Islanders Name Scott Gordon New Head Coach
August 12th, 2008 by murph
On Saturday, they named the Ice Girls. Tonight, the Islanders named a new head coach. Priorities people, priorities! Just got home from men’s league and heard the news, more tomorrow. Isles press conference at 1pm.
New York Islanders General Manager Garth Snow has named Scott Gordon the team’s head coach. Gordon, the reigning American Hockey League Coach of the Year with the Providence Bruins, is the 14th head coach in franchise history. He has agreed to a multi-year contract with the Islanders.
“Scott has been one of the top up-and-coming coaches in hockey and with good reason,” said Snow. “Through his work in the minor leagues and most recently with Providence over the last eight years, he has gained an impeccable reputation. The entire Islanders organization looks forward to working with Scott.”
“Garth has given me an unbelievable opportunity to coach in the NHL with the Islanders,” said Gordon. “From my time coaching in Providence, I’ve seen firsthand the talented young players in this organization. I look at the direction and the vision for this team and see a bright future.”
Tom Says
No question it’s a gamble hiring Gordon. Also a little surprised when you consider Maurice, Hartley, and Crawford were available, all of whom have coached winning teams in the NHL. Gordon, on the other hand, is an unknown. According to published reports, he’s a defensive-minded coach and a big systems guy.
Not exactly an exciting hire but it’s all about winning games, not making sexy hires who prove ineffective. If this guy can do that, then I’ll be a big fan. The real question is if Gordon fails to get this team going in the right direction, will it be on GM Garth Snow’s head? Gordon is his guy, so it probably should.
Stay tuned.
Aug 13th, 2008 at 8:44 am
fauxrumors Says
1) Hey, the guy may turn out to be a great coach, but is anyone really surprised by this decision? From the outset we have said that its unlikely that the Isles will hire a big name guy. For many reasons.
a) Most of those coaches probably don’t want to take over a team that is destined to be a ‘lottery’ team this season
b) The Isles(Wang) probably doesn’t want to spend huge dollars on a coach especially when he already has to pay Nolan another year for sitting
c) Most importantly, by hiring a guy with even less NHL management experience than their GM they don’t have to worry about the coach having more clout(can be manipulated) than the GM
2) A cynical assessment we’ll admit, but can a realistic Isles fan who has watched this franchise the past 15 years, but more specifically Wang & co the past 3 years, really say with conviction that they are confident with the currrent regime/manner in which their team has been run?
3) We wish Gordon well, and hope he has as much success as another Providence AHL-turned NHL coach Peter Laviolette. Hopefully, for you good Isles fans who have put up with too much crap to list, this time the success will occur in NY
Aug 13th, 2008 at 10:17 am