I know its a little late for me to talk about the supposedly end of the Rick Dipietro era on Long Island but here it is. I really thought Dipietro's body would be put to the test and get a lot more starts this season. Nabakov started the year hot so Capuano went with the hot hand which makes sense in this shortened season. With the Islanders three points out of the playoffs (which don't mean anything) and the timid shakiness play from Dipietro it wouldn't make sense to play him all that much. Nobody was going to claim Dipietro (even tho I saw comments from stupid Leafs fans that they wanted him), so sending him to Bridgeport makes the most sense right now. Sorry Bridgeport.
I was a big fan of Dipietro when he came into the league and made the Islanders relevant again by leading them into the playoffs 3 times. I even had arguments with Sabre of Light about who would be starting goalie of Team USA, DP or Ryan Miller. Unfortunately the play from Dipietro landed him in the 2008 All Star game causing him to injure his hip. Dipietro continued to play the season until the Islanders were out of playoff contention and then he had hip surgery. As you all know he continued to have injury issues with his hips, knees, head and face. He became a laughing stock of the league with fans saying he would injure himself sneezing, getting a haircut or shaving his beard.(hence his appearance now)
Now the question is, have we seen the last of Dipietro in an Islander uniform? Will his contract be bought out? These are things that are not set in stone at the moment, but I think if Dipietro can stay healthy in Bridgeport and build a little confidence, I strongly believe he will get one more shot with the team next year. On the other hand, he could continue with his bad luck and might not make it to seasons end. Only time will tell, I still see Yashin jerseys at the Coliseum these days but the fan base hates Dipietro so much that management doesn't want him to play in any home games. Poor Ricky, the goalie who lost his way.
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