The American Hockey League’s Hamilton Hammers have named Jay McKee their new head coach, it was announced on Friday.
The New York Islanders’ affiliate officially relocated from Bridgeport, Conn., to Hamilton, Ont., earlier this month and will begin play in the AHL’s North Division next season with McKee as the first head coach in the franchise’s new chapter.
Islanders News: The New York Islanders announced today that Jay McKee has been named Head Coach of the Hamilton Hammers, the Islanders new American Hockey League affiliate.
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) May 29, 2026
McKee, 48, spent the past three seasons as head coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Brantford Bulldogs. He led the Bulldogs to an OHL-best 48-10-8-2 record this past season before the team was eliminated by the Barrie Colts in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.
McKee had been with the Bulldogs organization for the past five seasons and before that, was head coach of the Kitchener Rangers from 2016-17 to 2019-20.
The Bridgeport Islanders went 34-30-3-5 during the AHL’s regular season this year but were swept by the Hershey Bears in the opening round of the playoffs.
