We had a chance to sit down with Mike Allen, GM of the New York Islanders to discuss how he felt about his teams performance at the halfway point of the season.

GSN: Mike, how do you feel about your teams performance so far?

Mike Allen: "I beleive that we are in good shape heading into the second half of the season. We are a .500 club, and without the injuries to Serzhantov, who is a top 10 league scorer who we missed for a month, and Kubina who was gone for 3 weeks, we would be sitting in a playoff spot right now".

G:Mike, are you looking to make any significant changes to the team?

MA:"We are currently looking at a couple of different options right now"

G:Any details?

MA:"When we make a move you will be the first to know"

G:Some people around the league felt that you may have jumped the gun when you delt Brad Sciardi, leaving an unproven 18 year old goalie in Dave Veyon as the number 1. Veyon has struggled at times this season. Do you have any regrets about this decision?

MA:"Veyon has had some trouble adjusting, however has recently made huge strides in his game. His 3-0 shutout of the Sabres the other night made us realize that we made the right decision."

G:Who do you feel some of the biggest surprises on this team have been to date?

MA:"I think that the play of Mike Malone has been a plesant surprise. We always felt he had the tools to be a great offensive defenseman, however his work in his own end has be questionable at times. Last year he was a -13, and this year he is leading the team with a +5 and is 3rd in league scoring amongst defensemen.

G:One last question. What can we expect from the Islanders in the second half?

MA:"We will be looking to add a couple of veteren players for a second half run, and expect to see the Islanders in the playoffs for the first time in several years"