Islanders fire head coach Patrick Roy with four games left in the season amid playoff race

Islanders replace Roy with DeBoer amid late playoff push

New York Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche fired head coach Patrick Roy and named Peter DeBoer as replacement with four games left in the regular season. The Islanders hold third place in the Metropolitan Division with 89 points, one point ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers and Columbus Blue Jackets. The move follows a four-game losing streak and seven losses in the last 10 games.

DeBoer, dismissed by the Dallas Stars in June 2025, steps in after sitting out the season. He served on Jon Cooper's Team Canada staff at the Milan Cortina Olympics earlier this year. DeBoer holds a career record of 662-447-152 over 1,261 regular-season games with the Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils, San Jose Sharks, Vegas Golden Knights and Stars, the latter over the past three seasons.

The Islanders sit one point above their divisional pursuers entering Sunday, with a 4-3 loss to the playoff-bound Carolina Hurricanes in their most recent game, where Carolina outshot New York 40-16. The team missed the playoffs in each of the previous two seasons. Vegas Golden Knights made a similar late-season change last week, firing Bruce Cassidy and hiring John Tortorella on an interim basis; Vegas holds third in its division with 86 points and a five-point edge over the Los Angeles Kings.

The Islanders retain DeBoer into the 2026-27 season. Their final four games will determine a playoff berth.