Stuck in last place in the Eastern Conference, the New York Islanders fired coach Jack Capuano on Tuesday, ending one of the longest tenures in the NHL.

General Manager Garth Snow named assistant GM/coach Doug Weight as Capuano’s interim replacement in the hopes that a new voice could provide a spark for his struggling team. The Islanders are 17-17-8 and their 42 points are the fewest in the East, leading to Snow making the move for the short and long term.

“Obviously we’re not in a position where we want to be standing wise,” Snow said on a conference call Tuesday. “At the end of the day organizationally I don’t think Jack was probably going to be a coach that we were going to bring back.”

The Islanders went 227-194-64 in seven seasons under Capuano, a former UMaine player, and made three playoff appearances.

Last spring, Capuano led them to their first playoff series victory in 23 years.

They’re eight points back of the final playoff spot this season despite beating the Bruins 4-0 on Monday. Snow said the halfway point of the season played a role in the timing of firing Capuano, who took the fall for New York’s underachieving performance.

TUESDAY’S GAME

BLUE JACKETS 4, HURRICANES 1: Brandon Dubinsky ended a 17-game scoring drought with two goals, Boone Jenner had a goal and an assist and Columbus won at home.

DEVILS 4, WILD 3: Beau Bennett scored with 2:17 remaining to lift New Jersey over host Minnesota.

MAPLE LEAFS 4, SABRES 3: Auston Matthews, Leo Komarov and Matt Martin each scored in a nine-minute span in the second period as host Toronto got its 10th win in 13 games.

STARS 7, RANGERS 6: Patrick Sharp scored twice, Jamie Benn and Patrick Eaves had a goal and two assists each and Dallas held on for a wild win at New York.

SENATORS 6, BLUES 4: Mike Hoffman and Mark Stone each scored twice as visiting Ottawa won. Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Bobby Ryan also scored for the Senators.

Copy the Story Link