Former Rangers star rumored to be in mix as Islanders search for new president, GM continues

It’s been nearly a month since the New York Rangers’ biggest rival, the New York Islanders, told president and general manager Lou Lamoriello that his contract wouldn’t be renewed. They’re still looking for his successor – or successors.

With the end of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ season after a 6-1 home loss to the Florida Panthers in Game 7 of their second-round series Sunday night, a new name is already rumored to be in the Islanders mix.

Maple Leafs director of hockey operations Brendan Shanahan, whose Hall of Fame playing career included a two-season stint with the Rangers, could be in the hot seat after Toronto was routed at home in Game 7 and failed to get out of the second round again. He’s served as their top executive since 2014 – and hired Lamoriello as GM a year later. Lamoriello left in May 2018 to go to the Isles after the Maple Leafs wanted to move him from GM to senior adviser.

Toronto has made the Stanley Cup Playoffs in nine straight seasons under Shanahan but has gotten beyond the opening round just twice. That includes this season, when they blew a 2-0 series lead to the Panthers under first-year coach Craig Berube and second-year GM Craig Treliving. The Maple Leafs haven’t reached the conference final since 2002 no reached the Final since 1967, the last time they won the Stanley Cup.

Shanahan spent two seasons with the Rangers, putting up 52 goals and 108 points in 140 games from 2006-08. He helped them reach the playoffs in both seasons and had his final NHL hat trick with the Rangers against the Islanders on Dec. 3, 2006.

He finished his playing career with the New Jersey Devils in 2008-09 and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2013. Shanahan won the Stanley Cup three times with the Detroit Red Wings and finished his career with 656 goals and 1,354 points in 1,524 games.

The 56-year-old signed a six-year contract extension with the Maple Leafs in May 2019 that runs through the end of this season. After another playoff disappointment, ownership might well decide it’s time for a change – especially with star forwards Mitchell Marner and John Tavares eligible for unrestricted free agency on July 1.

Marner is expected by many to leave as a free agent, while Tavares – who bolted from the Islanders to the Maple Leafs in the summer of 2018 – said he wants to stay.

Rangers archrival rumored to have interest in Brendan Shanahan for front office role

NHL analyst Nick Kypreos told Sportsnet Central that there’s a good chance Shanahan’s job could be eliminated.

“Make no mistake, over the course of 10 years, this has been Brendan Shanahan’s team,” the former Rangers forward said. “He’s the one that hired (ex-GM) Kyle Dubas. He’s the one at the end of the day who changed coaches … all of it fell on the watch of Brendan Shanahan. I think there was a level of respect for Brendan over his playing career, to give him an opportunity.

“He’s lived it. He’s won championships on Detroit — surely he can find a way to get the right mix, the right players, the right character together to win a Stanley Cup. But now that he’s doubled down and tripled down on the core (players) and they didn’t come through, there’s going to be a level of changes. We’ll see where ownership now goes with this whole role of a president. Maybe they don’t need one. Maybe they move on from Brendan Shanahan and don’t replace a president.”

Despite this season’s disappointment, Shanahan’s time in Toronto has to rated as an overall success – the Maple Leafs were a tire fire when he got there. If they ax him, he would surely attract the interest of a franchise that missed the playoffs this season and hasn’t won a postseason series since 2021.

Lamoriello’s successor, whether it’s Shanahan or someone else, takes over a team that owns the No. 1 pick in the NHL Draft next month after winning the lottery (the Rangers will pick No. 12). There’s also an excellent goaltender (Ilya Sorokin) and  a couple of talented defensemen (Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov). But the Islanders are also loaded with long-term contracts for players whose best years are behind them, and their talent pipeline is just beginning to refill after Lamoriello traded away multiple first-round picks in the early 2020s.

The Islanders reportedly were interested in longtime NHL general manager Ken Holland and ex-Rangers GM Jeff Gorton, now the executive vice president of hockey operations for the Montreal Canadiens. But Holland took the GM job with the Los Angeles Kings, and the Canadiens refused to give the Islanders permission to talk to Gorton.

The Islanders reportedly interviewed former NHL GMs Jarmo Kekalainen and Marc Bergevin, as well as Tampa Bay Lightning assistant general manager Mathieu Darche. The Hockey News reported Monday that Bergevin and Darche each had a second interview with the Islanders. But it’s unlikely that any of those three would get both titles – meaning that there could be an opening for Shanahan, who knows many of New York’s staff, mostly though his connections with Lamoriello.

Shanahan’s stature could help the Islanders do one thing they’ve never been able to do – bring in a marquee free agent. With the shine of a new building wearing off UBS Arena after four seasons, the Islanders have to do something to keep the turnstiles spinning. Bringing in Shanahan, and perhaps a solid GM under him if he doesn’t want both jobs, could be just what they need.