Yahoo Sports 
New York Islanders looking for new team executive: Report
The New York Islanders could be in the market for someone new to step into their front office.
According to Newsday citing a league source, new Islanders owners Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky have been looking for someone to take over the the team president role, which general manager Garth Snow has held since 2006.
… pretty much since July 1, when Malkin and Ledecky took over the majority ownership role from Charles Wang, the new owners have been on the hunt for someone to step into the executive suite to either work with Snow or make front-office changes.
“They’re looking for a big name,” the source said. “They’ve talked to a lot of people already.”
The story said a hire is not imminent but the Islanders have talked with former team icon Pat LaFontaine and former NHLer Brad Richards. They also “spent time with” CAA agent Pat Brisson, who represents John Tavares, Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane and several other elite NHL players. The piece also reported that New York talked with former Montreal Canadiens COO Kevin Gilmore.
LaFontaine had previously held an executive role with the Islanders for 40 days in 2006 before Snow was brought in. He also spent a little over three months with the Buffalo Sabres as president of hockey operations in 2013-14.
[Join a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Hockey contest now]
As the Islanders have struggled to the worst record in the Eastern Conference, there have questions about the job security of coach Jack Capuano, but there has also been increasing pressure on Snow after the decisions he made last offseason have fizzled early in 2016-17.
He let forwards Matt Martin, Frans Nielsen and Kyle Okposo walk in free agency and added Andrew Ladd and Jason Chimera. The 30-year-old Ladd (who was signed to a seven-year, $38.5 million contract) has two goals in 23 games and the 37-year-old Chimera (who was signed for two years at $4.5 million total) has eight points in 23 games and is a minus-6.
Wrote the New York Post in late November.
Snow did not want to give Martin the four years and $10 million for which he signed in Toronto as a free agent. Objectively, that contract is out of whack for a fourth-line winger. But that fourth line made outsized contributions to the team. And the GM did sign Casey Cizikas for five years and $16.75 million ($3.35 million per), which is objectively too much for a fourth-line center. And listen, seven years and $38.5 million for Ladd?
Former majority owner Charles Wang hired Snow so this could be a case of new ownership wanting to work with their people and not the previous regime.
[Follow Puck Daddy on Facebook]
But the stakes are high for the Islanders. Tavares is slated to hit unrestricted free agency after the 2017-18 season and if he doesn’t see progress he could test the open market, leaving New York with a gaping hole down the middle.
New York has made the playoffs in just three of Snow’s 10 seasons at the helm and this season they are currently 9-10-4 with 22 points.
– – – – – – –
Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
MORE FROM YAHOO SPORTS
