March 17th, Part II

OKPOSO SET FOR NHL DEBUT

New York Islanders Kyle Okposo will make his NHL debut Tuesday night when New York hosts the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Okposo, selected seventh overall by New York in the 2006 NHL draft, will join the Islanders on Monday for practice before playing his first league game.

Okposo, 19, signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Islanders in December after he left the University of Minnesota. The Islanders then assigned him to their American Hockey League affiliate, where he has eight goals and 24 points in 29 games for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

"It's the right time to give Kyle the chance to show what he can do at the NHL level," said Islanders general manager Garth Snow.

Considered one of the NHL's top prospects, Okposo is fresh off a solid run for the United States at the world junior hockey championship. The winger from Minnesota tallied a goal and added five assists in seven games for an American team that finished fourth at the tournament in the Czech Republic.

In just over a year with the Gophers, Okposo scored 26 goals with 25 assists in 58 games. As a freshman, he had 19 goals and 21 assists in 40 games.


We all remember the comments Garth Snow made about the poor coaching and lack of NHL development Okposo received at the University of Minnesota under it's coaching staff, even though Snow never set foot in Mariucci Arena to take in a practice or contact Don Lucia about his prospect. Unlike a certain other unnamed coach of the Phoenix Coyotes who would from time to time drop in at the University to take in a Lucia practice and check up on his unnamed draft pick.

If the Islanders were in the playoff race and didn't have 10 games left in the season would Okposo have been called up?

For a player who in Snow's words "received no NHL development in college" it seems like just 2 1/2 months of minor league hockey might not be enough to prepare him for the professional game, unless of course he's willing to admit that the Lucia might know what his doing to produce players that can move on to the next level. Or that the Islanders AHL team does a heck of a job in turning a 18-year-old high school/juniior player into an NHL ready one in a few months.


HALL OF FAMER REARDON PASSES AWAY AT 86

Ken Reardon, a rugged defenceman with the Montreal Canadiens in the 1940s, has died following a lengthy illness, the NHL team announced Saturday night. He was 86.

The Hall of Famer was a two-time NHL first team all-star during his seven-year career, which included a pair of Stanley Cup championships.

Reardon, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966, also earned three second-team all-star selections.

Reardon's career was temporarily halted after he joined the Canadian Army in 1942.

He retired as as a player in 1950 but remained with the Canadiens as a scout, manager and vice-president during Montreal's run of Stanley Cup titles from 1956-60.

Reardon finished his career with 26 goals and 96 assists in 341 NHL games.


PRONGER SUSPENDED FOR EIGHT GAMES

Anaheim Ducks defenseman Chris Pronger has been suspended for eight games, without pay, for acting carelessly and recklessly in an incident against the Vancouver Canucks on March 12.

The incident occurred after Pronger became entangled with Canucks forward Ryan Kesler, who had fallen to the ice.

"In attempting to free himself, Pronger carelessly and recklessly brought his foot down," said Colin Campbell, NHL Senior Executive Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations.

There was on injury to Kesler, and no penalty was assesed.

Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Pronger is considered a repeat offender. He will forfeit $609,756.08 in salary. The money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

Pronger will be eligible to return Sunday, April 6, against the Phoenix Coyotes.