Gary Bettman

There was likely a reason that Islanders RFA's Rhett Rakhshani, Mark Katic and Justin DiBenedetto opted for Europe before being tendered their qualifying offers by GM Garth Snow. A potential lockout is looming that could delay or even cancel the 2012-2013 season and these young prospects still need to play in order to continue their development.

There is only 24 days left for the NHLPA and the owners to reach an agreement on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement or the season will be locked out, likely forcing a later start date than October 11th.

Hockey fans can look back to the 2004-2005 season that was entirely scrapped from a lockout due to disagreements on a new CBA between the NHLPA and the owners.

These are the type of conversations that are considered circular. After the endless banter, speculation, denial and rejection it is hard to decipher fact from fiction. There is no beginning, no end. There is no resolution nor a right or a wrong answer. There is simply the one fact that Brooklyn remains an option that should be considered by the New York Islanders.

Some people think the team could pack up their possessions on a stick wrapped in an Islander bandana, show up and paint the Islanders logo on ice and call it a home. Then there are the reasonable thinkers, those that know there is more to this that needs to be hashed out before this move is even considered.

First off, Brooklyn is trendy. When people think about the “new” Brooklyn, they automatically think of Williamsburg complete with the hipster labels. These hipster labels come with the faux vegetarians, riding bikes, drinking over priced craft beer and dressing poor but having money.

Ed Mangano can repeat himself multiple times on Twitter, stating that he is doing everything he can in his "ongoing plans" to keep the Islanders in Uniondale, but NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has made it clear: the Islanders will be leaving Nassau County in 2015.

A front page article was released in Newsday this weekend that had Bettman's words put directly on paper, making the harsh reality of the Islanders Coliseum problems look even more hopeless. He was quick to say that the Town of Hempstead and Nassau County have done a terrible job of trying to come up with a new plan to renovate the 40-year old arena. As a result, he is looking into other possible destinations for the New York Islanders.

How much cover does the National Hockey League need before it can summon the nerve to outlaw players from pointlessly whacking each other on the head?

The league is terrified of ruling against head shots for fear it will be accused of lacking the manly qualities it believes fans expect of it.  And some of the handful of fans attracted to games in no-hope hockey towns in the southern U.S. might decide to stay home and watch crocodile wrestling on TV instead. Gary Bettman and his pals can't back down without fear of looking all sissified or something.

But now Sidney Crosby has provided all the cover required to make a change, the need for which has been painfully obviou...