Three Former Islanders have received invites from NHL clubs to tryout for a contract. While never a guarantee of a contract offer, most invitees do eventually garner enough respect to receive at least some sort of deal. For players with NHL experience an invite probably means at least a 2-way contract with the chance of limited playing time in the NHL a distinct possibility. Two of them, defenseman Bryan Berard and center Jim Dowd, will flex their muscle as they show off for the Philadelphia Flyers. Dowd will be trying out for the same job he had last year with the Fly Boys: fourth line checking center. Berard, who was in his second stint with the Isles last season, will attempt to crack the lineup of a 7th NHL team.
Now FIW has learned that veteran d-man Jamie Rivers has received an invite from the Atlanta Thrashers. The move makes sense for both sides as Atlanta has possibily the thinnest blueline in the entire league and Rivers is looking to resume his career in North America after playing 18 games for Moscow Spartak in the now defunct Russian Superleague. In those games, Rivers had 3 assists and 42 penalty minutes. He also played in 4 playoff games compiling 8 penalty minutes.
A 454 game veteran, Rivers last played during the 2006-07 campaign with the St. Louis Blues. In 31 games he notched 1 goal and 3 assists for 4 points with 36 penalty minutes. Originally drafted in the 3rd Round, 63rd overall by St. Louis in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft, Rivers has played for the Blues, Islanders, Senators, Panthers, Red Wings and Coyotes. On his career he has 17 goals and 49 assists (66 points) to go with his 385 penalty minutes. In addition, Rivers has a career +4 rating with 6 powerplay tallies and 2 game winners.
We wish Jamie the best in his tryout with Atlanta.
Center Jason Krog was waived by the Vancouver Canucks earlier in the week. We at FIW were pretty convinced he would make the big team. After clearing waivers, Krog was reassigned to Vancouver's AHL affiliate Manitoba. Since he was inked to a 1 way deal, Krog will receive the full $700K compensation he signed on for during the offseason but will not count against the salary cap. Krog was the AHL leading scorer during the 2007-08 season and will look to defend his title as a member of the Moose.
Defenseman Bryan Berard and center Jim Dowd who were both invites to the Philadelphia Flyers training camp were cut from the roster, as rumor has it. Philadelphia has rejected the services of these veterans in favor of a youth movement that has so far proven successful for this rapidly reforming franchise.
