The New York Islanders professional hockey team has extended an invitation to Rabbi Shalom Paltiel, co-director of Chabad-Lubavitch of Port Washington, to come back to the Nassau Coliseum for their March 18 game against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Paltiel, who expects to bring a large contingent of supporters, will don his traditional #18 jersey with the name “Rabbi” on the back – as he did last Chanukah, when he lit a nine-foot menorah on the ice during the Islanders’ game against the Boston Bruins – and hand out special Purim-themed gifts to the first 5,000 fans to arrive for the Tuesday game. Holiday guides will also be available at the concession stands.

According to Paltiel, it’s a chance to “share a captivating Purim message with the fans” two days before the holiday, which commemorates the nullification of a Persian decree against the Jews, as recorded in the book of Esther. …