Harold Griffin, guitarist and songwriter for Long Island-based punk band Koyo, helps us kick off Season 6 of Weird Islanders by talking about distinguished defenseman Dennis Seidenberg’s odd path to the team.
Seidenberg was both unlikely and perfect for the Islanders at the same time. A Stanley Cup champion in Boston and as solid and respected a player on the ice as you’ll find anywhere, he suddenly found himself bought out of his contract at 34-years old. After a great showing for Team Europe at the World
Cup of Hockey, GM Garth Snow signed Seidenberg to a one-year contract just before training camp, one of the most Islanders-esque moves we’ve ever seen. It turns out the big German still had a lot in the tank and provided the young team with the same steady play he was already known for. Although injuries derailed his second season with the club, he found a new and very important role in a longstanding Islanders lineage: as landlord to one of the team’s up-and-coming stars.
Harold talks to us about how Long Island, the Islanders and sports have shaped him and his band, Koyo. We reminisce about Seidenberg’s short Islanders tenure, his surprisingly sick stat line of that first season, the Isles’ connections to the Bruins and the “New York Saints” spring of a few seasons later, and how Seidenberg has become one of the most Long Island-Weird Islanders ever. We also sneak a surprise extra Weird Islander in there, who even more surprisingly comes up again in our next episode!
Thanks again to Harold for coming on. We also have a Weird Islanders Extra! bonus episode where he tells us about getting harassed by Canadians for wearing Islanders gear on stage and other observations from rock n’ roll touring. Check out Koyo on YouTube, Spotify, Bandcamp or wherever you get your music and see them on tour starting this December at Warsaw in Brooklyn.
WEIRD BONUS MATERIAL
- Seidenberg’s first NHL goal came in his first NHL season for the Flyers against the team they would eventually trade him to, the Coyotes.
- After stops in Carolina and Florida, he landed in Boston and had some great moments for the Bruins including this loooooong distance goal against Ottawa. One might say he specialized in goals from embarrassingly far away.
- Boston fans still love the guy (also, his favorite player growing up was Uwe Krupp? That’s awesome) but after seven hard-fought seasons and a Stanley Cup, the Bruins bought the then 34-year-old Seidenberg out of the final two years of his contract, making him a free agent.
- Thanks to a successful run with Team Europe at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, the Islanders signed Seidenberg to a one-year contract. He would re-sign at the end of the season.
- He didn’t score often for the Isles but it was possible. This was a nice one in a heartbreaker against the Habs at Barclays Center.
- But the injuries became too much and a comeback for the 2018-19 season had to be shut down. He officially retired in October of 2019 (this article ignores his seasons spent on Long Island, naturally).
- As a bigger guy, he was never afraid to get his hands dirty.
- He may have retired from the ice, but Seidenberg immediately took a position in the Islanders front office on the Player Development staff, where he remains today, alongside his old teammate Johnny Boychuk.
- Seidenberg’s greatest contribution to the Islanders will always be acting as Mat Barzal’s landlord, a team tradition that continues to this day.
What makes a “Weird Islander?”
We’re always open to suggestions about other Weird Islanders to discuss. Remember the criteria. Candidates must fulfill one of the two of the following:
- Played one (1) season or less for the Islanders or very short stints over multiple seasons.
- Be a veteran NHLer who is not generally associated with his time on Islanders.
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