The New York Islanders will face the newest NHL franchise, Utah Hockey Club, on Thursday in their season opener. The roster is mostly the same as last season’s Arizona Coyotes, but they are beginning a new era of hockey in Utah.
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The game will be held at UBS Arena (opened in 2021), the type of setting Arizona needed but never had in their time in the desert. It’s not a perfect arena, considering the traffic and commutes to and from the games, but it’s a state-of-the-art facility and a sign that the Islanders are here to stay on Long Island. Not long ago, the team was in a similar boat to Utah, which shows how important ownership is in building a team’s long-term success.
Islanders’ Previous Arena Issues
The Islanders are a historic and iconic NHL franchise. They were part of the 1970s expansion era and built one of the greatest dynasties in league history, winning four-consecutive Stanley Cup titles, the last being in 1983. The fanbase has always been loyal, showing support through the tough times, even as the generation that witnessed the last title starts to dwindle.
The team’s biggest problem after their winning era was the arena. While Nassau Coliseum was loved by fans and goes hand-in-hand with the team’s former success, the place was outdated. The Islanders needed a new arena and, like any team, they needed to work with Nassau County and the government to make it happen. The county rejected municipal bonds in the early 2000s, and locals didn’t want an arena in their neighborhood (ultimately, the Islanders built UBS Arena in Elmont, which is surrounded by a residential area which made the approval a contested one).
The team was also struggling and wasn’t competitive, which made relocation an intriguing option for the ownership group. It might seem crazy to picture the Islanders somewhere else, but they had offers from other cities.
Alex Meruelo Lets Arizona Fanbase Down
Hockey should have stayed in the desert. The Coyotes didn’t have a longstanding history in Arizona, yet they had a strong fanbase that was waiting for a competitive team and a new arena, just like many teams. The problem is their owner was looking to cut corners and couldn’t convince the public that an arena would help the city.
The first warning sign with owner Alex Meruelo was the Gila River Arena lockout in 2021. He missed payments to the city of Glendale, and while the team stayed for the rest of the 2021-22 season, they found a new arena to play in that offseason. Mullett Arena was a college-sized venue with minimal seating. It was a good temporary move, but it wasn’t going to work in the long run. Meruelo needed a plan beyond Mullett Arena and it made the Tempe arena proposal in the 2023 offseason, one that would build an NHL-caliber arena in the area, pivotal.
On paper, the plan would benefit both the city and the Coyotes. The problem was that the public wasn’t convinced Meruelo would do his part if they supported the proposal. It was rejected and suddenly, relocation became an option, especially once the league was intrigued by Ryan Smith and his vision for a team in Utah. Smith came into the public eye in January, 2024 and there were reports that he reached out to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman with a plan to not only bring a team to his home state but also a plan for making the area one where hockey would thrive.
By the end of the 2023-24 season, it was announced that the Coyotes were officially moving to Utah. Meruelo is not solely at fault, but he failed to put the finishing touches on an arena plan that would keep the team in Arizona – even after they bought time with a brief stay at Mullett Arena.
Islanders Ownership Take Their Medicine for a Few Seasons
For the Islanders, finding a new arena was always the priority.
In 2013, the Islanders moved to Barclays Center in Brooklyn, where they played home games until the 2020-21 season. Like Delta Center, the home venue for the Utah Hockey Club, the setting was built for basketball and far from ideal for hockey viewing. There were obstructed seats and one side of the rink didn’t have fans behind the glass (instead, there was a car, yes a car, behind the glass). However, they needed a temporary home while they mapped out their future.
The Islanders fittingly returned to Nassau Coliseum before moving into UBS Arena. The historic site saw one last deep playoff run with fans in the stands just as COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. Anthony Beauvillier closed out the Coliseum with his overtime goal in front of a raucous crowd that was a flashback to the glory days. By the time the team was eliminated in Game 7 of the 2021 Eastern Conference Final by the Tampa Bay Lightning, the new arena was ready for them.
UBS Arena is an ideal venue for the players to call home and for fans to watch games. It was their reward for powering through the tough times and having an ownership group that was committed to their success.
Why Utah Is Different
The opening-night game for Utah showed that there is a buzz about this team that never existed in Arizona. The team is not that different, but the young skaters are better and they’ve added veteran talent. They defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2. The optimism comes from the leadership which starts at the top.
Ryan Smith is committed to the fanbase and looking to put the team and the state of Utah on the map. He’s already proved he’s willing to spend where Meruelo didn’t and make this team look good both on and off the ice. Based on the money and planning he’s put into the team, it’s a matter of when, not if, the team will have an arena fit for hockey – plans are already in place for significant renovations to Delta Center.
Great ownership groups don’t cut corners. They buy into their team and their fanbase. The Islanders know it well. Ownership makes a big difference when it comes to an organization’s culture. Players want to stay with a team that has stability at the top and, hopefully, Utah now has that.
