The occasion itself was proof of the change at hand with the Islanders, and also you didn’t must look far at Mathieu Darche’s introductory press convention as basic supervisor on Thursday to search out extra of it.
There have been season-ticket holders in attendance and a repeated deal with connecting with the fan base.
There was some transparency, with Darche giving specifics on Bo Horvat’s ankle damage, his plan to maintain the No. 1 decide, Patrick Roy staying in cost as head coach and adjustments elsewhere within the group.
There was, repeatedly, emphasis on participant improvement and the significance of fixing up an AHL workforce in Bridgeport whose struggles have been hand-waved by Lou Lamoriello final season.
There was a GM speaking about collaboration and communication, being part of the group’s group efforts and constructing a workforce round tempo.
“By saying fast-paced doesn’t imply we’re taking part in [only] offense, as a result of you possibly can’t win in the event you don’t defend,” Darche mentioned. “Enjoying protection and defending are two various things. I wish to assault.”
Music to Patrick Roy’s ears.
“Even when the Lightning gained the 2 Cups, everyone thinks it was all offense,” Darche went on. “No — the workforce defended higher than everyone else. That’s why the workforce gained. And that’s the identical factor.
“Doesn’t imply that you simply weren’t scoring objectives. That’s what I need. Over time, we’re gonna construct a workforce in the direction of that. You want the whole lot. That’s the recipe: you want the whole lot, construct all points of it. Quick, high-paced, depth, compete. That’s the way you win within the NHL.”
When you stripped all the trimmings and niceties from the afternoon, received previous all of the allusions to shoring up the Islanders’ model and all of the change that may come off the ice, which will have been the starkest distinction supplied from the Lamoriello Period Isles who — even of their heyday — have been a step sluggish and really a lot defensive in nature.
Turning it into actuality is a distinct factor, and Darche, a first-time GM, might want to toe the road of fixing over the roster whereas conserving the Islanders competing for the playoffs subsequent season.
The 48-year-old spent the final six seasons as an assistant GM for the Lightning. Earlier than that, he had a 12-year taking part in profession — most of it within the AHL — labored within the enterprise world for Delmar Worldwide and was an analyst for French-language station RDS on Canadiens pre- and postgame reveals.
“We wished somebody who is actually collaborative, however who’s actually a powerful hockey chief,” mentioned minority proprietor and working companion John Collins, who led the search. “… We at all times checked out Mathieu like he was the most effective of the first-time candidates as a result of he was so properly ready by way of his taking part in profession.”
It additionally helped, Collins mentioned, that Darche’s tasks in Tampa went past these of most assistant GMs.
“I joked I spent extra time with [Lightning GM] Julien [BriseBois] than my spouse the final six years,” Darche mentioned. “However I’ve met mainly each GM. Each one in all them has reached out to me.”
The Lightning, although, have been already a contender when Darche arrived in 2019. The Islanders would require extra of a face-lift to succeed in that time.
“I believe this workforce final yr, due to varied components, in all probability ought to’ve been a playoff workforce,” Darche mentioned. “Do we’ve work to do to enhance it? After all we do. This summer time, that’s gonna be my focus.”
So the jury’s out on the extent of change the roster will see, although the cap rise mixed with a big group of pending free brokers provides Darche some leeway to place his stamp on issues.
It might be, although, that the tempo of change with the NHL roster is slower than the tempo of change inside the Islanders’ group itself — be it on the enterprise aspect, with the AHL roster or locally.
“Once I say I’m vertically built-in, that’s what it’s,” Darche mentioned. “You possibly can’t simply have an excellent NHL workforce and no, I don’t care concerning the AHL. That’s your pipeline. It’s important to transfer ahead participant improvement. That’s the place I believe the Tampa Bay Lightning have performed an attractive job.
“Should you look through the years, I believe final yr, Tampa within the prime two traces, not one first-round decide. You want first-round picks, particularly the primary total, however the actuality of it — it’s important to develop your gamers.”
For a workforce that went from 2020-23 with out even making a first-round decide, that’s an entire new language. And Thursday marked an entrance into an entire new world.
