About mid-day on Tuesday, Islanders Country began to erupt with news that change was afoot at last.
Reasonable people (there are a few out there) can debate strengths and weaknesses and when exactly Lou Lamoriello lost the plot, but it’s hard to argue that the last two seasons (or more) were anything beyond a low-imagination, misplaced-priorities failure.
The guy who took over the helm proclaiming, “The goal is not just to compete, the goal is to win” spent multiple seasons fielding rosters that needed mad late-season surges just to be in the “compete” bubble. Worse, fans could see those low ceilings from preseason. NO team feared them as a first-round playoff opponent.
Other than those two delightful conference final runs under Barry Trotz — when they were belatedly feared — Lou’s Isles were never close to winning and they were getting further away each season. Maybe there were legit “lost the room” reasons for firing Trotz after a season that had several extenuating circumstances, but the hiring of Lane Lambert because he impressed Lou during the week Trotz was on bereavement leave was curious, and it did not look any better when he aborted that move after a year and a half.
If Trotz lost the room, then Lou lost the fanbase, as reflected in ratings, surveys and butts in seats. It was time. Lou will always be in our debt for bringing in Trotz and restoring credibility for the Isles; he had brilliant moments in his long career, but so did my father, and yet I’d never let my dad near a computer if I could help it.
Leading the search for a replacement is John Collins, a man some do not know from Adam. Who knows whether he’ll find the right person for GM, but his track record with the NHL indicates we’ll at least see a transformation on the Isles’ business and marketing side, finally released from the shackles of Lou’s archaic (and frankly asinine in 2025) haircuts-and-tight-lips-equals-culture regime. And it sounds like Collins has been doing due diligence on possible candidates behind the scenes already.
Islanders News
- The Islanders are not renewing Lou Lamoriello’s contract and are seeking a new GM ASAP. Rejoice. [LHH | Newsday | Post]
- What they need in a new GM. [Athletic] And potential candidates. [Newsday]
- What it means for Patrick Roy. (We don’t know. But he and the staff will get a chance to state their case with whoever becomes GM.) [Post]
- Recorded before the firing, but Dan and Mike digested the end of the season and what we figured would be a long period of silence from management. [LHH]
NHL News
- Last night was another eventful one:
- The Devils played much better but still fell into a 2-0 hole against the Hurricanes.
- The Panthers cruised past the Lightning in Game 1 of the Battle of Florida.
- The Senators came back to force OT, but Max Domi got the winner to put the Leafs up 2-0.
- And Minnesota built a 4-0 lead in Vegas but then (I fell asleep).
- Oh no, Jason Botterill is not an option for the Isles as he is promoted to Kraken GM. [NHL]
- Scott Arniel “was the right guy” to succeed Rick Bowness as Jets coach. He’s got a regular season championship under his belt, and he’s off to a great start in the postseason. [NHL]
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