Can you blame him? Disappointment and other emotions aside and despite the fact it feels like one giant slap in the face to Islanders fans and Long Island in general right now, can you honestly blame John Tavares for wanting to go home and finally have a shot at winning the Stanley Cup?
His break from the team to which he had pledged allegiance was nine years in the making. He staunchly endured a ton of turmoil amid persistent promises that the Islanders will be a really good team someday, only someday never arrived. It is hard to fault him for being tired of the wait, even if it was Lou Lamoriello making the promises lately.
OK, Tavares does deserve a rap on the knuckles for essentially leading the Islanders on, saying publicly on Feb. 2, "Well, I don't want to be traded." And no kudos for dragging this out so long and leaving the Islanders twisting in the wind. Plus, we would have preferred to see his eyes and hear his voice as he said goodbye, rather than reading an antiseptic Twitter farewell.
Fans have every right to boo the new Maple Leafs center and blame him. But there is plenty of blame to go around. Starting right at the very top.
Blame Gary Bettman. The commissioner and newly minted Hall of Famer helped damage the Islanders brand by being such a facilitator and cheerleader for the move to Brooklyn. At the news conference in 2012, Bettman called Barclays Center "a magnificent arena" and assured fans, "You'll be able to get to it easily." Funny, but I never saw him shivering on the platform at Jamaica, waiting for the connection to Ronkonkoma. Not so funny: In an interview on WFAN this past April, he said Barclays was not a good fit, adding, "Getting there, especially during the week, isn't the easiest thing to do." No kidding.
Blame Charles Wang. The previous owner arranged the Brooklyn boondoggle with no regard to the fact it was going to be an enormous pain in the neck for anyone who plays for or roots for the Islanders. Notice free agents have not flocked there. Worse yet, if reports are true that Wang signed Garth Snow to an exorbitant and lengthy contract, he handcuffed his successors (and business partners, considering he retained a share of the franchise).
Blame Scott Malkin. The London-based principal owner (he, not Jon Ledecky, is cited by Bettman and Lamoriello as the decision maker) waited far too long to replace Snow. It took a billboard-backed public outcry to get him to see the light. Hiring Lamoriello and Cup-winning coach Barry Trotz in May and June, respectively, was tantamount to pulling the goalie when you're down by two in the final minute. Too late.
Blame Snow. Look, we all learned from the Sandy Alderson situation to separate the person from the performance. Garth really is a nice guy. And we do not know what constraints he faced, in terms of budget and arena logistics. Having said that, though, the general manager had nine years to build a team around Tavares and he never did it. He stockpiled draft picks for a rainy day that never came. He inflicted the star with one neophyte coach after another. Ultimately, Snow wasted the best years of a potential Hall of Famer's career.
Unlike the aforementioned, Tavares was the one who had to face the music. Night in and night out, he stood at his locker-room stall and answered questions about the poor team that ownership and management assembled. He took the blame incrementally, even when he was not responsible for it.
It would be unfair to blame Lamoriello, given his short time here. But his record with the Islanders is now 0-1-0 and that was one tough "L." Weeks after he was let go by the Maple Leafs, Lamoriello was beaten in the Tavares sweepstakes by the people who dispatched and replaced him.
Here's hoping that energizes the general manager, makes him live up to lavish praise we have all been heaping on him. Lamoriello has now replaced Tavares as the face of the franchise. It will serve the Islanders well if he handles the role with the same grace, and with many more wins.
