Islanders will return to Nassau Coliseum for final season before UBS

New York Islanders fans got some good news, their team will be able to play at the Nassau Coliseum for their final season before heading to UBS Arena.

Nassau County reached an agreement with new leaseholder Nick Mastroianni II that will not only remove any rent obligations for Mastroianni until the summer but will also allow the New York Islanders to return to their traditional home on Long Island for their final season before making the move to UBS Arena in Elmont.

The news was reported by

Newday’s Jim Baumbach and Candice Ferrette

. According to Newsday, having the Islanders play out their final season at the Coliseum before the move to Elmont was a priority for Nassau County Executive Laura Curran.

When Will 2020-21 Start?

This agreement to use the Nassau Coliseum as the Islanders home base for 20-21 will stand even if fans aren’t allowed to attend games.

We still have no idea what the 20-21 season will look like. The league and NHLPA are having issues negotiating a return to play plan for this season. Both sides want to return to play as soon as possible, but there are economic issues that need to be sorted out.

The owners, facing increased losses, want the players to take extra cuts to their salaries for the 2020-21 season. Players believe that this issue was already negotiated when the last collective bargaining agreement was signed just this summer.

Hopefully, both sides can come to an agreement soon. The tentative start date of January 1st is approaching rapidly and every day that goes by without an agreement pushes back the possibility of being able to have a full training camp and start the season on time.

But, on a more positive note, Islanders fans won’t have to worry about where their team will play for 20-21. They will play at the Coliseum. Ideally, fans will be there to give the Coliseum the send-off it deserves after housing the team for the majority of their 48-year history.

This of course assumes that the NHL doesn’t take some sort of bubble or hub approach for the 20-21 season.