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On Tuesday, the New York Islanders fired seventh-year head coach Jack Capuano. Doug Weight is now the interim head coach, moving up from his previous position of assistant coach and assistant general manager. Grateful for his time with the New York Islanders, Capuano said, “it’s an honor to have served this historic franchise and its passionate fans...”
"He is a great coach and an even better person," Islanders GM Garth Snow said in the press release announcing Jack Capuano has been fired.
— Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) January 17, 2017
What Prompted This Decision?
After a disappointing first half of the season (17-17-8 record, 8th in the Metropolitan division), Islanders’ general manager Garth Snow decided to put his team into new hands. Snow, who’s worked alongside Capuano since 2010, explains that this decision was for organizational purposes. “Team performance is 100 percent on me,” Snow admits, highlighting that Capuano is not the only cause for the Islanders’ poor performance this season. Capuano did lead his team to the playoffs in three of the last four seasons, despite the fact that they never made it further than the second round.
Islanders coach Jack Capuano called out his team after a lazy loss Wednesday. The responded Friday with a big win. https://t.co/3XIe0ykPA0
— USA TODAY Sports (@USATODAYsports) January 14, 2017
What Does This Mean for The Future?
The Islanders have struggled in the recent years overall. Last year marked the first time in 23 years that the Islanders finally won a playoff series. That being said, there were higher expectations this season, which leaves fans even more disappointed with their team’s performance. So where do they go from here? Ironically, Capuano was officially fired just a day after leading his team to a 4-0 victory against the Boston Bruins. Despite the big win, it is only the second Islanders ‘W’ this month. With a new head coach, the Islanders hope to finish strong. The team faces the Dallas Stars at the Barclays Center on Thursday.
