From Eklund:

As for some of the other Penguins and Red Wings that I am updating: Fedontenko looks like a sure bet to return, but I am not sold that Billy Guerin may not find his way back to the NY Metro area. Especially if the Isles were to draft Tavares.

In my opinion, the main reason the Penguins won the Stanley Cup this year was the impact that Billy Guerin had on the team. It is that simple. He relaxed Sidney and in many ways took over a defacto captain role on the team. His influence on this team was so palpable and what better way to help a guy like John Tavares along then to have Billy Guerin by his side?

more to come.

Wish, speculation, fantasy? Where does this guy come up with this?

what better way?...hmmmm how about Doug Weight?

Guerin's re-signing w/ the Pens period.

guerin has already said he wants to be back with the pens..they don't except losing like some other teams he has been on..

Why the hell would he want to come back?

From what I heard seconds after the Pens won the Cup
Guerin broke down crying and Crosby told him, "victory is sweet
so let those tears fall,"

Guerin just looked at Crosby in the eye and said, "I don't give a ****
about winning the Cup, I just want to go back to the Islanders."

"The Best Worst Team In Hockey"

-----------
William Jaffe :torrey:

Because Guerin and Scott Gordon both agree 100% about the youth movement within the Islanders' organization. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

:rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rofl: :monkeylaugh: :rotflmao:

:isles:

I'm sorry but I would not take him back for a used puck bag.


His comments at the parade today were classless. Nevermind if they were true or not, just classless coming from Bill himself.

I hope he gets booed when he comes back.

What'd he say?

Heard it on NHL Home Ice this afternoon:

"On the trade deadline I got a call from our GM, Garth Snow, with the Islanders. He said, 'I've traded you to Pittsburgh'.... (pause for a snort and chuckle)

...talk about an upgrade."


:angrier:

Screw you ya toothless old fart

Listen, the guy had a tough time fitting in this year... the team is speeding up on ice and he's slowing down overall.

He wanted his chance to get the Cup, and (at least I see it this way: ) Garth sent him to Pitt as a way to say thanks for his leadership.

When he said "talk about an upgrade" he was referring to his goal of getting the Cup. Not to his comfort level or happiness where he was playing.

He won't be back. Not that it's hard feelings or anything, but he's going to give it another go on a team more suited to him and more likely to return to the finals. It's that simple.

Look at what he did for players like KO and Bailey. Read those accounts on Botta's blog.
He was great to us. Don't be confused about his comments.

Edit:
Here, read.

http://www.islanderspointblank.com/2009/03...of-bill-guerin/
Read the whole thing.

http://www.newsday.com/sports/ny-spisles09...0,4021678.story

:rotflmao: :rotflmao: :rotflmao:

Guerin should kiss Snow's ass for giving him the chance to play with Crosby, who could make Led Zep look good on roller skates.

:rotflmao:

I don't buy that.

Given his comment today, it feels like he was shoveling some serious BS when he talked with Botta.

If he knew that he meant so much to the players still here, if he valued his time on the Island, if he in any way felt indebted to this franchise, he could have said a million different things when standing at that podium.

He chose to say what he did. It'd be OK if it was a columnist, an analyst or a blogger making an observation.

This guy was our Captain and I hope Dougie puts a five iron upside his head when they tee off this summer.

If you read the linked account (this), you'd see an account on what he was like candidly... without the media spin, without Botta's (potential) BS. It's a first-person account of him as the Islanders captain, not the player and the not the tradebait and not the free agent.

I really believe what Justin Bourne wrote to be the most honest account of him. We're jumping all over a comment for the wrong reasons.

I'm sure Justin had a great time and I am very curious as to his opinion of Guerin after the parade. I have tried to give Guerin the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it was a "tongue-in-cheek" comment, like the one Justin references, but I just don't believe it.

It was the way he said that stands out to me. He went for a cheap pop from the audience and got it at his former team's expense.

Would we have done the same if we had traded him to San Jose?

I knew when you guys would eventually read Guerin's recent comments that the place would be up in arms against Guerin.

I can see how Guerin's "talk about an upgrade" would rub Isles fans the wrong way, but I couldn't help but laugh at that gem.

Exactly, I'm sorry, but some of you guys have got to be the biggest babies that take everything to heart, And even if he did dissed the Isles why would that surprise any of us.

from dead last...to raising the cup... I'd say "talk about an upgrade" is a perfectly appropriate comment.

I'm not disagreeing with that.

Don't you think, in light of how important he was to the development of the youth on the Island, that his comment is a slap in the face to the players who have remained and are trying to build something? Players that looked up to him?

To go for a cheap laugh at their expense is not backhanded?

Am I overreacting? I'm sorry but to me this is bulletin board material for everyone associated with this organization.

It's all in the interpretation.

Take a look at this photo.



Some people will think it's funny, others will find it extremely stupid.

I am not in the least feeling slighted by Guerin's quote. We were the worst team in the NHL.
When it hurts that bad to lose as we have, some of our fellow fans look for every opportunity
to vent their frustrations.

Take it out on Wang, Dey, Snow and Gordon until the culture changes.

They can change the culture come draft night and the first day of July Steve. Let's hope. Cross your fingers and toes and pray. Peace.

Shooter...that's a slam dunk. The 1st pick.
It's a win win whether we draft tavares or hedman.

The real "building" and culture change starts with what else they do in terms of signings, the other draft picks and player development.

In other words...no more Guerin scenarios.
You know, signing a guy and spending more than any other team was willing to spend on him (4.5m)...surprising him by naming him captain...only to jerk him around on a deal that was pending on a team moving a player in another trade only to fall through and then negotiate another deal with Pitt for a best case scenario draft pick.

yeah, I'm confident alright in this lot.


:omg:

yea I don't think it's a big deal at all. He is just commenting on how extremely fortunate/lucky he is to have been moved to the team that eventually won the cup....from the team that finished dead last. The guy is a class act and seasoned respected veteren...trust me he didn't mean to slight the Isles or his former teamates.
Take ur passion for the Isles out of the equation and look at it for what it is... a comment about what it must be like to go from rebuilding dead last team to Stanley Cup Champion team.

Bills house is on the market and he pulled his kid of my sons gulls team.. at ice works.. so he is not comming back.. im guess the storys with him and the coach are true the..

so does this mean he won't be bringing the cup for a visit to the Island? aw shucks.

This is some of the most mistaken horse drivel Eklund has ever written. Laughably ill-informed. Obviously he paid no attention to anything that happened on Long Island over the past two years if he's going to insinuate that Guerin would return here to play.

I know we introduced "Trade Rumors and Bloggers" as a forum for discussing wild rumors, but Eklund deserves a new forum of his own: "Lame, Unsubstantiated Bulls***."

I would be happy to retract all of the above if this rumor comes true. Yeah, that will happen. :rofl:

Unfortunately, writers like Eklund seem to thrive on inventing stories like this and bask in the negative feedback. They live by Oscar Wilde's famous line: "The only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about."