NoFontaine?

The man you see in the picture above is Pat LaFontaine, a Hall of Fame hockey player who played with the New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, and New York Rangers.  If Islanders owner Charles Wang had his way, LaFontaine would not be anywhere in the Islanders history.  The full story can be found in the Wall Street Journal, and a blog called the Backhand Shelf has taken Wang and the Islanders to task over this issue.  This is not the first time Wang and the Islanders have been in the news over people disagreeing with them.  If you remember the Chris Botta story from last season, the Islanders were taken to task over revoking Botta's media credentials over his criticism of the team.  As for LaFontaine's exclusion from all Islanders' highlights from 40 years in the league, it is petty and childish, and there is no way any sane Islanders fan would forget LaFontaine's contributions to the Islanders, particularly the 4 OT game in the 1987 playoffs against the Capitals.  Whether or not LaFontaine ever reconciles with the Islanders as long as Wang is owner is debatable, as I am sure LaFontaine will want nothing to do with the team as long as Wang is there.  It's not quite on the level of Bobby Hull vs. Bill Wirtz or Dave Keon vs. Harold Ballard, but it could be just as ugly, and there is no way Wang wins this war.