After two seasons behind the bench on Long Island, Assistant Coach Scott Gomez has elected to vacate his position. The former two-time Stanley Cup Champ was brought into the fold in May 2017, just one season after announcing his retirement from the NHL, to help a struggling Isles powerplay.
It's safe to say that Gomez, whose estimated career earnings, according to , total just under $62 Million, did not need the job but had become a true student of the game through his last few seasons in the NHL. That, along with a call from long-time friend Doug Weight, was enough to entice him to accept the assignment.
In his first season with the Isles, the team boasted a 23.2% success rate on the powerplay, good for 6th in the NHL. However, the Isles powerplay in the '18-'19 season, following the departure of franchise centre John Tavares, fell well below the League average of 19.78%, good enough for just 29th in the League, with only Nashville and Montreal posting a conversion rate lower than the Isles.
With the hiring of former Leafs Assistant Coach and powerplay specialist, Jim Hiller, in June, that should have made it fairly easy to forecast Gomez' departure. Whether Lou Lamoriello had intentions of relieving Gomez of his duties is of no consequence now, with the 39-year-old choosing to walk away from the organization of his own will.
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