Islanders Next For Kamloops Coach?

Juniors coach Don Hay is on Long Island and a radio station in Western Canada is speculating he will be introduced as the coach of the Islanders within the next few days.

Radio station CHNL of Kamloops, British Columbia, reported that Hay, who coached the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League to two consecutive Memorial Cup titles and took the Canadian team to victory in the World Junior Championships last Christmas, has been offered the job, but the announcement had been delayed until after the Stanley Cup finals were over.

Islanders general manager Don Maloney said, “Certainly, Don Hay is among the list of candidates, but as of now there is no announcement planned.”

Maloney, without saying so, hinted he would at least like to speak to the Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils assistant coach Larry Robinson before settling on his new hire.

It is unlikely Maloney and Robinson would have met Sunday, so assuming Maloney joins the long list of general managers who want to talk to the former Canadiens defenseman, who is eligible for election to the Hall of Fame this year, today would be the earliest possible time to meet.

Hay, 41 and a former Kamloops firefighter, is visiting Long Island for the third time. This time he brought his wife, the radio station reported. Kamloops general manager Stu MacGregor told the station Hay is in this area but would not comment further. A phone call to Hay’s hotel room was not returned.

Maloney did say last week he would need more meetings with less-famous candidates such as Hay and Craig Hartsburg of Ontario Hockey League’s Guelph to get to know them, as opposed to more well-known possibilities like Pierre Page, Roger Neilson or Robinson.