Posted on

Beer Selection at Nassau Coliseum

Only a couple of games left this year, and really ever, for the New York Islanders but the beer selection at Nassau Coliseum ain’t half bad.

This picture is blurry, sloppy work on my part, but it’s a chalkboard inside a little bar area that’s right near the entrance by the box office. This is the best place to go if you want something special. Top drafts include Kelso Nut Brown, Blue Point Hoptical Illusion and Toasted Lager, Goose Island IPA, and Fire Island Lighthouse Ale. Except for the Goose Island, those are all local beers to Long Island (Brooklyn and Kelso are physically on Long Island, yes).  I remember this list being different last year, and if you browse Google Images you can find chalkboard pictures featuring different beers.

 

Also available around the coliseum were Blue Point Blueberry Ale, Goose Island 312 Wheat, and both Sam Adams and Brooklyn lagers, including the seasonals. Of course you can also get the standard macro stuff, as well as the Shock Tops and Blue Moons of the world.

 

I had the Kelso Nut Brown ale, which is the same brown ale they serve at 5 Napkins locations around the city, and while it wasn’t my favorite, it was still tasty. To top it off the Islanders had a fantastically dominating game against the Philadelphia Flyers and continue their playoff push.

 

Hopefully when the Islanders move to the Barclay’s Center they continue to provide quality craft and local beer. I haven’t been to the place, so I can’t attest to what they’re serving now to Nets fans.

Posted on

The Islanders Battle For Contention

John Tavares celebrates a goalFootball is over and it’s still nearly two weeks until pitchers and catchers report and even longer before baseball games start. In the meantime I’m going to enjoy some New York Islanders hockey. Last night they held off the Flyers for a 1-0 shootout win. Evgeni Nabokov played an amazing game in goal, blocking all 45 shots and he always seemed to be in exactly the right place.

 

The Islanders are not one of the top teams in the league, but luckily the NHL takes the top 16 teams into the playoffs. The Islanders are not currently one of those 16, but they’re starting to make a push at it. They currently sit in 11th, 9 points behind the 8th place Ottawa Senators. However they’ve played four less games than them, and still play them head to head. In essence this means the Islanders actually control their own destiny, although there are still too many games left to break it down like that.

 

Can they do it? They certainly can, although it still remains a long shot. They would need to eliminate the extended periods of time in which they’re just not playing very well. They got away with one last night, but Nabokov will not always be perfect. On the other hand, John Tavares had very little to do with this victory and stealing a game when he’s not at his best is a good way to get winning streaks going.

 

The Islanders may not be talented enough to maintain the level of play they need for long enough to make the playoffs, but they’re still quite a fun bunch to watch. They’re playing some thrilling games and John Tavares is one of the best players in the league. Still, long shots occasionally do come through, and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see the Islanders play good enough hockey to leapfrog some other teams that also aren’t great at hockey. Either way they’ll provide some good entertainment to bridge the gap to baseball.

Posted on

A Healthier Orange and Blue 2010

Last night a player, wearing Orange and Blue, returned to play after an injury-plagued 2009.  I’m going to take this as a sign of good things to come for those other injured orange and blue wearing professional athletes, even if it is a different sport.  Last night Rick DiPietro made his first start in goal for the Islanders in over a year.  He’s one of their franchise players, and having him back with the team means a ton to their long term success.

From MetsStuff

In 2010 the Mets will be getting Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, Johan Santana, Oliver Perez, and John Maine back from injuries in 2009.  Even David Wright missed time in 2009.  Maine and Beltran actually returned before 2009 was over, and the others are all on schedule to be healthy by Spring Training, with Oliver Perez already working out.

Of course, this doesn’t guarantee anything.  Filling out the lineup card doesn’t count as a win, but the Mets had been competitive the three years prior to 2009 and with these guys back it’s hard to expect they won’t be again.

We could spend time breaking down lineups, breaking down the Phillies lineups, analyzing trades and offseason acquisitions, evaluating players and prospects and predicting what 2010 will bring. We can and will do that, but the rosters aren’t set yet, and Spring Training is not quite here.  There will be time enough for everyone to declare who the favorite is, and why.  There will be time to document what the Mets need to do, and what the other teams need to do to get to the playoffs.  Right now it’s about formulating the roster that will take the field on April 5th.  Omar’s working on a catcher and a pitcher, and time is working to get those players we already have healthy and back on the field.

I’m going to take Rick DiPietro’s return as a sign that the 2009 orange and blue injury bug is over, and that 2010 will bring much success.

Posted on

Phillies Suck..Have a Keychain

As I write this the Islanders are losing to the Flyers, the Giants are trailing the Eagles in the division, the Phillies are two-time National League champs and the Mets have yet to make a major upgrade this offseason.  I’m not interested in the NBA so I get no great pleasure from the 76ers being almost as bad as the Nets.

newyork-mets-pewter-s

Still, I’m not ashamed to wear my Mets pride dangling from my keys in the form of a keychain slash bottle opener from www.wholesalekeychain.com.  They’re solid keychains that I haven’t managed to mangle, lose, or break yet.  Given the sad state of the New York Mets, the bottle opener is getting more use than is probably good for me.

new-york-mets-bottle-opener-t

I can’t get excited about the baseball Winter Meetings.  Sure there is a chance something will get done, but it’s 95% rumor and speculation.  It’s all fluff with no content, and even though some things do get done, things could get done anyway.  A lot of the bigger pieces, like Holliday, probably won’t be happening soon, and no matter how many backup catchers the Mets sign, I’m not going to be satisfied until it’s spring and I know where they stand and how the team looks.  I’m also not going to call out Omar and criticize every little move or non-move he makes.  I’ll reserve judgment until April 5th, and see who takes the field on Opening Day.  Much like Rome, the 2010 World Champion Mets weren’t built in a day.

Posted on

2009 World Series: Bad News

As everyone has made light of, this World Series sucks for a Mets fan.

Mets fans are pretty split on which side they’re rooting for, if you can even call it rooting.  Funny thing is, you see plenty of Yankees fans saying that we should be rooting for them, but I don’t hear any Phillies fans making that same argument.

From Mets

Personally, I’m rooting for the Yankees to lose.  I don’t get any joy or any more grief no matter what the Phillies do, but the Yankees winning would really irk me.  It’d blow my theory of them being cursed for knocking down the house that Ruth built, it’d give even more fuel to the “Jeter’s the best player ever” arguments you hear, as well as the constant reminder about how much they’ve won.  Their eight rings to the Mets two would start to get a little insurmountable, whereas three for the Phillies wouldn’t be as rough.

From Mets

Some say that the cracks in Yankee Stadium will open up and swallow both teams into Hell.

Some compare it to 1999 although despite how much it sucked losing the Braves, the Braves fans were never in the equation as hated rivals.  Others suggest we ask who the Yankees were rooting for in 1986 and root accordingly.

Personally, I’m just not watching.  I get no joy out of watching either team, and if you factor in all the game-delay tactics, the 50 million pitching changes, and the pop-fly home runs, I’m just not sure it’s going to be fun to watch anyway.

I’ll be watching the Islanders at the Rangers Wednesday night.

Posted on

Why I’m Watching Baseball

What I’m Rooting For Now

Sure, the Mets are out of it. Everyone has been injured. The manager is still a disaster, and there is still no obvious plan in place going forward. So what should we watch when we’re drawn in to watching baseball? What should we be rooting for?

September call-ups are always a popular choice, even if the Mets aren’t going to have that many. Biggest guy to watch is Josh Thole, the prospect catcher. Catcher is a big hole next year which makes catching prospects even more important. If Thole is for real, then the Mets can look for a short term stop-gap type solution behind the plate for one year. Can watch Murphy and Evans and Pagan and Parnell as they jockey for position and hope to be in the plans for next year.

From Mets

Mainly though, I’m rooting against the Phillies and the Yankees. It still looks unlikely that either team will miss the playoffs, but stranger things have happened. Both bullpens are suspect, as Lidge goes for the blown save record, batters figure out Phil Hughes, Mariano gets older and frailer, and other guys don’t step up the possibility for a collapse looms. I think both teams are beatable, especially in the playoffs if it comes to that. I don’t expect to see either in the World Series.

Still, the state of baseball frustrates me. The Phillies and Yankees don’t lose as often as I would like, and too often grab victory despite teetering on the edge of failure. I would get no enjoyment watching either of them play baseball in October, and hope I don’t have to. The Islanders first game is October third. The Giants and Jets both start playing this Sunday. I have no idea when the NBA starts, but I think it’s a couple of weeks yet.

Posted on

Postseason baseball

Last year I got right into the postseason, and the Phillies being pummeled didn’t hurt. It was like I was so expectant of the season not being over. This year I was just so disappointed and disillusioned that I haven’t been into it. Sox looked good last night, but I’m still pulling for the Rays I think. (I like to compare them to the ’69 Mets, but last night certainly reminded me of the ’08 Mets. Both teams blew it after Kazmir left! haha..that was..bad)

Islanders don’t look great, but I’m thinking there might be some fun there. I caught opening night at the Prudential Center against the Devils, they lost, but I had fun.

I’m going to be in Buffalo this weekend, I wonder if I should pick up a Bisons shirt or something.