New York Islanders name Scott Gomez an assistant coach

The New York Islanders added former Tri-City American Scott Gomez to their coaching staff.

Islanders coach Doug Weight announced Tuesday that Gomez will begin his coaching career this season.

Gomez retired after the 2015-16 season, ending a 16-year NHL career that saw him win the Calder Memorial Trophy in 1999-00 as the league’s top rookie, and two Stanley Cups with the New Jersey Devils (2000, 2003).

Gomez had 181 goals and 575 assists in 1,079 career regular-season games with the Devils, New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, San Jose Sharks, Florida Panthers, St. Louis Blues and Ottawa Senators. He also had 29 goals and 72 assists in 149 playoff games.

In his rookie season with the Americans (1997-98), Gomez scored 12 goals with 37 assists in 45 games, and was named to the WHL All-Rookie Team.

That spring, he was drafted by New Jersey.

The next season, Gomez flourished, scoring 30 goals with 78 assists in 58 games. He and teammate Dylan Gyori (118 points) were named to the Western Conference All-Star Team.

Gomez twice played for Team USA (1998-99) at the World Junior Championship. He also played for the United States at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, where it lost to Finland in the quarterfinals.

This story was originally published May 30, 2017 at 3:33 PM with the headline "New York Islanders name Scott Gomez an assistant coach."