New York Islanders Arena Travel Times Aren’t Unique

We can’t stop hearing about how the distance between the New York Islanders practice facility in Nassau and their arena in Brooklyn is a problem. Turns out they aren’t the only ones with a big commute. Nor are they unique with their traffic issues.

The New York Islanders have to travel 28.9 miles between the Northwell Health Ice Center in Nassau and the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. As we already saw, this isn’t an issue unique to only the Islanders.

There are six teams in the league that have a 20+ mile commutes between the arena and the practice facility. The Arizona Coyotes have a 32.7-mile hike from the Coyotes Ice Den to the Gila River Arena.

But as some pointed out, simple distance doesn’t paint a full picture. And that’s true. There’s something to be said about commute times and traffic concerns. Traffic in Arizona isn’t the same as traffic in New York.

So what are the traffic impacts on the 31 teams in the league? Is it simply 30 miles is 30 miles no matter where you are. Or does traffic have a significant impact? And how do the Islanders compare?

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What I Looked At

Traffic was the main concern here. How did gridlock in various cities affect the time on the road? I used INRIX Global Traffic Scorecards to establish peak congestion. And then I just used Google Maps to determine travel time.

Peak congestion tells us just how congested a city is. Peak % measures the amount of time (in a percentage) that a person spends in traffic. So times will say how long someone takes to get from point A to point B. But Peak % can tell us just how terrible said drive might be.

*Indicates tolls. ex: non-toll routes/toll-routes

Note on times: The times indicated were all taken using Google Maps at 8 AM in their respective time zones. Thus accounting for morning rush hour traffic congestion.

The Islanders rank third in terms of pure time spent on the road. Note that the Rangers while having to travel a shorter distance have a similar commute time.

And while the Coyotes face fewer traffic congestions with an 11% peak rating from INRIX, they still face a significant commute time. And how about Toronto? Nine miles worth of travel and over half-an-hour of travel.

Not Just Data

Why did I pour over traffic data across North America? Because I’m getting tired of hearing that the New York Islanders travel to and from the arena is a problem unique to this team. It isn’t.

The Islanders Manhattan neighbors are in the exact same situation. They face similar distance with 27.6 miles from MSG to Tarrytown and the same traffic congestion rates with a 19% peak. Which is reflected in the travel times.

Then consider some of the teams that have been linked with Tavares: Toronto and Montréal. Toronto’s commute might be easier in terms of just the pure number of miles, but gridlock is a problem in Ontario’s capital with a 19%.

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The Islanders commute is long both in terms of time and distance. There’s no denying it. But there’s no denying that the Islanders aren’t the only team in the league with a similar setup. Not only do both New York teams face the same traffic woes, but a number of NHL cities around the league do.

We can’t stop hearing about how the distance between the New York Islanders practice facility in Nassau and their arena in Brooklyn is a problem. Turns out they aren’t the only ones with a big commute. Nor are they unique with their traffic issues.

What I Looked At

Not Just Data

Schedule