Florida Panthers remember Mike Bossy as Islanders honor him on Tuesday

ELMONT, N.Y. — The New York Islanders will honor Mike Bossy prior to Tuesday’s game against the Florida Panthers after the eight-time All-Star and four-time Stanley Cup Champion passed away on Friday.

Bossy will be remembered as one of the greatest pure goal scorers of all time after scoring 573 goals and 1,126 points through just 752 career games.

Panthers coach Andrew Brunette is definitely one of those who agrees with that sentiment.

“He was the best goal scorer I’ve ever seen,” Brunette said.

Bossy played just nine seasons in the NHL after his career was cut short due to back injuries, but he accomplished a lot during his time on Long Island.

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He was arguably one of the most important pieces of the Islanders’ 1980s dynasty that won four Stanley Cups in a row between 1980 and 1983.

“If you pictured a sniper, and I don’t even know if that term existed in hockey before he played, he epitomizes it,” Brunette said.

“He was the poster boy of what a sniper is. His goal-scoring was off the charts and it was too bad his career was cut short and he left us way too early.”

Bossy also finished his career with the most goals-per-game (.762) and third-most points-per-game (1.50) in NHL history.

“For me, the goals come to mind,” Sam Reinhart said.

“He’s one of the names you always remember, I was born after he retired, so I did not see him too much growing up, but he’s one of the legends of the game and he is obviously gone way too soon.”

The Islanders will hold a ceremony prior to Tuesday’s game against the Panthers to honor Bossy.

“I would hope that [the emotions] are extremely high,” Islanders coach Barry Trotz told NYI Hockey Now.

“They should be. He is an Islander legend. These are his people. And I would expect an emotional arena today. He’s meant a lot to the franchise, to the fans, had personal relationships with some of the older players that we have, and the players that have stuck around and live in that community. So I would hope it is a very emotional arena. today. And I know it will be.”

Morning Skate Updates

• Sergei Bobrovsky will start in goal for the Panthers in Tuesday’s matchup with the Islanders.
• Robert Hagg will draw back into the lineup for Petteri Lindbohm.
• Maxim Mamin remains in the lineup as Noel Acciari and Ryan Lomberg are still working their way back from their respective injuries.
• Aaron Ekblad made the trip to New York and skated with the team during its optional morning skate on Tuesday.

FLORIDA PANTHERS ON DECK

FLORIDA PANTHERS AT NEW YORK ISLANDERS

• When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
• Where: UBS Arena; Elmont, N.Y.
• TV/Streaming: Bally Sports Florida
• Radio: WQAM 560-AM/SiriusXM
• Draft Kings odds — Florida favored: Money Line (-195); Puck line (-1.5, +120); Over/Under 6.5 (-115/-105)
• All-time regular season series: Panthers lead 74-48-17, 10 ties
• Last season: Did not play
• Season series — Florida leads 1-0: @Florida 5, Islanders 1 (Oct. 15); @Florida 6, Islanders 0 (Nov. 16)