NY Islanders add former Stanley Cup champion to hockey operations staff

On Tuesday, the New York Islanders announced the hiring of Pascal Dupuis as Director of Player Development, a role that has become increasingly important as the franchise looks to build around a growing group of young talent led by Matthew Schaefer, Cal Ritchie, Victor Eklund and Kashawn Aitcheson.

For years, that responsibility belonged to former Islanders defenseman Eric Cairns, who worked closely with Islanders prospects as they navigated the jump from junior hockey, college hockey and the AHL to the NHL. The announcement did not make reference to Cairns' current status, but beat reporter Stefen Rosner posted that Cairns, who had been with the organization since 2013-14 is no longer involved in Hockey Operations.

Unlike many NHL veterans who step into development roles, Dupuis wasn't a first-round pick or a highly-touted prospect. He wasn't drafted at all yet he carved out a 14-year NHL career, appearing in 871 games with the Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers, Atlanta Thrashers and Pittsburgh Penguins. Along the way he scored 190 goals, won two Stanley Cups in Pittsburgh and became one of the league's most respected teammates.

"His story is one every young player in our system can learn from," GM Mathieu Darche said in a statement released by the team. "Nothing was handed to him."

Dupuis arrives after spending the last six years with the Shawinigan Cataractes of the QMJHL, where he held a variety of coaching and management positions while also serving as a partial owner.

The Islanders have one of the most important prospect groups they've had in years. Developing those players properly may end up being one of the biggest factors in determining where this franchise goes next. That's now part of Pascal Dupuis' job description

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