12:15 pm: As per those in attendance at practice today, Rob Schremp is practicing with the team for the first time since pre-season. Hmmmm... wonder if it has anything to do with me poking the bear yesterdayabout his injury... Nah. Trent Hunter also skated, but Grabner did not and he will not make the trip to Montreal.
These are the days I'm glad I'm not making the tough decisions for the Islanders. No, not the decision of who will be called up from the SoundTigers roster to fill yet ANOTHER vacancy due to injury, but what to do with a young man who still resides on the Portland Winterhawks' roster.
According to reports, Scott Gordon said he and Garth Snow would discuss the decision after Wednesday game in Montreal. Does that put pressure on Nino to go all out on Wednesday night to make a case for himself to stay? Does he want to stay?
Last night, while John Tavares was visiting the NYIBC, the Islanders official twitter account tweeted out the following answers JT gave about Nino.
"You can tell he wants it bad," Tavares added about Nino. #isles
about 12 hours ago via Twitter for iPhone
Tavares said of Nino: "He's going to be a tremendous player." #isles
Yesterday I read all the articles from the prominent reporters that cover this team that gave their arguments for whether Nino should go or stay. All arguments were well presented and left me still unsure what the best decision would be.
When Scott Gordon tells a room full of reporters that Nino is beyond what Josh Bailey was at the same age, he makes a case for history to repeat itself. Bailey did struggle. No one denies that. But look at him now.
The Portland Winterhawks have a winning record right now. They lead their WHL division with 21 points and a record of 10-2-0-1. Do they need Nino back? When I did a quick glance at their roster, it looks like they have a bunch of wingers. Would Nino get enough ice time on a team that already has the chemistry it needs to win?
Even with an injury riddled roster, the Isles have 10 points and are 4-2-2 with Nino having played in all of the first eight games. He has only two points, but he's playing about 14 minutes a game. That's when class is in session. Will he be able to develop better under Mike Johnson or Scott Gordon? Who will prepare him better to succeed in the NHL?
These are the tough questions. From my motherly perspective, I can only hope that the decision made will be done so with the best interest of the young man, with a lot of talent in mind. From a fan's perspective -- Keep the kid. He's fun to watch, he's a great story to follow and we have others on the roster that can be sent to Bridgeport to give him space. You did it for Bailey, you can do it for Nino. ( Too bad Doug doesn't have room to put him up in his new house. That seemed to work wonders for JT and Matt.)
Injuries a plenty: So no Michael Grabner has a groin injury and Trent Hunter's foot injury needs to heal. Rob Schremp is still a few weeks away from returning after it was first reporter to be "back spasms." That must be one hell of a spasm to keep that waterbug out for so long. The loss of Andy MacDonald put Jack Hillen back in the line-up, but is that apples to oranges.
The Islanders can't continue on this path if every game they lose yet another piece of the puzzle. They must get healthy and stay healthy in order to maintain the climb past mediocrity. It could be a question of taking too many chances and blocking too many shots. Or it could just be bad luck.
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