The New York Islanders shocked the hockey world by hiring Patrick Roy in January 2024. So it's no surprise that Roy's departure from Long Island would be equally surprising.
General manager Matthew Darche spoke openly about his decision to fire Roy with four games left and hire Pete DeBoer to try to salvage the rapidly ending season.
"I felt it was time to move the group forward," Darche said. "Now is the time to make change."
The Islanders (42-31-5) have lost four consecutive games in regulation, still trail the Philadelphia Flyers by just one point for the No. 3 spot in the Metropolitan Division with four games remaining. New York is also just one point behind the Ottawa Senators for the East's second wild card.
But hockey analytics site Manipuk gives the Islanders only a 29.6% chance of reaching the Stanley Cup playoffs. That's because both Ottawa and Philadelphia have a game in hand.
Roy went 97-78-22 in three years for the Islanders.
Matthew Darche thinks Islanders' season is 'slipping away'
The Islanders have only seven regulation wins in their last 24 games. They have lost nine points in the standings to the Flyers since the Olympic break.
They have 20 goals in a four-game losing streak, including eight goals in a home match against the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 30. The Flyers outshot the Islanders 12-2 in the first round in a devastating 4-1 loss at UBS Arena on Friday.
But Darche decided to make a move based on New York's recent struggles.
"It's never just a moment," Darche said. “I just felt a little bit in this moment, and last time here, that we were slipping a little bit here, and it's not just about this year.
“Moving on, I felt [replacing the coach] Put us in a better position and a better opportunity to win those games, get to the playoffs and move on.
Darche acknowledged that Ilya Sorokin's recent struggles had a role in Roy's firing. Sorokin has a .909 save% and 19.09 goals saved – above average in all situations, but over the last four games he has a .852 save% and a minus-3.60 GSAA.
"I felt it last time here, where we weren't as fast, we didn't escape it as well as we used to," Darche said. “Let's face it, we accomplished some things during the year where our goaltender excelled.”
Mathieu Darche hired Peter DeBoer because he's 'a very structured coach'
DeBoer has a reputation for struggling to develop young players, and he was let go by the Dallas Stars after publicly criticizing franchise goaltender Jake Oettinger following a loss in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals to the Edmonton Oilers last May.
But that was DeBoer's third consecutive WCF appearance for Dallas, and he's eager to find quick success at the places where he coaches. He led the New Jersey Devils (2011–12) and San Jose Sharks (2015–16) to the Stanley Cup Finals in Year 1 in both stops, and took the Vegas Golden Knights (2019–20) and Dallas Stars (2022–23) to the Western Conference Finals in his first season coaching.
"Guys like Pete DeBoer don't last very long in the market," Darche said. "He's been to five of the last six conference finals. Wherever he's gone, he's had success. He's a very structured coach."
The last piece may be the most important for the Islanders, as they are reeling on their current skid defensively. Sorokin has faced the most danger shots (151) since the Olympic break, an average of 8.88 per game.
Darche said that when the decision was made to replace Roy, he had only DeBoer in mind. He came to this conclusion after watching the Isles lose 40–16 in a 4–3 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes.
"It's like grabbing the No. 1 free agent on the market," Darche said. "Pete is an excellent coach. ... His success speaks volumes for itself."
Islanders GM believes they still have time to make playoffs
The schedule is currently against the Islanders. He has played the most games in the East and will be inactive until hosting the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday.
But the teams around him have helped. Going 3-7 over a 10-game span, and failing to pick up a single point in four games, would have been a death sentence in years past. But Ottawa (2-3-1), Columbus (1-6-1) and Detroit (4-8-1) are also struggling.
Additionally, the schedule also motivated Darche to act when she did.
“We have three days to practice before the first game [with DeBoer]”Darché said.
Darche spoke directly to the team and members of the Isles leadership group on Sunday. He felt energized by this step.
“Everyone is excited,” Darache said. “They know what work needs to be done this year and what needs to be done next.”
