The New York Islanders made a change at midseason when general manager Lou Lamoriello did not like the way the team was playing and he decided to part company with head coach Lane Lambert. Lamoriello replaced Lambert with Hall of Famer Patrick Roy, and the coaching change had the desired effect as the Islanders turned their season around and made the NHL playoffs as the third-place team in the Metropolitan Division.

There was significant improvement in the Islanders attention to detail and that's was one of the key factors in the team making the playoffs. Lamoriello was impressed with the job that Roy did behind the bench, and the general manager announced Friday that Roy will be back as the full-time head coach in the 2024-25 season. Lamoriello will also return as the team's general manager.

The Islanders faced the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round of the NHL playoffs. Roy's team pushed Carolina hard and built a 3-0 lead in Game 2 before succumbing. They were able to secure a win in Game 4 of the series, but the Hurricanes prevailed in five games.

“I'm excited,” Lamoriello said. “Next season started the next morning (after losing in the playoffs) and that's what we have been doing. As far as what transpired, I think a lot has happened. (It was an) extremely positive transition. I take full responsibility. I put Patrick in a very difficult situation.”

Players were happy with the transition to Roy

Lambert regularly wore a serious expression behind the New York bench, and the team appeared to be overwhelmed at times under his leadership. Once Roy took over, the players appeared to regain their belief in themselves.

“He did an excellent job coming in halfway through,” Islanders forward Mathew Barzal said. “He really just gave everybody the confidence that we could do it no matter what. The analogies and stories that he has, I felt like I could really believe them coming from him because he's been through it. The confidence that he puts out, I think really helped our group.”

Lamoriello made the coaching change shortly after the midseason mark, and Roy's team went 20-12-5 in the final 37 regular-season games.

Roy believes he was able to reach his players and he coached a far more competitive team than New York Islanders fans saw under Lambert's leadership.

“The playoffs feel like unfinished business because I thought that we played really well,” Patrick Roy said. “And when the coach on the other side says that the games could have gone either way, I really believe that because that's how I felt as well. And coming up short doesn't make you feel good about it. But at the same time, seeing the improvement of our team and the way that we played certainly motivates us, in order to be more ready for next year.”