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New York Islanders

Lou Lamoriello Wins Second Consecutive General Manager of the Year Award

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Lou Lamoriello became the first general manager to win the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award twice in NHL history.

Lamoriello was the recipient of the award in 2020 after the New York Islanders reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1993. The Hall of Fame executive is in his third season with the Islanders after joining the organization from Toronto.

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Montreal Canadiens General Manager Marc Bergevin and Florida Panthers General Manager Bill Zito were the other two finalists for the award. Voting for the award was conducted after the Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs by NHL GMs and a panel of league executives and print and broadcast media.

“Winning an award such as this is very humbling,” Lou Lamoriello told NHL.com. “It’s very difficult because it shouldn’t be one person being recognized. It’s an award that really embraces what the organization has accomplished throughout the year. I accept humbly on behalf of our owner, Scott Malkin, and his partners, who have given us over the past three years, every tool necessary to have success; our coaching staff, led by Barry Trotz; our players, led by our captain, Anders Lee; our entire hockey operations, led by Chris Lamoriello and Steve Pellegrini.”

The Islanders have qualified for the postseason in all three years that Lamoriello has run the team and the team’s 27 playoff wins are second-most only to the Tampa Bay Lightning, who have 29 in that same timespan. Lamoriello’s 41 playoff series wins are the second most for a general manager in the NHL, only behind Glen Sather, and he has won three championships over the course of his career during his time in New Jersey.

Lamoriello’s first move when he arrived on Long Island was to bring aboard Barry Trotz as head coach. He has added Travis Zajac, Andy Greene, Kyle Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pageau via trade.

“When you look at his track record it speaks for itself,” Zajac said when Lou Lamoriello was named a finalist for the award last Thursday. “I think when you look at Lou he’s always one step ahead of everything else that is going on. Credit to him. I think he’s got a lot of belief in how he does things and it trickles down to the staff and then the players.”

The Islanders currently trail Tampa Bay 3-2 in the Stanley Cup Semifinals.

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