Trottier once again part of Islanders franchise

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Following a three-year absence, Bryan Trottier is once again a member of the National Hockey League fraternity.

But Trottier, who won the Stanley Cup seven times (six as a player and once as a coach), finds himself in a new position with the organization he is most associated with.

Trottier, who is of Metis descent and hails from Val Marie, Sask., is the new director of player development for the New York Islanders. His main job will be to keep tabs on the progress of all of the Islanders' prospects, whether they are in the minor leagues or toiling at the collegiate or junior levels.

Trottier had starred for the Islanders for 15 seasons, from 1975 to 1990. And he was a key player for the squad when it won the Stanley Cup four consecutive times, from 1980 to 1983.

"To be able to be involved with the New York Islanders again is spectacular," Trottier told Sage in a phone interview from his Pittsburgh home.

Trottier spent the final three years of his playing career in Pittsburgh with the Penguins. He helped the Penguins capture back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 1991 and 1992.

Following his playing days, Trottier, now 50, held coaching positions with the Penguins, Colorado Avalanche and New York Rangers. He added another Stanley Cup ring to his collection in 2001 as an assistant coach with Colorado.

But, until the Islanders hired him in June, he had not worked for a NHL club since midway through the 2002-03 season when he was relieved of his head coaching duties with the Rangers.

Trottier admitted he was not yearning for a return to the NHL.

"I wasn't looking and I wasn't worried about it," he said. "I was enjoying where I was in life."

Trottier was content spending time with his family, including his four children, ranging in age from four to 27.

He maintained ties to the hockey industry during the past three seasons, promoting Rebellion, a company that manufactures hockey skates and sticks.

Trottier also remained active as a motivational speaker, primarily presenting to Aboriginal groups throughout Canada.

While at a benefit game earlier this year in New York, Trottier hooked up with Islanders' owner Charles Wang, who at the time was conducting a search for coaches and a general manager.

"He asked me when was I going to come back and work for the Islanders," Trottier recalled. "I said, 'It depends. What would I be doing?'"

Trottier said Wang then asked him what he would like to do for the organization.

"I told him I would like to work with and develop the young prospects and have a long-term relationship with the organization," said Trottier, who was then hired on the spot.

Trottier will also work closely with the Islanders' alumni and have some responsibilities working with the club's corporate sponsors.

"It's a wonderful situation for me," he said. "I can wear different hats at different times."

And he'll be able to see how the franchise is functioning on various fronts.

"It's fun to be a part of the committee and to be in tune with what's going on within the organization in terms of sponsorships and marketing and everything," he said.

Besides commuting frequently to Long Island for Islanders' events, Trottier expects to also spend plenty of time in Connecticut. There he'll check in on the action of the Islanders' American Hockey League affiliate Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

Trottier will also be frequently travelling to Canada to monitor the Islanders' draftees in various junior leagues. But he doesn't plan to have much contact with the club's prospects before or after games.

"They already have coaches, they already have agents and they already have moms and dads," he said. "I don't want to interfere and be a distraction to these kids."

Trottier's new job, however, is not expected to take him abroad. He doesn't believe he'll make any journeys overseas to check in on Islanders' prospects.

"I don't have any strong desire to go to Europe," he said. "It's got to make sense to me in orer to go there. We have our European scouts and they're giving us reports on our players there."