Islanders Fire Goring as Coach

With the worst record in the NHL and coming off a 6-0 loss to another last-place team, the New York Islanders fired Coach Butch Goring Sunday.

“For those of you who were here last night, you witnessed a team that lost its way,” General Manager Mike Milbury said of Saturday’s loss to Tampa Bay at Uniondale, N.Y.

The Islanders (17-40-5-3) are last in the Atlantic Division and have a league-low 42 points, one fewer than Tampa Bay in the Southeast Division.

“I’ve always felt that the measure of a team is whether they are disciplined and motivated,” Milbury said. “That was probably the worst performance we’ve had to date.”

Goring was replaced on an interim basis by assistant and former teammate Lorne Henning, who coached the Islanders during the lockout season of 1994-95.

Milbury dismissed Goring during a morning meeting at Nassau Coliseum. Soon after, the players were addressed in the locker room.

“That conversation with Butch this morning was a tough one,” Milbury said. “The guy certainly cares as much as anybody about the Islanders organization. The guy deserved a better fate and a better effort from his players.”

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General Manager Cliff Fletcher of the Phoenix Coyotes said none of the deals the team is expected to make before the March 13 trading deadline are written in stone.

“There’s been a lot speculation that there’s going to be a trade, but we’re not going to trade a great hockey player just to trade,” Fletcher said, stressing that captain Keith Tkachuk, whose salary is $8.3 million, would not be traded simply to save money.

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The Minnesota Wild acquired defenseman Willie Mitchell and future considerations from the New Jersey Devils for defenseman Sean O’Donnell. Mitchell was New Jersey’s 12th pick in the 1996 draft.

In 16 games with the Devils, he had two assists. O’Donnell had four goals and 16 points in 63 games for the Wild. He played his first six NHL seasons with the Kings.