New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Brooklyn, New York, that competes in the National Hockey League's (NHL) Eastern Conference, specifically within the Metropolitan Division. Founded in 1972, the team initially played in Uniondale at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum for over four decades before relocating to the Barclays Center in 2015. The Islanders have a rich history, highlighted by their remarkable achievement of winning four consecutive Stanley Cup titles from 1980 to 1983, establishing them as a prominent force in the league during that era.
The franchise has seen notable figures such as Al Arbour, who coached the team to its championship successes, and several Hall of Fame players, including Mike Bossy, Bryan Trottier, and Denis Potvin. Throughout the years, the Islanders have experienced various ups and downs, including ownership changes and shifts in team performance. In recent years, the team has shown improvement and made a notable return to Long Island with the opening of the new UBS Arena in 2021, further solidifying their commitment to their roots and fan base. The team's colors are royal blue, orange, and white, reflecting its distinct identity in the NHL.
New York Islanders
Team information
- Inaugural season: 1972
- Home arena: Barclays Center, Uniondale, New York
- Owners: Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky
- Team colors: Royal blue, orange, white
Overview
The New York Islanders is a professional ice hockey team that plays in the National Hockey League’s (NHL) Eastern Conference. It is one of the teams in the Metropolitan Division, which also includes the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers. The team, which is based in Brooklyn, New York, was founded in 1972 and named for its original base on Long Island in Uniondale, New York. The team left its original home after forty-two seasons, establishing Barclays Center as its new base in 2015.
The Islanders have won four Stanley Cup titles, all consecutively from 1980 to 1983. Five of the team’s most important players competed in those championship seasons and games. All were inducted into the Hall of Fame, as was the general manager who built the team.
History
The team was founded in 1972 when the NHL was attempting to stop a team in the rival World Hockey Association (WHA) from moving into the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which was newly constructed in the suburban community of Uniondale. The Islanders made the Coliseum its home ice and played their first game at the venue on October 7, 1972, and their last game there on April 25, 2015. At first, the venue had a seating capacity for 13,000 to 15,000 fans. However, the Coliseum was expanded during the 1980s, increasing its capacity to about 18,000 seats. Following renovations in 2015, its capacity was 13,000 seats.
The team name dates back a decade before the Islanders franchise was created and originated in another sport entirely. In 1961, New York’s expansion Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise held a contest to name its new team. Mets and Empires were the top choices, with Islanders finishing third. In 1972, the hockey franchise was expected to choose the name Long Island Ducks, which had been used by an Eastern Hockey League team since 1959. However, the franchise selected Islanders instead.
The first owner, Roy Boe owned the Islanders from 1972 to 1978. He paid a territorial fee of $5 million (equivalent to nearly $30 million in 2020) to the New York Rangers to persuade the team to allow an NHL team in the New York metro area. In its first two seasons, the Long Island team finished below .500. However, the Islanders turned things around when Boe hired Hall of Fame coach Al Arbour as head coach before the 1973–1974 season. Boe also brought in Bill Torrey, vice president of the California Golden Seals, to manage the team. Under Boe, the team made the playoffs four times.
In the 1974–1975 season, the team qualified for the first time to compete in the playoffs. It reached the league semifinals and repeated the feat during the next two seasons. The remainder of the decade saw ongoing improvements in the team, which won its first division title during the 1977–1978 season. The following year, the Islanders had the best regular-season record in the league.
With the Islanders failing to win the playoffs and make it to the championship games, however, ticket sales fell. Boe owed the NHL $20 million in owner fees and was forced to sell the franchise.
John Pickett bought the team in 1978 and owned it until 1997. He made Torrey president of Hockey Operations, which gave Torrey the freedom he needed to build a team. He traded for Butch Goring, who went on to become an important factor in the Islanders’ trips to the championships.
The 1980s saw the Islanders succeed in reaching the Stanley Cup finals. Significant players in this era were right wing Mike Bossy, left wing Clark Gillies, defenseman Denis Potvin, goaltender Billy Smith, and center Bryan Trottier. Only Smith was older than twenty-five at the start of the 1979–1980 season.
The Islanders faced the Philadelphia Flyers for the 1980 Stanley Cup, winning four of the best-of-seven series to the Philadelphia team’s two. The following season, the defending champions faced the Minnesota North stars in the team’s first Finals appearance. This time the Islanders won with four games to one. The 1982 Finals was played against the Vancouver Canucks in their Finals debut. The Islanders swept with four games to none, which marked the first time that a US-based team won three consecutive Stanley Cups. Next the Islanders defended their title against the Edmonton Oilers for the 1983 championship. The New York team again swept with four to none. In 1984 the Islanders made the Final, but lost in five games to the Oilers. This put a halt to the team’s streak of nineteen consecutive playoff series game wins, which was a record in professional sports.
In 1995, the Islanders added a mascot, a bearded seafaring Islander called Nyisles. The character was inspired by the Billy Joel song “The Downeaster Alexa,” about a local fisherman. The logo in the early days was a map of Long Island and the letters NY. The owners hired a designer who created a new logo showing a fisherman in a rain slicker holding a hockey stick. With the unveiling, however, the fans proceeded to ridicule the logo, comparing it to the character used by a frozen fish company. The seven-foot-tall Nyisles, when introduced to fans, was also a failure, as was the team’s season. The franchise was in the basement. The NHL refused to let the team revert to the old logo because of the effect it would have on retailers who had the merchandise stocked, so the Islanders kept it for a second season. The change ended up boosting sales of team jerseys.
John Spano bought the team from Pickett in 1997. Spano was found to be worth far less than the $230 million he claimed, however, and Howard Milstein and Steven Gluckstern bought the franchise. They traded many fan favorites, including Todd Bertuzzi, Bryan McCabe, Trevor Linden, Ziggy Palffy, Bryan Berard, and Rich Pilon. With these losses, the team averaged just 62 points a year under Milstein and Gluckstern.
The franchise dropped Nyisles in 2000 and introduced a new mascot, Sparky the Dragon.
Charles Wang bought the Islanders in 2000, serving as majority owner until he became a minority co-owner in 2016. He joined the franchise with the goals of keeping the team afloat and at least in the vicinity of Long Island. In 2004 he proposed a $3.8-billion project including a new arena, a new stadium, restaurants, retail space, and more than two thousand housing units. Local officials balked, and in 2011 voters rejected a plan to fund a Coliseum revitalization plan. Finally, in 2012, Wang gave up and moved the franchise to the Barclays Center.
Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky bought the team in 2014. They moved it back to Long Island and hired Barry Trotz and Lou Lamoriello as coach and general manager. Lamoriello brought Robin Lehner, Matt Martin, and other role players. The team showed tremendous improvement. Whereas the 2013–2014 season ended with 34 wins and 37 losses, the team went 47–28 in the 2014–2015 season. In 2019, the Islanders finished second of eight. The team made it to the playoffs, winning the first round 4–0 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Islanders fell to the Carolina Hurricanes (4–0) in the second round.
The franchise was expected to get its own arena in 2021. The team broke ground on the new Belmont Park facility in 2019. The Long Island location was to include the hockey rink as well as retail space and a new train station, all of which was being built on state-owned land. The new arena was to seat 19,000 fans.
Notable players
As head coach for twenty full or partial seasons, Al Arbour amassed a franchise record 740 wins. A former player who won the Stanley Cup four times during the 1950s and 1960s, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1996.
As of March 2020, when the season was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, Bossy was the all-time goals leader. He also held the record for most goals in a season with 69 and most points in a season with 147. The all-time points’ leader was Trottier, with 1,353. Bossy, Trottier, Smith, Potvin, and Gillies were all inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The Islanders retired the numbers of the five major players of the early 1980s Stanley Cup Championship seasons: Potvin (5), Gillies (9), Trottier (19), Bossy (22), and Smith (31). Bob Nystrom’s 23 was also retired. He was best known for his 1980 Stanley Cup title-winning goal at the 7:11 mark of overtime.
Former general manager Bill Torrey, who built the team that swept the playoffs in the early 1980s, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1995. Former center Pat LaFontaine, who had 468 career goals, was inducted in 2003.
Bibliography
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Kreiser, John. “Hall of Fame Coach Al Arbour Dies at 82.” NHL, 28 Aug. 2015, www.nhl.com/news/hall-of-fame-coach-al-arbour-dies-at-82/c-777814. Accessed 25 Mar. 2020.
McCarriston, Shanna. “Islanders Break Ground on New 19,000 Seat Arena in Belmont Park, Reveal What It Will Look Like.” CBS Sports, 24 Sept. 2019, www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/islanders-break-ground-on-new-19000-seat-arena-in-belmont-park-reveal-what-it-will-look-like/. Accessed 25 Mar. 2020.
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Schwartz, David M. “Charles B. Wang, Former Islanders Owner Dies, His Attorney Says.” Newsday, 22 Oct. 2018, www.newsday.com/long-island/computer-associates-charles-wang-1.22209693. Accessed 24 Mar. 2020.
Tucker, Reed. “Billy Joel, Mascot Threats: Inside Islanders’ Disastrous Fisherman Logo.” New York Post, 6 Dec. 2018, ERLINK "https://nypost.com/2018/12/06/inside-the-disaster-that-was-the-islanders-fisherman-logo/" nypost.com/2018/12/06/inside-the-disaster-that-was-the-islanders-fisherman-logo/. Accessed 24 Mar. 2020.