Take it from a veteran...in this case, 'Battlin' Billy Smith...
"We had a good group of guys," he said. "We had 16 guys that probably played seven years together, eight years together. You do get to know each other really well."
The New York Islanders are the last team in any of the major North American sports to win four consecutive chances...a record streak of 19 consecutive playoff series victories.
Do you think you can hold 16 guys together on one team for four years? Not with the money today. A fourth line guy now, being on a Stanley Cup [winner] two years in a row, isn't he going to be much more valuable somewhere else?"
(Said Islanders coach Jack Capuano):"He was a focused individual. He came to the rink every day with the mentality that he was going to get better, but at the same time, he was going to have fun. He was going to enjoy the time he had playing this great game."
"It's great to have that presence in our dressing room," Strome said. "Obviously we know what those guys have done in the past; they're someone we can look up to. We're surrounded by history in this building. To see it firsthand is something special. A lot of guys appreciate what he did. [He said] some really motivating stuff. It makes guys want to get to that level and play in those types of games. It's great to have that around."
http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=740480