Where will New York Islanders play after getting kicked out of Barclays Center?
By Josh Hill
So the New York Islanders are getting evicted from the Barclays Center — now what?
The NHL is still trying to make a name for itself as a top-tier sports league in America. Strides have been made over the last few years but the sport is still largely considered to be niche — albeit a massive niche.
No matter how powerful hockey is with fans who already love the sport, it’s attracting a new audience that has long been a stunt in growth. No better proof of this has been seen than on Monday, when the New York Islanders were basically evicted from the Barclays Center.
Basically is accurate. The team isn’t out on the streets or without a home. According to Bloomberg, the team will play out the remainder of this current season at the arena but the future beyond that is up in the air.
There are two ways this could break, the first being a little more stressful than the other. If the Isles opt to cancel their lease agreement with Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov — who owns the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets as well as the Barclays Center — then they will be able to play elsewhere starting next year.
If arena management nixes the lease agreement, then the team is obligated to play in Brooklyn through the 2018-19 season. Either way, the Islanders are projected to contribute zero revenue to Barclays after 2019, and they’re going to play elsewhere before then.
The question is where.
This isn’t a situation where the Barclays Center was a temporary home, at least not a short term one. The Isles have long talked about building a hockey-first stadium somewhere in New York but nothing has ever been agreed upon. Earlier last year there was talk about a stadium in Queens, to go with Citi Field, but that’s just more talk and no actual action.
One thing the Isles won’t be doing is returning to Nassau County and Long Island. The team has dedicated itself to playing in the immediate New York City vicinity, which means a temporary home in one of the Burroughs before a stadium is built.
We’re in uncharted territory though. Usually when a team wants a new stadium they use the leverage of relocation. The Isles are essentially doing things backwards, as they want a new stadium but have nowhere to play in the meantime. Relocation, as unwanted as that is when talking about a New York franchise, has to be on the table. It’s unfathomable, but if Hartford or Quebec wants to pony up for an NHL-first stadium, now is the time.
Related Story: Each NHL Team's Biggest What If Moment
The most likely outcome here is the Barclays Center does the Isles a solid and buys them two years to figure things out. That’s a massive assumption but it’s probably for the best. The NHL needs to broker the best case scenario out of this if they want to keep the Isles in not only Brooklyn, but New York.