The Islanders are deserving of your attention.
Starting Saturday back home at UBS Arena.
The Islanders deserve to play in front of a sell-out crowd for a matinee against the Blues, their first home game in 15 days.
Since then, the Islanders went 6-1-0 on a road trip that matched their longest of the season, bookending the trip with 5-0 wins against the Rangers on Nov. 8 and Thursday night in Detroit. It’s just the second time in team history they’ve won six games on a road trip.
“Yeah, I hope it’s rocking,” captain Anders Lee told Newsday. “I hope our fans have enjoyed watching the games on TV the last week and a half because we’ve been putting in some great efforts and getting rewarded for that. So it’ll be fun to get in front of our fans on Saturday.”
So far, the Islanders have only sold out their home opener on Oct. 11.
They also host the Kraken — now coached by former Islanders bench boss Lane Lambert — on Sunday but attracting a sell-out crowd for a 5 p.m. puck drop on a football Sunday in the middle of November might be a stretch.
Still, the Islanders are playing exciting hockey, spurred by rookie Matthew Schaefer, who, on many nights, is worth the price of admission by himself. The Red Wings were in first place when the Islanders ended the road trip with a dominant victory and performance by the new (at least for this moment) identity line of rookie Cal Ritchie centering rookie Max Shabanov and holdover Casey Cizikas. The Devils hadn’t lost at Prudential Center until the Islanders beat them 3-2 in overtime on Nov. 10.
The Stars are considered one of the Western Conference’s true Stanley Cup contenders, but the Islanders won 3-2 in Dallas on Tuesday. The Avalanche also are one of the West’s top Cup contenders with a 14-1-5 mark, but the Islanders played them even until two last-minute goals in a 4-1 loss on Sunday that actually was their best team effort of the trip.
So, yes, the Islanders deserve to be rewarded by their fans for how they’re playing. They are 8-2-1 since Oct. 31.
Newsday asked Bo Horvat point blank whether it would be an issue if Saturday was not a sellout.
“Yeah, I agree,” Horvat told Newsday. “We’re excited in here and we hope the fans are excited, too and we want them to show up. We want their support. It means a lot to us when we see the building full and, hopefully, we can get it full on Saturday and Sunday.”
So far, the Islanders have averaged 15,258 fans at the 17,255-seat UBS Arena through eight home games. But the Islanders are 4-3-1 at home and have played their better hockey on the road.
“Thankfully, we worked our way back into the Eastern time zone,” said Lee after the Islanders played in the Pacific time zone (Vegas), twice in the Mountain time zone (Utah, Colorado) and then the Central time zone (Dallas) before reaching Detroit. “Sometimes we fly home from out West and that first one back is tough. I know how guys are feeling, we’re going to have to find some juice a little bit and it’s a back-to-back. But I think we’re playing hockey right now that allows us to be successful when we’re not feeling our best.”
The Islanders hired Kelly Cheeseman, the former AEG Sports chief operating officer, as their new president of business operations and one of his main initiatives is to increase attendance at UBS Arena.
But a winning team is the best marketing device.
Again, in that regard, the Islanders are holding up their end of the bargain.
In some ways, it’s somewhat reminiscent of this past spring, when Mets owner Steve Cohen challenged that team’s fanbase to show up in droves at Citi Field after he spent $765 million to sign Juan Soto. The Mets attracted 3.2 million fans in 2025, approximately a 38% increase from the previous season despite a disappointing season as they missed the playoffs.
Islanders fans should be past the wait-and-see attitude about this season’s team. Until proven otherwise, the Islanders are for real and a fun watch.
“I feel like a road trip like this should bring energy to our team,” coach Patrick Roy said. “And I hope it’s going to bring energy also in the building and fans are going to be excited about coming to the game.”
Because the Islanders are deserving of your attention.
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.