2009 NHL Free Agency / Teams by Cap Space / Unsigned UFA's and RFA's
Habs Eyes On The Prize — ... to filling out their 2009-10 lineup. As one can see, there is much work to be done at both ends of the spectrum. The numbers figures are based on totals given by NHL Numbers.com.   1 - New York Islanders: $23.265 (18) UFA: Andy Hilbert C 28, Dean McAmmond C 36, Mike Sillinger C 38, Thomas Pock D 27, Yann Danis G 28, Joey MacDonald G 29. RFA: Nate Thompson C 24, Jeremy Colliton C 24, Jamie Fraser D 23, ...

Twenty elect for salary arbitration
From The Rink — ... Tomas Plekanec 1.600 New Jersey Devils Travis Zajac 0.984 New York Islanders Nate Thompson 0.500 New York Rangers ...

Islanders 2011-12: Picturing how the depth chart evolves
Lighthouse Hockey — ... back in (or putting off returning to the grind), the Islanders added no one over the weekend. But while NHL news may slow to a crawl in the coming weeks, we won't. What you might have missed while grilling dead animals and avoiding Aunt Mildred: We had a round-up of Lighthouse Project links and draft reactions; a reflection on how the Islanders' fortunes may have been different had they re-signed Ryan Smyth, who Colorado dealt to Los Angeles over the weekend; and Nate Thompson filed for arbitration, while Chris Lee signed ...

Tomas Plekanec, One Of 20 NHL Players Headed for Arbitration
Habs Eyes On The Prize — ... (Capitals), Colby Armstrong (Thrashers), Kyle Wellwood (Canucks), Matt Smaby (Lightning), Matt Hunwick (Bruins), Clarke MacArthur (Sabres), Tuomo Ruutu (Hurricanes), James Wisniewski (Ducks), Aaron Johnson (Hawks), Jiri Hudler (Red Wings), Marc Methot (Blue Jackets), Kyle Brodziak (Wild), Denis Grebeshkov (Oilers), Nate Thompson (Islanders), and Nigel Dawes and Daniel ...

The merits of Garth Snow playing hardball with Islanders free agents
Lighthouse Hockey — ... Could the Isles be saving a few hundred thousand now just to be burned by bitter homegrown RFAs-turned-UFAs who flee later? Possibly. But history tells us when a player reaches unrestricted free agency, he's well-versed in the line, "It's a business." If a guy is working out here, he'll look to sign long term before then. If not, he'll tell us his agent's talking points from Hockey Business 101. You'll notice that omitted in this discussion is the curious case of one Nate Thompson, who settled for a two-way deal after filing for (but ...

Islanders Training Camp Guide: It's Saskatoon, it's Hockeyville, it's everywhere
Lighthouse Hockey — ... (Those marked with numbers, anyway). Notice the veterans numbers? Nate Thompson now thinks he's Darius Kasparaitis ... or Wayne Merrick). Meanwhile, here's Chris Botta's prediction of ...

2009 Islanders Training Camp Roster & Link Colossus
Lighthouse Hockey — ... 53-Casey Cizikas* 3-Calvin de Haan* 30-Dwayne Roloson 11-Nate Thompson 54-Tony Romano* 4-Mark Flood* 33-Scott Munroe* ...

The Islanders headed to Terrace for Hockeyville
Lighthouse Hockey — ... group that will be heading to Terrace, B.C., for the televised Hockeyville preseason game against the Canucks Monday night: *note: She didn't use these lines; I've just arranged them that way for napkin-sketching. Add your own combos as you see fit -- the forwards group is heavy at LW and C. Jeff Tambellini | Josh Bailey | Blake Comeau Jon Sim | Trevor Smith | Sean Bentivoglio Matt Moulson | Nate Thompson | Tim Jackman Greg Mauldin | Greg ...

Canucks-Islanders Preseason Game 1 Open Thread
Nucks Misconduct — ... Kevin Bieksa, Brad Lukowich, Nolan Baumgartner, Michael Funk, Lawrence Nycholat, Evan Oberg, Shane O’Brien Goaltending: Andrew Raycroft and Cory Schneider (No Luongo=no surprise. The Canucks needa long and hard look at who warms the bench during Lou's games played.) Tip to Joe Pelletier for finding the basic Islanders' lineup: Forwards: Jon Sim, Tim Jackman, Jeff Tambellini, Nate Thompson, Blake Comeau, Josh Bailey, Sean ...

Grading the Islanders: Nate Thompson, Gordon's trusted man
Lighthouse Hockey — ... Nate Thompson #45 / Center / New York Islanders Height: 6-0 Weight: 207 Born: Oct 05, 1984 NHL Seasons: 1 ...

Hockey's Back: Islanders scout team falls to Canucks scout team in very small arena
Lighthouse Hockey — ... weekend. Cheers to everyone who made it happen. Look for BCISLEMAN to have pictures and thoughts from his experience at practice yesterday and watching the game in the park with many fellow Terrace residents. As for the game, it was difficult to even imagine what to look for, considering the lineups. I was looking forward to seeing Sean Bentivoglio and Dustin Kohn, but they weren't terribly noticeable -- Bentivoglio in part because he was on the Nate Thompson/Tim Jackman checking line. Nathan Lawson was ...

Grading the Islanders: Doug Weight, aging mentor
Lighthouse Hockey — ... and Nate Thompson in checking roles. Those are nice problems to have. (Yes, probably the only "nice" problem the Islanders have). The official site's depth chart already lists Tavares on Weight's left wing, which is fine. But what if we get to a point where those two should switch? Or a point where Weight is no longer the best option at center? Will he be happy (and effective) in a reduced role? ...

The enforcer role, and Jeremy Reich's Islanders candidacy
Lighthouse Hockey — ... ... which brings us back to Reich and Gordon's candidates: The Islanders don't have an established goon who's earned his own dedicated song. Can young Rechlicz develop into that role? I'm willing to risk finding out, and see him inserted in the lineup for Philadelphia-like opponents. Meanwhile, Reich is another option, while checkers Tim Jackman and even Nate Thompson have shown a willingness to play the de facto enforcer role. Less relevant, but: if Jon Sim indeed plays his way back into Gordon's graces, he's no enforcer, but he ...

New York Islanders 2009-10 Season Preview: Now with goalies!
Lighthouse Hockey — ... a playoff spot, their biggest hole is a bona fide enforcer, or demonstrable team toughness. It was a complaint for many Isles fans last season, it remains one this fall. I'm no pacifist -- although The Thin Red Line is the best humanist war film ever made -- but I've little patience for doling out $1-million salaries for one-trick-pony enforcers who use circular logic to justify their continued existence in this league. That said, while Tim Jackman, Nate Thompson and newcomer Jeremy Reich are always game to throw down and ...

Islanders fall to Kings 4-2 in K.C.; Roloson hurt
Lighthouse Hockey — ... which Doughty converted on a pretty backdoor goal. I honestly don't know if the Islanders penalty kill was that truly awful, or if the Kings power play is that amazing. But the Kings controlled the puck the entire time when they were on the power play. It was constant tape-to-tape...to tape...to tape passing. It was as if they were Harlem Globetrotters just screwing around in the preseason, curious about what looks they could get. The Islanders had penalty killers like Nate Thompson, Tim Jackman and Jon Sim out there, so it was a ...

Islanders Camp: Lingering questions at wing, enforcer and skipper
Lighthouse Hockey — ... with preseason off-ice commitments or on-ice games. But it's fellow 2009 1st rounder Calvin de Haan who's really turning heads. Could the Isles keep him around for the ol' nine-game trial before returning him to juniors? Roster numbers aren't in his favor, but injuries have a way of changing things. Who's the Enforcer? Joel Rechlicz is the one-track pugilist in training. Jeremy Reich is the more rounded player who would match Tim Jackman and Nate Thompson's two-way style and willingness to fight. Or, as ...

Islanders Roster Cuts: Choose your own adventure
Lighthouse Hockey — ... you choose for the Islanders' 23-man roster to open the season? Consider the lines at Monday's practice, which exclude Doug Weight, Trent Hunter and Calvin de Haan: Matt Moulson | John Tavares | Sean Bergenheim Tim Jackman | Richard Park | Kyle Okposo Jeff Tambellini | Josh Bailey | Jon Sim Blake Comeau | Trevor Smith | Greg Moore Jeremy Reich | Nate Thompson | Joel Rechlicz ...

Islanders opening roster excludes new captain Weight
Lighthouse Hockey — ... home opener. That leaves Weight, Frans Nielsen, Jeremy Reich and Rick DiPietro on the opening IR list as well, with Weight set to be the earliest to come back. So an opening night napkin sketch looks something like this, with some interesting decisions for Gordon: Matt Moulson | John Tavares | Kyle Okposo Jeff Tambellini | Josh Bailey | Blake Comeau Sean Bergenheim | Richard Park | Trent Hunter Jon Sim | Nate Thompson | Tim Jackman Bruno Gervais | Mark ...

Schremp to get Islanders debut, Tambellini out?
Lighthouse Hockey — ... Two caveats: 1) The Islanders have one more practice (this morning) before heading to Ottawa, and 2) Scott Gordon and Garth Snow are -- how shall we say it? -- usually "tightlipped" about their roster plans. But those caveats aside, John Jeansonne's report from yesterday's practice sure makes it look like Jeff Tambellini and Nate Thompson are the odd men out Thursday. I lied; there's one more caveat: Jeansonne is not the everyday beat writer, and any poor soul covering the Isles could misread the significance of Islanders ...

Bruins hope to get back on the course against the Islanders
Stanley Cup of Chowder — ... - There will be some familiar faces on the Islanders bench tonight. The Islanders are coached by former P-Bruins head coach Scott Gordon with former Bruin Dean Chynoweth as an assistant coach. Former Bruins prospect Nate Thompson will be on the ice for the Isles along with BU alum Freddy Myer and UMass Lowell product ...

Game 3: Islanders-Bruins [game thread]
Lighthouse Hockey — ... has been called up and will be in the lineup, along with Nate Thompson. And her projected lines (pre-Weight injury): ...

Islanders minute munchers, bench bums
Lighthouse Hockey — ... , and with Rechlicz being a three-minute guy, that opens a lot of non-powerplay minutes. They probably wanted someone who could take faceoffs and be a dedicated defensive forward; thus, re-enter Nate Thompson. ...

Line Shakeup: Shot for Bergenheim, Comeau?
Lighthouse Hockey — ... Matt Moulson-John Tavares-Kyle Okposo Sean Bergenheim-Josh Bailey-Blake Comeau Doug Weight-Rob Schremp-Jon Sim Richard Park-Nate Thompson-Tim Jackman Extras--Jeff Tambellini, Frans Nielsen ...

Islanders get first 'win' of season: Sharp shootout kids save the day
Lighthouse Hockey — ... moments, so while the images looked innocent, Howie Rose was telling me not to believe my eyes, because the 3-1 lead was indeed disappearing. But you probably don't want me to be Debbie Downer Bettman Bummer after we were "treated" to the first win of the season. So, on to the positivity and video highlights: Faceoffs How about this? Frans Nielsen: 8-1! John Tavares: 10-6. Josh Bailey: 12-4 (?!). Nate Thompson: 9-2. Oddly, Richard Park was the weaker guy at 4-5. What ...

Capitals 3, Islanders 2 (OT): Dignity amid loss
Lighthouse Hockey — ... Sean Bergenheim: An agitating 5-on-5 effort befitting his potential, answering what we'd cried for? Sweet. Scott Gordon: I mentioned "Press, Trap or Die Trying" somewhat tongue-in-cheek; but were the Isles trapping to stave off a Capitals comeback? That was the talk at Japers' Rink. (I'm an anti-trapite, but show me a trap and I'll show you an NHLer who claims that's what every team does to protect the lead. It's probably a matter of degrees.) Nate Thompson: A knee on Mike Green. How bad was it? Jeff ...

Capitals Ten Game Review
Japers' Rink — ... early in the match, and that was about it for the rough stuff.  However, Nate Thompson's knee-on-knee collision with Mike Green on Long Island had Caps Nation greatly concerned.  Though Green ...

Time to Walk the Walk on Team Toughness
Japers' Rink — ... "We like what we have now, and if we need that element, we'll go get it." - Capitals General Manager George McPhee on not having an enforcer At 13:17 of the second period in the tenth game of the season, it became apparent that the Caps may indeed need "that element." As Mike Green lay on the ice after taking a knee-on-knee hit from the Islanders' Nate Thompson, the Norris finalist's teammates did, well, pretty much nothing. All of the talk of "team toughness" in the off-season seemed ...

Sabres 3, Islanders 0: Isles win streak ends with a whimper
Lighthouse Hockey — ... and Nate Thompson in the game's dying seconds? Well, I suppose somewhere in his head, he proved something. Must be a fun world. ...

Islanders 6, Thrashers 3: Off-the-schneid goals overfloweth
Lighthouse Hockey — ... Meanwhile, with the scoring spread out evenly, you know who had the prettiest night on the scoresheet? Nate Thompson, with two assists and a +2 (Tavares, with his two assists, was only +1). Ha. ...

What's 6-6-6? The Islanders, after long shootout loss to Capitals
Lighthouse Hockey — ... more shots. But in each game against them this season, the Islanders have shown that's not how any given game is decided. And that's all you can ask. Yays and Nays ... I didn't need to see the Caps three times by Nov. 11, but these two sides play entertaining games. 4-4, shots of 41-31, and only three powerplays aside. Mistakes aside, that's fun hockey. ... Tough to expect anything more from Rob Schremp -- he did get an assist -- in 9:38 of ice time with Nate Thompson and Tim Jackman. But I hoped he'd bury his shootout ...

Cardiac Islanders blow 3-0 lead; flu-slapping Okposo wins it in OT
Lighthouse Hockey — ... Whither Faceoffs? Nate Thompson (1-6) and Tavares (2-9) each had a rough night at the dot, for a team that won only 42%. Why do I feel like ever since I said "this faceoff trend is legit, not a fluke," they've been putting up nights like that? ...

Islanders 4, Bruins 1: Honk if you love Mighty Matt Moulson
Lighthouse Hockey — ... bailed them out most of all -- was the first-period 1:35-long Bruins 5-on-3. You need luck, smarts, and big saves to kill off 95 seconds of two-man advantage, and the Islanders got all three. Their positioning was perfect, and Nate Thompson performed the Sybil crazy courageous job of standing in front of ...

Minnesota Wild vs. New York Islanders: Game 22
Hockey Wilderness — ... Forwards John Tavares - Doug Weight - Kyle Okposo Blake Comeau - Josh Bailey - Trent Hunter Jeff Tambellini - Frans Nielsen - Richard Park Sean Bergenheim - Nate Thompson - Tim Jackman ...