The New York Islanders - Going the Way of the New York Americans?
EducationThe New York Islanders - Going the Way of the New York Americans?
For a brief moment in time they were the best hockey team the National Hockey League had to offer. The New York Islanders entered the NHL as an expansion team for the 1972-73 season and were Stanley Cup champions just seven years later. 1979-80 was the first in a string of four consecutive Stanley Cup victories for the Islanders. Now, they may be relocated soon if financial troubles don't cease.
As fast as they rose to prominence, they fell from glory. Between 1977-78 and 1983-84, the Islanders were Stanley Cup champions four times and conference champions six times. Some of the greatest hockey players played for the Islanders during this era, including Denis Potvin, Mike Bossy, Brian Trottier and Billy Smith.
The bottom fell out for the Islanders after the 1983-84 season. The last time the team has won the Stanley Cup was 1982-83, the last conference championship came in 1983-84 and the last division championship came in 1987-88.
Since 1988-89, the New York Islanders have made the playoffs just seven times in the 23 years. In that time they have won just two playoff series, both in 1992-93 when they lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the conference finals. The Islanders have not qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs in the past four years.
Of the six jersey numbers that the Islanders have retired, all of the six came from their Stanley Cup dynasty era. These players include Denis Potvin, Clark Gillies, Bryan Trottier, Mike Bossy, Bob Nystrom and Billy Smith. Of the top ten scorers in team history, only two did not play during the dynasty, Pat Lafontaine and Derek King.
All New York’s individual single season records were set during the dynasty era and have not been broken. Mike Bossy owns the team record for most goals with 69 in 1978-79 and also the record for most points in a season with 147 in 1981-82. Bryan Trottier set the current team record for assists in a season with 87 in 1978-79. Denis Potvin’s 101 points in 1978-79 is the team’s most by a defenseman and Bryan Trottier’s 95 points in 1975-76 is the team’s most by a rookie.
Is there hope for the Islanders in the future? The team’s hopes on Long Island hinge on a new arena. There has been talk of building a new arena in Queen’s, closer to the massive population. There is also talk of relocating the team right out of the New York City area, possibly to Quebec City.
The Islanders entry into the NHL for the 1972-73 season was a hasty strategy to keep the World Hockey Association’s New York franchise from playing at the new but vacant Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Subsequently the New York Raiders had to play out of Madison Square Garden and soon failed. There were two teams in New York City in the early days of the NHL also but only one could survive and the New York Americans went extinct. The Islanders served their purpose. Maybe their time to leave is long overdue.