Ranger "hangover" or not, this team still has plenty to be thankful for today.  On this day of reflection and counting blessings (along with checking the limit on your credit card so you can go shopping tomorrow) let's not let last night's dissapointment cloud the truth.

Our "Islander" family is far better off this year than so many before it.  Bad games will happen, great games will happen, it's all part of life.  How they handle the bad is this year's difference.   After communicating with Mike S. (Islesblogger.com) last night about what happened in the post game, he painted a poignant picture for me of feelings and actions he observed in that locker room.  These guys do really play for each other, so they will prevail.

So after we count our personal blessings around our dinner table today with family, let us also be thankful for those things that make our Islander family so special.

1)  Ted Nolan.  No one wanted him.  We got him, and we should thank the cosmos every day for that.

2)  Rick DiPietro's new found maturity.  Think about it.

3)  Bill Guerin.  Dear GOD!  They finally have a CAPTAIN!!

4)  Richard Park.  Who'da thought this guy would be so pivotal when they picked him up to take Sean's place last season?   Someone check Garth's office.  We may find some sort of NHL Crystal Ball in there.

5)  Brendon Witt.  On the ice and off, an asset pure and simple.

6)  Ruslan Federtanko.  I didn't expect the heart he playes with, but I knew those rosey cheeks of his would win over my mother-in-law's!  (Kozlov WHO?)

7)  The new Islander Organization food chain.  I'm still waiting for my copy of the ORG chart, but whatever the hell they did there seems to be working above and beyond everyone's expectations.

  Blogs, blogs and more blogs.  From Greg Logan's that keeps us in the loop when no one else will, to Chris Botta's that gives us unprecidented insight from the inside, to the friends I've made in the Blog Box.  We've never had a better, more emcompassing network of information and entertainment surrounding this team.  We used to have to find the smallest tidbits in major, mainstream articles.  Now, we have an endless supply of fact, humor, opinion and just 'good stuff'!

9)  ITV.  What the hell would I do without ITV??? I don't know.  I don't want to know.  I'm just THANKFUL for it! (And Josh too!!)

10)  NYIslanderCountry.  Ahhhhhh.... my little network of friends that has come so far in such a short time.  Maybe not the "official" message board, but certainly MY "official" message board.  I am never lonely because I am never alone.  Day or night, I am connected to my network of like minded individuals.  My support group.  My life-line.  My sanity.

Let us not dwell on the losses, for they will happen.  Let us look to the great things we have.  The respect we have gained, the satisfaction they give us, the friends we have in this "Islander Family."

Happy Thanksgiving people.

kisses