He’s hot to Trotz with Islanders
Cup-winning coach gets huge raise and security of five-year deal
DALLAS — Barry Trotz has gone from lifting the Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals to coaching the New York Islanders in just two weeks.
Islanders president of hockey operations Lou Lamoriello hired Trotz on Thursday, three days after he resigned from the Capitals, and gave him the kind of longterm security Washington wouldn’t.
Immediately scooping up an accomplished, Cup-winning coach is the Islanders’ latest step to try to keep face of the franchise John Tavares, who can become a free agent July 1.
“If you know anything about Lou Lamoriello, his background and what he does, he’ll do what it takes to win,” Trotz said on a conference call.
“I felt strongly that once Lou gets with John, Lou’s going to execute a plan, a long-term plan that will be very successful, so we can chase the Stanley Cup and win a Stanley Cup.”
Trotz’s new deal is reportedly worth double what he would have made annually on an automatic extension that kicked in with the Capitals and five years instead of two.
The 55-year-old Trotz, who helped Washington win the Presidents’ Trophy in back-toback seasons and then the Cup, didn’t feel Washington was willing to increase his salary and decided to take a chance and leave.
Lamoriello and the Islanders called almost right away, getting a deal done with Trotz before the draft begins on Friday night and with time to spare before Tavares can talk to other teams about a contract.
Trotz has already spoken to Tavares and said the situation “is in good hands” with Lamoriello, a three-time Cup-winning GM with New Jersey who also helped turn Toronto back into a playoff team.
In the past 40 years, Trotz is just the fifth coach not to return to a Stanley Cup winner and the first since Scotty Bowman retired after winning with Detroit in 2002.
Trotz has the fifth-most wins of any coach in NHL history. He led Washington to finish first in the regular season in 2015-16 and 2016-17.