Adam Foote Becomes Third NHL Coach Fired Since Islanders Hired Pete DeBoer

This marked the third head coach to be fired since the conclusion of the 2025-26 regular season, with the Toronto Maple Leafs firing Craig Berube after their GM change, and the Edmonton Oilers letting go of Kris Knoblauch.

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It also marked the sixth coach to be fired since the calendar changed over to 2026.

With 40 games to go in the regular season, the Columbus Blue Jackets fired Dean Evason.

With eight games to go in the regular season, the Vegas Golden Knights fired Bruce Cassidy.

And with four games to go, the New York Islanders fired head coach Patrick Roy.

The difference between the Islanders’ situation and the rest of the hirings that came after the firing is who they hired.

The Blue Jackets got Rick Bowness out of retirement. The Golden Knights got John Tortorella, but only for the remainder of the season, as of now.

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The Islanders got Pete DeBoer, who would have been the top choice on the market this summer, had he made it there. That’s the biggest reason why general manager Mathieu Darche didn’t wait until season’s end to make a coaching change.

“Guys like Pete DeBoer don’t stay on the market very long,” Darche said. “His pedigree, I mean, he went to five of the last six conference finals. He’s had success everywhere he’s been. He’s a very structured coach. I know with Hockey Canada, I’ve got a lot of friends on that group, he was in charge of the (defensive)-zone structure, of the (defensemen) and a lot of the systems. So, at this time, I think it’s what we need moving forward.”

Would DeBoer have loved to coach Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers or Auston Matthews and the Maple Leafs if given the change?

As the owl says in the famous Tootsie Roll commercial, “The world may never know.”

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All the Islanders know is that they got their guy, someone they hope can lead the Islanders back into the playoffs after missing the last two postseasons.