Islanders fire Barry Trotz after missing playoffs

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Barry Trotz was fired as coach of the New York Islanders on Monday, with general manager Lou Lamoriello saying he felt the team needed a new voice.

Trotz lost his job after four seasons with the Islanders and the first without a playoff appearance. The 59-year-old who ranks among the most successful coaches in NHL history and won the Stanley Cup with Washington in 2018 guided the Islanders to the Eastern Conference final each of the previous two years before losing to eventual champion Tampa Bay.

Lamoriello declined to explain why he thought "a new voice" was necessary.

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Barry Trotz of the New York Islanders looks on against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG PAINTS Arena on April 14, 2022 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images)

"I’d rather not get into any of the reasons because that’s my job upon the information that I have and I experienced to make these type of decisions," the 79-year-old longtime hockey executive said on a conference call. "Those are not questions that I will answer as far as what I thought. It’s obviously that I thought quite a bit to make this type of a decision."

A series of events outside Trotz’s control contributed to the Islanders missing the playoffs this year. While their new arena was being finished, they opened the season on a 13-game road trip and were hit with a string of coronavirus-related absences and injuries that derailed their season.

Lamoriello said the choice to move on from Trotz was not made primarily about what happened this past season. He said, "This is certainly a business decision as far as hockey and winning."

Trotz had