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Report: Islanders ponder leaving Brooklyn, building arena near Mets

New York Islanders Introduce New Owners

UNIONDALE, NY - OCTOBER 22: New York Islanders partners Scott Malkin (L) and Jon Ledecky (R) answer reporters questions during a press conference at Nassau Coliseum on October 22, 2014 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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New York Islanders co-owner Jon Ledecky insists that Brooklyn is “our home,” but the Barclays Center’s issues still seem to prompt doubts about the future.

The latest report is that the Islanders “are in talks” with New York Mets executives to build a hockey arena in Queens, next to Citi Field, according to Bloomberg’s Scott Soshnick.

There’s no word on how far along such discussions are, although Soshnick’s sources said the Islanders and Mets have been talking for “months.”

More than a few people view this as the Islanders using such threats to leverage improvements at Barclays, as the Islanders’ first season drew complaints about transportation to the arena, obstructed views for seats and choppy ice during games.

Puck Daddy points out that the Islanders can opt out of their lease after the 2018-19 season, so it wouldn’t be surprising if a Queens-area building alongside the Mets stands as merely one of several rumored options.

There have already been a few:

This provides plenty of time for people to make fun of the situation, too.

Hey, you can’t expect to develop a world-class free agent destination without a world-class building, right?