The first chants tumbled from the upper levels of UBS Arena a good 15 minutes before the puck dropped. There are plenty of places inside the Islanders’ palatial home where the patrons can find fine beverages and splendid food. But, then, if they wanted to be “patrons” they would go to a golf tournament and politely clap their hands.
They were here Wednesday night for a hockey game, the first truly essential game in the history of UBS Arena, a win-and-you’re-in special, and so they traded in their patrons’ ID badges and morphed into full-throated, red-blooded, old-school “fans.” They would be damned if the NHL playoffs were going to begin without the lads in blue.
“LET’S GO ISLANDERS!”
“LET’S GO ISLANDERS!!”
“LET’S GO ISLANDERS!!!”
“The fans knew what was at stake,” Brock Nelson said, maybe five minutes after the final horn had made it official, a 4-2 Islanders taming of the Canadiens that secured them the last of the 16 spots in the Stanley Cup tournament. “We needed that energy.”
Nelson, of course, was also a useful part of the script. It was Nelson who snuck the first puck past Montreal goalie Sam Montembeault 10 minutes and 26 seconds into the game, which served as a necessary defibrillator for the 17,113 scattered about the rink who were sitting on pins and needles when they weren’t screaming themselves hoarse.
Then, 10:20 into the second period, Nelson added a second goal, the one that proved to be the winner, pushing the lead to 3-1 and bringing a spasm of thunder that formally and officially christened their new home. They had to grind through the final 30 minutes against Montreal, because if there is one law in hockey it is this: If a team suits up, they’re going to get after it, and come after you, regardless of what their record is.
The Penguins had learned that lesson the hard way 24 hours earlier, when they allowed the Blackhawks to walk into their arena having lost three in a row and nine out of 10 and walk out with a win. That had been the lifeline the Islanders — who’d suffered their own egregious no-show in Washington on Monday — desperately needed.
They knew they had to deliver a top-shelf effort against Montreal. And the fans, sensing blood, tasting the playoffs, weren’t going to allow anything else.
“WE WANT THE PLAYOFFS!”
“WE WANT THE PLAYOFFS!!”
“WE WANT THE PLAYOFFS!!!”
“We’re looking forward to hearing them in the playoffs,” said Anders Lee, the captain, whose power-play goal with four minutes left in the game finally put it away. “They really brought it, they were really huge. It’s tough to play in a building like that. They brought the noise.”
Said coach Lane Lambert: “We feed off that.”
So, for the first time, New Fort Neverlose rose from its new foundation 15 miles west of the old one. The Isles had suffered through an 82-game study in aggravation last year, playing their first 13 games on the road as UBS was being completed, and they could never overcome a 5-10-5 start. This time around, they seemed like a shoo-in for the playoffs a week ago. And then they weren’t.
“You go from the dumps [in Washington] to watching the Blackhawks win that game and give us some life,” Zach Parise said. “But we still had to come here and win a game.”
They won the game. They join the Rangers and the Devils in the playoffs, and if you’d care to add the Knicks and the Nets, it’s the first time since 1994 when all five of New York’s winter teams have qualified for the same playoff season. After an extended season of multi-sport ineptitude, there is a little something for everyone around town.
There was plenty for Islanders fans Wednesday night. They arrived early. They enjoyed the hell out of themselves for 2 ½ hours. They crowded the corridors on the way out, loitering, lingering, not wanting to go home yet. As a fan, you eat a lot of mud in a lot of years. You get a night like Wednesday, you want to savor it. You want to relish it. They stuck around for a few more choruses.
“LET’S GO ISLANDERS!”
“LET’S GO ISLANDERS!!”
“LET’s GO ISLANDERS!!!”
“I’m looking forward to them carrying it over to the playoffs,” Parise said.
They’ll be here. They’ll be ready. The New Fort Neverlose will be fortified for the Bruins or the Hurricanes, knowing the odds will be long and the opponent fierce. Never bothered them before at the Old Barn. No reason it should start now.