With all the talk about rebuilding and emerging players such as Kyle Okposo and John Tavares, it can be easy to forget that not everyone on the Islanders is quite that young.
“We’re going in the right direction, but you want to be in the playoffs,” the 32-year-old Mark Streit said. “It’s different when you’re 32 than when you’re 22.”
Streit, one of the most durable players in the league, is showing no signs of slowing down. He has racked up huge minutes since joining the Islanders and did the same thing for Switzerland in the Vancouver Olympics.
But Streit said he also knows he doesn’t have forever to see things turned around on Long Island.
“Those young guys we have are gonna be great,” said Streit, whose Islanders play host to the Flyers tonight (7:00, MSG-Plus). “They’re already good today and 3, 4, 5 years from now they’ll be in their prime. But I don’t know how many years I have left playing. I hope it’s a lot, but you can’t be sure. You work the whole year to be in the postseason.”
And that’s obviously not going to happen for the Islanders again this season.
“Rebuilding doesn’t go from today until tomorrow,” Streit said. “It takes a long time. It’s a slow process.”
One that seems slower when you’re not in your first or second season in the league. Streit spent the early part of his career playing in Switzerland before coming to the NHL in 2005 with Montreal. He made the playoffs twice with the Canadiens and will soon be 0-for-2 with the Isles.
“You look at our season ending and you think about wanting to play in April and May,” Streit said. “And whether you’re 22, 32 or 39 like Doug [Weight], it doesn’t matter. It’s frustrating. We all want playoffs. You don’t want to say, ‘We’re a young team that’s gonna be good in three years.’ We want it now. That’s what’s disappointing.”