NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Friday downplayed any thought of the Islanders returning to Long Island because, in his view, Nassau County's track record of trying to upgrade Nassau Coliseum is "terrible."
"Based on what I've seen and what Charles Wang's efforts have been for the last decade, I'm not sure it's fair to give the fans -- even the people who live in Nassau County -- any hope that something's coming next," Bettman said. "Lots of possibilities have been thrown out about an arena for the last decade and none of them have materialized."
Bettman's comments, to Associated Press Sports Editors, come as developer Bruce Ratner targets August for breaking ground on a $260-million renovation of the Coliseum and the surrounding property.