"Time for Lou to step down?": NHL fans react as New York Islanders get eliminated from playoff contention

It's official — the New York Islanders will not have a chance to compete for the Stanley Cup this season. They were eliminated from playoff contention following a 4-3 shootout loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday afternoon.

Frustrated Islanders fans expressed their disappointment across social media, with many directing criticism at 82-year-old president of hockey operations Lou Lamoriello.

"They are borderline every year, Lou has to go," one fan said. "They have to make a decision on whether they keep Roy as coach. Lou is already talking like he's definitely going to do another year, this ownership is an absolute joke if they let Lou finish and then they give the job to his son."

"Will Lou Lamoriello get fired or will they say "everyone was injured" or some dumb crap?" another fan asked.

"Time for Lou to step down?" another commented.

"They've been a middle of the road team for years. Not exactly terrible, but not good enough to win the cup. They should just tear it down and start a rebuild," another opined.

"Definition of meh," a fan wrote.

"sad... unfortunately not much to look forward to this offseason," another added.

The Islanders have three games remaining before their regular season concludes. They’ll face the New Jersey Devils on Sunday afternoon, followed by matchups against the Washington Capitals and Columbus Blue Jackets.

Islanders captain Anders Lee disappointed to miss playoffs

The Islanders, who fell to 34-33-12 with the loss to the Flyers, failed to find enough consistency this season to secure a playoff spot.

According to team captain Anders Lee, the team battled adversity but ultimately couldn’t overcome it in time.

"This isn't a place we want to be," Lee said. "It was and has been a year where we left games on the table. We fought through a lot of adversity and did our best to keep our foot in and give ourselves a chance the last 15 games."

"But stretches of time that lasted a game or two too long and put us in a spot where it was out of our control. So it's disappointing, no doubt, to not have a go at this thing."

Multiple players are scheduled to become free agents this summer, including Kyle Palmieri, Simon Holmstrom, Matt Martin, Mike Reilly, Grant Hutton and Noah Dobson.