Forgive me my sunny disposition.
After the long Memorial Day holiday weekend in the U.S. kicked off with the white smoke of a new pope for the Islanders faithful, we start the week on a Tuesday eager to hear what Mathieu Darche is cooking.
It’s a new era for the Islanders. If the Malkin-Ledecky acquisition brought money, an arena, stable ownership and an end to the bargain-basement ways, and Lou Lamoriello brought stability…more stability…and, okay, maybe that’s a little too much stability, then the appointment of Darche should bring someone who is well-versed in the business, salary cap and talent needs of the modern game.
No longer will “Hey, we paid someone to take Nick Leddy” or “add Duclair and Tsyplakov and we believe in the group” be sold as contender-level summers. It may take a few offseasons to position the Isles back into contention, but I’m hopeful we won’t hear a line of [copy + paste + repeat] about where the franchise is on the route there.
This, of course, could blow up in our face and I could feel foolish for my optimism — both are legit risks, always — but for the first time in quite a while I feel hopeful and interested. Of all the rumored possible outcomes of the Isles GM search (Holland, Jarmo, Bergevin), this is the one I quietly hoped for.
Islanders News
- Darche is making the most of his second (or is it third?) career. [NHL]
- Seven facts about Darche. [Isles]
- Not a ton more here, honestly, but a guy who’s covered the Lightning for a long time agrees Darche is a smart dude. [Newsday]
- Even less here, but hey, sharing the excitement for Darche. [Elmonters]
- Important to give Darche authority over the hockey operation, dammit. [THN]
- Late in the 32 Thoughts Podcast: Evidently Lane Lambert is a serious candidate for the Kraken job; that would be the third meh HC hire for them in a row. [Sportsnet]
Elsewhere
- Against trend, the Hurricanes got a shutout from Frederik Andersen to avoid elimination against the Panthers. After a megaton of Eastern Conference final losses, it’s their first win in this round since Rod Brind’Amour was a goal scorer. [NHL]
- Sam Reinhart is still officially “day to day” but he hasn’t been on the ice yet, so… [NHL]
- I feel like Brad Marchand has been a tool who needed to pass age 30 to grow up a little (and learn not to lick guys), but it sounds like he’s come around and has a good head on his shoulders. [Athletic]
- The U.S. won gold in OT at the Worlds for the first time in nine decades and honored the late Johnny Gaudreau. [NHL]
- After bouncing around the NHL this season, Erik Brannstrom has said enough of that noise. [TSN]