New Isles Majority Owner, Jon Ledecky, Spoke With The Media About Brooklyn, Direction Of The Team
As new ownership of the Isles took control on July 1st, with it came numerous questions of just where the team is heading. Be it the on ice product, the financial backing, or the location of the team down the road, fans had questions, and lucky for us, new majority owner Jon Ledecky had answers.
With the Charles Wang era officially over, the new face(s) of Isles brass are Scott Malkin [no relation to that Russian guy in Pittsburgh] and Jon Ledecky. Malkin has the money and Ledecky is the brains [with money as well, but not as much]. And earlier today Ledecky met with the media to put an end to some of the more important questions that have come up over the recent months.
On the topic of Brooklyn and the Islanders long-term relationship with the Barclays Center, something everyone has been putting to question over the last few months, Ledecky specifically stated that the team is committed to Brooklyn as their home for the long run.
Some of the hotter takes on IslesTwitter is the idea that the Isles would somehow make it back to the Coliseum in the near future, and rationally speaking, that was never the case. As passionate as Long Islanders (myself included) are about the team, in today’s day and age, the market just isn’t big enough to compete. Especially when the goldmine that is New York City, and more specifically Brooklyn, is right next door. Finding a way to make it work in Brooklyn is far more beneficial than staying on Long Island ever was, that’s just the reality of it all.
Leaning more towards the on ice product, Ledecky spoke on what kind of financial support Garth will receive from the new owners going forward.
This is, obviously, huge news for Isles fans. As for the last couple of years it has become blatant that Garth was working under some sort of financial constraints while answering to Wang. With Wang even confirming it during his exit interview with the media.
The shackles are finally off and Garth has full access to the piggy bank. And if you ask me [!!!hot take alert!!!] there’s a chance the Ladd deal doesn’t get done if Wang is still in charge, just too much money to throw at something that Wang and that elite hockey mind isn’t sold on. You can say the contract Vanek turned down is proof Wang could spend, but I feel his willingness to spend that type of money came from seeing him produce alongside Tavares before offering that money. As opposed to Ladd’s case where the money is being spent before pairing him with JT.
With Ledecky holding a Town Hall meeting for season ticket holders tomorrow I’m sure even more questions will be answered as we officially find ourselves in the dog days of the offseason but as always, your favorite GIF nerd will keep you updated.