Top Shelf : Islanders Daily 7/14/2013

Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Top Shelf provides you daily with the latest dose of Islanders news and all the top stores from around the National Hockey League. Sadly, outside of a surprising retirement of an in-prime superstar, there has not been much news to report.

This comes as a huge surprise to me, as I cannot remember anywhere in my memory the free agent market being so quiet after the initial frenzy on day one. And that is not because there are not still quality players available on the market.

Reasons for this could be numerous. Could be that the market has gotten so inflated (again) that the available players are asking way much more than where their actual value lies or perhaps the players have chosen their destinations but the team they are moving to has to clear out some more cap space. The rule stipulates that an organization can run 10% over the cap up until right before the season, when they must comply with the 64.3mm figure. But if I am an owner, I am not taking that chance and will attempt to stay below throughout the summer.

In any case, as has been discussed repeatedly, the Isles and general manager Garth Snow are more than likely done in free agency and ‘could’ only improve at this point, in my opinion, via trade. There are only so many roster spots to go around and with a seemingly overflowing farm system in Bridgeport, you cannot keep those kids buried in the American Hockey League forever. With July (and the rest of the calendar for that matter) seemingly whizzing along in the blink of an eye, it will be the dog days of August before you know it and if you think hockey news is quiet now……

Here is a look inside the Blackhawks locker room after they won the Stanley Cup….

In Case You Missed It

• Dominik takes on the Isles goaltending options (LHH)
• A Gretzky who is not a hockey player? Say it isn’t so. (NHL)
• One last thing for the Blackhawks to tie up….and it’s a pretty big one (Rant sports)
• How the Stanley Cup is engraved (Miami Herald)
• Interesting take on the Kovalchuk situation (NY Post)
• Miller / Vanek not going anywhere….for now (NHL)

Two Minutes For Tweeting

• I feel you Johnny. Struggling to get through July is nothing compared to when August hits and the real malaise sets in. Baseball just does not get it done in any way, shape or form.

• Now that is something you don’t think about every day but a great point nonetheless. And it does beg the question of the hashtag…..just what would Johnny T do? I bet Cal escorts him everywhere now and would be more than willing to beat up the guy in the next stall if it meant cleanliness for the next Isles captain.

•  The Nabby bashing continues and I am sure, as much as I know my grass is green, that Rich Diaz will not be happy about not only the tweet, but my decision to include it in this mornings edition of Top Shelf. A jersey over the head donnybrook might very well ensue. ?

•  Now this is a great idea. The NHL has had some of these types of programs on with their ‘day in the life’ series but as expected, never one on a current or former NY Islander.

•  Something to look forward to next week. The full Islanders slate will be posted here at Eyes for your viewing pleasure. Talks continue on the possible inclusion of players into the Sochii olympics as well.

-AG (@tazman19)