Ultimately everything sooner or later turns to games on the ice, and this is without a doubt a critical season for the current product on the ice with its management.
The historical factors with it being the final full season at the Nassau Coliseum also play a big peripheral part of 2014-15 for the fans.
The management/players have to worry about winning hockey games, nothing else.
The folks in Plainview have to act as a team, and tone down the LI mantra once and for all which also seemed defiant/unprofessional about welcoming Halak to Long Island when most of his contract has him at the Barclay's Center.
That's what happens next beyond Charles Wang's legal response ordered by a court in 20/30 days to Barroway's lawsuit which no doubt will be leaked by a newspaper.
Owners come/go everywhere, they will again with this franchise.
It's fair to say Charles Wang knew what he was doing, no one anywhere (myself included) felt anyone would come along with this amount of money to buy the club for the privilege of losing millions, and having their personal reputation ruined like all past/present team owners.
It's also not unreasonable to think the league helped him find a buyer(s).
Off The Ice:
Off the ice there are over a dozen things that have to be resolved, it may take even longer than two years but we can run through them here to get an overall blueprint.
Mr Barroway's agreement with Charles Wang give us many of the details below of what is likely to happen with whoever the next majority owner(s) will be.
1. The new owner(s) have to be approved. Who's to say that's on the board of governors agenda in December? That could take a full calendar year, and if Andew Barroway's pending litigation drags on who knows how long this stays off the NHL agenda until it is resolved?
That could take years pending appeals.
1A. If a court awards ownership of this team to Barroway at the hand-shake deal price he has to be approved by the board of governors instead. This is a man who helped another NHL team secure financing, and spent his own money, so he will not be seen as unfavorable by the board unless he decides to sue them.
2. All these men then have to get their financing in order, it might take them over two years to pay Charles Wang enough money to become majority owners.
2A. Gentlemen, meet Bruce Ratner, your new landlord at the Barclay's Center. The people not speaking about anything right now as Mr Ratner is selling his ownership stake in the Nets to someone.
(could that be new Islander minority/majority owner one with past Wizards basketball ownership ties?)
This would mean the iron-clad lease is no longer iron-clad and as breakable as the one in Atlanta.
2B. Do new owners want two NHL home arena's with Coliseum home games as Mr Ratner promised? (pending unlikely Dolan/NHL approval)
Yes, some of the those same people who have stayed home since 1989 who made it very easy for politicians to say no to any owner with any plan now think boycotting the team at Barclay's will drive them back into a downsized whatever/Coliseum in 2017 to again play before less than 10,000 for almost every game beyond opening night.
Good luck with that fiction.
I suspect the NHL is done with Nassau County forever so congratulate the politicians for making all of this possible, and those who were so dedicated to staying home.
2C. The Bridgeport 2021 lease/Wang's ownership/management of Webster Bank Arena.
2D Do these owners want an AHL team at all much less at the Nassau Coliseum?
2E. Wang's promises on name/logo/branding all are the decisions of the next owner sooner or later.
2F. Dolan/Msg total control of all television/Newsday content with no full time media elsewhere, and the NY Post ownership stake in Msg also creating perception from afar because they will not spend to hire a full time professional writer covering games.
I guess Forbes can hire a full time beatwriter now that their own board member proved Michael Ozanian's guesswork on the value of teams (especially the New York Islanders) is a total scam.
Ozanian for years made this big display of downplaying Islander financial losses because of the television contract he never referenced with the Devils who have a similar deal.
3. Many of our fans want a public dismissal of Garth Snow/Jack Capuano/staff win or lose.
Win or lose a new majority owner(s) want their own people. The Caps former part owner was around when Charles Wang retained Mike Milbury and he made the playoffs at a big prospect price, but a far bigger price in fan support.
New owners usually want to change old perceptions, not everyone is as loyal as Wang, who could have fired Milbury day one, and been seen as a hero to many.
A full house-cleaning is not easy because many owners do not have ties to qualified people, as we see inexperienced former players hired to jobs as team president's all over the league.
Want George McPhee to be the next Islander gm because the new co-owner was there when he was hired in Washington? How about Wayne Gretzky because the other new owner referenced him?
3A. Worse case Snow is assigned to another position in the organization in a figure head role, as many former general managers are unless 2014-15 is a disaster on the ice.
Finally Charles Wang for what he is to be paid will have to transition to a minority owner, and take a big step back from whatever his involvement has been.
Folks claiming what he does (or does not do daily) are wasting your time because that's an internal matter.