The top New York sports stories of 2021
New York Islander fans watch just before the first puck is dropped at the new home of the Islanders at UBS Arena, Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021, in Elmont. Credit: Craig Ruttle
Sports in the New York area were not back to normal in 2021 – but things were a lot more normal than in 2020.
Progress!
One thing that did not change was our lack of an NFL, MLB, NBA or NHL champion. That dry spell reached a full decade – the longest such stretch in more than a century.
So, go ahead and raise a toast to MLS Cup champion NYCFC, and hope for bigger things to come in 2022.
In the meantime, here is our annual list of top local sports stories on Long Island and beyond in the year that was:
1. UBS Arena opens
Most sports stories are fleeting. This one was decades in the making and will echo for decades to come. On Nov. 20, the Islanders at last christened an arena to call their own, a state-of-the-art new barn on the Nassau/Queens border that should look good to free agents and fans alike – once the parking and train logistics are sorted out.
2. Steve Cohen opens his wallet
The year began with the Mets trading for (and later signing) Francisco Lindor and ended with them signing Max Scherzer for $130 million – after owner Steve Cohen got so mad at the agent for LI’s own Steven Matz that he began throwing his wallet around. It took a while to find a GM in Billy Eppler and manager Buck Showalter.
3. Islanders mount another Cup run
For the second season in a row, the Islanders reached the NHL final four before losing to eventual Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay, this time with a 1-0 defeat in Game 7 of the semifinals. As much as that hurt, they always will have Game 6, which Anthony Beauvillier won, 3-2, in overtime in the final Islanders game at Nassau Coliseum.
4. COVID chaos continues
The year began with attendance restrictions still in place, then as COVID vaccines became available, fans gradually were allowed back. But the pandemic persisted. The Nets’ Kyrie Irving refused a vaccine, was benched, then was invited back part time. By December, infections were spiking and NHL and NBA games were being postponed left and right.
5. Giants, Jets replay 1970s
Older football fans no longer must explain to younger ones how bad the 1970s were for the Jets and Giants. It was like this. The decade since the Giants won Super Bowl XLVI has been awful – with a combined one playoff game. The 2021 season was another flop for both teams. The Jets drafted quarterback Zach Wilson No. 2 overall.
6. NYCFC wins MLS Cup
What’s that you say? This is too high for a team that only has been around for seven years and plays in a middling league? Nope. After New York’s Lost Decade, these guys deserve the attention for reminding us what a trophy looks like. The finale was dramatic. Portland tied the MLS Cup with seconds left. NYCFC recovered to win on PKs.
7. Knicks rebound under Rose
With Leon Rose at the helm in the front office, Tom Thibodeau on the sideline and Julius Randle on the court, the Knicks had their best season since 2012-13, winning 41 games before a first-round playoff flop against the Hawks. Thibodeau was NBA Coach of the Year and Randle Most Improved Player. The 2021-22 season started less well.
8. Rangers make changes
Just as the Knicks became a model of stability, the usually steady Rangers made a drastic course correction, axing president John Davidson, GM Jeff Gorton and coach David Quinn after the Blueshirts were pushed around by the Islanders and Capitals. Chris Drury and Gerard Gallant took over, looking to make the Rangers tougher – and better.
9. Nets upset in second round
The Nets were a clear favorite to win their first NBA championship with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden in the fold. But they only got as far as the second round before being ousted by the eventual champion Bucks in overtime in Game 7. Durant was brilliant, as usual. But Harden was hobbled, and Irving was sidelined.
10. Sticky situation for Cole
It was an odd, injury- and virus-riddled season for the Yankees, who lost to the Red Sox in the AL wild-card game. At least they turned three triple plays in 31 days. Gerrit Cole was cruising when MLB cracked down on pitchers’ use of sticky materials, and he gave tortured answers about his use of them. He was good but not great after that.
11. Liberty gets a new home
It did not attract as much attention as the Islanders’ move to UBS Arena, but the Liberty finally got some arena stability of their own with their first full season at Barclays Center. After two years at the Westchester County Center and one in a WNBA COVID-19 bubble in Florida, owner Joseph Tsai moved them into his house in Brooklyn.
12. LI natives win Olympic medals
Andrew Capobianco, who grew up in Wantagh before attending high school in North Carolina, made a splash at the delayed Tokyo Olympics, winning the silver medal in 3-meter synchronized diving with Michael Hixon. Garden City’s Anastasia Pagonis won both a gold and a bronze medal in swimming at the Paralympics, also in Tokyo.
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.
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