The NHL has not yet released its schedule for 2021-22, but the Islanders already are certain of one thing: They will not open at home. And it is likely they will not play at home for several weeks.
To team president Lou Lamoriello, it is a small price to pay to buy enough time to get UBS Arena at Belmont Park completed and play a full home schedule there.
"I’m looking at this as a glass half-full," he said Tuesday on a season-ending conference call with reporters. "The excitement of being able to play all available home games, 41 of them, in front of our own fans, that motivates you to maybe get over any discomfort in what the road will be like.