Larry Brooks of the New York Post reported Sather will step down from the general manager position while maintaining his place as team president. Assistant general manager Jeff Gorton will take over as the team's new general manager.
Sather has held the president/general manager position since June 2000, but multiple reports since the end of the season said the 71-year-old was debating whether to hold both positions for next season.
Sather leaves the Rangers in capable hands with Gorton, who was a coveted management executive by the Boston Bruins, Pittsburgh Penguins and Toronto Maple Leafs in recent years. Gorton has worked in the New York front office for eight years and spent 15 seasons before that with the Boston Bruins.
"Jeff has been an integral part of our success since joining the Rangers, and he has earned the respect of colleagues throughout the hockey community,” Sather said in a press release issued by the Rangers Wednesday. “He is well prepared for and extremely deserving of this opportunity."
Gorton was instrumental in helping build the Bruins into a championship-caliber team, as his bio on the Rangers' website claims he was instrumental in helping the Bruins land Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand, Tuukka Rask and Zdeno Chara.
He continued that solid track record with the Rangers, helping the team land highly coveted draft picks Chris Kreider, Derek Stepan and J.T. Miller while negotiating for established players such as Ryan McDonagh, Rick Nash and Keith Yandle.
The decision to have Sather step down as GM while maintaining his role as president mirrors that of the New Jersey Devils' Lou Lamoriello, the 72-year-old who guided the Devils organization since 1987. Lamoriello stepped down as Devils GM in May while remaining president of the team.
