Maven's Memories: Jason Blake Played Big During Time with Islanders

"Blake had the speed of a little guy and the toughness of a big one." Rivalry author Zachary Weinstock on Blake.
They said he skated like a scared jackrabbit.
But the trick was that Jason Blake wasn't scared.
He was just small by hockey standards and it meant that he had to compensate.

Wherever he played, Jason had to show the big fellows that he had the goods. In high school, college and the minors.
"I never even got drafted," Blake chuckled. "Didn't matter; I just plugged along. It took a while before I made it."
He was all of 25 years - almost 26 - in 1999 when the Los Angeles Kings signed him as a free agent. The Minnesotan returned the favor scoring his first NHL goal in his first game.
"Blake was fearless and highly irritating to opponents," said Vic Morren, ESPN's analytics expert and author of Breakaway. "When he was in a position to score he showed an offensive gift."
But the Kings were not that impressed and traded Blake to the Islanders in 2000-01 for an inconspicuous draft pick.
"It was the steal of steals," said Weinstock. "I saw Blake in his first game and couldn't believe what the Islanders got. He'd go tooth-to-tooth right into the bigger dudes' faces.
"He was so quick and strong on the puck," Weinstock added. "His potential was immediately evident. It was just going to need some time before he blossomed. When he teamed up with Claude Lapointe, they formed one of the league's best penalty-killing teams."

Blake's impudent knack for scoring was a later arrival. What the fans loved him for right off the bat was his raw hustle and absolute willingness to take on any foe, giant or not. (In Yiddish, he's called a chutzpadik. A daring person.)
Once Blake acclimatized himself to Islanders hockey, the sky was the limit. He became an All-Star and a 40-goal scorer and even was engaged by Hall of Famer Mark Messier in a tussle, although the result for Blake was less than a victory.
My 43-year-old son, Simon, was another who watched Blake in action from the get-go. Since he still avidly follows his favorite team, I asked Simon which current Islander displays a reasonable facsimile of the Blake style.
"Jason was a proto-Casey Cizikas," he asserted. "A hard worker, a spunky catalyst and terrific penalty-killer. Also, a great, fearless, team guy."
Plus, he developed the knack of using his compact body to advantage. His size allowed him to fit into the tight spaces along the boards and come out the other side with the puck. Enemy defensemen had trouble keeping up with him.
One scouting report stated: "He has a low center of gravity and uses it to advantage when protecting the puck. His good posture enables him to keep the puck close to his body and on his stick blade."
Over 426 games with the Nassaumen, Blake totaled 258 points and scored 20 goals or more in four of his five full seasons. He started with a low flame in Uniondale, but by the 2002-03 season he was cooking with gas.
"If there's one thing I learned on the Island," Blake remembered, "Is that you'll never know how much you can score unless you shoot the puck."
He scored his first hat trick and four-point game on January 11, 2003 in a 7-3 win over the Atlanta Thrashers. In that match he lit three red lights in succession.
By March 1, 2003 he reached the coveted 20-goal mark for the first time in his career, scoring the overtime winner against Buffalo. That was his break-out year. He finished second in team scoring with 25 goals and 30 helpers.
"Jason's story was one of a little guy who played big," recalled Ted Nolan who coached Blake. "He was the heart and soul of our team."

I can vouch for that, having covered the Islanders on television at the time, the little guy was acquired from the Los Angeles Kings in January 2001.
At first, he was viewed as a mere fourth-liner.
The original scouting report emphasized his hustle and penalty-killing ability. There were few hints that he would be anything like the prolific scorer who eventually delighted the Nassau Faithful. In the Guts Department, he had a surplus.
During the 2003-04 season he displayed his extraordinary will to win after a high ankle sprain had sidelined him during the playoffs with Tampa Bay. Against all odds he returned to action with typical Jason reasoning.
"Look," Blake asserted, "I'm a competitor and I want to be out there contributing, not watching from the press box."
From the get-go, Blake exuded a natural feistiness that complimented his assorted skills. I remember him being particularly effective against the Rangers at The Garden where he played some of his best hockey.
He also startled fans one night when he came to the rescue of injured teammate Dave Scatchard who had been popped in the face by the Rangers big Chris Simon.
"First," Weinstock recalled, "Little Blake jumped on Simon. But then Mark Messier spun Blake around like a child. Then (goalie) Rick DiPietro jabbed Messier in the chin. Then, Messier literally choked Blake for two minutes."
MAVEN'S MEMORIES
WRITTEN COVERAGE
Shirley Fischler Breaks Gender Barriers
Jim Devellano, The Other Architect
The 2003-04 Season
Mike Bossy's Road to the Islanders
The 2002-03 Homestretch
John Tonelli Five-Goal Game
Isles vs Leafs in 2002
The Amazing 2001-02 Season
Explosive Trades Launch 01-02
Denis Potvin's Breakout vs Rangers
Maven's Haven
The Little Guy not only survived Messier's choke-job but thrived. On November 26, 2005, he delivered another hat trick during a win over the Flyers. By this time, it had become apparent he could score more than anyone had imagined.
"It's great to see Blakie rewarded," said then coach Steve Sterling. "His efforts are incredible every game. The guy never stops!"
Apart from the increase in his goal-scoring, there was more to Jason's game than mere hustle and bustle. He could kill penalties, do PP work and organize plays: the latter being an oft-overlooked aspect of his repertoire.
Blake scored his 100th career goal against the Chicago Blackhawks on October 31, 2006. In addition to it marking a career milestone, it happened to be a late power-play goal and the game-winner.
Jason found that "groove" in Uniondale following the lockout-aborted 2004-05 season. It helped that the Nassaumen had fortified their lineup with a trio of marksmen who embellished his game.
In addition to Blake, Miroslav Satan, Alexei Zhitnik and former Ranger Mike York gave the Isles increased firepower.
"I felt a lot better about my game," Blake said as the season unfolded. "The goals started to come easier."
However it was less than an easy season for the franchise. The encouraging pre-season expectations were not being met and by mid-campaign coach Steve Stirling was fired, replaced by his aide, Brad Shaw.
Still, the games went on and Blake skated with his brakes off, finishing the post-lockout campaign with a career high 28 goals and 57 points. But the best was yet to come.
"I was looking ahead to next season for a lot of reasons," Blake said. "And one of them was to see if I could do even better than 28 goals."
Sure enough he reached the 30-goal plateau on February 27, 2007 with a three-goal hat trick against the Flyers. When asked if 40 goals were within his grasp, the little guy chuckled, "I don't want to talk about that."
From time to time, there had been rumors of a Blake trade but on the day of the deadline he learned that he would not be dealt. That night he scored a hat trick against the Flyers; his fifth Trifecta.
Such feats said everything there was to say about Jason and on April 5, 2007 he hit for 40 goals as the Isles topped Toronto, 5-2.
That same season he became an All-Star and tallied two assists in the annual All-Star Game.
Looking backward, I'm surprised that Blake's feats tended to be significantly overlooked by so many. It was an aspect of his career which baffled me.

Former Islanders goalie, Glenn (Chico) Resch had known Blake since Jason's days at the University of North Dakota. Resch found the blonde bomber an interesting study.
"Jason was a bit of an unusual personality," Resch asserted. "Some coaches and players had trouble connecting with him. But when it came to his playing, there were no doubts, he had great speed and hustle."
Blake's hockey saga began in his home town of Moorhead, Minnesota; pure hockey country. After a whiz-bang season at Moorhead High, it was a case of a Jumpin' Jason as he toured the hockey circuit.
He honed his game to sharpness with Waterloo of the U.S. League, then Ferris State before landing with the intense University of North Dakota hockey program.
"For me, North Dakota provided a wonderful learning experience," Blake revealed, "Especially when I was in the running for the Hobey Baker Award. By then, I felt I was ready for the pros."
Whether the pros were ready for Jason proved a moot question. He had a cup of coffee with the Orlando Solar Bears in 1998-99 and, finally, the L.A. Kings called.
"This was the break I was waiting for," Blake said, "Getting to the NHL."
Trouble was, Jason didn't turn many heads in California.
"Once his confidence locked in, he turned into a genuine scorer," remarked one reporter covering the Islanders. "It was just a matter of time."
As a free agent, Blake's fiscal time came in 2008 after his 40-goal season. He was signed by the Toronto Maple Leafs but almost immediately received bad news from the medics.
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Diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia, Jason feared that his hockey career was kaput. But the ailment was treatable and he made the tough decision to continue playing although it was the challenge of his life.
Blake: "I decided to play for the Leafs, but the sickness took its toll on me. I was just very grateful that I was able to continue."
He was awarded the Masterton Trophy for his perseverance and dedication to the game despite the difficult challenges that confronted him.
Jason's grim determination enabled him to complete three seasons with the Leafs and three more with Anaheim before he left the NHL. All in all, he claimed that the hardships taught him an important lesson.
"What I learned," he concluded, "Is that we take life for granted and forget how fortunate we are."
Those who saw him hustling all over Coliseum ice remember how fortunate they were to have dauntless Jason Blake wear the Islanders uniform!