Islanders name could’ve been totally different and rerouted another team's history

Yeah, when the New York Islanders were founded and set to start playing in 1972-73, there was some mystery of what they'd call themselves. A contingent of fans speculated the new ownership would call them the "Long Island Ducks," thanks to an Eastern Hockey League (EHL) team going by the same name at the time.

One that was ultimately in its twilight seasons, but had been playing on the Island since 1959. Naturally, that name seemed like a good fit, and it would've given the new franchise a familiar moniker. But, that didn't happen, and they became the New York Islanders.

Now, suppose they became the Long Island Ducks for one second. That would've thrown up a few question marks for a team that started play in 1993-94: The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

I highly doubt, had the Islanders taken the name Ducks, that the NHL would've allowed a team called the Mighty Ducks to join the NHL, even if they wore different uniforms and played in Southern California to avoid brand confusion.

Instead, the likeliest option would've been for the team we now know as the Anaheim Ducks to enter the league under another moniker.

The New York Islanders franchise could have changed the NHL's trajectory

Now, I'm racking my brains, trying to think of a good name for the Mighty Ducks if the Isles rolled with the name Ducks. I mean, the Lion King was releasing in June of 1994, but that probably wouldn't have worked either, thanks to the Los Angeles Kings, who'd called LA home for nearly three decades.

The Lions, maybe? Yeah, but then again, there was the NFL's Detroit Lions, who'd been around the Motor City since the 1930s.

You know, as I'm writing this, I cannot, for the life of me, remember which movie in the Disney Renaissance came out in 1993. Okay, I just looked it up - there wasn't one. It literally took until August of 2025 for me to realize that, but maybe the name Beasts (a nod to Beauty and the Beast) would've worked.

And now I got that old song of the same name by Nightwish stuck in my head. It's like their most underrated song ever.

Anyway, Beasts is an underrated name for a sports team. But if they didn't want to go with the Disney theme, then names like the Thunder, Surf, Waves, Vipers, or Dragons may've gotten some serious consideration here. I don't know; I just asked AI to give me some suggestions, and what you see above was the best it could do.

It also gave me Monarchs, but once again, that probably wouldn't have worked. So, of the names listed, I'd go with either Vipers or Dragons, with Dragons holding the slight edge because it starts with a 'D.

Either way, Beasts is my No. 1 pick. The Beasts of Anaheim would've struck fear and intimidation in opponents for sure. Coming up with a logo would've been the only tough part here, since Beasts can be very general. But still, I like the concept, as long as 20th Century Fox was cool with it, since The Sandlot was a 1993 film.

Still, I'm glad things turned out the way they did. As I said before, Islanders is one of my favorite names for a sports team, and did the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim have some cool uniforms once upon a time, or what? At least they somewhat went back to that look, even if orange and gold don't clash well.

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