John Tavares might leave Islanders because they fired Garth Snow

Firing Garth Snow might not have been a good idea for the New York Islanders. In fact, it might cost them John Tavares.

The John Tavares sweepstakes is nearly over. By Sunday, July 1, fans will know who won and who lost. Because elite players rarely leave in free agency, the New York Islanders are a good bet to hang onto him. Until an elite player leaves in free agency, you can assume a player of Tavares’s caliber will stick around with their original team.

However, if they don’t re-sign him, it could be because they fired their general manager Garth Snow.

If that’s the case, this is the definition of irony. Snow was terrible with the Islanders. With him at the helm, the Isles regularly disappointed. They only made the Stanley Cup Playoffs three times in 12 seasons with Snow as their general manager.

The Islanders recently removed him from his position, hiring Lou Lamoriello to replace him. They also named him their President of Hockey Operations. The Islanders did this because they believed it would help Tavares realize how serious they are about being a contender. Lamoriello has had success everywhere he’s gone in the NHL.

One has to assume Lamoriello thinks Tavares is staying. Otherwise, why would he want to be the Islanders’ general manager and President of Hockey Operations? Also, why would head coach Barry Trotz be so quick to leave a Stanley Cup champion to join the Isles if he wasn’t sure the Isles were keeping Tavares?

The longer the Islanders captain doesn’t re-sign with the team, the less likely it seems he will be staying in Long Island. Losing him would be crippling, even for a team with as much young talent as the Isles.

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Sure, the Islanders have Mathew Barzal, Oliver Wahlstrom, and Noah Dobson. Not to mention Jordan Eberle and Anders Lee. But without Tavares, they are clearly a worse team.