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Exclusive: Fifty Years of NY Islanders Hockey with Legendary Photographer Bruce Bennett

By Michael Stahurski |
New York Rangers v New York Islanders
New York Rangers v New York Islanders / Bruce Bennett/GettyImages
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If the walls of the homes of the NY Islanders could talk, the stories they would tell. Unfortunately, we will never know what they would say - however, the lens of long-time NHL photographer Bruce Bennett allows us to visualize the first 50 years of Islanders hockey.

In his nearly 50-year career, Bennett has captured some of hockey's most iconic images. Part of more than 40 Stanley Cup-deciding games, Bennett has seen it all while allowing us to see exactly what he sees perched up on his swiveling stool in the corner of the ice.

Bennett began photographing hockey back during the 1973-74 season. Attending a game in the Isles' third season at Nassau Coliseum, Bennett and his cousin snuck into the arena's photo box, where he would fire off as many shots as possible. He would send his photo's to The Hockey News in Montreal hoping they would purchase some of his work. From there, his career began to take flight.

"They got me a press pass the following season," says Bennett in an exclusive interview with Eyes On Isles. "From that point forward, I'm shooting hockey pictures for a living."

Born in Brooklyn and raised on Long Island, Bennett began his professional career during the 74-75 season, with his work appearing in The Hockey News, Action Sports Hockey, and Hockey Digest.

In 1982, the Islanders were looking to make a change in team photographers. Earning an interview with the team, Bennett was worried he would be passed on by the new head of public relations but seemed to have left an impression with a significant figure within the organization.

"I said to him, 'where did you get my name?' and he said, 'Bill Torrey suggested I contact you,' and I was like, OK, that works!"

Bennett built a quick relationship with Torrey even though he feared his career with the Islanders would be short-lived after an early interaction with 'The Architect.'

2009 NHL Entry Draft, First Round
2009 NHL Entry Draft, First Round / Bruce Bennett/GettyImages

During Bennett's first season with the Isles, he prepared for the team's annual headshots. "I mean, I was new at doing all this stuff. I set up my lights and my umbrellas, and I had a small piece of background paper instead of a big roll, and instead of a big roll of gaffing tape, I had a gaffing tape tied around the paper not to waste much of it," said Bennett.

Fixing the background paper and tape between shots, Bennett's method seemed to be working up until his final subject.

"Sure enough, the last guy to come in is Bill Torrey. At that point, the gaffing tape gave way, and the background paper engulfed him," laughed Bennett. "I was very embarrassed, and he took it well. I didn't get fired, so it was a weird start, but it worked out in the long run."

Across almost fives decades in the NHL, Bennett has shot at every arena, including the three homes of the Islanders. Each building has its differences structurally and gives off a different aesthetic depending on where the shots are coming from.

Bennett has also been a team photographer for the NY Rangers, NJ Devils, and the Philadelphia Flyers over the years and says his favorite places to shoot are his "home" arenas.

"Being part of Getty Images, we get really good treatment from the teams because of our deal with the NHL. It's just kind of odd that my favorite arenas are where I shoot normally," says Bennett. "It just seems wherever I go around the NHL, you're just put into some really uncomfortable photo positions to shoot in. Dirty arenas, you know, older arenas where they don't clean as well. You know, I won't name any, but I don't know. Really my three home arenas, Islanders, Rangers, and Devils, that I'm in weekly are gold. I mean, I know how to get around in there comfortably."

For all involved in the NHL, whether a fan, player or employee, the COVID pandemic was a strange time to be in a hockey arena. A full and engaged arena is what creates the atmosphere that makes hockey unique. For Bennett, this was a new challenge, as the 40+ years prior, there were always fans in the stands.

New Jersey Devils v New York Islanders, Bruce Bennett/GettyImages
New Jersey Devils v New York Islanders, Bruce Bennett/GettyImages / Bruce Bennett/GettyImages

"Yeah, I guess photographers are a little like the players, we feed off the energy. In front of a packed house where the fans are going wild, photographers typically shoot more," says Bennett. "When the players get up for the game as they will when it's a full crowd rooting them on, there's just more to shoot. You lost that extra dimension fans bring, especially the rabid fans that get the players in the game. It's for them or against them."

As far as rabid fans go, on March 1, 2019, Bennett had a front-row seat as John Tavares returned to Nassau Coliseum after signing with his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs. In charge of capturing the moment, Bennett prepared himself for what would be one of the most anticipated moments for Isles fans in quite some time.

"In that game, there were a couple of things I tried to visualize in advance, especially when you're placing remote cameras," said Bennett. "For that, the image I wanted was him skating over the islander logo shooting straight down."

The first time Tavares stepped on the ice would be one of the most recognized moments of the night for Bennett, as he knew the fans were preparing to give a not-so-welcoming return to their former captain.

"Warmups, I had to make sure, of course, I was at the glass, and that was, you know, over the top," said Bennett. "I don't really know how to phrase it. Fans are fans, and they live for their team, and you can't play the sport without the fans."

Bennett has had his fair share of experiences within the unique moments in Islanders lore. He has captured nearly every memorable moment for the franchise since Nassau Coliseum opened its doors in 1972. One of his most memorable shots by Islanders standards would come off the ice.

Mike Bossy is arguably the greatest goal-scorer of all time. At .762 goals per game, Bossy has scored at the highest clip in NHL history. Bennett discovered a way to encapsulate Bossy's goal-scoring prowess into a single photo.

"You know you always wonder what it would be like to soak cotton balls in kerosine and staple it to the bottom of a hockey stick and light it on fire," said Bennett of his pyrotechnics within the confines of Nassau Coliseum. "What you do find out though, is that the fire alarms at Nassau Coliseum are very sensitive, so we did set off the fire alarm when we did that."

The photo would become the perfect metaphor for the style Bossy played with.

The beauty sports creates allows you to become caught up in the moment. As a fan, it's easy to stop what you are doing and admire what you're seeing. Bennett, with the best seat in the house, doesn't have the luxury of simply admiring. He's responsible for us enjoying that moment forever and those who come after us, experiencing it for the first time.

Three Islanders
Three Islanders / B Bennett/GettyImages

"I think back to like 1980 when the Islanders won their first Stanley Cup, and I've talked about this one before, but you kind of put yourself in a zone where you're blocking everything out," says Bennett. "That's the only way to survive on the ice and not get run over by players or get hit in the head with the Stanley Cup. You have to be aware of what's going on, but you have to kind of get in a zone where you have to get that shot. It's for your reputation, and it's for your clients and it's for your company, and all that."

For a franchise reaching the pinnacle for the first time, Bennett was in the midst of the fray running around the ice, firing off shots. From the on-ice celebrations to the locker room mayhem, Bennett brought the scenes to life.

"In 1980 I had gone into such a thing in my head to block out the incredible noise that was going on in that building, that I realized once I jumped over the saddle towards the locker rooms for the celebration stuff, I was like, I could not swallow, I could not hear. It was like I had turned off that sense," said Bennett following Bobby Nystrom's overtime winner in game six of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Flyers. "It was just so deafening in there my ears hurt afterward."

Now, in his 48th season photographing hockey, Bennett has encountered nearly every player in the NHL. Though he spends much time around the same group of players, he tries to remain out of sight to prevent clouding his professional judgment while shooting.

"I don't want anything to come into play when it comes to my editorial integrity," says Bennett. "I think players, for the most part, would understand that's your job. When I started, I was 18 years old. All the payers were older than me. I decided to be a professional in this. Carry yourself like a professional, and keep your distance. You don't want anybody there thinking you’re a fan and hanging out with the players and giving players free photos and stuff."

In 2004, Bennett sold his more than two million photo archive to Getty Images, with who he is now employed. In 2015, partnered with The Hockey News, Bennett published his first book, Hockey’s Greatest Photos: The Bruce Bennett Collection.

This hockey encyclopedia contains some of the sport's most memorable moments ever caught on camera. The cover photo, an image of hockey's most iconic player, is one of Bennett's most meaningful photos taken during his illustrious career.

"I guess it was really the photo that was on the cover of my book from maybe 2015 or so, and it was Wayne Gretzky as an 18-year-old in the locker room wearing shoulder pads and things from the 80s or prior, looking super young," says Bennett regarding the photo. "It was just a classic old black and white. When I look at that, I think I've been in this industry now my 48th year, and I think back to all the players I've seen through all the years, and I look back at photos like that, the old days of black and white photography and the grime and gritty feeling from that sort of thing."

Bennett has shown no signs of slowing down and is a mainstay at every Islanders home game. Though he enjoys shooting live-action, he also likes to tell the story off the ice.

"That's the sort of photography id like to get back to," says Bennett. "More of the behind the scenes and the atmosphere you can get to when your shooting available light and life behind the scenes."

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