On April 13, 2013, seven years before 2020, the New York Islanders were facing off against the Tampa Bay Lighting. Unlike other games at the Nassau Coliseum, this game had a different atmosphere. It was noisier. Tensions were higher. There was an indisputable buzz with this Islanders team that differed from prior years.

The Islanders, for the first time in a long time, looked for real. This team was no longer a team tanking for a better draft position. This was a team ready to make noise and prove people wrong. The Islanders were making a real push for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, trying to snap their six-year absence. Ultimately, the Islanders went on to win this game and made the Stanley Cup Playoffs as the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.

One specific moment from the game against the Tampa Bay Lighting that forever stands out was during the third period Islanders forward Matt Martin scored. However, his actual goal is pretty irrelevant. It is his celebration that matters. Dramatically, after his timely goal, Matt Martin threw his arms to the side of his body and shifted them upwards almost identical to the famous “Are You Not Entertained” meme from the movie Gladiator.

The image quickly was circulated around the internet and became the so-called “poster child” for the New York Islanders cause. Fans promptly turned the photo into a meme and captioned it: “Why not us?” With Martin’s arms positioned the way they are the photo brilliantly captures every New York Islanders’ fans desire: To be taken seriously and not seen as a laughing stock. As the meme asserts: “Why not us?” Why can’t we be in the NHL playoffs conversion? Why can’t we be seen as a legitimate team to win the Stanley Cup?

To understand this photo for everything it symbolizes, you must understand what separates the New York Islanders from the rest of the teams in the NHL. Besides having a long history of terrible management, disastrous seasons, arena debacles and inabilities to attract free agents, the biggest factor that separates the New York Islanders from any other NHL team is their fans’ unquestioned devotion to the team even though the most excruciating pain.

What I mean by this is that if you are an Islanders’ fan it is quite easy to “give up” on the team and decide enough is enough and it is time to root for a winner. The New York Rangers are a first-class organization with first-class of prominence. The New Jersey Devils are a river away, and as shown in previous years, they can win. With there being so many other well-run franchises within the area, it is fair to assume that some Islanders’ fans have left for greener pastures. However, the majority of fans have remained to root for the Islanders through thick and thin. The hardships and the struggles have made the Islanders’ fans’ bond stronger. The continuous failures have made the recent successes worth the wait.

Moreover, the context of this photo of Matt Martin is that it had been six years since the Islanders had made the Stanley Cup Playoffs and 20 years since the team had advanced to the second round of the playoffs. So New York Islanders’ fans rallying support behind the “why not us” photo is wholly justified. After years of sorrow and agony, it is only fair to want out of the basement of the NHL and no longer be seen as a joke.

Seven years later, in the year 2020, the New York Islanders have completely flipped the script. They are no longer asking, “why not us?”

Instead of asking “why not us?” they are telling the hockey world “this is us” and to be prepared.

In just two postseasons, the Islanders have accumulated three playoff series wins (four if you count the qualifying series against the Florida Panthers). To put this in perspective the Islanders have the same amount of playoff series wins in the last two seasons than the last 30 years prior.

The Islanders are putting the entire hockey world on notice and letting their presence be felt throughout the entire National Hockey League.

The Islanders have eliminated Stanley Cup champions, like the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals, and shut down future hall of fame players in Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Alex Ovechkin.

And to some, the 2020 New York Islanders success may be coming as a surprise. It was just two years ago the team was left for dead by a player they watched grow into an all-star and become the face of the franchise. Despite, his departure, the Islanders’ success is no accident.

This was something in the making since Barry Trotz took over in June of 2018. With the right management, coaching, mindset, and most importantly with the right group of players who all bought into Trotz’s system, anything is possible. And, by anything, I mean the Stanley Cup. The Islanders are just a few wins away from a Stanely Cup Finals appearance.

In 2013, the Islanders were humbly asking to be recognized. The team was merely happy to be playing in the playoffs. Now in 2020, the Islanders cannot be asking the question: “Why not us?” Because now the Islanders are not merely just happy to be playing in the playoffs. They are a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.

The Islanders have to show the rest of the NHL that their team is ready to make noise and disrupt the entire preconceived notion that they are not a threat. As the Islanders batte among the final four teams left in the NHL, this is where they truly belong. Thirty years ago, being seen as the team to beat was a regualr thing for the Islanders. And, this is exactly where they are heading back to today. They are the team fans worry about how to beat before they go to sleep. The Islanders were NHL royalty in the 1980s and they are continuing their climb back to that spot today.

The 2020 New York Islanders may have a different style of play than most; they might not be the most exciting team ever, the team may not have the biggest market, but so what? As the Islanders continue to surprise everyone and keep proving people wrong, I ask all Islanders’ fans to take this mentality a step further: As Drake would say, embrace the “Nobody really likes us except for us” mentality.

Islanders’ fans should stop trying so hard to argue that the team is this that and another thing.

Instead, Islanders’ fans should treat disrespect towards the franchise with a classic Michael Jordan response: “Oh, so that’s how… [you’re]… going to play it, okay, fine.” And, let the Islanders’ actual value be proved on the ice. Embrace the hate. It will be much rewarding watching the Islanders win when everything and everyone is stacked against them.

Ethan Halle

Ethan is an Economics Major at the University of Florida looking to pursue a double major in Sports Management with a minor in political science.