(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); 1972 1980 1981 1982 1984 2000 2015 New York Islanders Team Formation The new team was widely expected to take the Long Island Ducks name used by an Eastern Hockey League franchise; the more geographically expansive “New York Islanders” came largely as a surprise. The fledgling Islanders, who were soon nicknamed the “Isles” by the …