Ready or not, here come the Islanders

Construction Continues as Team Hits Ice for Annual Scrimmage

July 9, 2015 By John Torenli, Sports Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Top Islanders prospects took to the ice at the Barclays Center on Wednesday evening as our borough’s NHL franchise continued to break in its new Downtown digs. AP Photo

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It doesn’t have the creature comforts of a home arena just yet, but the New York Islanders are getting used to their Downtown digs in advance of what will be an historic first season in our fair borough.

“It was a pretty surreal experience,” said 2014 first-round pick Joshua Ho-Sang after notching three assists Wednesday evening to help Team Blue knock off Team White, 5-3, in the team’s annual scrimmage for top prospects, played for the first time ever at the Barclays Center.

“It was my first time here in front of the fans,” added Ho-Sang, who showed off his fancy stick work in front of a hearty crowd of 6,311 in the NHL franchise’s new place of business.

“It was pretty awesome.”

Not so awesome just yet are the Islanders’ personal facilities at the building that already houses the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets.

The still-under-construction locker room and workout areas were noticeably incomplete, but the Islanders don’t host their first preseason contest here until Sept. 21 against Philadelphia, and won’t play their initial regular-season game in Brooklyn until Oct. 9 against the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks.

“It’s home now,” insisted Ryan Pulock, a 2013 first-round pick who has already skated on Brooklyn ice three times since joining the organization.

“Everyone here is trying to make this home one day. It’s been fun,” he added. “It’s a pretty great facility. It was good to see the support that came out today, so it’s always fun playing here.”

Last year was doubtlessly a difficult one for Islanders players, as they had to pay tribute to an outdated arena the franchise had called home since its inception in 1972, while also building excitement for the move to Brooklyn.

Though they reached the playoffs for the second time in three seasons, the Islanders remained without a postseason series victory since 1993 after falling to the Washington Capitals in seven tough games.

The end of an era on Long Island has finally arrived.

And now, the Islanders can firmly focus on making Brooklyn their home for the foreseeable future, as per terms of their “iron-clad” 25-year agreement with the state-of-the-art arena.

“It’s unreal,” Ho-Sang said on the team’s web site. “It’s an unbelievable building. It’s definitely a little bit of an upgrade from the old one in terms of the stands and lighting.”

“It’s amazing,” added Michael Dal Colle, another first-rounder from the 2014 draft. “It’s a very unique building and it was a great turnout tonight and definitely a fun atmosphere. It feels like the crowd is right on top of you.”

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The Nets made some news of their own at the Barclays Center Thursday morning, officially announcing the free-agent signings of four of their players, including former All-Star center Brook Lopez and power forward Thaddeus Young.

“We are very pleased to welcome Brook and Thaddeus back the Brooklyn Nets,” said general manager Billy King after committing a reported $110 million to the inside tandem over the next several seasons.

“Brook is one of the premier big men in this league, while Thad proved to be a perfect complement to Brook last year after he was acquired from Minnesota,” added King, noting how both were instrumental in guiding Brooklyn to its third consecutive playoff berth. “Being able to re-sign both of our free agent targets allows us to provide the continuity in our frontcourt that we were looking for going into the upcoming season.”

King also confirmed that the Nets have inked former Knicks guard Shane Larkin and forward Thomas Robinson to multi-year deals, though terms of those pacts were not revealed.

“We are excited to add both Thomas and Shane to our roster,” said King. “Thomas is an aggressive rebounder who will add a physical presence to our frontcourt, while Shane provides athleticism at the point. Both are good young players who reaffirm our commitment to add youth to our roster for the 2015-16 campaign.”

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Not to be left out, the Brooklyn Cyclones, our borough’s only in-season pro franchise, continued their early season roll Wednesday night,

David Thompson went 4-for-5 with an RBI and Michael Bernal added three hits while scoring twice for the Baby Bums as they held off Hudson Valley, 5-3, in front of 4,620 fans at Dutchess Stadium.

Brooklyn starter Gaby Almonte (2-1) picked up the win by yielding one earned run over 5 1/3 innings before the dominant Cyclones bullpen smothered the Renegades’ lineup over the final 3 2/3 frames.

The Cyclones (13-5) have won four in a row and are 6-1 in July, helping them open a 2 ½-game lead over second-place Staten Island in the McNamara Division standings.

Brooklyn is also tied with Pinckney Division-leading Williamsport for the best overall record in the New York-Penn League.

The Cyclones will be back in Brooklyn on Sunday to kick off a three-game series against visiting Aberdeen at Coney Island’s MCU Park.