If Lou Lamoriello is back running hockey operations for the Islanders next season, it may come without an announcement or fanfare of any kind.
But it is not a stone-cold guarantee that at the end of June, Lamoriello will emerge from public silence and be with the Islanders at the draft in Nashville.
Owners Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky — mainly Malkin, the majority owner — have a decision to make on the future of the Hall of Fame executive, who turned 80 last October.
The belief around the league is that the original contract Lamoriello signed with the Islanders expires at the end of this season, and it is not known whether he has been offered an extension.
Given the secretive way Lamoriello tends to handle such things, anything is possible.
But until the situation is given clarity, there is no choice but to treat his status for next season as unclear.
Lamoriello and coach Lane Lambert did not address the media on Monday at the team’s breakup day.
Last season, Lamoriello and Barry Trotz not talking on the same occasion ended up being a sign of Trotz’s firing just over a week later.
When asked about his contract status at the beginning of April, Lamoriello pushed back on the question.
“I wish that sometimes you have facts rather than common knowledge,” he said. “And when you report, report what you know. Not what you guess or you read or you hear.”
If the Islanders do choose to move on from Lamoriello, it would represent a monumental shift for the organization, for which he helped oversee the construction and move to UBS Arena as well as turn into a playoff contender following John Tavares’ departure in the weeks after Lamoriello was hired in 2018.
It could also spell trouble for Lambert, if an eventual replacement GM wished to hire his own coach.
But after two straight disappointing seasons that followed consecutive runs to the NHL’s final four, with the Islanders failing to make the playoffs in 2022 and exiting quietly in six games against Carolina this season, consequences could be afoot.
“A lot of the same group has been here before and after [Lamoriello was hired],” Ryan Pulock said Monday. “And I think just the structure he brought every day allowed guys to be more confident and comfortable in their roles. He’s changed this organization over the years — a lot has changed, we’ve gotten a new arena.
“I think years ago, maybe some people looked down on this organization and I think over the past few years, that’s changed. And this is a great place to play.”
The new arena, as well as giving the Islanders more respect around the league, would be atop Lamoriello’s achievements with the team thus far — perhaps even above the two NHL semifinal runs and his pair of GM of the Year awards.
“I think he comes in with a pretty simple and clear, black and white message on what he sees, which is great for players to go out there,” Brock Nelson said. “At the same time, I think the main thing is he wants to win and he wants to win right now. All that combined together, I think, is exactly what you want for a group and a player.”
Now, though, the organization finds itself in an unforgiving situation, having spent draft and salary-cap capital on win-now moves that failed to pay off over the last two seasons.
It’s self-evident that there are enough pieces in place to make a run at getting into the playoffs, but a lot less clear whether the Islanders can do more than that, and no obvious pathway to addressing some of the holes on the roster.
Players on Monday echoed a belief that this core can still compete for a championship, and that — as seen in the Panthers’ upset of the Bruins this week — just getting into the playoffs means anything can happen.
“I think everyone in the organization thought we could win,” Nelson said.
That it took until Game 82 to secure a berth this season, though, combined with missing the postseason altogether last year, tells a different story.
Which one ownership prefers to tell itself will become clear in the coming weeks.