Today, the New Jersey Devils announced that former head coach and general manager Lou Lamoriello was stepping down as president of the hockey organization.
BREAKING NEWS: Lou Lamoriello resigns as President of the #NJDevils. http://t.co/8LwWMLqgli pic.twitter.com/LhsTTcvovz
— New Jersey Devils (@NHLDevils) July 23, 2015
Just minutes later, the Toronto Maple Leafs announced Lamoriello as the new general manager with this press release:
Brendan Shanahan, President and Alternate Governor of the Toronto Maple Leafs, announced today that Lou Lamoriello has been named the 16th General Manager in the Club’s history. Lamoriello joins the Leafs after previously spending the last 28 years in the New Jersey Devils organization.
Lamoriello first joined the Devils as President and General Manager in 1987. Under his leadership, New Jersey went to the Stanley Cup Playoffs 21 times, won nine division titles, went to the Stanley Cup Final five times and won the Cup on three occasions (1995, 2000 and 2003). The Devils also made 13 consecutive post-season berths from 1997-2010 and finished with a winning record every season from 1992-93 through 2009-10.
Lamoriello also served as Interim Head Coach during three different seasons – most recently the 2014-15 season as he served as co-coach alongside Scott Stevens and Adam Oates for the final 46 games of the regular season (20-19-7). On May 4, 2015, Ray Shero was introduced as the Devils’ new General Manager while Lamoriello remained in his role as President of Hockey Operations. He finished as the longest serving General Manager of any one team in the history of the NHL at 28 years (1987-2015).
In 1996, Lamoriello served as General Manager for Team USA as they won the World Cup of Hockey. He was also General Manager of Team USA at the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics. His many accomplishments have earned him a number of prestigious awards, including induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the Builder Category in 2009 and into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012.
More information as it comes.
