Peter DeBoer, Islanders react to late-season coaching change: 'Out of left field'

AtlanticBruinsCanadiensLightningMaple LeafsPanthersRed WingsSabresSenatorsMetropolitanBlue JacketsCapitalsDevilsFlyersHurricanesIslandersPenguinsRangersCentralAvalancheBlackhawksBluesJetsMammothPredatorsStarsWildPacificCanucksDucksFlamesGolden KnightsKingsKrakenOilersSharksScores & ScheduleStandingsPodcastsFantasyNHL OddsNHL PicksPlayoff projectionsNHL Draft rankingRed Light NewsletterNHL Regular Peter DeBoer, shown here with the Stars in May 2025, takes over in New York with little time to turn things around. Jonathan Kozub / NHLI via Getty Images Share full articleEAST MEADOW, N.Y. — NHL fans weren’t the only ones surprised by the Islanders’ late-season change behind their bench. Peter DeBoer was, too. “Honestly this did come out of left field,” the newly hired coach said Monday, after his first practice with the team.  General manager Mathieu Darche had made initial contact with DeBoer on Saturday, following a 4-3 loss in Carolina, the Islanders’ fourth straight. On Sunday, he fired Patrick Roy and hired DeBoer. “When I first picked up the phone, my initial reaction was probably exactly what you guys are saying: ‘We’re two weeks away from offseason, what’s the rush?'” DeBoer said. “And (Darche) sold me on the organization and the vision and the direction and their ownership.”  DeBoer, who takes over in New York with four games left in the regular season, is one of the most experienced coaches in the world. Fired by Dallas after the 2024-25 season, he has a 662-447-152 career record in 18 seasons. He’s won nine Game 7s, more than any other head coach in NHL history, and has twice reached the Stanley Cup Final: with San Jose in 2015-16 and New Jersey in 2011-12. He’s also reached the conference finals in five of the past six years, including in three with Dallas. “Guys like Pete DeBoer don’t stay on the market very long,” Darche said. By firing Roy and hiring DeBoer, Darche is seeking both a short-term reward and a long-term edge. The Islanders are currently one point out of a playoff spot, and Darche believes the coaching change increases his team’s odds of making the postseason. With multiple potential coaching vacancies league-wide this summer, Darche also ensured his No. 1 choice for the future: DeBoer’s contract runs for rest of this season plus three more years, according to The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun. The Islanders, buoyed by a Vezina Trophy-caliber showing from Ilya Sorokin and a historic rookie performance from Matthew Schaefer, were in a playoff spot for most of the season. But they’re 10-10-0 in their last 20 games — 25th in the league by point percentage — and have put forth poor defensive efforts in their current four-game losing streak, including in a deflating 4-1 loss Friday to the Flyers, a divisional opponent also in the playoff mix. “I just felt like the last little bit here, we weren’t as sharp or we didn’t get away with as much as we did before because — let’s face it — we got away with some stuff during the year where our goaltender’s been outstanding,” Darche said. “I just felt at this moment and the last little bit here that we were sliding a bit.”  Darche, hired in 2025 after six years in the Lightning front office, described DeBoer as “a very structured coach,” having heard good reviews from former Tampa Bay colleagues who worked with him at the Olympics. DeBoer was an assistant for silver medalist Canada, whose management staff also included the Lightnings’ Jon Cooper as head coach and general manager Julien BriseBois as assistant general manager. “(DeBoer) was in charge of the D-zone structure, of the D and a lot of the systems (at the Olympics),” Darche said. Though DeBoer isn’t planning any system overhauls with the Islanders, he intends to make tweaks. “Of course you’re not doing a whole full-blown system change because that’s impossible to do in two days,” Darche said. “Usually it’s enough to make some little adjustments that make a difference.” As for Roy, Darche credited the outgoing coach with moving the organization forward and even said he did “a hell of a job this year, to be honest with you, from where the team was last year.” “He understands the business that we’re in,” Darche said. “There’s no issues with me and Patrick. I consider him a true friend now. That’s what made it tougher. There was no issues with players and complaining or anything. Nothing like that. It was just the way we were trending, we thought it was the move to make moving forward.” Discussing what makes the Islanders’ long-term vision appealing, DeBoer mentioned both Sorokin and Schaefer, the latter of whom he said was “within a razor” of making the Canadian Olympic team.  “He’s a special player, but he’s also got a special personality,” DeBoer said of Schaefer. “He’s not afraid to get in a conversation like a lot of young players are. He’s got that quiet confidence. (The Sharks’ Macklin) Celebrini has the same thing, being around him at the Olympics. Really great to have two kids that young with that type of skill but also that type of personality.” The Islanders don’t play again until Thursday against Toronto, so DeBoer will be able to take the ice multiple times with his new team before then. Captain Anders Lee said DeBoer “has been great with us and implemented what he’s wanted to implement in our first practice.” Darche met with team via video call Sunday after making the change. Lee said he had no idea it was coming. “Obviously feel disappointment in myself and in the group,” Mathew Barzal said, adding that he later reached out to Roy to thank him. “We all love Patty and wishing that we could have done better over the last 10 days.”  “We underperformed for him at a crucial time of the year,” Lee said of Roy, who exited with a 97-78-22 record and one playoff berth in three seasons. But the players see the upside in DeBoer, too. Schaefer heard positive reviews from multiple people, including his agent, an old skating coach, and Islanders teammate Bo Horvat, who represented Canada at the Olympics. Former NHL forward Zach Parise reached out to Lee to say that he’d loved playing under DeBoer with the Devils. “I know he loves winning,” Schaefer said. “I know he knows how to coach a team. … I just look forward to learning and having an open mindset with him and just learn everything he tells me that I can get better at.” Coaching changes can spur teams to good immediate results. The Blue Jackets vaulted into playoff contention after firing Dean Evason and hiring Rick Bowness, and the Golden Knights have won three-consecutive games after swapping Bruce Cassidy for John Tortorella. The Islanders will need a strong finish to make the playoffs, especially since almost every team vying with them for a spot has a game in hand. “Everyone’s starting fresh,” Lee said. “You have to continue to prove who you are, what your role is on the team, how you fit. And as a group you want to prove that we are as close as we say we are.” Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Peter Baugh is a staff writer for The Athletic NHL based in New York. He has previously been published in the Columbia Missourian, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Kansas City Star, Politico and the Washington Post. A St. Louis native, Peter graduated from the University of Missouri and previously covered the Missouri Tigers and the Colorado Avalanche for The Athletic. Follow Peter on Twitter @Peter_Baugh