New Islander Review: Mark Streit

Yes, the NIRs are back in action! Since most readers probably weren't reading when this blog opened up almost a year ago to the day, I recommend going to the Archive, and scrolling down to get a taste of last year's New Islander Reviews. Good thing is, I only have to do two of these this year, opposed to last year's nine.

Anyway, let's get this underway.

MARK STREIT

Mark Streit was signed by the New York Islanders on July 1st, 2008. The signing came as a shock to a bunch of people across the NHL, being that he was ranked a top 10 free agent on some sites.

Originally drafted to the NHL by Montréal with their 262nd overall pick in 2004, Mark Streit was already playing professional hockey. Since 1994, Streit has been jumping around between teams in Europe. When the NHL was revived in 2005, Mark would find himself a spot on the Canadiens.

In that season, he played 48 games, putting up a disappointing 2 goals and 9 assists. However, in the 06-07 season, he stayed healthy, playing in 76 games and scoring 10 goals and 26 assists.

That must have been signaling a breakout year. This past season, Streit made an unexpected impact, as he would go on to score 13 goals and 49 assists in 81 games for the Canadiens, leading them to the conference title. In the playoffs, he would play 11 games with 1 goal and 4 assists, as the Habs would be knocked out in the second round.

Now, don't be expecting much from anyone this year. Especially Streit. Him being an offensive defenseman will make the scoreboard work a bit, though. You may see him score around 35 points, with 10 goals and 25 or so assists. Fairly decent. Snow signed him to play defense, so he will be a top 4 defenseman for the Isles, some games top 2.

Mark Streit's Player Page