Mike Sillinger might finally have found a hockey home where it's safe to unpack.
The guy who moved around so much he makes Depression-era drifters look like homebodies has apparently put down roots with the New York Islanders.
Does 91 games count as putting down roots?
I think it does, at least when you're talking about Sillinger.
In his 17-year NHL career, he's played for 12 teams. If this was the 1950s, he would have looped the league twice. Even now, he's skated for nearly half the NHL's teams. It's almost easier to name the teams he hasn't played for.
Sillinger should have inherited the nickname "Suitcase" from long-retired goalie Gary Smith, who played for eight NHL teams and a pair of WHA squads. (For all the nitpickers out there, I counted the Oakland Seals and California Golden Seals as two)
Believe it or not, Sillinger is about to play in his 1,000th NHL game. That comes Thursday when the Islanders host the Tampa Bay Lightning, one of his many former teams.
Despite their bumbling reputation, the Isles have, in fact, realized Sillinger will reach the important milestone and figured out (on their own!) that it might be significant enough for a pre-game ceremony.
Only five other Islanders have hit the 1,000-game mark, so finding the right way to honor Sillinger is relatively new territory for a franchise that celebrated mediocrity. Hey, they kept Mike Milbury employed for more than a decade even though he didn't know a draft pick from a draught beer.
But, I digress. This is about Sillinger, not the Islanders.
Sillinger isn't the biggest guy out there and certainly not the most skilled. He should be one of those dime-a-dozen players. The AHL is littered with 5-foot-10 guys who have never topped 60 points in the NHL.
You know the type. They come into the NHL after glittering junior careers, play a few mediocre seasons on fourth lines, maybe moving around a bit, before finally morphing into the one thing no player wants to become - a career minor leaguer.
That hasn't happened with Sillinger. He has found a way to parlay character and heart into a pretty nifty career and for that, I commend him.
Now, let's see what happens Thursday night. I wouldn't be taken aback if the Isles feted him that night and traded him the next day.
This is the Islanders we're talking about.
Again, I digress. But I just can't help myself.