For the New York Islanders, such is the case. I challenge all fans of the organization to answer this question - What does playing at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, in its current state do?

If you are stumped I'll give you the answer: Top tier free agents will choose to bring their services elsewhere, no matter how much money GM Garth Snow offers.

Complaints of the building being too old, the ice being poor and the internal turmoil can scare some of the talent the Isles have attempted to bring on board - hence the lack of a fruitful off-season. Dan Hamhuis, most notably, rejected a multi-million dollar, multi-year offer from the club even with Snow offering bigger numbers in comparison to the Canucks and other organizations involved.

Yet, you cannot blame the organization or go into a frenzy due to the lack of talent being brought in. Snow has attempted time and time again to work some magic. It was not he who has failed, but simply the reality of where the team skates on "home ice" that is the true basis of this failure.

I, for one, enjoy the home arena where the Islanders play because there truly is not a bad seat in the house. The ice is somewhat of a detriment, and understandably so. However, Charles Wang has been doing all he can with his Lighthouse Project in order to get a new, modern building. Unfortunately for the Islanders, the Town of Hempstead has not helped this situation, constantly turning down all of the proposals Wang has put forth.

There is Light(house) at the end of the tunnel. But in speaking of lights and projects, one must wonder what will be done about the situation surrounding the actual combination of the two words: the Lightouse Project and the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Does Kate Murray hate hockey? Why would the Town of Hempstead not understand how important a new building is for the organization and just how much it would do for the town itself? To me, this situation is absurd and Wang should have been granted the Lighthouse Project approval when it was first presented. The Isles desperately need a new arena as the NVMC is the second oldest building in the NHL and for the love of any higher powers out there, can they obtain a new arena without having to relocate?

For an organization that was once a dynasty, it would be a travesty if they were to move - especially if that move took them out of New York. This was once a proud organization - now, they have a very hard time filling seats for home games. But political blogs and relocation discussions are for another place and another time.

Back to Islanders hockey

Since the lockout, the Islanders have only appeared in the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs once. They were eliminated by the Buffalo Sabres in the quarterfinals in 2007.

Possible reason number two that no one shows up to games. The team has not been competitive in quite a while. To add insult to injury - the organization has only had four playoff births in total since the 1993-94 season. That year they were eliminated in the quarterfinals by the team that would go on to win the Cup - cross town rival and hated opponent the New York Rangers.

Again, the finger can not be pointed at the organizational brass. The team drafts very well, much in part due to the fact that they are always in the lower tier of the standings. They simply can not acquire top tier talent that would sell jerseys and put more fans in the seats. John Tavares need not apply.

Last season, the Islanders showed some signs of competitive life and had their fans thinking about a potential playoff birth. That was until the other shoe dropped and reality set in. A blessing in disguise? Only Nino Niederreiter will decide that, as he was the fifth overall selection in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft by the Isles.

The plan (not the project)

What fans seem to overlook most of the time is the five year plan that Garth Snow put into effect when he took over as general manager of the organization. The 2010-11 season will be year three of five.

At least it's not Mike Milbury in charge of the organization and the five year plan.

The fortunate situation from having so many bad seasons in a row speaks for itself within the talent pool that the organization has drafted. Kirill Petrov, Travis Hamonic, Calvin de Haan, John Tavares, Kyle Okposo, Josh Bailey, Nino Niederreiter, Kirill Kabanov, Brock Nelson and Mikko Koskinen are a few of the names within the organization that are becoming home grown talents. Drafted by the Islanders and groomed within the Islanders system in order to rebuild and restructure the struggling team.

Of course, the flip side to the positive is the negative that comes when you look at things in a business perspective. Team owner Charles Wang loses a massive amount of money each year and when his team does not qualify for the playoffs, therein lies an issue with revenue - Wang dips into his pockets more than he deposits checks into his bank account.

Hope remains that this situation will be turned around and it all rests on the team being put together.

After last season, the faithful fanatics of the organization started a major outcry for the team to bring in top talent. They were presented with Milan Jurcina, P.A. Parenteau, Mark Eaton, Zenon Konopka and James Wisniewski.

It may not be the perfect way to tell your fan base that a competitive club will be placed on the ice come October 2010, but the main idea here is to prove that the team knows there are needs and Snow is doing all he can to fill those needs accordingly.

I will admit that the defense, especially after Garth pulled a Glen Sather move and acquired Wisniewski from Anaheim for a third round draft selection, improved. Though how much of an improvement is yet to be seen. Everything always looks great on black and white. On the ice is where it counts the most.

Will the five year plan pay off?

Isles nation was asked to be patient with the team and their progress in moving forward. Each year, the team gives a glimpse of what the future holds. Jack Hillen, Kyle Okposo, Andrew MacDonald, Josh Bailey and John Tavares have all made strides in progressing as full time NHL talent.

This season the organization will likely bring forth at least one more name from their prior drafts in either Travis Hamonic or Kirill Petrov with the opportunity for both to be on board out of training camp - barring another UFA signing, trade, or poor training camp/pre-season.

With plenty of time still remaining in free agency there are still options for the organization. As slim as the options are, the bigger issue here rests solely on the fact that, as mentioned above, it is very difficult to attract free agents to come to Long Island.

Ah, solutions!

Wait... nope, not just yet.

What can the organization do to attract those elusive free agents? These high drafted youngsters will develop and mature as players and then does the team become attractive?

This is somewhat of a coin flip - will the younger talent help balance the issue of why free agents shy away from signing with the Islanders? To think, these are only a few of the many questions that always come up when discussing the Islanders organization.

Only time will create answers. And time is just what Garth asked for.

Wizzing it up

The acquisition of Wisniewski from the Anaheim Ducks and the buy-out of Brendan Witt has given the Islanders freedom from NHL disciplinary action since the "Wiz" brought a $3.25 million cap hit along with his services. Reaching the cap floor was a crucial accomplishment for the organization with limited ways to get there the longer the summer moved on.

In the end

Do not expect to see the Islanders rush their young guns into glory. Niederreiter, de Haan, Koskinen, Poulin, Kabanov, Nelson, Casey Cizikas, Mark Katic, Dustin Kohn, Dylan Resse and David Ullsrom are all part of the future of the organization but do not expect to see them early nor often for that matter - until the time is right.

The future has many doors to be opened, and there is plenty of potential for this organization to one day return to glory. Will a playoff appearance happen this season? Again, that is all up to the team and how they gel on the ice as opposed to what is structured on black and white. Impossible? Nope - quite the opposite.

Like the five year plan, give these kids the proper time to develop and most will add an element to the Islanders return to success - with or without throwing money at those pesky UFA's that come around every July.