New York Islanders Goalie Rick DiPietro recently received some of the worst news of his career. The 31-year old netminder was placed on waivers and sent down to the AHL to attempt to regain his all-star form that has not been on display for years. The goalie arrived in Bridgeport on Wednesday and spoke to the press on Thursday. The keeper has had a hard time dealing with it and even mentioned suicide to one reporter. Followup reports indicate that this comment was nothing more than a joke. However, the comment was so pervasive that even the Islanders website has taken action.
Kevin Maher of News 12 tweeted that DiPietro "admitted injuries, losing and fan hatred over the past 3 years made him think about killing himself at one point." DiPietro also told Maher that when he heard about being waived he felt like, "they ripped my heart out, stabbed it, set it on fire and flushed it down the toilet." He also admitted that he was not sure if he figured into the Islanders future plans.
A number of other reports indicate that the keeper was being "facetious" about the suicide comment including ESPN's Katie Strang.
DP also spoke to Bridgeport beat writer Mike Fornabaio but did not make the same kind of comments. In fact, he seemed more focused on getting his game back. "It's a good opportunity to play a lot of games and get sharp. At the end of the day, you want to compete. You want to win. That's what I want to do," DiPietro told Fornabaio.
The Islanders recently published a release on the team's official website in which general manager Garth Snow stated that "We are aware of Rick's comments today and the severity of them. We will handle them internally as we do with all player matters. This is an opportunity for Rick to play lots of games in Bridgeport."
Back in 2000, DiPietro was drafted first overall and anointed as the franchise goalie for the New York Islanders. He took the reigns as keeper in 2003-04 when he posted 23 wins, 18 losses, and five ties with a 2.36 goals against average and .911 save percentage. He would follow that with two straight 30 win season and after the 2004-05 lockout season he was signed to a controversial 15-year contract. However, injuries derailed what looked like a promising career as "DP" (as he was known by Islanders fans) suffered a laundry list of injuries that limited his appearances. From 2008-09 until this current season, the keeper only appeared 50 times and never regained his top form. He was used only three times in the team's first 16 games and it seemed that the team realized that he was no longer an effective option in goal.
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