The Barclays Center in Brooklyn is expected to discontinue its relationship with the New York Islanders according to reports from Bloomberg’s Scott Soshnick. The team has played in the arena for two seasons now.
The report from Soshnick on Bloomberg.com:
Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, who owns the building and the Nets, has since November been seeking an investor to take a stake in both. As of earlier this month, a financial projection shared with potential investors showed the Islanders won’t contribute any revenue after the 2018-19 season — a clear signal that the team won’t play there, the people said.
According to Soshnick, the arena would make more money without the NHL and just being the home of the Brooklyn Nets, as well as hosting concerts.
If the Islanders terminate the relationship, they would have to find a new home by next season, but if the Barclays Center decides they are done, the Islanders would have to find a new home by the 2018-19 season, giving them close to two years to find a new arena. The latter scenario is more likely to happen.
The Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum was the home of the Islanders for nearly 43 years (1972-2015), before they left to play at the brand new Barclays Center in Brooklyn. While there have been rumors tat the team could once again return to Long Island and the Nassau Coliseum, Mikhail Prokhorov, who owns the Barclays Center, also now owns the Coliseum, making a reunion unlikely.
Even with their stadium of the future in question, the Islanders are said to be committed to New York. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman put any relocation rumors to rest during his news conference during All Star weekend.
The comments from Bettman courtesy of newsday.com:
“They’re committed to the franchise, they’re committed to New York and the great fan base that has followed the Islanders,” Bettman said, referring to Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky, who are in their first season as principal owners after having completed the sale from Charles Wang.
Being the number two team in New York has hurt the Islanders, and has always led to rumors of relocation to a better market and situation for the team. While there are multiple cities who would pay for a team (Quebec, Seattle, etc.) Bettman seems to believe the Islanders can succeed in New York.
