There’s nothing like the pomp and circumstance of a home opener. Teams are pulling out all the stops with player introductions and videos to get fans excited about the start of the new season.

Before the puck dropped last night, we learned of a new gameday tradition for the NY Islanders: the lighting of the lighthouse.

We’ve seen these traditions in all sports, like blowing the siren for the Carolina Hurricanes, or beating the drum for the Florida Panthers. But now the Islanders are following the gameday tradition.

The islands light the lighthouse

As usual, someone with ties to the organization is invited to “beat the drum” or now “light the lighthouse,” and the Islanders brought in one of the organization’s longest-tenured former players for game one, Josh Bailey.

Bailey lit up the lighthouse, located at the Tailgate Bar, to a raucous UBS arena that welcomed the forward who played all 1,057 career games with the Islanders.

We all remember the last time the Islanders tried to start a tradition like this, which accompanied the opening of the UBS Arena. John Tonnelli and Ralph Macchio sounded a siren similar to those in Raleigh and Vegas, which sounded like a mix between an animal in distress and the horn of a car with a dead battery. It was profusely mocked by the fan base and demolished after just one match.

But this new tradition has a better chance of lasting. It doesn’t seem forced and is unique to Long Island. The idea could also have come from IslesFix on X, who had a similar idea almost two years ago.