The Islanders yesterday announced a "series of initiatives designed to ease the transition and make everyone feel at home" in Brooklyn, according to Neil Best of NEWSDAY. Some "obvious ones" include "hanging the four Stanley Cup banners and retired jerseys in the Barclays Center rafters and retaining the team's logo, name and colors." But it also will feature "touches such as keeping public-address announcer Roger Luce, giving the Blue and Orange Army fan group a new home in Section 229" and naming former players Clark Gillies, Mike Bossy, Bobby Nystrom and Butch Goring franchise "ambassadors as part of a Legends Group." Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark said, "I use social media, and fans are very adamant and very crystal clear about what they're looking for as they continue to be fans of the Islanders as the team transitions to Brooklyn. ... We're taking that very seriously." He added, "We will probably introduce some kind of inaugural season patch to put on the jersey just to memorialize and celebrate the first season in Brooklyn. But outside of that, whatever uniforms they've seen on Long Island they'll see in Brooklyn as far as the primary home and away jerseys." Best notes so far, only full season tickets "have gone on sale to the public." Yormark said that based on early results, 25% of sales "have come from Nassau and Suffolk, second only" to the 33% from Brooklyn. Best notes the "vast majority" of that 25% are current season-ticket holders "who have renewed rather than new subscribers." Yormark declined to say how many tickets have been sold, but he said the figure is "substantially more" than the Islanders had sold at this stage either of the past two seasons (NEWSDAY, 6/3).
