Blowing out the Goal light, Ullstrom nets 6

Last week's AHL Player of the week was Bridgeport's own David Ullstrom. The 2008 4th rounder had gone over a month without a goal and then on Feb 16 started a goal scoring rampage, scoring once in a Shootout loss to Springfield and then 2 the next game and ended his week with a hat-trick. Ullstrom's 6 G week brought his totals to 12 G and 30PTS in his first season in the US, which isn't bad all things considered. This year at Bridgeport should be considered a mulligan. However the outburst should be admired and help showcase a sign of things to come.

Ullstrom is yet another example of the Islanders increasingly stronger 2008 draft that has produced: Josh Bailey, Travis Hamonic, Kevin Poulin and Matt Martin for the Islanders as well as Jyri Neimi and Jared Spurgeon for the Rangers and Minnesota Wild, respectively. The Isles have a ton of talent also developing from that Draft as it is one of the biggest (if not the biggest) in the Organization's history. The Isles picked up Aaron Ness and Corey Trivino in the second round, finishing their College careers, also Travis Hamonic was the 3rd selection of the 2nd Round; the 3rd round brought Niemi, Kirill Petrov and David Toews; 4th round selections were Matt Donovan and Ullstrom; 5th rounders were Kevin Poulin and Matt Martin; rounding out the draft class were Spurgeon and Justin DiBenedetto.

Ullstrom's been getting top line work most of the season, of late he's been paired with Justin DiBenedetto and Rhett Rahkshani makes for a nice young line to gel together now for future dividends.

File this under "Look further into this" in the future. There isn't much else to discuss about Ullstrom here. The AHL is a much different league than the Swedish Elite League. Ullstrom's numbers look a lot better for Bridgeport than they did for his hometown Jankoping 71s. the SEL is known as a defense first league, so the offense is great this year. Definitely one to follow and watch for the future. It'll be interesting to see if Ullstrom will crack the lineup in the bottom six next year. We'll certainly find out.

The obligatory lifetime Stats (again, remember the SEL is much different offensively than the NHL/AHL/etc):

Mike Sellitto: Certified Human Pinata

There no more interesting name in the Islanders "Farm System" than Mike Sellitto, not because he's lit up the score boards, far from it actually, but he's the first Islanders farm player I've seen report to four different teams in four different leagues. That is some sort of feat, Sellitto has bounced from Bridgeport camp to the Louisiana IceGators of the Southern Professional Hockey League, to the Danbury Whalers of the inaugural Federal Hockey League, to enjoying coffee from the Press-box at Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard, to finally getting into 10 games at Kalamazoo. I hope he has frequent flyer miles on his credit card, he's going deserve a nice long vacation after this season and with hope next year he'll play at one level and only move up when absolutely needed (after all the Islanders system is as snake bitten with injuries as the the Parent club). (Sellitto's head shot from Wings Stadium)

Sellitto's from Elmont, New York and 23, so hopefully he grew up rooting for the Blue and Orange (and if not, that's a damned shame); that is until he moved from Nassau to Weston, FL (HockeyDB lists place of birth, not hometown I see), which is...quite a change for a potential hockey player. The Islanders found him not at your local rink (okay well, maybe they did) BUT at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, which is more known to baseball fans for Chicago Pitching Prospects Chris Sale and Casey Coleman. Sellitto's only stand out year for the Eagles was '08-'09 when he got into 41 games notching 14 G and 31 PTs to go with 80 PIM. His other two seasons were an average of 24 games played, 7 G and 15 PTS to go with 30 PIM. Those numbers are actually pretty decent when you realize that FGCU plays division II, especially when people scratch their head saying "they play hockey at college...in Florida?" Actually I doubt anyone does say that, besides me when I first heard of Sellitto. Scouts liked what they saw I guess and offered Sellitto an invite to Prospect and Bridgeport camp.

Sellitto, unlike previous Rookie mention Justin Taylor, did not crack Bridgeport's squad and was assigned to the Louisiana IceGators for seasoning (no pun intended), Sellitto got into 20 games and notched 11 points. From there he was transfered or re-assigned (I don't remember which) to the brand new Federal Hockey League and the Danbury Whalers. My guess here is that if Bridgeport found themselves short handed a call up of Sellitto made more sense than a call up our of Kalamazoo or a PTO from elsewhere, I'm not sure though. Sellitto got into 5 games drawing three minor penalties and that was that for the FHL. in Late December Sellitto was called up as an extra body by Bridgeport and didn't get into any games there and was sent back to Danbury, where oddly he didn't play for most or any of January it seems. on Feb 4, he was assigned to Kalamazoo where he's gotten into 10 games and notched 1 assist. So, it's been an interesting first season of hockey for Sellitto as he's been unable to really get much going since leaving the Bayou. If the Islanders believe that Sellitto can become anything resembling a potential call-up they need to put him in one league and have him work out the kinks; or if he's going to yo-yo, have it between two teams be it B-Port/K-Zoo or B-Port/Odessa. Treating Sellitto as a pinata and moving him at will wherever you please, is NOT beneficial in any way.

Finally, If Sellitto's ever going to crack the NHL (heard it here first, he's not): he either needs to be Micheal Grabner on amphetamines and get MORE breakaways than Grabz, which is essentially impossible; or he needs to bulk up a bit and start parking in front of the goal and pushing his way into scoring opportunities. Sellitto is a relatively small dude, he stands 5'10 and 180lbs. Which leads me to ask: why do the Isles keep signing up undersized LIers to play in the Organization? Vladimir Nikiforov, a player from Hauppage and former Grizzlie/Isles prospect stands 5'8 and 170; Smithtown resident Tony Romano is 5'11 and 185...these guys need to either be all muscle and push guys off with ease to find the net or be absolute speed demons, and I just can't see that being the case.

Anyway, Sellitto's an interesting case, and if the Isles truly believe in him, they won't abuse him next year.

Stats, what few they are:

DEADLINE!!!

Yes, it's been 12 days since my last post, I apologize, day to day life and college life have...pulled away from watching prospects.

Not to worry Isles Fans, Today will be a quick post on the NHL trade deadline and the Isles...just my two cents.

First up I believe the earth shattering moves by the Islanders have already been made: James Wisniewski and Dwayne Roloson being traded for picks (a 2nd and 5th from MTL) and D-man Ty Wishart respectively; as well as the suddenly white hot Al Montoya coming from Phoenix for a 6th round pick this year. Montoya's WAY over-producing at a .940 SV% and a 1.89 GAA, but he's stabilized the goalie situation, playing on top of his world and allowing for Mikko Koskinen to develop more at AHL, can't really lose there.

So are there still players that can be moved; certainly, is there a strong likelihood anyone is traded; I'm not sure.

Last year Garth Snow made one move from his NHL Roster was sending D-man Andy Sutton for a second round pick from Ottawa which he would later turn into UND Freshman and huge Center Brock Nelson at the 2010 Entry draft. Snow also made one Minor league deal swapping Center Greg Moore for Defenseman Dylan Reese (who gets a lot of un-needed hate in my opinion, but he's had a rough rough season). So last year was a relatively quiet though anxiety filled deadline.

This year is much different, blue chip trade piece Matt Moulson (who I love, I started calling him "Mighty Matt" last season and if you ever see me at Nassau Coliseum I tend to wear a customized 26 Jersey with "Mighty Matt" on the back) was signed to a well deserved three year contract extension effectively taking him off the market. Potential trade chip and Moulson Linemate PA Parenteau (who should NOT be on the top line next season, but more on that much later) was also extended cheaply for next year so he becomes a trade piece next year. So without Moulson and Parenteau, who's left to potentially be dealt?

First and foremost: Radek Martinek. Radek's been a career long Islander and has seen the best of times and the rebuild equally...albeit a majority of that time in a suit from the press-box or rehabbing an injury. Radek's one of the most underrated Defensemen around, he plays his zone fantastically and while he leaves a lot to be desired offensively, Radek plays good when healthy. Considering more offensively minded D men have netted strong returns for their teams, Radek should be able to command a 2nd rounder at the very very least. Now, Martinek is currently dinged up so he may stick around by virtue of his health.

Rob Schremp: The Isles have let it be known that Schremp is available according to Chris Botta's Islanders Point Blank, with his less than amazing stats this season it sounds like the Isles will pretty much dump him for anything. Which certainly makes sense, if you read my Twitter stream the Schremp-Bailey-Comeau line is the bane of my existence some nights. now if a western team offered pretty much anything then i have no bones trading Schremp out west, if it's an Eastern team, you gotta try to jack the price. Personally, I wonder how Schremp would respond to another coach if the Isles hire a new coach in the off-season (I'm not Capuano's biggest fan but he's done well with the lack of tools at his disposal). Also if the deadline comes and goes and Schremp is still an Islander, this is going to sound like a crazy idea but I would move Schremp to the top line, not that he deserves it, but as a way to simply break up the third line. swapping PA and Schremp would be a way to possibly get Schremp going and end on a high note to either offer a new contract or make him more appealing prior to June 30th.

Zenon Konopka is the guy Isles fans don't want traded, and I am in this camp. However, if Snow is shopping Konopka it had better be to the Western conference playoff teams as a defensive zone face off specialist and try to start a bidding war. If you can and a Western GM completely losses his mind and offers a crazy good package (it's really too bad that the Flames don't have Darryl Sutter at the helm) then you have to seriously consider trading Konopka. There's NOTHING wrong with poking around and seeing what's available for a guy like Konopka. If that sort of thing doesn't happen, well keep and extend the man. The offense isn't a concern from your 4th line and if it was, give the 4th line more than 11 minutes a game. I don't believe he'll be traded unless management gets an offer they can't refuse and the Fans would laud. Konopka's done so much more for this team than simply his 219 PIM and 1 G, there's no denying that.

Personally, I think of those three you'll only see Martinek moved if he plays tomorrow night against Washington. If he doesn't, he's likely staying.

While there's other players I would love to see traded, Bruno Gervais (he's just a horrible Defensemen, his improvement this year has been from god-awful scratch to "you know he's almost an alright 8th man who's starting only because there's NO ONE left") who doesn't fit next year with our injured D corps returning. I'd also love to see Blake Comeau moved. He's just too damned inconsistent to justify the hope that he can be a set 20+ G guy on the third line who can hit. He's obsessed with the wrap around and going backhand, which is absurd because he has one of the most powerful slapshots on the team and NEVER uses it. Also with the influx of forwards on their way, getting something for Blake now will be a lot better than not tendering him a contract and seeing him walk freely just like the still inconsistent Sean Bergenheim and Jeff Tambellini.

So if there's anyone else to be moved it'll be Martinek (most likely if he plays tomorrow it's to show he's healthy for an inquiring team). There's arguments for the other 4 players I mentioned, but Schremp and Konopka will likely stay in my mind as will Gervais and Comeau (annoyingly).

There's always a chance that Garth also swings a minor league trade or two, but I doubt it seeing it as B-Port is essentially held together right now by scotch tape and first grade glue sticks (Bridgeport's play in February has also left little to write about aside from DiBenedetto and the back on track David Ullstrom).

UPDATE: This morning the Isles waived Goalie Nate Lawson and Forward Rob Schremp. They'll stack around until Monday unless a team claims one or both. This appears to be a roster flexibility move, and the Isles may put a claim on any of the three Goalies also waived today: Curtis McIllhenny, Pascal LeClaire (the Canadian Rick DiPietro) and Ty Conklin (who the Isles should ABSOLUTELY claim). Not sure if this is indicative of a trade, but figured it should be mentioned as I'm talking about the big squad with this post.

Feel free to lambast me in the comments, and I promise more timely updates soon.

Apologies

Sorry for the lack of posts. I will be back with more stuff soon. I'm sure everyone saw the Islanders-Penguins game on Friday night and the season debut of Micheal Haley. Not going to comment further than it was a game the Isles had building up inside of them for some time.

I need to start a better curating of the weekly happenings at Bridgeport (riding a 9 game losing streak as of today, it's just ugly, really really ugly down there), Kalamazoo and Odessa. I also need to get back to writing about Draft picks in the NCAA and the CHL(Canadian) in general.

I appreciate all of the page views and comments so far and have been meaning to write these past two weeks, but have had classes and such and haven't really had time to write a full on post.

In the near future I'll have a post about my enthusiasm and optimism for the Islanders making a playoff run next season and my myriad of reasons behind that, Kevin Poulin is one of the biggest reasons for that.

So stay tuned, apologies again for the lack of writing, and please, keep up the feedback and comments, they'll only help me out.

Matt Martin, Micheal Haley, rewarding good play and breeding Confidence

This morning I read a post on SB Nation from Garik16 (@Garik16 on Twitter) describing Matt Martin as a terrible hockey player and using some advanced stats to explain why. Now I'm not a "sabermetrics" type guy (easier in baseball, hockey I don't get the advanced stats at all), but the post does bring up one point I do agree with: Matt Martin shouldn't be in the NHL.

The 6'2 192 lb hitting machine is a great energy line player, I love that he's scrappy, will fight, sticks up for his teammates and will hit anyone and everyone. What I also love about him is the fact that his last season at juniors two years ago was a revelation that Matt can also score and do so without a superstar talent to help him along. Below are Matt's lifetime stats via HockeyDB:





This 65 point campaign made Martin the third leading goal scorer for Sarnia just two seasons ago and the year Steve Stamkos was struggling in the NHL. now, am I arguing that Matt is a 35 goal scorer in the NHL, no, but he could become a better forward with more time at the AHL. In my post about Sarnia teammate and current Sound Tiger Justin DiBenedetto, I hypothesized that "DiBo" was finally catching up to the AHL after 100 games played, maybe Martin needs some more time there as he had some early season success (yes he has out produced his Bridgeport stats in the NHL this year, but he's also played 5 times as many games), but the thing he was getting more of at Bridgeport was ice time. Matt averages about 9 minutes a game, far more than fellow fighter Trevor Gillies, but Gillies has a set role (one he's probably not entirely happy with, but he does it well, and he should be rewarded some more ice time from time to time especially when the 4th line is the only line doing anything), where as Matt, 11 years younger than Gillies, can expand upon his role with confidence and seasoning. Matt's a bottom six forward right now not getting 10 minutes of ice time, but at Bridgeport he'd likely be in the top 6 and getting much more ice time and opportunity to play, develop and maybe go from "energy guy" to full fledged power forward, something the Isles desperately lack.


Enter Michael Haley, Haley's put together his best season thus far at Bridgeport collecting 22 points in 48 games and 134 PIM to boot. Last year he got his first two NHL games late in the season and didn't do much (small sample size, was on the fourth line and it was "garbage time" in the schedule). Haley has more goals this year (12) than almost his last three seasons combined (13). Haley at 5'11 and 198 provides basically the same size as Martin and the same feisty play and can likely handle Martin's role. Haley may also be able to provide some PK time with Colliton or Konopka or Comeau as well, which Matt currently doesn't. Haley's lifetime Stats:





While Haley's an abysmal -17 at Bridgeport, Martin's not much better on LI at -13 and was even in 7 games at Bridgeport (the Sound Tigers and Islanders have had their defenses absolutely eaten ALIVE this year with injuries, inconsistent play, and for B-Port callups). I think swapping Martin for Haley will be beneficial for Matt and a nice reward for Haley's good play this year at Bridgeport. More importantly, Martin needs ice time and Capuano has an idea how best to utilize Haley (I hope, he's left me wanting as an NHL coach, did well at the Bridge, but he's baffled me at best in Uniondale). Finally putting Martin in a top 6 configuration with two good playmaking Centers (either Hisey or Ullstrom) and possibly lining up with Rhaskshani will benefit him and the team in the long term better than having him toil with only 9 minutes a game and not developing as a player.

So the Isles should reward good play and breed confidence NOW to pay dividends in the future. At least that's my line of thinking there.

Quick Recalls today as Actual hockey is BACK (YES!)

So with the return of the NHL from the All-Star Break the Isles announced the recalls of Dylan Reese and Kevin Poulin (sent down before the break to get in 2 games of action before the AHL All-Star Break began. Also new to the recall list is Ty Wishart. Reese is what he is and having a bad season at the NHL level (however, he's a replacement level player, but Bruno some nights plays better, it sort of sucks).


This will be Ty's second go in the NHL, in 12 games since being acquired for Dwayne Roloson, Ty's gone 0/5/5 for points and only picked up 4 PIM and a -2. So he's an even handed D man that appears to play smart. However I feel that the Isles are just getting a sense of what Ty can do at the big level as in those 12 games he hasn't been the best scoring D man for Bridgeport (that distinction goes to Marc Katic who now holds a 3/16/19 line to go with 18 PIM and a -6 for the season, those 3 goals and a good number of assists in the last 5 or 6 games). This may be an expose him to life in the big leagues while the AHL is on a break until Thursday, so it may be a one game cameo for Ty. my fear in playing Wishart is he'll play on the third pairing with Gervais (which is scary) or he'll be a possible 7th man with sitting Gillies tomorrow in Atlanta.


Poulin's back, which makes me happy, he picked up a loss in his one game back with Bridgeport (giving up 3 goals on 48(!) shots). I've started the hashtag #KevinPoulinFacts making Chuck Norris type jokes concerning Kevin Poulin and hockey, I think they're sort of funny, but search the hashtag and add your own folks, I like starting Isles Twitter hashtags and need to get back on it.


In other news Kalamazoo has returned from its All-Star Break and played a few games (will write up a post on that in a bit) and Odessa plays 4 games in 5 days this week, So I will try to keep an eye on that for the week.

"DiBo" to me: Can it bro

So, last week I lamented about Bridgeport's recent struggles. In that time the Sound Tigers have played 3 games going 1-2-0, but the Offense has picked up a bit, scoring 12 goals. Responsible for 1/3 of that output is Justin DiBenedetto who I called out in "Bridgeport We have a Problem" (or scroll down).

DiBenedetto or "DiBo" for short, is a former Sarnia Sting teammate of Matt Martin, Mark Katic and some guy named Steven Stamkos, whoever he is (if you can't get that that's a joke...). DiBo was second on the team in points under Stamkos before Steven went number 1 overall and onto what's become a hell of a career already (Stamkos had 105 points to DiBenedetto's 93, a 39/54 breakdown). DiBo came back the next year in '08-'09 at 20 and totaled another 93 points (45 goals and 48 assists) in 62 games and was a +14 that year; the third place scorer on that team: Matt Martin. So Justin has a history of being able to score and set up evenly, but his time in the Minors as I mentioned has been a struggle to a point. I mentioned in the last post about DiBo's 14 points last year and his collective 5 through 23 games.

Well, since that time DiBo's put up an exact doubling of his totals in the last three games including a two goal night against the Albany Devils. DiBo's simply on fire right now, maybe the return of Jesse Joensuu (who's also collected a 2 goal night and 3 goals in his return to Bridgeport), or maybe Dibo's picking up his game and has figured out the AHL by his upcoming 100th games at the level (just 7 shy), or maybe he's just on a hot streak.

However, I will gladly have a slice of humble pie after calling DiBenedetto out just last week. Just a heads up on DiBo's sizzling play as the Isles head into the all-star break in a bad way. However, I am not saying that DiBo should get a look right now, Rahkshani and Ullstrom or even Figren deserve long looks before DiBo. Unless DiBo continues this little run into something that demands a call-up, I'm not going to say he should get a look. This little run looks pretty impressive though.

Now if you'll excuse me, that Humble Pie is waiting.