TORONTO — The fallout from the Toronto Maple Leafs’ front office reshuffle continues.
In the wake of Kyle Dubas’ elevation to general manager earlier this month, Mark Hunter and Lou Lamoriello are both out the door.
Toronto announced Tuesday that Hunter and the club had mutually agreed to part ways. Less than an hour later the New York Islanders confirmed Lamoriello, who was recently shifted to the role of senior adviser after three years as Toronto’s GM, will be their president of hockey operations.
“Following extensive discussions with Mark, he and the Toronto Maple Leafs have mutually agreed to part ways,” Leafs president Brendan Shanahan said in a statement. “I’d like to sincerely thank Mark for everything he’s done for this organization over the last four years and I wish him nothing but the best in the future.”
The initial statement had no mention of Lamoriello. The Islanders broke that news, thanking the Leafs in their release.
“We are grateful to (Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment chairman) Larry Tanenbaum and the Toronto Maple Leafs for their courtesy in allowing this move,” said Scott Malkin, managing partner of the Islanders. “We are committed to giving Lou every resource and the full support of the entire organization as we pursue our program to compete at the highest level.”
The Leafs confirmed the Lamoriello move some 70 minutes after announcing Hunter had left.
Hunter, 55, was seen as a candidate for the Toronto GM job. And there was speculation that the 75-year-old Lamoriello was not ready to make do with the senior adviser role.
Hunter joined the Leafs as player-personnel director in October 2014 before being elevated to assistant general manager in August 2016 — sharing the role with Dubas.
At the time Lamoriello said the change in title was essentially “a formality as these are duties he’s already been performing.”
Hunter was in charge of Toronto’s pro scouting, amateur scouting and player evaluation departments. Dubas was GM of the American Hockey League’s Toronto Marlies, overseeing all prospects within the club’s system while also leading the Leafs’ player development, hockey research and development departments.
Hunter came to the Leafs in 2014 after helping build the Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights. As such, he had a relationship with Toronto centre Nazem Kadri and is credited with helping elevate the young centre’s game.
As a player, Hunter saw action in more than 600 NHL games with the Montreal Canadiens, St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, Hartford Whalers and Washington Capitals.
Lamoriello was the New Jersey Devils’ GM and president of hockey operations from 1987 to 2015, during which the team reached the Stanley Cup final five times and won the title in 1995, 2000 and 2003. His son, Chris, has been assistant GM with the Islanders since 2016.