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Hours before the March 23 Islanders/Coliseum lease hearing at the Nassau County Executive Building, about 100 Islander fans plan to hold a protest rally outside of the building, aiming their fury at County Executive Tom Gulotta and Al D’Amato, the chief negotiator for SMG, which manages the Coliseum.

Protest organizer Bob Ceparano said that fans believe Gulotta and D’Amato are jeopardizing the Islanders’ Long Island future by holding up the sale of the team to Bob Gutkowski and Charles Koppelman.

SMG refuses to negotiate with the prospective buyers about breaking the Islanders’ remaining 15-year lease with the Coliseum, which is keeping Gutkowski/Koppelman from completing a deal.

Ceparano said yesterday that following the rally, the protesters will attend the 3 p.m. public hearing, which is being held before the Planning, Development and Environment Committee.

“I think we’re as encouraged as we’ve been in a long time,” Ceparano said about the hearing. “I think Islander fans finally have a slight glimmer of hope. We’ve been programmed not to hope too much.”

The hearing was planned by Nassau County Democratic majority leader Judy Jacobs and County Legislator David Denenberg in order to sort out the mess regarding the Isles’ sale, the Coliseum’s lease, the development of the Coliseum’s 70-acre site and a new Coliseum.

Denenberg said that those invited include: SMG, Gulotta, current Isles’ owners Ed and Howard Milstein and Steven Gluckstern, Gutkowski and Koppelman, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and members of the County Planning Commission.

The hearing will be held in the fifth floor Legislative Chambers, at One West Street in Mineola.

It is uncertain whether any, or how many, of the invitees will attend the hearing.

Often this season, coach Butch Goring has said that teams would not want to play the Islanders down the stretch.

His expectations were realized yesterday as the Islanders trounced the Sabres, 4-2, before an announced stick-day crowd of 13,149 at the Coliseum.

With the victory, the Isles snapped a five-game winless streak (0-4-1)

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