Lamoriello signs up ex-Dev for Isles job
The Islanders’ new front office is starting to come together.
President Lou Lamoriello announced Tuesday the team has hired Steve Pellegrini to be an assistant general manager. Pellegrini spent the past 12 years as a vice president of hockey operations for the Devils, where he was hired by and worked under Lamoriello until the latter left for the Maple Leafs in 2015.
Pellegrini joins Lamoriello’s son, Chris, as an assistant GM, with a full-time GM yet to be named — if there is going to be one other than Lou Lamoriello. According to a statement released by the team, Pellegrini worked on all hockeyrelated matters with the Devils, “including and not limited to, contract negotiation/ salary arbitration preparation, collective bargaining agreement/ salary cap compliance, scheduling and scouting.”
“Steve brings over 20 years of knowledge and experience to our hockey operations,” Lamoriello said.
Changes have come quickly since Lamoriello was hired as the Islanders’ president on May 21. He waited just two weeks before firing GM Garth Snow and head coach Doug Weight. Both are staying with the organization in ambiguous roles, but a new coach definitely will be needed.
There has been some logical speculation Lamoriello wants to bring Mark Hunter over from the Maple Leafs after he was assistant GM in Toronto under Lamoriello. The same can be said for longtime Devils executive David Conte, whose current work as a pro scout for the Golden Knights got an expansion roster to Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final.
The Rangers signed a one-year deal with restricted freeagent goalie Marek Mazanec, 26, who split time this past season between the KHL and AHL Hartford. The 6foot-4, 187-pounder has 31 games of NHL experience, all with Nashville. In 20 games with Hartford this past season, he posted a 2.97 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage.
The Rangers signed the Czech native as a free agent on Dec. 6, 2017, and he had been the Predators’ sixthround pick (No. 179 overall) in 2012.