In a series of articles, called Isle Be There, my intention
is to focus on the different social groups that support your New York
Islanders team & its players. This will also include current events,
situations and personalities in and around the team as it relates to its fan
base and community.
Happy
New Year Isles fans!
The
biggest thing we have as fans is a team to rally behind and a very likeable
collection of personalities both in front of and behind the scenes. Whether it’s the BOA, the return of Sparky
the Dragon or the hundreds of passionate fans that I have met over social
media, Islanders Country bleeds orange and blue every day of the year. I want to tell you about someone who I have
gotten to know from a distance, but strikes me as a good guy. Even the legendary Jiggs McDonald wished him
a Happy Birthday on Sunday’s broadcast.
One
of the top requests on the list of things that fans wanted brought over from
the sacred grounds of the NVMC to the state of the art Barclays Center was organist,
Paul Cartier. Paul has been the team
organist for years and he has been the master of anthems throughout several of
the team’s most memorable games. He got
the attention of Mike Bonner and the New York Yankees from his work with the
Isles and has been Yankees official organist since 2004. Since retiring as an air traffic controller
after 27 years, Paul is grateful for his time playing for the fans and the team
he has cheered for since he was a kid.
Paul
has been an Isles fan since ‘72 when he attended the first Isles game ever
played against the Atlanta Flames with his brother Rudy. It was then that he
embraced the idea of playing organ for the team. Afterwards, if he couldn’t get tickets, he did
anything he could to see John Tonelli, Bryan Trottier and the rest of his team
play, including sneaking in to the NVMC.
His strongest memories of the old barn was the atmosphere and passion of
the fans cheering for their team. Whether
it was Mike Bossy’s 50 in 50, the 19 consecutive playoff series wins, the team’s
first Stanley Cup victory or the clutch come-from-behind wins, the memories he
associates with his early fandom are a precious part of growing up on the
Island.
At
8 years old, his first experience on a small Korg organ was enough to sell him
on the power of music. At 15, he went to
the NVMC to try and win the job of team organist, but was told he was too
young. Not being someone who gives up on
what is important to him, Cartier kept working at it until he was invited to
play during intermissions by Dr. Fred Mendolson, who by coincidence, happened to be his
brother’s music instructor. Cartier got
opportunities later on filling in at Islander games and got most of his professional
experience by playing for the New York Arrows indoor soccer team who played at
the Coliseum. In 1981, Paul finally landed the job with his beloved Islanders
and stayed through 1985. Later he came
back to fire up the fans at home games, where he has remained for the last 15
years.
Whether
it’s as a member of the South Hempstead Volunteer Fire Department for 37 years
or playing the organ at Our Lady of Hope church, Paul enjoys doing his part in
the community. At the Barclays Center,
Cartier mentioned to me that, with his new set up playing out in the open, he
has had a much better connection to the fans. This has enabled them to meet on
social media and at the games. Even his commute
on the train to games has turned into a time to talk Isles hockey with fellow
fans on the way to Bklyn.
Paul
hopes to reunite with long time Islanders NVMC anthem singer, Joe Duerr to
properly represent the national anthem at Islanders games in their new home at the
Barlclays Center. He told me about
@organistalert, a Twitter group that connects fans to the “starting organist”
at specific sporting events and serves as a place to talk about the music that
they play during games. Feel free to say
hello to Paul at the Barclays Center, look him up on Facebook or say hello to
him @PaulGCartier on Twitter.
Paul
is a fan of John Tavares and loves the new attitude of the current Isles
team. “They seem to be back and I enjoy
watching them win again. The fans
respond when the team wins and when the place (Barclays Center) is full, you
can’t beat it.” When you can make an
Isles home game, be sure and stop by and say hello to Paul.
He
will be the guy starting a certain chant that has become a crowd favorite. You know, the one about clapping your hands?
Isles
Notes:
The
Isles lost to the Penguins on Saturday, 1/2 by a 5-2 score and beat the NHL leading
Stars, 6-5 at a packed BC in Brooklyn on 2/3.
They are 3rd in the east with 49 pts after 40gp with a
22-13-5 record. They have the Capitals
on Thursday 2/7 and then visit the Flyers for an early game on Saturday 2/9.
Jaroslav
Halak has been activated off the team's IR list and participated in a full team
practice today. Christopher Gibson has
been returned on loan to Bridgeport.
Per
John Kreiser, Johnny Boychuk “out 4-6 weeks with upper-body injury. Have
allowed 84 SOG, 10 goals, 3 PPG in 1st 2 games without him. Adam Pelech was recalled on loan from
Bridgeport to fill in on defense.
The
#BST have signed Patrick
Cullity to a PTO. Two other players up from #MoMavs, three players
down.
Hockey
Notes:
Finland
wins the gold at the WJC gold over Russia while team USA wins the bronze over
Sweden. Isles prospect, Linus Soderstrom
wasn’t in goal for Sweden for the final, but finished tournament with an
impressive 1.42gaa.
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