Islanders and Mets fans know what strong ownership can do for club

New York Mets fans who also happen to be New York Islanders fans know the positives that new ownership can to for the club.

The New York Mets new owner Steve Cohen and Team President Sandy Alderson officially spoke to the fans from their new positions for the first time today. And Mets fans are jubilant. Not every New York Islanders fan is also a Mets fan but based on how my Twitter timeline exploded with joy during Cohen’s presser, there’s a significant crossover between the Isles and Mets fanbases.

And while I’m sure most Mets fans are simply delighted that the Wilpons are gone from their position of power at the helm of their team, those who also cheer for the Isles are also likely buoyed by how strong ownership has brought success back to the New York Islanders.

New Man Up Top

The Islanders were officially sold to John Ledecky and Scott Malkin from long-time owner Charles Wang in September of 2014. The two didn’t officially become majority owners for another two years.

Now, before I go forward I want to make sure it’s clear that the Wilpons and Wang are not one and the same. The comparison I want to draw here is on how new owners with deeper pockets, who have the ability – and in the case of Cohen v. the Wilpons, the desire – to invest in the club can make a world of difference.

Wang deserves a lot of credit for keeping the Islanders in New York even when it became increasingly difficult to do so. That should never be forgotten. But he wasn’t able to invest in the team like he would have wanted to.

With Ledecky and Malkin at the helm, the Islanders have been able to upgrade their practice center to a state of the art facility. They’ve invested in their playing staff with competitive contracts to their important players. They’ve been able to bring in a Hall of Fame leader in Lou Lamoriello who was in turn able to bring in the best coach available and pay him accordingly.

Not to mention they’ve been able to secure a new arena that is well on its way to being complete.

More importantly, the Islanders have become one of the better teams in the NHL. Over the last two seasons, they hold an 83-50-17. That ranks the Isles as the seventh-best team in the league.

New ownership can certainly breathe success into the club if they invest in the club. Based on everything fans have heard so far from the Cohen regime, investments will start pouring in both on the field and off it. So for Islanders/Mets fans who’ve seen what happens when ownership invests as Ledecky and Malkin have done with the Isles, they’re rightfully excited about the future for their baseball team.