UNIONDALE, NY - The first meeting of the season was a great night.  The General Manager of the Islanders, Garth Snow, came by to visit the club.

He was candid, honest, and forthright and answered every question that he was able to.

Oh, by the way, he had such a good time at the meeting, that he ACTUALLY became a MEMBER of the BOOSTER CLUB!  Next meeting you come to, check and see if membership number 30 is there.  If so, please say hi!

These are some pictures that I took at the meeting.  Click on the picture for a larger version.  Click on the back button, to go back to this page.  If you have pictures from this meeting, please e-mail them to me. 

Here is the article that was published in CENTER ICE, the NYIBC Newsletter.  The article was written by Denise Karl.

I passed him in the lobby as he was sitting on the edge of the couch, just waiting to start, looking eager but not tense.  I wondered what the two women who were escorting him to this meeting had told him to expect, if anything.  But as we passed him and waved, he seemed to be looking at them and saying “Can we go yet? Is it time?”

Within minutes he was sitting on the dais while the members were still getting comfortable in their seats.  He listened quietly as the club business was discussed.  I watched as the occasional Oh!-that’s-what-they-do look crossed over his face.   Then once he was introduced, it was like a stallion out of the gate in a race.  He ran through his background and personal history with lightening speed.  You want to know about Garth Snow’s playing career?  Read the back of one of his hockey cards.  I couldn’t write it that fast, and my digital recorder was not cooperating with me.

The bits and pieces I did pick up were only the words that peak my interest.  He grew up in Massachusetts but he’s NOT a Red Sox fan.  (Good move on the Island, Garth.)  He went to school in a small town of 500 people in Maine.  He spent five years at the University of Maine, but only played for two and a half of those.  He was on Team USA for the Olympics in Lillehammer, and was here, there and elsewhere until 2001 when he became an Islander.

When asked why he became a goalie as a kid he said he liked the equipment and the idea of playing the entire game.  His mother, on the other hand, cringed at the expense of that equipment.  But as all mothers do, we get our revenge.  It just takes a while.

Speaking of goalies, which we did a lot, the questions began to fly regarding Mike Dunham and Wade Dubielwicz.  Garth said he felt more confident having goalies with NHL experience, and that adding Dunham was the right decision as he’s made the organization that much better.  Wade will be up at some point, as they’re very happy with him.  Much later in the meeting, as people were becoming comfortable with Garth’s genuine friendliness, one of the members decided to ask about Rick DiPietro’s 15-year-contract.  Actually, I shouldn’t say “ask”-- it was more of a pointed editorial that spewed from the back of the room.  Snow sat back in his chair and let the man rant.  When he was done, the first words out of Garth’s mouth were “God bless America, where everyone’s entitled to their opinion.”  This drew loud laughter from the crowded room and quickly diffused any heated debate that may have erupted.  He then went on to explain that the yearly average of the $4.5 million dollar contract would actually be a good deal for the club and perhaps less lucrative for Ricky who wouldn’t be climbing the financial ladder.   “Shouldn’t you be happy to have your top prospect for the rest of his career?

Actually, I’m a little surprised in this forum that someone wouldn’t be happy to have Rick for his entire career.”

“What if he gets hurt?” boomed from behind me.  "The contract is insured for a rolling six years.”

Now that’s an interesting concept.  I didn’t realize they could find a way to have it insured that way.  This makes the risk to the club AND Rick minimal.  If he is injured, his $4.5 million is off the cap.  “But what if he doesn’t turn into the goalie you expect him to be?”  There was no answer for this question.  Why not ask “What if your daughter doesn’t grow up pretty.”  All you should get is the RCA dog response or the human equivalent of What???  It has no finite answer, except everyone believes he will.  Snow’s opinion of the deal: no harm, no foul.

Let’s stick to the goalie questions, shall we?  When asked about his notoriously maligned “oversized pads,” he was quick to answer.  “I never broke a rule.  My shoulders were pretty big and they never had rules.  You look for the advantage to win, and THAT’S the bottom line.”

"What Goaltender did you look up to?”  A smile came over his face.  “Ron Hextall,” he answered, and then proceeded to tell the story of a game during his first year in Philly.  His mother came to see him play and was in the ‘wives’ room.’  When she was introduced to Ron Hextall, she couldn’t help but tell him all about Garth’s idol worship of him, including the posters that were hanging in his bedroom.  “It wouldn’t have been so bad, but I was 25 at the time, and I hadn’t lived in my house in years.  When the rest of the guys heard about this, it was a tough pill to swallow in the dressing room.”

See?  Mothers always get their revenge.  Remember that.

When asked whether he missed playing, Garth had some interesting insight that most of us have probably never heard.

“Do you have flashbacks of pucks rushing past your head?” asked an amateur goalie in the crowd.  “The ones that went in the net or the ones that missed it?”  Good answer Garth!  He said when a puck goes by you at 100 miles per hour, you can smell the burning rubber.  He said he could never understand it, and… he doesn’t miss it.  Oddly, he said he did enjoy the ones that hit him square in the chest, no matter how fast they were because they made him more confident.  Sure, the pain would kick in after the game, but that’s all part of it.

On the Islander Alumni situation:  When asked if Pat LaFontaine was still an advisor of any sort, Garth answered that he didn’t know and he hasn’t seen him around at all. “Charles wants to bring back the history.”  There’s even an Alumni box set aside so they can attend every game.  “You want them around.  They’re winners!  You put yourself next to a winner and you hope it brushes off on you.”

On future prospects Tambellini, O’Marra and Bergenheim:  “Tambellini is in Bridgeport.  He made the trip (for preseason) but we felt it was better for him to play 15 – 20 minutes a game for his development.  O’Marra is in juniors.  We expect him to make the team next September.” (I believe that would be the BRIDGEPORT team.)  When asked if we’d see Nilsson or Nokie any time soon, he replied “Injuries happen.”  But the organization believes it’s better for young players to make their mistakes in Bridgeport and the AHL.  He then went on to discuss the very delicate subject of fan favorite Sean Bergenheim.  You can tell he’s covered this ground more than a few times in the last few weeks.

“When you come to training camp, there are no freebies.  You come and EARN a spot.  You had to work hard.  You chose guys that work the hardest.  We love Trent Hunter, he finishes every check, he cares deeply, we love having him here.  But the policy has been here and respected, you miss the first day and you’re out for the season and we agreed.  58 came to camp.  It was hard work for 10 days going through the grind or staying here (at Iceworks).  It sends the wrong message to other players [if he was allowed to come back.]  I don’t think it’s fair to the other players.  Sean was offered a very fair guaranteed spot on the team for someone who hasn’t played a ton of games.  And last time I checked, $500,000 is a LOT of money.  And we gave that money to Richard Park.  Bergie, we want here next year.  And the bonus, we keep him an extra year.  He got bad advice.  He’ll develop this year in Europe, and we hold his rights for another year.  I don’t know what his agent was telling him, but he made promises he couldn’t keep.  We offered him a generous contract to be on our team.” 

The only thing he should have added was “Period.  End of sentence.”  Well… okay then.  I’ll hold on to that Bergenheim Katrina Relief Game Issued jersey that my husband won in the NHL auction last year.

On becoming GM:  “I was more surprised than anyone.”  Queue laugh track here.  “I had surgery in May and I knew I wasn’t ready for training camp.”  He said his relationship with the other team GMs has been great, “Except for the Rangers. I don’t know why.”  Garth was practicing for his next incarnation: Stand-up comedian.  He did say that the other teams attempted to take advantage of the situation the first few weeks and “tried to pick our pockets” regarding talent. 

With the amount of bad press surrounding the GM change after Neil Smith, Garth said he rarely listened.  “I definitely know what motivates me.  Did I listen to those who said I couldn’t play Division 1?  I’ll do what I have to do, you have to win.  Bobby Clarke had been there for 20 years.  So, what can I do to make it better?”  You can tell that trying to come up with ideas to make it better is always running through his mind.  But you have to wonder how this family man feels about the instability of this type of position.  The saving grace is the amount of loyalty Charles Wang has for his employees that do right by him.  Garth’s biggest challenge as newly named GM occurred during the first two weeks, filling out the roster, a lack of scouts, new staffing, stacks of resumes, capologists and lawyers to deal with CBA issues.  A lot to learn in a short time for any one.  But the really hard part was sitting in the press box watching the first game and “knowing I had no control.”

That’s when the idea of being removed from the game must really have come to light for Snow.  The distance from the ice to the press box is enormous, and the reality of being the new GM must have hit home hard.

Garth’s first GM meeting will take place in November.  I heard on the radio that they will be covering the shoot out and any rule changes to it that may be discussed.  I asked if he was going to add anything to this discussion.  “It’s my first meeting, I won’t say much.”  The crowd laughed again as he continued to win them over.  “The game is fine.  I always thought the shoot out was great for the game.  You get a chance to show the skill level of a Miro Satan or to watch Rick make great saves.  It doesn’t have to go to five rounds.  I like it the way it is.”

Garth’s thoughts on the current team and how they’ve played so far:

“The team isn’t gelling yet.  They’re getting their chemistry.  There’s a seven-minute lapse in the game when they’re all over the map, they’re not cohesive.  But for 53 minutes, we look awesome.  If we play right, we win and not give a point away.  We have to get running on all cylinders to win the Stanley Cup.  Our work ethic is second to none, which Nolan instilled from day one.”  (You just gotta love Teddy!  You do.)  He went on to say that the additions that were made have lent a lot of toughness to the team, which was needed considering that the pundits did nothing but comment last season that the Islanders were “small and weak”.  (I still love you Bucci, I just hated that you were right.)  Garth went on to say “When Jason Blake looks over and sees these guys on the ice, even he’s a foot taller.”

“Sillinger has played well.  He was a little slowed by a quad injury in Yarmouth, but he’s been great for us.  Yashin has played great; he has chemistry with Victor Kozlov.  He’s a man possessed this year.  Ted’s been shifting his lines, and he’s still putting up points.  He’s been on fire since game 1.  New coach, new teammates, new GM.”  A smile lit up his face.

Maybe the fact that this man was actually ON this team for so long makes him a better candidate for this position than anyone else.  Maybe he will see things not only from a business perspective, but from a team perspective as well.  You can feel his passion for the game, even as quiet as he is.  His tone is silk, his mannerisms gentile.  This is a man who can be at ease in any situation.  If I didn’t know he had been a hockey player, I would have thought for sure he held a high rank in the military.  He just seems to exude quiet control.

He believes the team is in fine shape regarding the salary cap which is at $44 million.  Last he checked, they were at $42 million, but the number changes on a daily basis depending on the health of players and their ability to play.  It’s a strange concept, but one he’s becoming more and more familiar with.  Just another learning curve, one I’m sure Garth will master quickly.

After listening to this man for an hour, I now feel bad that I doubted him that day his ascension from ice to front office was announced.  Panic hit the boards as more than 100 people chatted wildly for hours over the news.  I no longer have any fears or doubts.  Let the snooty Canadian press make snide remarks if they wish.  The Islanders organization will prevail and so will the fan base.  I’m guessing, and it’s just women’s intuition, that Garth Snow is going to end up as more than just a footnote in hockey history.

I live by a credo that I heard a few years ago.  CHANGE just stands for “Choose having a new growth experience.”  It’s the Islanders’ turn now, and CHANGE is good.

PICTURES FROM THE MEETING...