PHILADELPHIA — Commissioner Gary Bettman not only confirmed the Islanders are for sale, but confirmed what owner Charles Wang said recently: He is listening to offers, and deciding when and where to make a deal.
“The last public communication on this was Charles Wang’s statement [on March 29] that he is listening to the expressions of interest he is getting, and he hasn’t decided if he is going to take them to the next step — but he is listening,” Bettman said Tuesday night at the Wells Fargo Center before Game 3 of the Rangers-Flyers first-round playoff series.
“I spoke to him as recently as this morning,” Bettman said, “and his position on that has not changed. But he is getting a number of expressions of interest.”
The Islanders are supposed to play their final season at the Nassau Coliseum next year, and then move to Brooklyn’s Barclays Center for the 2015-16 season. Bettman was adamant that any sale would not alter that time frame.
“I think their move to Brooklyn is regulated by their contractual commitment to Nassau County,” Bettman said. “It’s a contractual commitment. The Islanders are committed to move to Brooklyn and they have a contract with Barclays Center.”