After an unwatchable season, fans understandably want answers from Malkin and Ledecky.
I’ve only watched one Islanders game this season, and it was for a column I wrote for that team. It featured the Islanders’ 5-1 loss to the Rangers, and in it, I emphasized why I have been apathetic about them.
Is it surprising they were mediocre all season, resulting in no playoff appearance this year? They did nothing to improve the team, and Lou Lamoriello is still president of hockey operations when it was time for him to go.
Photo courtesy WSJ
What’s up? The bottom line is that the Islanders’ ineptitude is on team owners Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky. They believed in Lamoriello when it was past time to change hockey bosses.
Look, don’t get me wrong. Lamoriello has accomplished plenty in the game of hockey. There’s a reason he is in the Hockey Hall of Fame. His work with the Devils resulted in three championships and many playoff appearances. He created a standard that is hard to match.
When he came to run the Islanders, it was the move to make. He knew how to run an organization. He would bring stability and order. He did plenty of great things with them, such as overseeing the UBS Arena and creating playoff appearances. No one can take this away from him. In the end, history should remember him fondly for his time with the Islanders.
But sports are about what you have done for me lately. The Islanders have been trending downward for the last four seasons. Yes, they made the playoffs the previous two seasons, but they were also one-and-out against a superior Carolina Hurricanes team in the first round. They are not heading in the right direction.
This is on Lamoriello. He has not made this club any better. It’s hard to come up with a young player the Islanders produced under his watch. The team looks old and dull. They don’t inspire fear in other teams. They have become an easy team to play against.
Here’s the bottom line: There’s no hope for this franchise. This is why it’s time for a change. The Islanders need to hire a general manager who gets today’s hockey. This means they must hire a hockey boss who knows how to find scorers and skaters.
Lamoriello has failed to adapt to today’s hockey. Based on how his Devils won, he believes teams win by grit and defense. That was a long time ago. He has had plenty of opportunities to learn and adapt, but he hasn’t, and at 82, he has no interest in learning new tricks. This is why it’s on ownership to do something.
NYI’s Lou Lamoriello (photo courtesy Instagram)
In a perfect world, Lamoriello would do the right thing by resigning. That’s not him. He has zero interest in quitting because he wants to be part of the solution. That is why ownership needs to fire Lamoriello and his son, Chris. It may sound cruel, but there’s no time for empathy and sentiment in a corrupt business like pro sports. The malaise surrounding the team requires action. The Islanders went as far as they could with the Lamoriellos.
Yes, there’s no guarantee it won’t get better under a new front office. But the franchise can’t be running it back with the same front office that has no answers.
The Athletic’s Arthur Staple mentioned Lamoriello is likely going to be back. Now, things can change, but if it’s true, there’s no reason to watch Islanders hockey next year, either. Fans want hope, and that’s why there have to be changes.
Malkin and Ledecky have done everything right overall. They have invested in this franchise by spending money and making sure the arena was built, and they have created a great fan experience. But again, sports are about what you have done for me lately. All of this is on them, too. If they keep Lamoriello, then they become as much of a problem as him. By keeping him, they will admit they have no idea what they are doing when doing a general manager search, so they are hoping for the best by staying with the same hockey boss.
In sports, hoping for the best is not a strategy. After an unwatchable season, fans understandably want answers from Malkin and Ledecky. It’s time for the Islanders owners to show they are not the problem by doing something.
