The New York Islanders wasted little time showing how highly they think of newly signed free agent wing Bill Guerin. On Monday, during a press conference to introduce the four newest Islanders to the media, the club announced that Guerin had been named as the team’s new captain, replacing the departed Alexei Yashin. Guerin becomes the 11th captain in Islanders’ history.

“Bill is the epitome of what being a captain stands for, so this was an easy choice,” Islanders GM Garth Snow announced. “Ted [Nolan] and I discussed it at length over the weekend and felt it was a fairly easy decision.”

Guerin was surprised by the announcement and admitted this was not something that was discussed during contract negotiations between his agent and the Islanders’ organization. Still, Guerin was very proud to accept his new Islanders’ sweater complete with the captain’s “C.”

“This is an absolute honor and a responsibility I will not take lightly,” said Guerin. “Coming to a team with such a rich tradition and history is special in itself, but wearing the ‘C’ is something much greater. I’ll do everything I can to make the Islanders organization and our fans proud.”

Fellow free agent signee Mike Comrie praised the decision to make Guerin captain.

“Billy’s a guy you want on your team,” Comrie explained. “He plays hard every night and just playing against him, you know what he can bring to an organization. It’s a treat to be on a team with him.”

The 36-year-old native of Worcester, Massachusetts, said he had only served as captain in the NHL once before “for about four games” while he was with the Oilers and both Kelly Buchberger and Doug Weight were injured.

He described his new appointment as “a huge honor and privilege…Hopefully, I can live up to it. This organization has a tradition of winning. That last little while has not been what they wanted it to be here but they have a committed owner, a GM who works around the clock, they have the right coach in place that brings the right attitude.”

Meanwhile, Mike Comrie was relishing the opportunity to serve as the first-line center of an NHL club. “I look forward to the challenge,” Comrie said.

Comrie also admitted he spoke to the recently departed Ryan Smyth before deciding to sign with the Islanders. “I spoke with Ryan. [The Islanders] were one of the final teams he was deciding on. Everyone makes their own decisions. He chose a different team but he had a lot of great things to say about the organization.”

Comrie also spoke of the disappointment of losing in the Stanley Cup Finals last season with Ottawa. “It’s hard when you get that far and don’t win. Getting to the Stanley Cup Finals and seeing what it takes—it’s disheartening to make it that far and not to win. You want to get back and learn from the experience.”

Comrie also felt he added a new maturity to the Islanders at this point in his career. “I’ve learned so much over my career, he explained, having already played for five NHL teams at the age of 26. “I’m a different player and a different person than I was when I came into the league at age 20.”

Ruslan Fedotenko, who won the Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay in 2004, was also looking forward to an expanding role with his new team. “I can score 25-30 goals,” Fedotenko said. “I know I can bring a lot to the team and reach my potential. In Tampa Bay, I didn’t have that chance because I played more of a supportive role.”

All four players mentioned that Coach Ted Nolan was a factor in their decision to sign with New York. “I’ve heard he’s a great coach and I’m looking forward to meeting him,” Fedotenko explained.

Jon Sim was also eager to play for Nolan and sees himself fitting into the style his new coach likes. “He’s a good coach, a players’ coach,” Sim said. “He likes people who work hard.”

Sim sees himself as a grinding type forward and thinks his new team will play his style of hockey. “We have a lot of skill and a little grit, some bug guys that take the body. We should be a hard team to play against. We can grind people down. I think it’s a good mix of guys.”

The Islanders may not be done signing free agents. GM Garth Snow added, “We have an owner who is dedicated to winning…If it makes sense, we’re going to do it.”

The unpredictable offseason of the New York Islanders is far from over.

ISLES NOTES

Both Comrie and Guerin announced they would buy 25 tickets each to send kids with cancer to every Islanders game. They would also provide transportation and other “goodies” for the kids in attendance.

The Islanders also announced the signing of goalie Joey MacDonald to a two-year contract. MacDonald is expected to be the starting goalie at Bridgeport, replacing Wade Dubielewicz. The 27-year-old MacDonald played for the Red Wings and Bruins organizations last year. In seven NHL games with Boston, he finished with a 2-2-1 record, a 2.68 GAA and a .918 save percentage.

Islanders’ GM Garth Snow also indicated that the team expects to re-sign forward Chris Simon for next season.