Time and again, I've heard, "This is the best building in the league," echoed from California to Long Island. But, don't kid yourself; UBS Arena did not crystalize with finger-snapping ease.
Mind you, I'm not bragging, but I was at UBS Arena before it was born.
I bring this incidental fact up because the Islanders open the season against the Sabres this weekend.
For the village of Elmont it will mark a birthday of sorts.
This is the start of Year Three for the Orange and Blue at their magnificent mansion.
Now, when I tell you I was there "before" UBS was born, I am not kidding around.
Actually, I met with owners Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky at Nassau Veterans' Memorial Coliseum when they originally bought the franchise. And then we met again at a private Upper East Side club.
On the rainy cab ride downtown, Malkin already was super-detailing blueprints for the colossal construction job-to-be.
"This is going to be something special," Malkin explained. Then a pause: "Extra special."
I knew that The Man meant business. The Maven could tell because Scott's devotion to the minutest detail could only mean perfection plus. The final result was proof positive with the results.
Time and again, I've heard, "This is the best building in the league," echoed from California to Long Island. But, don't kid yourself; UBS Arena did not crystalize with finger-snapping ease.
Along with this section's editor, David Kolb, I was taken on an exclusive tour after the basic superstructure had been erected.
Time and again we were flabbergasted by the intense planning that was apparent whether it was the unique design of the home team's clubhouse or the outdoor patio that looked down on a brand new Long Island Rail Road station.
Simply put, the ownership didn't miss a trick and this was evident on opening night for the 2021-22 season. Just as The Maven had expected, every aspect of UBS Arena oozed with class; otherwise known as ne plus ultra or de luxe, if you will.
More important, Malkin made it abundantly clear to me that what we were seeing in the premiere year was just the start of something BIG.
One of my favorite things in 2022-23 was completion of the new, expanded Elmont LIRR station.
As a native Brooklynite -- with family still there -- and a transplanted Manhattanite, I was tickled that I could get to Penn Station with a veritable blink of an eyelash and same with the LIRR's Flatbush Avenue terminal.
No question that the club needed at least a year to acclimatize to the new building. (Hey, you don't shake off the Barclays blues just like that.)
Season Two at UBS brought thrills galore including a photo finish with the Isles gaining a postseason berth at the 12th-hour.
Looking ahead to Year Three at UBS, I invariably hark back to my first meeting with owners Malkin and Ledecky and the fact that their glorious promises have been fulfilled -- to a T, as in tremendous.
Here's to the Islanders and a stupendously successful Year Three at UBS!