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Top Shelf : Islanders Daily 6/29/2013

By Andy Graziano |

May 3, 2013; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks goaltender

Roberto Luongo

(1) makes a save against a shot by the San Jose Sharks during the second period of game two of the first round of the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports

Middletown, N. J – The rumor cycle has begun and it promises to be just as crazy as ever. In my free agency piece here at Eyes, part I, where we took a look at forwards general manager Garth Snow might be interested in, I called it ‘crazy season’ ; that period of time between the NHL draft and the start of free agency.

Yesterday the boys at Eyes decided to have a little fun on a boring Friday evening as myself, Rich Diaz and Mike Willhoft each tweeted out within seconds of each other that an ‘unnamed’ source had told us that Roberto Luongo had been traded. Problem was, we each listed three different teams that so-called expert told us he was traded to. We had some good laughs and I am glad that the Twitter community took everything in stride and did not burn us at the stake. haha

Believe this, the team at Eyes DOES have sources, and very reliable ones, and you will know the minute we do if something breaks. You will also know that it is very real and substantial. We are not in the business of throwing something to the wall and hoping it sticks or quoting a source who will not reveal himself. That was the whole point of our gag. The thing to remember as we enter this time of season is to trust only the reliable when it comes to rumors and don’t get all up in an uproar when someone out of the blue tells you the Isles are bringing back Alexi Yashin and that Ricky might be our starting goaltender in October.

With the being said, it is true that Snow phoned Vancouver general manager Mike Gillis and offered DiPietro for Luongo straight up in a swap of bad contracts. The Isles would get a very reliable usable asset and in return the Canucks would get a lower amnesty buyout. Great deal for the Islanders if it was to happen however Gillis is said to still be trying to squeeze an asset out of another team for Bobby Lu.

Snow also announced yesterday that he would be willing to deal his first round draft pick (15th overall) for a player who could help out immediately (proven talent). So as any good GM would be, Garth has been very busy and will continue to be through at least the end of July as he molds the Islanders and attempts to get them the assets to take them to the next level and build on last seasons successes.

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Around The Twitter-Sphere

  • Funny tweet from Ross describing the different ‘classes’ of social media. As the director of that department here at Eyes I have always broke things up into three classes myself. Reddit is grammar school, Facebook high school and Twitter is college. There has yet to be a mainstream social media channel that I can liken to real life. ? 
  • Great news for Islanders fans as it shows Kabakov’s dedication to improving an element of his game that can take him to Long Island. Roberts was a force back in his hey day as both a scorer and physical precense.
  • The logic Ketch has here is on the mark. Trade the 15th pick in a extremely deep draft, knowing that you have tons of talent already in the system and package one of those prospects for a proven commodity. It goes straight to what Snow announced yesterday to his fellow GMs. Only thing with this precise offer is that there would be much more needed to Vanek or Ryan I fear and Snow is not just going to sell the farm for a quick fix.
  • Anthony Mantha is also my choice should the Isles keep their pick in the first round. A hulking winger with a nose for the net, his perceived lack of consistency should not be a major concern at his age. Could fill a Clark Gillies type role down the road. Some project him to go anywhere from 10-20 so there just might be a realistic shot here.
  • Have to disagree here Anthony. If Snow does not get anything done in the free agent or trade market it does not mean that he failed to do his job. It also does not mean the Islanders are not serious about wining. The turnaround this season from the organization was proof that they are committed to building a winner. The blocks are all there, now they just have to be put in the right places to succeed. Nobody should project the Islanders to be cup contenders next season or even the season after. While we are clearly on the right track, 3 years away from that is still what I project.
  • Bobby injects some humor into ‘silly season’ and this was a must post. It’s certainly not easy to get me to laugh this early on a Saturday morning so good job sir – good job indeed. haha
  • This could be a very realistic tweet from Jeff and not far from the truth, if not it entirely. The Islanders know exactly what they are doing and offering a lower cap buyout to the Canucks for someone they might have to buy out eventually might be as good as it gets for Mike Gillis. In terms of Ryan Miller, he has been mediocre his entire career save for one season. The attitude problems that surfaced this year in Buffalo make me want him even less than I did before.

Enjoy your Saturday and stay tuned to Eyes as we cover the NHL draft and all it has to offer tomorrow. We will be on the air the entire afternoon, updating selections, rumors and trades that occur in Newark, NJ.

As always, thanks for reading. We truly appreciate your support. Look us up on Twitter and Facebook as we love talking puck with our readers. You can find the information on our handles and pages in the top menu bar under the ‘about’ section.

-AG (@tazman19)

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