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Anders Lee stands up for Islanders GM in light of ‘Snow Must Go’

Anders Lee

skates against the New Jersey Devils at the Barclays Center on September 23, 2015 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Islanders defeated the Devils 2-1. Getty Images

Bruce Bennett

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Many New York Islanders fans agree with the sentiment "(Garth) Snow Must Go,” but that doesn’t mean it’s unanimous.

In response to the successful Go Fund Me drive to put up billboard(s) calling for Snow’s firing near Barclays Center, Islanders forward Anders Lee had an interesting reaction.

He took to Twitter not just to express his disagreement with “Snow Must Go,” but to ask people to donate to a different charity than his “Kancer Jam II” campaign, with the event coming on Feb. 19.

A portion of that statement reads:

" ... (Snow) had the faith to draft me in 2009, and I wouldn’t be here today without his support, so I do not feel right accepting the donation. I appreciate the gesture from our fans and their efforts to support the Kancer Jam Foundation but ask that they use this money to support another fund that can benefit from this donation.”

As of this writing, Lee’s Crowd Rise drive is at $12,131, with 56 people donating. It seems like a fantastic campaign, and even in this unusual way, it would be great if it got more attention through all of this.

Looking at the Go Fund Me for the “Snow Must Go” billboards, they’re no longer accepting donations after hitting $5,980. They’re also giving additional money to the American Cancer Society, and issued a response to Lee in an update. Here’s the most relevant portion of that response:

Secondly, we recently received word via Twitter that Anders Lee will be declining any donation toward his Kancer Jam. While we are disappointed, we respect his decision, and love Anders as a New York Islander.

Without a choice in the matter, we have therefore decided to donate any excess donations to the American Cancer Society. While we understand this was not the initial advertised charity, we hope Islanders fans will understand.

Again, this is an atypical situation on top of another odd situation, as it seems reasonable for their to be a scenario in which Islanders fans could express a belief about Snow needing to go while also helping to raise money to combat cancer. Whatever happens regarding Snow’s employment status, the Islanders’ playoff hopes, and John Tavares’ future with the franchise, let’s hope that this brings more donations to some great causes. Whether that’s the the American Cancer Society, Lee’s specific efforts, or ideally a combination of the two, that’s fantastic.


James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.