The New York Islanders have dismissed Piero Greco, their goaltending coach, after just six games into his seventh season with the team, despite the team’s recent three-game winning streak. General manager Mathieu Darche announced the unexpected decision to part ways with Greco and elevate Sergei Naumovs from Bridgeport of the American Hockey League. Naumovs, a Latvian coach, has been with Bridgeport since May 2024 and has a longstanding coaching relationship with the team’s goaltender, Ilya Sorokin, dating back to their time together at CSKA Moscow in the KHL from 2018 to 2020.
Sorokin’s performance has been less than stellar this season, with a 3.90 goals-against average ranking him second-worst and a .873 save percentage placing him fourth-worst among NHL goalies who have played at least four games. Darche acknowledged Greco’s contributions over the past seven years but stated that it was time for a fresh start with the team’s goaltenders.
The decision to replace Greco was solely made by Darche, without consulting Sorokin, who is currently in the second year of a lucrative contract that extends through 2032. Darche emphasized that Sorokin’s success with Naumovs influenced the coaching change and reiterated that the goalie was not involved in the decision-making process. Additionally, Darche mentioned that backup goaltender Semyon Varlamov is making progress in his recovery from knee surgery.