Yes, I'm an Islanders Fan. No, I'm Not Kidding: An Introduction to Margee

I'm margee. I'm the head bitch at SportSquee, a general sports blog that does it's best to feed my addiction to hockey and squee(!)-worthy men in all sports. Here on the hlog, I will be the voice of the tens, make that dozens of New York Islanders fans who thirst for their opinions to be heard. I have an aresenal of excuses and nonsensical rationalizations cocked and ready to defend my team. And I think I'm going to need all of them.

Where you're from, what you do - basic things.

I grew up on Long Island. No, I don't know Joey Buttafuoco, but my cousin does! I now live in New York City and work in television. In my spare time (ha!) I knit, try to avoid buying leather, chill with my niece and nephew, and search for a shampoo that will make my naturally curly hair both silky and bouncy.

Your team and why you like them

My favorite team is the Islanders. It's the only major league team that really belongs to Long Island, a place that has kept hockey hair aliveand well in the metropolitan area for many, many years. The Isles have a certain scrappy, dogged charm on top of the geographical perfection. Even when the team is stacked with good players, it always feels like they're the underdogs. And Long Island loves an underdog, or unda-dawg as it were.

Your least favourite team and why?

The Rangers. There is a Madison Square Garden-sized chip on the shoulder of every Islanders fan. The Rangers just reek of the same exclusivity and elitist bastardness of the Yankees and, to a lesser degree, the Giants. The Islanders and their fans will always feel less-than, especially now that we can't shout "1940!" every time we see a blueshirt. I also dislike the Devils, Avalanche, and Maple Leafs for no good reasons.

Your favourite player of all time & now?

As a young fan I loved me some Pat "La-La-La"Fontaine. He was a hero to Islanders fans of my age. My dad regaled me with tales of Billy Smith, Mike Bossy, and Bryan Trottier, but they were a little before my time. And of course I loved Wayne Gretzky, and watched his Saturday morning cartoon show with Bo Jackson and Michael Jordan. My current favorite Islander is Miro Satan, who, prior to this year at least, always had this look on his face like, "C'mon guys! Do I have to do everything around here?" And they'd take away my Islanders fan card if I didn't say I love Jason Blake. You can get banned from the Nassau Coliseum if you don't declare your love for him at the door. But my current favorite player is probably Dany Heatley or Tim Connolly, when healthy. Heatley for the unselfish play, and the fact that he passed up the draft because he wanted to go to college to be like his dad (he had a B average and loved American History... squee!). And Connolly for the creativity.

If you had to punch one hockey player or member of the NHL organisation, who and why?

"Mad" Mike Milbury for turning my team into a joke.

What you'll be looking forward in this group blog.

Getting the perspective other devoted fans. Surrounding myself with people full of enthusiasm for and knowledge of the game. Groupies.

What you don't like in general?

Jerks. People who play for the Yankees/Rangers. People who root for the Yankees/Rangers. When pretzels get wet. People who act surprised to find that a girl likes sports and isn't orating from her own bum. TomKat. When the catering service at work has no vegan options. Other vegans. People who call Wednesday "hump day." Anyone who can't appreciate the lyrical wisdom of Whitney Houston or Neil Diamond.

What role do female fans play in keeping the game alive?

Ladies bring faith. I've known too many guys jump off the bandwagon when their team starts losing (see: Isles ticket sales for the past few years). We invest in a player and are last to give up even when he's playing badly. Women have much longer memories. We can remember when a given player wasn't a goat or we hold out hope for the day when he isn't. Guys don't always do that.

What role do female fans play in picking heroes for the community?

Women play a role, for sure. Jose Theodore would get egged at every start if it weren't for his female fans. Though, I think that time is almost upon us.

Hockey just isn't the same without ___

Fights. Sorry, I know it's an unpopular opinion. But it's interesting to see how a fight sparks or deflates a team. To me it shows a brotherhood among the players. That a player will not let another team screw with his boy. It's indicative of the passion hockey ignites. And it's a rare display of humanity from a sport densely populated by stoic men. However, this is coming from a girl who knocked someone's teeth out in a friendly all-star soccer game.

If you were on a deserted island, which player would you pick to stay with you?

Choices, choices. Maybe Dion Phaneuf because he could light a fire with his eyes and knock down trees with a well-placed elbow. Or maybe Zdeno Chara because I could lash myself to his back and he could use his brute strength to swim us to safety. Or perhaps Brendan Shanahan, who's funny and could gnaw trees into firewood and catch fish in his gigantic teeth. Shucks, I'll say Sidney Crosby, because he's so determined and competitive, he'd find a way to build me a tree mansion and train monkey butlers.

Crosby, Ovechkin or Phaneuf (hey he tried!)?

In a bold move, I'm going with Phaneuf. Because there are so few complete defensemen in the game. Another season and he's better than Pronger.

The player you'd like to take for a grand night out/a movie/a boring event

For a grand night out, I'll say Alex Ovechkin. Because he doesn't speak the language well, I'd seem that much cooler to him, and I'd bet he's up for anything. If he's wearing something tighter and more sparkly than I, we'll have a problem. To a movie, I'd take Colby Armstrong. He'd have a bunch of obnoxious comments, and I like that. To a boring event, I'd ask Ricky DiPietro. Because he wouldn't stop talking. Not for a minute. He'd close the place with his yammering, and I'd be so entertained.

If you could make your own team, regardless of whatever players, what would it be called and where will it be/how would it be like?

My team would be full of the loudest and weirdest players I could find (what's up, Roenick?). They'd be called the Warriors, just so when people finished three beer bottles at the arena, they could do the old "Warrior, Warriors...come out and play-ee-ay!" I would take my team to somewhere without professional sports, where we could live as gods among the workaday joes. But that place would have to have a 7-11, because I need to know that a slurpee is only a short distance away.