The Islanders Almost Never Happened

Islanders alumni talk Clark Gillies, Anders Lee and Matthew Schaefer

The annual Clark Gillies Foundation Golf Invitational took place at two golf courses on Long Island

The Islanders Almost Never Happened

Today, the New York Islanders are forever linked with the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, where the franchise built one of the greatest dynasties in NHL history by winning four consecutive Stanley Cups during the early 1980s. However, Long Island’s hockey legacy almost unfolded very differently. Before the Islanders were even created, another professional hockey team was on the verge of making the Coliseum its home. When Nassau Coliseum opene…