The Islanders know exactly where the conversation starts this season: UBS Arena.
If they want to be in the playoff mix when the schedule runs out, they need to turn home ice into something opponents dread. That means more pressure, more pucks in the offensive zone and, above all, a rink where points are hard to come by for anyone else.
Captain Bo Horvat made the point plainly before Saturday night’s home opener against the Devils.
“For sure,” Horvat told Newsday. “Having that last change and that home-ice advantage throughout the year is such an important thing for us.
If we can get off to a good start at home and be tough to play against in our own rink it’s going to make teams hate to want to come here. I think we have to establish that early in the year.”
That’s been the missing piece too often. The Islanders went 22-17-2 at home last season, a solid record on paper but not nearly enough to push them into the postseason for a second straight year. That slide cost coach Patrick Roy his job, with Pete DeBoer taking over for the final four games.
DeBoer has already laid out his “non-negotiable” standards - short shifts, sticking up for teammates, and the rest of the details that shape a team’s identity. Asked before the opener whether being a tough team to face at UBS Arena belonged on that list, he didn’t hesitate.
“Yeah, well, that’s a huge piece of what we’re doing,” DeBoer said. “We want to be a hard team to play against both home and road.
But I don’t think it’s any secret if you’re going to be a playoff team, you have to be a good home team. There’s very few teams that get in that don’t establish a home-ice presence.
This should be a hard place to play. I think, historically, it always has been.
We want to make sure we establish that.”
The numbers back up the urgency. The Islanders’ five-season home record at UBS Arena is 107-73-25, a .583 points percentage - respectable, but not the kind of home mark that usually locks down a playoff berth. In the NHL, teams generally need to live at .600 or better to feel safe about their postseason chances.
The Islanders have only reached that level twice since their last playoff series win in 2021, when Nassau Coliseum was still their home. They were 25-13-3 at home in 2022-23, then 21-10-10 the next season at UBS Arena, marks that translated to .646 and .634 points percentages.
That’s the standard they have to chase again.
“It’s play hard within our system, the net front, the battles that are 50-50,” Jean-Gabriel Pageau told Newsday. “You want to come out of it with [the puck].
You don’t want to let them run around in your zone and extend the shift to two minutes. We want to end plays quick.
We want to be quick in our defensive zone and I think that’s key.”
The defensive side is only half the equation, though. Better exits and more time spent up ice should bring more scoring chances, and the Islanders need those badly after finishing 24th in the league in goals last season at 2.8 per game.
They opened this year with a 2-1 loss in Toronto on Wednesday night, getting their lone goal from Emil Heineman late in the third period off a feed from Horvat while shorthanded. That was not enough, and neither was the power play, which went 0-for-4 and managed only two shots.
Horvat said the team was sharper defensively than it had been in a 4-1 preseason loss to the Devils at UBS Arena on Sept. 26, but there was still too much missing where it counts.
“I thought we did a lot better job defending, for sure, than our last preseason game,” Horvat said. “But I think we can sustain a lot more offensive-zone pressure. Once we got on the forecheck and turned pucks over, that’s our game and I didn’t think we did enough of that.”
DeBoer wants the same thing in his own language.
“We want to tilt the ice when we play. You can’t do that playing on your heels or backing up.”
That is the formula the Islanders are chasing: defend well, spend more time in the offensive zone, score more often, and make UBS Arena a place that works in their favor. If they can do that, the wins at home should follow.
In Other News...
Islanders Bring Back A Beloved Home Opener Moment Fans Will Remember
The Islanders are set to open their home schedule with a familiar and heartwarming face in the spotlight. Dominick Critelli, a 105-year-old World War II veteran and decorated Army staff sergeant, will return to UBS Arena to perform the national anthem before the game against the Devils, bringing back the kind of pregame moment that tends to linger with a crowd long after the puck drops.
Critelli already left a mark on Islanders fans once, when he played the anthem on his saxophone before a game last December and drew a memorable reaction inside the building. He still practices the instrument every day, and this latest appearance gives the home opener a personal touch that fits the kind of connection the Islanders have tried to build with their fans at Nassau Countys successor in Elmont. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders New-Look Lineup Just Delivered A Much-Needed Boost
The Islanders got the kind of response they were looking for in their home opener, rolling past the Devils 6-0 and giving a new-look lineup an immediate lift. Simon Holmstrom, Brayden Schenn, Bo Horvat, Victor Eklund, Ondrej Palat and Casey Cizikas all found the net, a balanced scoring outburst that suggested there may be more depth here than the early chatter around the roster change. It was the sort of start that can settle a building quickly and give a team some much-needed confidence.
Ilya Sorokin made sure the result never got away from New York, turning away New Jersey chances while the Islanders kept adding to the lead. The Devils had looks on the power play, but nothing they tried broke through, and the night ended with the kind of all-around performance the Islanders have been searching for as they try to make this reshaped group feel a little more settled. There was also a milestone baked into the win that fit the mood perfectly, even if it almost got lost in the scoring parade. [Read more 🡒]
Islanders Fans Just Got An Emotional Reminder Of A Beloved Voice
Howie Rose has been part of New York sports for so long that his voice feels tied to the seasons themselves, and recent days brought one of those quiet reminders of just how much he has meant to the Islanders community. After recently calling the final Mets game of his broadcasting career, Rose is preparing to move with his wife to Florida on Monday, closing another major chapter in a New York run that stretched across generations of fans.
The Islanders recognized Rose for his long run behind the microphone, and several former and current players and colleagues took the chance to reflect on the way he covered the team and connected with people around it. For a fan base that grew up hearing him on television, the moment carried a familiar mix of gratitude and sadness, the kind that comes when a beloved voice is still very much present but about to become part of memory. [Read more 🡒]