Why ex-Rangers GM praises James Dolan, though ‘stung’ by firing in 2021
Jeff Gorton thought that he had the New York Rangers headed in the right direction in 2021, three years after owner James Dolan embraced a rebuild plan. After just missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs again in the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season, the Rangers appeared on the verge better days ahead.
And they were. Only without Gorton, who was fired by Dolan along with team president John Davidson on May 5, 2021.
“That one stung, I’m not going to hide from that. I didn’t see it coming and I felt like we were on a really good path,” Gorton shared this week on the Inside the Game podcast with Pierre McGuire.
“You worked your whole career to get that kind of job and you think you’re doing a really good job. I feel like if I was doing a really bad job I’d be like ‘OK, I get it. It’s somebody else’s turn. I’ve got to be better.’ But I never felt like that. I felt like we were doing a really good job and we were on a really good path. And they did really well after I was gone. It hurt.”
Just under six years after replacing Glen Sather, Gorton was out, in turn replaced by his assistant GM Chris Drury. The Rangers went to the Eastern Conference Final in 2022 and again in 2024, largely with the roster Gorton put together. They also won the Presidents’ Trophy for having the best record in the League in 2023-24. And then missed the playoffs the past two seasons, including this one when the Rangers finished last in the Eastern Conference.
The 2025-26 failure pushed Drury to send out a letter to Rangers fans in January announcing a retool. Shortly thereafter, the Rangers traded Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings. More moves are sure to come.
Sound familiar?
Jeff Gorton give Rangers owner ‘a lot of credit’ for transparency in first rebuild
Of course it does. And it was Gorton who orchestrated The Letter as Rangers GM ahead of the 2018 NHL Trade Deadline. Not all of his trades panned out, nor did all of the stockpile of draft picks. But the Rangers did come out of the darkness, with players like Panarin and Adam Fox, acquired under his watch, leading the way.
The decision to rebuild is not to be taken lightly, especially under the bright lights of Broadway. The Rangers had years of success in the 2010s, including three trips to the conference final in a four-year span, and their first Stanley Cup Final appearance in 20 years in 1994.
“We had some really good runs in New York, going deep in the playoffs, Gorton explained. “We were wondering for a while if we were good enough, if we needed to re-set it, see if there was a way to get some elite players in there, a few more younger elite players. We had talked that prior summer about it, that maybe it was time, but the appetite wasn’t as great then. But then the (2017-18) season started, not off the rails, but not as good as we wanted it to be.”
A rebuild can’t work without the support of the owner. And to this day, even after surprisingly being fired by Dolan, Gorton commends Rangers ownership for backing the rebuild plan, and for the transparency with fans about what the plan was.
“I actually give Jim Dolan a lot of credit because he was all for it, and he essentially called a meeting with all of us and talked about if we’re doing this, we should talk to our fans and tell them,” Gorton explained. “So, the idea was born about The Letter, to be transparent. Then a few days later I’m holding a press conference talking about a rebuild and that we would be trading some of our really popular players.”
Of course, Dolan famously ran out of patience. Though stunned at first, Gorton didn’t remain unemployed for long. Six months later, the Montreal Canadiens hired him as their executive vice-president of hockey operations. He went outside the box to hire Kent Hughes as general manager in 2022 and Martin St. Louis as coach ahead of the 2022-23 season.
There were three seasons missing the playoffs during their rebuild, but the Canadiens are reaping the benefits now. They reached the postseason ahead of schedule in 2024-25, and are mired in an absolute first-round war against the Tampa Bay Lightning in these playoffs.
Perhaps that helps ease the pain of how his tenure in New York ended, or in how he views Dolan to this day.
“I give Jim a lot of credit for being all on-board and adamant about being open with the fans.”
