New York Islanders: A to Z will introduce a new generation of fans to the legendary players, magical moments, and colorful history of Long Island's hockey franchise.
You can purchase it HERE.
A portion of the proceeds will go to the Islanders Children’s Foundation
Happy Friday, Islanders Country.
So, I wrote a book - and if you’re an Islanders fan and reading this, I think it’s a book you and your kids will love. 💙🧡
We all have things we think about, talk about and dream about, but too often, life gets in the way of us doing them. Perhaps you even start your project, but then it gets side-tracked; other priorities take precedence, and it remains something you think, talk and dream about. You’ll get to it … someday. Oh well.
For me, one of those things was writing a sports children’s book.
I had some ideas, but I always knew I’d need an illustrator, and ideally, it would be someone that shared a passion for the subject. I was fortunate enough to connect with Joe Maracic, a ridiculously talented artist and Islanders fan from Long Island. You probably know his work.
Like myself, he had often thought about being part of a children’s book.
I’d write, and he’d draw. It was a perfect match.
As fathers, we already owned our fair share of A to Z books, even ones for sports teams, but one had never been written about the New York Islanders. Hmmm…
The pages started to come quickly.
A for Arbour, B for Bossy … we even had Z for “Ziggy!” You’ll have to buy one to find out where we went with Q, U, and V.
Yes, Alan Quine was a serious consideration at one point, as was David Volek.
We had the names for most of the letters, and then I had an idea. What if instead of a prologue, we had a pre-game, and what-if, we could get Brendan Burke to write it? And you know what, he did.
Then we had another idea. What if instead of an epilogue, we had a post-game and what-if, we could get Jiggs McDonald to write it? And you know what, he did.
We didn’t stop there.
Stan Fischer wrote the “1st Intermission” about his history covering the Islanders, and Chris King penned the “2nd Intermission” about his friend and Isles legend Butch Goring.
Things were getting exciting, but we hadn’t run the idea yet with the organization. We loved it, but would they love it? Would they get behind the idea?
Thanks to an assist from Nick Pizzutello, Executive VP of NY Hockey Holdings, the team endorsed the idea and allowed us to use their intellectual property.
We then worked with Ann Rina, Executive Director of Community Relations, to address feedback, finalize the details and agree that a portion of the proceeds would benefit the Islanders Children’s Foundation.
Like any project, there were writes, re-writes, drawings added, and drawings erased. I don’t know how Stan Fischler did this 100 times! But in the end, the completion of the project lined up with the 50th Anniversary Season, a year-long celebration of New York Islanders hockey.
It was perfect.
We hope this book brings back memories and puts a smile on your face.
More importantly, I hope it introduces a new generation of fans to the legendary players, magical moments, and colorful history of Long Island's hockey franchise.
From the Stanley Cup dynasty and record-breaking moments to award-winning seasons and unforgettable games, New York Islanders: A to Z brings the team’s history to life, capturing the spirit of Isles Nation and helping families pass memories from one generation to the next.
We hope you enjoy it.
LGI,
- Joe
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