Empire Writes Back
Fansided

New York Islanders: Isles win bid to build new arena in Belmont Park

By John Carroll Jr.

ELMONT, NY - JUNE 08: A Thoroghbred and Exercise Rider train prior to the 149th running of the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park on June 8, 2017 in Elmont, New York. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
ELMONT, NY - JUNE 08: A Thoroghbred and Exercise Rider train prior to the 149th running of the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park on June 8, 2017 in Elmont, New York. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The New York Islanders won the bid to build a new hockey arena in Belmont Park. The search for a new arena is over!

On Tuesday morning, it was announced that “Empire State Development” picked the New York Islanders’ bid to build on the land.

The new arena proposal not only includes a new 16,000 seat state of the art arena but other resorts such as a hotel, community centers, and retail.

Transportation will seemingly not be an issue either. The Long Island Rail Road stop in Belmont Park will reopen as well.

More from Empire Writes Back

The New York Islanders are coming home to Long Island.

New York CIty’s NYCFC was a soccer team vying for the land but he group went with the Isles. NYCFC currently plays at Yankee Stadium.

The Belmont news comes at a great time for the Islanders and their faithful.

The team is playing great but more importantly the Isles no longer have to play at Barclays Center.

Barclays Center is not awful and the Islanders are a great home team, but, the arena is not great for hockey and does not have the same ambiance or ice conditions as the Nassau Coliseum, the Isles’ previous home.

John Tavares has yet to re-sign a contract  to stay with the Islanders long-term but with the future stadium news cleared up, the Isles can officially make re-signing the captain a top priority.

A formal press conference is planned for Wednesday morning for more official details.

The news also comes at a good time because the deadlines for re-negotiating the lease at Barclays is coming up and the Islanders now have a set plan of their future.

Next: What is the key to Isles success?

The possibilities were not exactly endless for the Islanders but Belmont Park is the best option for the future of the team. It re-opens a whole market kind of to themselves.

The Islanders will remain in Barclays Center for next year and perhaps more.

But, the new arena at Belmont is coming.

It is a great time to be a fan of the Blue and Orange, they are coming “home.”

Home/New York Islanders