Emrick, McGuire await the Coliseum vibe for Isles-Penguins
Islanders defenseman Nick Leddy celebrates the go-ahead goal during the third period of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals against the Penguins on April 10, 2019 at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum. Credit: Jim McIsaac
No one in the NHL was surprised that NYCB Live’s Nassau Coliseum was in full rock-the-barn mode Wednesday for its return to playoff hockey in Game 1 of the Penguins-Islanders series, including the veteran announcers who have heard those sounds before.
On a conference call with reporters in advance of the playoffs, NBC’s Mike “Doc” Emrick and Pierre McGuire said they were looking forward to the vibe at the Coliseum – even though neither is working the early part of the series – and recalled what it was like in 2015, the last time the building hosted the playoffs.
"The last playoff series they played there, I had the privilege of doing that,” McGuire said. “It was as physical a series as you’ll ever see. Eventually, they just ran out of gas, but the home crowd helped propel them beyond belief. I’m expecting to see an amazing series there."
Said Emrick, “I remember [John] Tavares getting the overtime goal in [in Game 3], and the place just — it’s a little roof. It’s just perfect for noise because it always struck me as a low roof, and I thought that even advantaged the 1980s Islanders, too, because you have a boisterous crowd that was ready to raise the roof . . . The Game 7 back in Washington, they were either out of gas, or they just couldn’t manufacture the offense that they could that day, but it was a wonderful series to see, and it was a heartening series as well.”
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
