Confirmed with Link: Brent Thompson OUT as Bridgeport HC!(Anaheim assistant)

[12Dog]

Snow could have held onto Griffin Reinhart. Just ponder that for a second. And just think, Garth could have passed in the 3rd round in the 2014 draft on that said star goalie just like every other GM in the league. But he didn't. Why do you think that is? Hint: Maybe because he's f-king awesome! Visionary really. I mean who would have thought that Pelech would become s superstar. That Cizikas and Martin would be cogs of the best 4th line in hockey. That a 17 yo high school center in Brock Nelson would grow to become the Isles most prolific scorer years later. That a late rounder in Lee would become captain and one of the best players in front of the net. That Mayfield would become a stalwart bruising defenseman. Brilliant. Just Brilliant! Meanwhile, what exactly has our current GM done?

Pelech was garbage before Trotz. Under Snow’s coach, Weight, he didn’t look like an NHL player. Snow drafted Reinhardt. Snow let Martin leave, Lou brought him back.
And did you really say Bailey deserved better? You seem to talk about results, yet give Bailey a pass, why?

 

[Throttle]

Yeah, Trotz had nothing to do with this. What does Trotz get? A big fat pink slip. Does that sit right with you when one could surmise that this was basically a result of all of Trotz's hard work? What a joke!


But why shouldn't he be able to say these things? He's just pondering what he wants to have in the future. There's nothing wrong with that. In fact, Lou served in both positions for the Devils. It's a tenable situation. Do you think that Lou was so thin skinned that he fired him over these ruminations? If he did, he's not only incompetent but petty as well.

Why? Because he was openly soliciting for a GM job. He knew exactly what he was saying and how it would be received and discussed in the ‘press.’

And it worked, he got fired and paid for his final year, then magically ends up as the GM of a former team he coached that had a very old guy running the show. He got what he wanted.

 

[Rehabguy]

Pelech was garbage before Trotz. Under Snow’s coach, Weight, he didn’t look like an NHL player. Snow drafted Reinhardt. Snow let Martin leave, Lou brought him back.
And did you really say Bailey deserved better? You seem to talk about results, yet give Bailey a pass, why?

Oh please ‘cmon. Pelech, Pulock, Lee, Mayfield, Martin, Nelson etc. were not garbage. Snow has the ability to find the diamonds in the rough and develop them properly and sign them to reasonable contracts as they mature to become the good players they are today. Lou has a penchant of finding the rough amongst the diamonds and inexplicably over pays for them. As for Bailey he did not deserve the personal vendetta Lamebert had for him. Denies the Isles most tenured and loyal player his 1000th game amongst his own fans? Total petty bullshit! Sits the guy most of the season- a guy who was able to dutifully any role asked of him from any of the coaches who came before Lamebert and was our Swiss Army knife of sorts. He was amongst one of Trotz favorite players and Trotz stuck up for him every step of the way saying that he was his most versatile player and one of the smartest guys on the team. He was a pivotal player on the Isles during all our playoff runs and it is totally inexcusable that Lambert had him in the press box in the Isles futile loss to the Canes. That alone was inexcusable and should have had Lambert fired. I don’t blame our smartest player for checking out mid season on a guy that clearly showed no confidence with him. The feeling was mutual I’m sure but totally undeserved towards Bailey.

 

[Rehabguy]

Why? Because he was openly soliciting for a GM job. He knew exactly what he was saying and how it would be received and discussed in the ‘press.’

And it worked, he got fired and paid for his final year, then magically ends up as the GM of a former team he coached that had a very old guy running the show. He got what he wanted.

So which conspiracy am I to believe the one where Trotz is purportedly gunning for Lou’s job or the one where he was tired of coaching and wanted to be close to family? Do you see how irrational all this nonsense is? Lou fired Trotz simply because he thought he knew better. He stupidly thinks he’s the smartest guy in the room.

 

[Strummergas]

Why do people keep defending Lou? The most significant deal the man has made this summer is for a Ranger reject who hasn't put up more than 9 points in 4 seasons as a Rag. Instead he goes off and signs these absurdly long and expensive contracts to middle of the road players further decimating our cap space and THAT after trading away all our first round picks for jack shit so we have neither the money or first rounders to do business with. Snow meanwhile, makes lemonade out of lemons scoring one home run after the other getting us players like Leddy and Boychuk, Barzal (who had no business being an Islander), phenomenal later round picks that actually panned out, and shrewd trades. Now certainly as with all GMs he's made his share of bad acquisitions but he always found a way to rebound. Lou has does squat and the team looks like it has no future given his horrible stewardship.

As was mentioned in a recent NY post article:

“He (Lou)has checked the f–k out,” Bissonnette added. “The Islanders are going to get relegated after this season, that’s how bad they’re going to be.”

and Ryan Whitney states:

"They're going to be F-king horrible".

I tend to agree.

That you're quoting two blowhards who shill for a pink vodka says everything I need to know about your takes on this board.

 

[PK Cronin]

No one is claiming that they were a powerhouse team. That's the GM's job. That's the point. They were not, but somehow Trotz got them to two consecutive Eastern Conference Finals. That was Trotz behind the bench not Lou and not Lambert. Somehow we are supposed to believe that all this success was more due to Lamiorello but when you take an honest look at the roster most of the players who had an impact on the team were always Snow picks or acquisitions.

I never said that Lamoriello deserves more credit than Trotz, you're simply ignoring that Lamoriello deserves credit. Instead, you're just shitting on him. Like I said, I love Trotz and think he deserves a ton of credit but teams have success and then stop having success with the same coach all the time.

Snow made every move for the Islanders for twelve years, continually trotting out the fact that he made the picks or acquisitions for a lot of the roster is just silly. Of course that's going to be the case, especially after Lamoriello didn't tear the whole thing down. Is that what you wanted? You think Lamoriello should've rebuilt and cleaned house the moment he got the job? If Lamoriello tears down the roster then Trotz is winning lotteries instead of playoff rounds. You should be giving him kudos for identifying and addressing weaknesses that existed with the roster.

I gave you plenty of examples of players Lamoriello brought in that played key roles in those runs, you'd rather harp on the other guys that were Snow picks like that means something negative. Lamoriello hasn't been around long enough to have seen any prospects pan out. When Dufour is 27 we can talk about his drafting.

And for those who say well without Lou we would never have gotten Trotz. Really? And where exactly is Trotz now?

Not sure where you're going with this one. Trotz is not currently coaching and he's a GM, so this actually bolsters the argument that Lamoriello was able to convince Trotz to not only come to Long Island but to continue coaching.

I for one don't believe these cockamamie conspiracy theories that Trotz was no longer interested in coaching. That's a narrative you want to believe. Not reporting. That's just people trying desperately to rationalize a poor decision by Lou. There's no legitimacy to that claim at all just a bunch of heresay.

I'll ask the question you just did, where is Trotz now? Oh, right, he's GMing and not coaching. This isn't a conspiracy theory, it has actually happened. It was also rumored to be the case by reporters. There was interview with Trotz saying he was dealing with a personal matter and that's why he didn't take another coaching job after being let go by the Islanders. Why are you skimming past this like it isn't a big deal? It is.

When their star player went down, Lambert tucked tail and went full Barry Trotz defensive system. That's what gave them any chance to make the playoffs not any coaching brilliance originating from Lamberts mind.

Did I say otherwise?

And with that out of the way, how the heck do you lose to Carolina with half it's offensive minded players missing from the line-up. Brind'Amour totally schooled him.

Trotz lost to Brind'Amour with a fully healthy lineup and a less talented Carolina team his first year on Long Island. Carolina has been owning this franchise the entire time, this isn't something new because Lambert stepped in.

It's no surprise the Isles most cerebral and experienced player Bailey tuned out Lambert by mid-season as he clearly was done with his crap. Bailey deserved better.

I like Bailey more than almost anyone and this is an absurd narrative you're spinning. This hasn't even been rumored anywhere, you just made it up. Bailey wasn't playing well this year, from start to finish. He wasn't "done with his crap."

And it's no wonder that one of the leagues top developmental coaches bolted for the Ducks rather than sticking around to work for this clown of a GM.

A top developmental coach who never produced anything more than a middle six player and had a bunch of highly touted prospects bust under his watch?

 

[The Real JT]

That you're quoting two blowhards who shill for a pink vodka says everything I need to know about your takes on this board.

Gotta agree with you on that one. Those two schmucks are like a carnival act. Their success is sadly a commentary on how success comes to those that appeal to our baser instincts.

 

[PK Cronin]

So which conspiracy am I to believe the one where Trotz is purportedly gunning for Lou’s job or the one where he was tired of coaching and wanted to be close to family? Do you see how irrational all this nonsense is? Lou fired Trotz simply because he thought he knew better. He stupidly thinks he’s the smartest guy in the room.

Those aren't conflicting thoughts.

If Trotz was tired of coaching but wanted to GM, he could then be closer to his family because GMs don't have to travel as much. Also, it wasn't necessarily to be closer to his family, he was dealing with a familial issue that wasn't resolved until midway through what would've been his last season with the Islanders.

Barry Trotz — the biggest name and best resume on the NHL coaching market, as has been the case since the spring — had no interest in coaching the Vancouver Canucks. Or any other team, actually...

It was his first time away from coaching in nearly 40 years, and he used it to take care of family business. All that occupied him until December, he said. Now, he’s ready to roll.

“I feel like I’ve accomplished what I needed to accomplish,” he said. “I’ve been staying on top of the league and staying refreshed. So either in the spring or next year, we’ll get back at it. Hopefully if they still want me.”

'It's about the journey': Life lessons with Barry Trotz, who will be back and 'charged up'

The biggest coaching name on the market has thoughts on Bruce Boudreau, the Toronto Maple Leafs and finding success in the NHL.

theathletic.com

Here you go. You can stop pretending like it was all made up now.

Edit: Here's another quote from him:

He was fired by the Islanders on May 9, 2022. Weeks later, with rumors swirling of him possibly coaching his hometown Winnipeg Jets, Trotz told NHL.com on June 24, he would not coach this season.

"I didn't feel… if I'd said I'll take the job, I think I would have done any team a little bit of a disservice and myself a disservice because to be a coach in the NHL," Trotz said. "It is demanding, and it requires your all. It just does, emotionally it just does, mentally it just does. So I couldn't go down that path."

Trotz ready for 'challenge' of replacing Poile as Predators GM | NHL.com

First coach in Nashville history returns home to team in transition

www.nhl.com

Pretty obvious something else was going on because he's said as much.

 

[Arsenalogist24]

Why do people keep defending Lou? The most significant deal the man has made this summer is for a Ranger reject who hasn't put up more than 9 points in 4 seasons as a Rag. Instead he goes off and signs these absurdly long and expensive contracts to middle of the road players further decimating our cap space and THAT after trading away all our first round picks for jack shit so we have neither the money or first rounders to do business with. Snow meanwhile, makes lemonade out of lemons scoring one home run after the other getting us players like Leddy and Boychuk, Barzal (who had no business being an Islander), phenomenal later round picks that actually panned out, and shrewd trades. Now certainly as with all GMs he's made his share of bad acquisitions but he always found a way to rebound. Lou has does squat and the team looks like it has no future given his horrible stewardship.

As was mentioned in a recent NY post article:

“He (Lou)has checked the f–k out,” Bissonnette added. “The Islanders are going to get relegated after this season, that’s how bad they’re going to be.”

and Ryan Whitney states:

"They're going to be F-king horrible".

I tend to agree.

Later in the pod both them agreed after Carolina and NJ 3-6 in Metro is a toss up with Columbus and Philly rounding out the bottom.

That was just a reactionary take to the contracts and I think even the densest chiclets listener could tell by that and the tone.

Relegated, Biz must’ve got into EPL this year

 

[Rehabguy]

Those aren't conflicting thoughts.

If Trotz was tired of coaching but wanted to GM, he could then be closer to his family because GMs don't have to travel as much. Also, it wasn't necessarily to be closer to his family, he was dealing with a familial issue that wasn't resolved until midway through what would've been his last season with the Islanders.

'It's about the journey': Life lessons with Barry Trotz, who will be back and 'charged up'

The biggest coaching name on the market has thoughts on Bruce Boudreau, the Toronto Maple Leafs and finding success in the NHL.

theathletic.com

Here you go. You can stop pretending like it was all made up now.

Edit: Here's another quote from him:

Trotz ready for 'challenge' of replacing Poile as Predators GM | NHL.com

First coach in Nashville history returns home to team in transition

www.nhl.com

Pretty obvious something else was going on because he's said as much.

Why do we have to come up with all these wild way out there narratives.

It's simple cause and effect.

Trotz wins Cup with Washington they try to low ball him so he bolts for the GM of another team he purportedly respected and whom he wanted to play for and had complete faith in. (This is what all you Lou lovers said anyways right?)

He quickly produces 2 Eastern Conference Finals and nearly makes it to a 3rd playoff appearance if it were not for a series of extenuating circumstances including waiting for an arena to be completed and COVID.

He's blindsided by his boss and unceremoniously fired and replaced by his own student of all people with his boss publicly stating that the team needed a "new voice". This all from the man Trotz professed his deep admiration and respect for just 3 seasons ago.

After these experiences who would not want a break from coaching? Who would not be tired, a bit dejected, and a bit fed up with it all? Put yourself in his shoes! Who would not reflect on the situation and realize that regardless of how well he performed it was always the guy with the GM title who made all the decisions and controlled his fate. He made it clear he loved coaching but recent events took a lot out of him to the point that he wasn't ready to accept any coaching jobs at that moment because of how he had been treated by his two previous clubs. He never got the respect he deserved. So he reflects about it as he said and he came to the realization that a GM is the best position for him to be in.

This is a simple logical and realistic explanation of what transpired here and can comfortably explain every quote you cited here, not relying on some round about rationalization designed to fit a strange narrative.

 

[Rehabguy]

Why? Because he was openly soliciting for a GM job. He knew exactly what he was saying and how it would be received and discussed in the ‘press.’

And it worked, he got fired and paid for his final year, then magically ends up as the GM of a former team he coached that had a very old guy running the show. He got what he wanted.

So based on this narrative Trotz played Lou like an old tool and knew exactly which buttons to press to get himself fired without losing a dime to take another job. This narrative, as crazy as it sounds and is, has more merit than the "I'm too tired to coach narrative" because at least it's in line with just how easily Lou is manipulated by the average player and their agents to get whatever insanely long and expensive contract they desire. Their agents probably told their players just to say stupid things like, "I love the facial hair rule" or "The Devils were my favorite team growing up" and Lou would just tack on another 5 years to their contracts.

 

[MJF]

Jesus Christ, take off the knee pads already. The PLAYERS get no credit from you (Bailey is the ONLY one you leap to the defense to???), Lou gets no credit.

We get it, you're infatuated with the guy with one ring who had a 55-58 won-loss record in the playoffs before he came here (and 19-31 won loss without Washington) and did not get to the SECOND ROUND with Nashville until his TWELFTH YEAR with Nashville.

I'd bet a LOT of money if you were a Nashville fan after the first five years of not making the playoffs, you'd be leading the charge to fire the guy.

TWELVE years until he won a playoff round in Nashville . . . for your Mount Rushmore nominee

And we get it with you too. You’re as exhausting as the guy you’re arguing with. The guy won a Cup, has over 900 career wins, 2 Jack Adams Trophies, and is going into the Hall of Fame. Jeezus.

 

[Rehabguy]

And we get it with you too. You’re as exhausting as the guy you’re arguing with. The guy won a Cup, has over 900 career wins, 2 Jack Adams Trophies, and is going into the Hall of Fame. Jeezus.

Well that's what I'm saying. How could you rag on Trotz and demand we get down on our knees for Lamiorello? That's ridiculous! Exhausting as I know I can be most times. But still...

 

[MJF]

Well that's what I'm saying. How could you rag on Trotz and demand we get down on our knees for Lamiorello? That's ridiculous! Exhausting as I know I can be most times. But still...

Because some people have a preconceived notion and look for any reason not to give it up.

“Trotz is too hard to play for”
“Trotz stifles creativity”
“Trotz doesn’t know how to coach an offense”

Blah Blah Blah.

 

[MJF]

Those aren't conflicting thoughts.

If Trotz was tired of coaching but wanted to GM, he could then be closer to his family because GMs don't have to travel as much. Also, it wasn't necessarily to be closer to his family, he was dealing with a familial issue that wasn't resolved until midway through what would've been his last season with the Islanders.

'It's about the journey': Life lessons with Barry Trotz, who will be back and 'charged up'

The biggest coaching name on the market has thoughts on Bruce Boudreau, the Toronto Maple Leafs and finding success in the NHL.

theathletic.com

Here you go. You can stop pretending like it was all made up now.

Edit: Here's another quote from him:

Trotz ready for 'challenge' of replacing Poile as Predators GM | NHL.com

First coach in Nashville history returns home to team in transition

www.nhl.com

Pretty obvious something else was going on because he's said as much.

Except you all like to disregard the first interview Trotz gave in July to Bob McCown after he got fired where he said he was ready to start the season behind the bench. He said he was coming back with a chip on his shoulder.

 

[leeroggy]

And we get it with you too. You’re as exhausting as the guy you’re arguing with. The guy won a Cup, has over 900 career wins, 2 Jack Adams Trophies, and is going into the Hall of Fame. Jeezus.

The only two things I criticize Barry on was the Nashville playoff record while running up the regular season wins, which you are confirming by talking about the REGULAR SEASON record accomplishments.

And the second is that his system wears out players out.

If that’s too sensitive for your thoughts then you might want to block me for a while. Lou’s career resume means you see how this season starts and progresses. He’s earned that.

 

[Seph]

The Isles understandably started the season terribly bad Trotz's last season but from what I recall ended the season strong on a high note regardless of not making the playoffs. Under Lambert they barely squeaked in and had no business being in the playoffs except for the Pens ridiculous implosion.

DIDN'T TROTZ DESERVE ONE MORE CHANCE TO SEE WHAT HE COULD DO WITH THIS ROSTER?

You take away Trotz falling into Lamiorello's lap and what good has he actually done for this team? Any good that comes to this team and Lou quickly dispenses of it. He has set this team so far backwards with no room or the assets to improve. We're f'kd.

They actually didn't end the season any better than they played under Lambert for the season as a whole. In the last 30 games of 2022, Trotz coached the Islanders to a 0.567 pt% (34pts in 30 games), which is pretty good, but also the exact same pt% that the Islanders had during the entire 2022-23 season. So, if that was ending the season on a high note, then Lambert's entire season should've been considered a high note. And if we look at how Lambert ended the regular season with 38 pts in his last 30 games for a pt% of 0.633, that seems like way more a high point than what Trotz did.

Underlying stats for Lambert were also better than Trotz' last 30 games, both when looking at the full season under Lambert and just comparing his last 30 regular season games.

All Strengths	GF%	xGF%	SF%
2022 last 30 (Trotz)	52.15​	44.27​	45.26​
2023 last 30 (Lambert)	55.29​	50.14​	50.85​
2022-23 full season (Lambert)	52.72​	48.46​	49.8​

Trotz didn't want to coach in 2022-23. He's made that clear. Would he have gotten the chance if he did want to? We may never know, but I suspect he would have. But calling it a high note and carrying the team on his shoulders when Trotz coached the team for 30 games to no better than Lambert did the whole season, and worse than Lambert did over the same time period, and then using Lambert's performance as evidence of a terrible coaching choice? That's some pretty extreme bias. If you are going to give Trotz credit for that, you have to give Lambert at least some credit as well.

 

[Rehabguy]

Except you all like to disregard the first interview Trotz gave in July to Bob McCown after he got fired where he said he was ready to start the season behind the bench. He said he was coming back with a chip on his shoulder.

I have to give even more credit to Trotz for seeing it as just part of the business, but at least he had time to reflect and realize the GM position is a safer position to be in. Thanks for the tweet, didn't realize that was out there.

 

[MJF]

Trotz didn't want to coach in 2022-23. He's made that clear.

The only two things I criticize Barry on was the Nashville playoff record while running up the regular season wins, which you are confirming by talking about the REGULAR SEASON record accomplishments.

And the second is that his system wears out players out.

If that’s too sensitive for your thoughts then you might want to block me for a while. Lou’s career resume means you see how this season starts and progresses. He’s earned that.

Regular season accomplishments get a coach the Jack Adams Trophy and is one of the things that gets a coach elected to the Hall of Fame.

 

[Rehabguy]

They actually didn't end the season any better than they played under Lambert for the season as a whole. In the last 30 games of 2022, Trotz coached the Islanders to a 0.567 pt% (34pts in 30 games), which is pretty good, but also the exact same pt% that the Islanders had during the entire 2022-23 season. So, if that was ending the season on a high note, then Lambert's entire season should've been considered a high note. And if we look at how Lambert ended the regular season with 38 pts in his last 30 games for a pt% of 0.633, that seems like way more a high point than what Trotz did.

Underlying stats for Lambert were also better than Trotz' last 30 games, both when looking at the full season under Lambert and just comparing his last 30 regular season games.

All Strengths	GF%	xGF%	SF%
2022 last 30 (Trotz)	52.15​	44.27​	45.26​
2023 last 30 (Lambert)	55.29​	50.14​	50.85​
2022-23 full season (Lambert)	52.72​	48.46​	49.8​

Trotz didn't want to coach in 2022-23. He's made that clear. Would he have gotten the chance if he did want to? We may never know, but I suspect he would have. But calling it a high note and carrying the team on his shoulders when Trotz coached the team for 30 games to no better than Lambert did the whole season, and worse than Lambert did over the same time period, and then using Lambert's performance as evidence of a terrible coaching choice? That's some pretty extreme bias. If you are going to give Trotz credit for that, you have to give Lambert at least some credit as well.

He wanted to coach in 2022-23 with a chip on his shoulder as the previous tweet clearly shows.

I gave credit to Lambert for abandoning his modified system and going full Trotz to finish the year. Still inexcusable to be in that position when there was no new arena or COVID to deal with.

 

[MJF]

Trotz didn't want to coach in 2022-23. He's made that clear. Would he have gotten the chance if he did want to? We may never know, but I suspect he would have. But calling it a high note and carrying the team on his shoulders when Trotz coached the team for 30 games to no better than Lambert did the whole season, and worse than Lambert did over the same time period, and then using Lambert's performance as evidence of a terrible coaching choice? That's some pretty extreme bias. If you are going to give Trotz credit for that, you have to give Lambert at least some credit as well.

Trotz made it clear here that he did want to coach in 2022-23

 

[Seph]

Trotz made it clear here that he did want to coach in 2022-23

And then not long after that, he realized he actually didn't want to coach, as @PK Cronin already documented. He'd hardly be the first person who took longer to realize his heart wasn't in something than it took others.

He wanted to coach in 2022-23 with a chip on his shoulder as the previous tweet clearly shows.

I gave credit to Lambert for abandoning his modified system and going full Trotz to finish the year. Still inexcusable to be in that position when there was no new arena or COVID to deal with.

A 0.567 pt% for the season being considered inexcusable, but a 0.567% for 30 games being considered ending the season on a high note continues to reek of bias.

 

[Throttle]

So based on this narrative Trotz played Lou like an old tool and knew exactly which buttons to press to get himself fired without losing a dime to take another job. This narrative, as crazy as it sounds and is, has more merit than the "I'm too tired to coach narrative" because at least it's in line with just how easily Lou is manipulated by the average player and their agents to get whatever insanely long and expensive contract they desire. Their agents probably told their players just to say stupid things like, "I love the facial hair rule" or "The Devils were my favorite team growing up" and Lou would just tack on another 5 years to their contracts.

I didn’t say Trotz stated he wanted to be GM as a method to get fired. Rather, when he made that statement - something coaches of a team never do - he knew he was stepping out of bounds and into uncharted territory. He also knew his contract status and Lou’s - both ending at the same time…

Look around, he worked for two old farts one he knew the contract status of, the other was also getting close to aging out and needed a GM soon.

Take that statement and the team’s performance in year 4 of his deal plus his family situation and it looks like he wasn’t all in, no matter what he says in an interview in the summer of when he was fired - that’s PR on his part.

 

[BelovedIsles]

Any idea on the replacement? An emphasis should be placed on a coach with a pedigree for developing prospects, especially given said coach will not be working with 1st round talent.

 

[doublechili]

Any idea on the replacement? An emphasis should be placed on a coach with a pedigree for developing prospects, especially given said coach will not be working with 1st round talent.

Based on the discussion here, I'd say they should look for a recently fired AHL coach who's ready to coach again and has a chip on his shoulder yet simultaneously doesn't say he'd be doing a disservice to any team that hired him.