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After nearly two full decades leading the Rangers, team president Glen Sather is planning to step down after the season.
The New York Post, was the first to report on Sather's plans and has spoken to him about his departure.
“I certainly would have been happier about it if we’d won the Stanley Cup,” Sather told The Post. “We had the opportunity to do it, but those three overtime losses in the final in LA…that’s the biggest regret."
“But then also the reality that we were starting to get older—not me personally, but the team—and we could see that we would need to make changes to get better. That’s always painful.”
Sather, 75, was hired as the Rangers' president and general manager in 2000. He coached the Blueshirts for parts of the 2002-03 and 2003-04 seasons. Sather handed off his GM duties to Jeff Gorton in 2015 and has largely worked behind the scenes since.
Sather added that Gorton's job is safe despite the Rangers' issues.
“I wouldn’t be doing this if our management was in chaos. I think Jeff has done a hell of a job. Look at some of the deals he’s made. Jeff is not the kind of guy who misses very much. He built that team in Boston that went on to win the Cup."
Sather made his biggest mark in the NHL by building the Edmonton Oilers dynasty that won the Stanley Cup five times from 1984 to 1990. Sather coached four of those teams -- with Wayne Gretzky leading the way -- and was president and general manager for all five titles. In all, he spent 24 years with Edmonton from 1976 to 2000.
The Rangers missed the playoffs in each of Sathers' first four seasons in New York. But following the 2004-05 lockout, the Blueshirts made the postseason in 11 of 12 seasons, and reached the Stanley Cup Final and won the Presidents’ Trophy in 2014-15.
The Blueshirts finished at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division last year and haven't much better this season as they going through a massive rebuild. The Rangers play their final two games of the season Friday and Saturday nights against Columbus and Pittsburgh, respectively.
A native of Alberta, Canada, Sather played 11 seasons professionally for the Rangers, Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins, St. Louis Blues, Montreal Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars and Oilers when they were a member of the World Hockey Association.