It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

What to think and who to believe? Insider news, rumors, and flat-out guesses will take shape two weeks before the next Isles game, giving us plenty of time to ponder and ruminate about the team's direction and, more specifically, which Lou Lamoriello is inclined to take them. Chris provides his latest report on Lou’s spot in the organization and contract overtures to Brock Nelson.

Later, Joe and Chris address the Noah Dobson rumors. Could he be available, and should the Islanders be listening? Plus, what are the season ticket views on selling off, and what is the excitement level surrounding the 4 Nations Face-off?

It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

The worst-case scenario was confirmed on Monday as Mathew Barzal is out indefinitely after blocking a shot off his knee in the closing minutes of Saturday’s win at Tampa Bay. The loss of Barzal significantly dampers the good vibes surrounding this team. Should the injury alter Lou Lamoriello’s approach come the trade deadline? Chris and Joe discuss whether the GM’s mindset should shift, knowing they’ll be without one of their star players in the long term.

Despite the tough news, we find time to reflect on the team’s improbable seven-game winning streak and Ilya Sorokin's elite play. The only thing predictable about the remainder of the season is that it will be unpredictable.

It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

The Isles are making their run, and as injuries mount, GM Lou Lamoriello made a pair of shrewd moves to give his veteran core a fighting chance at remaining in the playoff picture. We discuss the mutual moments of desperation that brought Tony DeAngelo to Long Island and why he should be on his best behavior.

Plus, the Islanders made an under-the-radar trade for D Scott Perunovich that Blues fans are convinced will come back to haunt them. We also discuss what an extension for Brock Nelson would look like, retro night at the Coliseum in 2007, and more.

.It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

Almost every team in the NHL goes on a run at some point.

The good teams, the great teams, and most of the time, even the bad teams. The Islanders have won 5 of 7 but will need a longer, sustained run to climb over the several teams standing between them in a playoff spot with nine games remaining before the February break.

Chris and Joe discuss whether the Isles have a run in them and what that would do to Lou Lamoriello’s thinking in the coming weeks. Plus, grading Patrick Roy after one year and Mathew Barzal’s ‘alleged’ comments about empty seats.

It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

With former captain and Stanley Cup champion Brent Sutter set to be inducted into the Islanders Hall of Fame on Saturday night, Chris and Joe closely examine the Isles Hall of Fame candidacy of other alums potentially worthy of the honor.

Should Glenn ‘Chico’ Resch be the next to go in? What’s the delay in celebrating Pat LaFontaine's career? What about the player he was traded for, fellow Hall-of-Famer Pierre Turgeon? Does Ziggy Palffy’s stardom during the franchise’s dark days warrant consideration, and did Josh Bailey do enough, long enough, to be a clear Islanders Hall-of-Famer?

Chris has ideas on how Hall-of-Fame nights can be re-imagined and how to honor the remaining “core of the four” that don’t have their own plaques.

It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

In this episode, Chris and Joe question why the team will travel with 12 forwards rather than make a call-up with Hudson Fasching and Simon Holmstrom not making the trip to Vegas. Plus, Arthur Kaliyev was claimed off waivers by the New York Rangers; why wasn’t he wasn’t worth a flyer for the Isles?

Later, we’ve all been impressed with Thomas Hickey’s seamless transition to the broadcast booth. Could another transition be in his future one day? We discuss the management case he’s making himself without trying to do so.

It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

We jumped on soon after the Islanders’ 5-4 OT win in Boston (a win Chris saw coming!) as Bo Horvat became the first NHL player with a shorthanded goal and an overtime goal in the same game since March 8, 2023 (JT Miller (VAN vs ANA).

The win ended a three-game losing streak and, for the time being, put a hold on the constant chatter of change that should (or will) come at some point. The way too-forgiving Eastern Conference has the Islanders somehow only four points out of a playoff spot - one game shy of the season’s halfway point. Yet, even after wins, this team is uniquely capable of making you feel they’re much further away than what the standings tell us. Maybe this was the start of something or a mere interlude ahead of an arduous road trip.

In the latest episode of “The Red Line,” Phil Farber (@PhilzFacts) and David Tuchman (@TuckOnSports) discuss what the Islanders need to do to remain in the playoff picture by the trade deadline. The team is expected to get Anthony Duclair back on Saturday night in Toronto, meaning there are no longer any excuses for them not to start stringing together much-needed wins.

It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

In this edition, we take a holiday stroll down memory lane and reminisce about the infamous 2003 Santa “Brawl” at the Coliseum with one of the playful perpetrators of the tomfoolery, lifelong Islander fan turned NHL betting savant and sniffer Andy Francess. But first, the trio each took turns pointing podcast fingers at what’s most responsible for the Islanders’ overall stale on-the-ice product that’s producing more of the mediocre same. As a bonus, Joe offers listeners an alternative stocking stuffer option at the top of the show.

It's a Quick Fix featuring Joe Buono (@IslesFix) and former VP of Communications for the Islanders, Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL).

It’s a post-game edition, as we record minutes after the Islanders lose in a predictable yet surprising way versus the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday. With Mathew Barzal and Adam Pelech returning, the Islanders came out flat. Although they believe they once again feel they deserved a better result, the same troubling tendencies failed them again, as they failed to build or sustain momentum in this maddening season.