in his left shoulder during an intrasquad scrimmage. He was seen sporting a sling after slamming awkwardly into the boards after taking a cross-check from teammate Matt Moulson. You can imagine how Moulson must feel after having a hand (intentionally or not) in derailing arguably the teams best player who notched 11 goals and 38 assists in 82 games last season (Streit was tied with Drew Doughty for second in the NHL with 9 power play goals), leaving him tied with Nicklas Lidstrom and Tomas Kaberle (pretty decent company to be in)."I've had a bit of a hard time with it...I've tried not to blame myself. It's hockey. But any time you're involved in something with a teammate, or any player in a situation of that severity, it's hard...I was worried that Mark was going to say, 'What the heck happened?'...It's tough, I don't know if there's anyone in the league with as much responsibility on a team as Mark over the past couple of seasons." - Matt Moulson on the incident.
Streit understands that it's pat of the game and reassured Moulson that there was no issue between the two.
"Don't worry about it," Streit told Moulson. "I fell awkwardly. I don't know what happened."
In attempt to lighten some of the blow, the Isles have signed former New Jersey Devil Mike Mottau to a two year deal that will pay him $800,000 per season. While this deal is a complete steal, Mottau cannot replace Streit's numbers, but the 32 year old is a very steady and consistent defenseman who can pass the puck very well. Mottau is a late bloomer having played his only three full NHL seasons from 2007-2010 and is an assist machine at the minor ranks. If Mottau can take his increased ice time (which he should see in new York) and translate it into points, the Islanders may not be as hampered as initially thought but that will prove to be a hard goal to reach. Along with signing Motttau, veteran Anders Eriksson has been invited to camp to maybe inject some more veteran presence in the lineup, but don't be surprised to see him cut in the near future as his productivity has greatly declined.
"Mike is a solid puck-moving defenseman who will bring more experience to our blueline," - Islanders general manager Garth Snow on Mottau signing.
In addition to the loss of Streit, rising star forward Kyle Okposo suffered an eerily similar injury and will need to undergo surgery to repair what is being reported as a torn labrum in his right shoulder, which should keep him out of the lineup through at least December. With the Islanders expected to be somewhat improved from last season, Okposo was projected to have a great year as he put up 19 goals and 33 assists last season. This could open the door for Long Island's 2010 first round pick Nino Neiderreiter to be a sleeper candidate should he make the roster out of training camp after signing an entry level contract earlier in the month. Despite having the size and presence required, Neiderreiter may be facing an uphill battle as he his still only 18 years of age and the Isles won't want to make the mistake of rushing him to be a large part of the team too early. The Islanders are most likely poised to make do without Okposo and hope for a speedy recovery. This puts the franchise in a tough spot seeing as they don't have the depth to make it through a season of injuries if other guys start dropping out of the lineup. If only Ilya Kovalchuck would have taken the team up on their max contract offer...-Dustin Lundberg
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