Last night's 3-1 loss to the hurricanes, their seventh straight loss, was over shadowed by the re ignition of the Lighthouse Drama. Owner Charles Wang gave a brief state of the Islanders/Lighthouse address to Howie Rose during the first intermission. Wang, who still hopes it can get done in Nassau, told the MSG plus broadcaster, "We haven't heard. I have an application into the town. Tell me yes or tell me no. If it's no, tell me what you want. It's very simple."

Unfortunately in the mist of an exciting season we are now forced to welcome back the Lighthouse saga. Town Spokesman, Mike Deery fired back in an article in Newsday saying, "For the Lighthouse folks or Mr. Wang to say he hasn't heard from us is right because we're waiting for answers from him." He went on to say, "the ball's in his court. They have an outstanding balance with the consultant, and there are unanswered questions that the Lighthouse group is aware of."

Yes I think we are all aware about the billing dispute between the town's consultant, FP Clark, and the Lighthouse Group. However what we did not know was that the new County Executive has reached out to Charles Wang. According to Islanders Point Blank Charles Wang received word from Ed Mangano, but has not returned his call. A report that contradicts what Wang said in his interview during last night's game.

The cats out the bag now, the war is back on, and Islanders fans and Lighthouse supporters should hunker down for what is expected to be one of the more vicious parts of this long battle. Expect to see more back in fourth in the press from the Town and the Lighthouse. Even though the LDG has put in place a policy of media black out, they will eventually be forced to respond to a comment by the Town of Hempstead.

So here we stand, the same place we were in October. While many criticized the media black out, I applaud it. Since October we have managed to take the emphasis off the Lighthouse and onto Hockey, the way it's suppose to be. So of course when the Islanders are playing their worst hockey of the season this Lighthouse nonsense has come back, doesn't it just figure. There is a saying that goes; theres one side of a story and there is the other side and then there is the truth. We'll we've heard both sides, now we need just need the truth.

STUPID COMMENT OF THE DAY

This comment comes from Islanders Point Blank made by estonhockey: In some ways I hope Wang never gets his MINI City. If he does, he will be the Islanders owner for another 15 years. My goodness can you imagine. Ive never seen a sports owner who embraces losing like Charles Wang. Wang thinks being in last place is doing “great..everyting is on schedule”. Maybe it has to do with growing up in China, maybe in China sports is not very big, or they place a different emphasis on WINNING. But to me, Wang is happy as Isles owner cause he has players who he thinks are his friends….not to sound “mean” but the guy is simply not your typical American sports fan who gets upset at losing.

Oh boy, the Islanders lost their third straight game against the Hurricanes. Again missing an opportunity to jump to sixth place in the east. Boy the Islanders decide to lose at the worst times. Just as the NY hockey media was trying to decide whether they want to jump on the Islanders band wagon. WFAN even sent a reporter down to North Carolina to call in reports to the 20/20 sports update. So frustrating, but today we will take a more upbeat approach jumping around from intermediating topic to interesting topic.

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The John Tavares we don't know

It was a pleasant surprise to see the new face of the Islanders, John Tavares, grace to front cover of today's Newsdaysports section. The full page feature took a look at the life off the rink that the fans do not get to see. From his time spent living at the Weight's household, his development into a star and his relationship with teammate and mentor Doug Weight. The interesting and sometimes funny article gives a personal look at John.

We now see the numerous roles John has, hockey star, teammate, video game lover, big brother and peace keeper. Fans can now see that the serious, all business John Tavares is equally balanced by a fun loving, teenage John Tavares. Like a regualar member of the Weight family, John is like the older brother or that crazy uncle we all have. Not to mention he's a competitor in NHL 10, no matter how old you are. Just another prime example of how hockey players may just be the most down to earth people.

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If pigs fly

The New York Post is reporting an "eastern" team is in the hunt for Ilya Kovalchuk and mentions the Islanders somewhere in the article. Columnist Larry Brooks was the first to report that Islanders GM Garth Snow made an inquiry into Kovalchuk.

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The "Gilldozer"

Tough Guy, Trevor Gillies arrived o join the Islanders in Philadelphia after signing an NHL contract yesterday with the team. The 6'3, 220 pound, Gillies racked up 123 penalty minutes (ranked 13^th in the AHL) and has a goal in 18 games. Sound Tigers beat reporter, Michael Fornabaio, had this to say about Gillies; tough as advertised. Not many of those PIMs by accident. Turns 31 Saturday; knows his way around. Good teammate, well-respected around the league. The soon to 31 year old is sure to add toughness, especially since the Isles will face a very gritty Philadelphia Flyers team on Saturday.

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Trade Talk

The other day I mentioned two possible trade options for the Islanders in the wake of losing Jack Hillen. Here is Hockey Bay Blog's thoughts on a possible trade with the Isles for David Hale;
I think a trade would be very possible as Hale has been edged out of the Lightning lineup recently. He has been sent down to the Norfolk Admirals for a 2 week conditioning assignment as he has been a healthy scratch lately on the Lightning as other defencemen have been playing better. In addition, if Paul Ranger returns to the line up soon (has been away on personal leave), the Lightning will be looking to move some of their surplus defencemen. As for what they would want for in return, well as long as you gift wrap it nicely, the Lightning management wouldn't know the difference between a bag of pucks and a good deal, either way, they'd just waive the player eventually.

As for a deal with Edmonton here is Low On Oil to explain; I haven't heard the Islanders mentioned in any potential Oilers trades yet. The Oilers are in sell mode with names like Moreau, Staios, Visnvosky, Souray, Cogliano, Nilsson, and Horcoff frequently named.Now, Horcoff's contract makes him completely unmovable. Moreau and Staios probably have negative trade value given their age, contracts, and performance.Souray's children live in Los Angeles with his ex-wife and he has a no-trade clause until July 1st, so it's more likely that he would head to Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Jose, or Dallas if he's traded before this year's trade deadline (march 3).The Islanders have an extra goalie with Dipietro back and there were some previous rumors that the Oilers might be interested in Biron. However, the Oilers won't likely pick up a goaltender this season any more. Both Deslauriers and Dubnyk are pretty mediocre, but they are getting evaluated while the Oilers head to a top 3 draft pick.

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Bobby Hughs criminal case

Last and certainly least, Bridgeport Sound Tiger, Robert "Bobby" Hughes turned down a plea deal in his criminal sex act case in Albany. The deal would have had him plead guilty to committing a third-degree criminal sex act in October 2008. He declined however because he feels that no crime occurred. Hughes was arrested in November in Bridgeport following a game at the Arena at Harbor Yards and could face up 25 years in prison if convicted.

Boy, never have the words of the classic Shirelles tune felt so true as they do today. Last night the Islanders had one hell of an evening and not in a good way. After announcing that Calvin de Hann would go under season ending shoulder surgury, Jack Hillen got beamed in the face by an Alex Ovechkin laser beam, Then the Islanders got crushed by the high flying caps. Needless to say last night wasn't our night.

But with "every day like this" comes a new day and renewed hope, this time in the form of Dustin Kohn, who tallied his first NHL point in his first NHL game. Kohn was well received in his first stint on Long Island and will now get an extended opportunity due to the extent of Hillen's injury. "I really don’t know how long I’m going to be here,” Kohn told Newsday. “So I just want to make the most of the opportunity and just contribute the best I can and just play solid. Continue to get better every day.” Kohn performed at a -5 with 2 goals and 15 assists down in Bridgeport and was a +1 during his 2 games on Long Island. The Islanders have had several pleasant surprises on the blue line with Andy MacDonald and the now injured, Jack Hillen, and hope to find the same luck with Kohn.

The Isles did get one lucky break last night with Hillen's injury, it comes close to the Olympic break which will limit the amount of games he will miss.

Another issue that has now been thrown back into the spotlight for fans is the need to bring in another veteran defenseman before the trade deadline passes. With Sheldon Souray on the open market fans would love for management to make a move on him, but Chris Botta has already put the axe in that. You never know though. HockeyBuzz, the leader in hockey rumors, is reporting that the Islanders have shown some interest in Lighting defenseman, David Hale. The 28 year old American blue liner's stats do not jump out at you as he has only managed 4 point in 35 games.

The most appealing player on the trading block, other than Souray, would be another Edmonton Oiler, Lubomir Visnovsky. Visnovsky was featured on TSN's top "10 players expected to be traded" and would be a good asset on the Isles blue line. His 9 goals would lead all Islanders defenseman and his 29 points would tie him with Mark Streit for most points by a defenseman. Also 4 of those 9 goals came on the Power play along with 15 power play points, something the Islanders could desperately use on their less than stellar power play unit.

The Triple Feature you have been waiting for is here, enjoy!

Anyone who watched the Detroit Red Wings game against the Phoenix Coyotes on Versus last night had the chance to see exactly why Detroit is in the situation they are in.

Take away all the injuries and take away the fact they've primarily featured a rookie in goal.  Just look at their supposed mold as a hockey team and nothing else.

Detroit is supposed to be a strong defensive team with capable players on offense, but not a juggernaut like Washington or San Jose.  A defensive team that, last night and throughout all season, gave up a game they should have won.

Up 4-2 late, they take a penalty.  Give up a goal with 90 seconds left, then allow Phoenix to pull their goalie and tie the game.  And then they go to overtime and lose it; gaining only one point in a game that with two minutes left looked like they'd definitely be banking two points.

Yes, injuries have plagued them, but good teams overcome that.  And starting a rookie goaltender is hard enough, but it has been helped by the fact that they're a defensive team.  But there have been too many lapses in their game, and while Howard has played very well, he isn't at a level of play where he is capable of doing it all by himself.

Detroit currently sits in 8th place in the West, one point ahead of 9th place Calgary.  If the playoffs started today they'd be in.  But watching last nights game and seeing them do this time and again all year long, you have to wonder come April, if they'll still be in that position.

Stolen right from the lips of the late Met, Tug McGraw, "YA GOTTA BELIEVE" is the phrase that should be circulating the Isles dressing room and Coliseum concourse. Especially since the critics had been counting on the Isles to be in the Taylor Hall sweepstakes by now, even encouraging having another lackluster season. Even I doubted the Islanders had what it took to be in the hunt, especially when I told Puck Daddy "I wouldn't reserve my playoff tickets this season." Never been so happy to eat my own words because now the Islanders sit just a win away from leap frogging the Flyers, Rangers, and Habs who all have 55 points and hold the 6, 7 and 8 spots respectively.

As fans we've watched boys become men and a team grow together so much so that this team knew from the start of this year that they were playoff material. "when April comes around, I expect us to be in position to compete in the playoffs." That was Richard Park told Islanders Point Blank back in September and everybody looked and laughed. I guess the jokes on them, since a young up and coming group of hockey players have found ways to win.

The Coliseum has even become a place to help develop talent that was given up on, as highlighted by Newsdays Mark Herrmann. A combination of patience, responsible spending, and a coach who know how to nurture young talent have all worked to put together an on ice team that's entertaining, fun and most of all competitive.

Now those words that Park said back in September are being echoed in a much more specific way by the captain. "We're good enough to beat a team in a seven-game playoff series," Weight said, "and we're good enough to be in the playoffs." The team believes this, they've felt this way for a while and you players like Rob Schremp and Matt Moulson, who have both worked hard to get here, would love for that hard work to pay off and make the playoffs. The fans have also regained faith, highlighted this past week by 2 sellouts and a strong showing during Thursday's match up against the Panthers. Not to mention that ticket sales are up 20% and team revenue is up 11% according to Islanders Point Blank.

I go back to the phrase "YA GOTTA BELIEVE" because somehow that has been the rally cry for both the Jets and Islanders, both of which coincidental sent their rookie stars to throw out the first pitch at Citi Field. The point being is even when things looked over for the Jets they perceived on using a core of rookie and vets to lead the way and nearly went all the way. Sounds familiar to the Islanders, minus a few factors, but the core is simulare. Rookies and young guns leading  the way backed by some experienced vets who know how to motivate a team. So Islanders Country, "YA GOTTA BELIEVE!"