Back at the Coliseum

 After the past couple of days at IceWorks in Syosset, the Islanders are now back at the Nassau Coliseum.

Group 1 on the ice first this morning. Andy Hilbert, who suffered a groin strain Saturday, is not skating.

As mentioned yesterday, Rick DIPietro will not be skating because of a previously-scheduled off day.

If you didn't get a chance to check it out yet, here is yesterday's story on power forward Matt Martin.

One thing I did not mention in that story is how much better Martin feels with a clear head coming into camp. Martin had a more difficult time focusing on hockey last year because of a tenuous contract situation that lingered through the summer.

"It's definitely a lot easier to relax, have fun, and focus on hockey. Last year was a big distraction. There were eyes on me and people were saying a bunch of different things. I definitely didn't need that."

***I can assure you they are wasting no time getting acclimated back to their headquarters; they've already set up the ping pong table in the hallway.

Newcomer Milan Jurcina said he's not much of a ping pong player, so he's sharpening up right now...I warned him not to let Rob Schremp or Kyle Okposo hustle him.