Roy hired as Islanders coach, replaces Lambert

Patrick Roy was hired as New York Islanders coach Saturday, replacing Lane Lambert.

Roy, a Hockey Hall of Fame goalie, coached the Colorado Avalanche for three seasons (2013-16) before resigning Aug. 11, 2016. The 58-year-old was 130-92-24 in 246 regular-season games and 3-4 in seven Stanley Cup Playoff games.

"I'm excited about this. I won't lie," Roy said Saturday. "I mean, yes, I have ideas and some changes that I'd love to make. But if you permit me, I will talk to the players before mentioning them to the reporters."

In his first season as an NHL coach, Colorado tied an Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques record of 52 wins and won the Central Division with 112 points but lost the 2014 Western Conference First Round in seven games to the Minnesota Wild. Roy was voted winner of the Jack Adams Award as the NHL coach of the year that season.

Roy coached the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Maritime Junior Hockey League from 2005-13 before being hired by the Avalanche. He also coached Quebec from 2018-23, guiding them to Memorial Cup championships in 2006 and 2023.

"When I left Colorado, I thought the phone will ring faster, but it did not and understood that the way I left Colorado was probably not the best way to do things," Roy said. "But I'm proud of taking the time to go back to junior, working with those guys, learning, kind of resource myself in the game, and making sure that I stay on top of that different culture because the player of today, it's different than what it was in my times and then it changed and you have to adjust to the younger guys. So I'm very happy that I did this. And I'm very happy that I received this call."

A third-round pick (No. 51) of the Montreal Canadiens in the 1984 NHL Draft, Roy's 551 wins in 19 seasons are third in NHL history behind Martin Brodeur (691) and Marc-Andre Fleury (552) and his 1,029 games are third behind Brodeur (1,266) and Roberto Luongo (1,044). His 151 wins and 247 games in the playoffs each rank first and his 23 shutouts are second to Brodeur (24). His 478 games played, 262 wins and 37 shutouts are each the most by an Avalanche goalie.

"I've certainly watched Patrick not only as a player but also when he coached in Colorado," Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello said. "His presence is extremely impressive. And what he has done recently with reference to going back to junior and the success he's had and how he developed players has always been behind my mind. And when the opportunity was there, after a conversation, I thought he was the right person.

"Patrick can flat-out coach. I've seen it. I actually watched a lot of his junior games. We certainly watch the Memorial Cup. But we also knew, when he was in Colorado, what he did with the team that he had in Colorado, you just go back to what the record was there."

Roy won the Stanley Cup four times with the Canadiens (1986, 1993) and Avalanche (1996, 2001), the Vezina Trophy voted as best goalie in the NHL three times (1988-89, 1989-90, 1991-92) and the Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the playoffs in 1986, 1993 and 2001, the only player in NHL history to win the award three times.

In 12 seasons with the Canadiens, Roy was 289-175 with 66 ties in 551 regular-season games and 70-42 in 114 playoff games.

He was traded to the Avalanche by the Canadiens on Dec. 6, 1995, and had a 1.70 goals-against average, .934 save percentage and four shutouts to help Colorado win the Cup in 2001 and earn his third and final Conn Smythe Trophy.

"Speaking with Lou, I mean, I was very impressed with the conversation we had," Roy said. "I want to thank him, but I also want to thank our owner, Mr. (Scott) Malkin for this opportunity. I mean, I always thought leadership starts with ownership. And when I played in Montreal, we had the Molson family. On Colorado, we had the Kroenke family behind us, and today, having him, knowing that he wants to win, and he wants the fans to be excited about our team. And that's exactly what I'm looking for. And the passion and that I saw in Lou when I was sitting down with him, and the conversation we had, I mean, how passionately he was but more importantly everybody that I spoke to (about) the loyalty that this man has, there's no way I could have said no to this challenge."

Roy was inducted into the Hockey Hall of the Fame in 2006, and in 2017 was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history during the League's centennial celebration. He had his No. 33 retired by the Avalanche on Oct. 28, 2003 and by the Canadiens on Nov. 22, 2008, one of nine players to have his number retired by more than one team.

"He's fiery. He loves the game," Lamoriello said. "… I think it's going to be great for our players. And then Patrick said that he enjoyed the conversation that he had with me. Well, it was reversed. I enjoyed the conversation because the passion came through loud and clear. He loves the game, and you have to love this game to want to be successful. So I'm excited to get going, which we will immediately as soon as this conference is over. We'll start thinking about tomorrow."

Lambert, who was fired Saturday, was in his second season as New York coach. He went 61-46-20 in 127 regular season games and 2-4 in six playoff games.

The 59-year-old replaced Barry Trotz as Islanders coach May 16, 2022, after serving as associate coach for four seasons. It was his first NHL head coaching job.

"Well, certainly, watching our team play, I felt that the inconsistency that has been going on for some period of time was not going to end," Lamoriello said. "And when I had the opportunity to meet with Patrick recently, I felt that this was the best for our organization and to go forward. Always a tough decision. [I have] tremendous respect for Lane. But right now, we have to get right back on track … There is always a line, a fine line and that fine line in my mind was crossed. This was the time to do it."

The Islanders (19-15-11) have lost four in a row and six of seven, including a 4-3 overtime loss at the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday. They are sixth in the Metropolitan Division and two points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference.

New York hosts the Dallas Stars on Sunday (7:30 p.m. ET; MSGSN, BSSW), and visits Montreal on Thursday.

"It's playoff hockey for the Islanders from now on," Roy said.

Lambert is the fifth NHL coach to be fired this season, joining D.J. Smith (Ottawa Senators), Jay Woodcroft (Edmonton Oilers), Dean Evason (Minnesota Wild) and Craig Berube (St. Louis Blues).

NHL.com independent correspondent Stefen Rosner contributed to this report