Brooklyn here we come. New home for the New York Islanders. Now it's time to win.

Goodbye, Long Island. Hello, Brooklyn.

After more than four decades of playing at the Nassau Veterans Coliseum in Long Island, the New York Islanders will be leaving for the more swanky Barclays Center in Brooklyn, home of the Brooklyn Nets, in two season’s time.

How do I feel about the move?

I am fine with it. Sure Nassau is where the Islanders won four consecutive Stanley Cups but that was a long time ago. Since the dynasty fell the history has been one of never ending frustration. They’ve acquired some great talent recent but the wins have been few and far in between. Playoff hockey is a long ways to go. What I’d give for the Islanders to be featured in the Winter Classic. That would be a return to respectability and winning hockey.

And the Barclays Center is in the center as 11 subway lines, 11 bus lines, and the Long Island Rail Road pass right through so it's not so bad. You won't have to worry about parking.

One other thing that makes the move more acceptable is that the Isles get to retain the “New York” in their name unlike the Nets who adopted “Brooklyn”. I’d hate to feel like those Brooklynites who feel that Los Angeles “stole” the Dodgers from them. Brooklyn, I am sure, will embrace hockey and the Islanders.

Playing in a new arena will make the players feel good and bring in a new fan base instead of the long-suffering fans like me who talk about the good old days and only about the good old days. When I proposed “The Drive for Five” for the Ateneo Blue Eagles in their own campaign this past UAAP season, that was a nod to the Isles’ history.

There’s been a new ownership. Now there’s a new arena. Hopefully, the new era will be in full swing. And it’s a winning one.

Now if only the labor dispute can be settled.

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Long time New York Islanders fan. People always have to ask me, "Excuse me?" when I say I am Isles fan. Dude, you stick with your team not only when they are winning but when they are losing.