This Day in Isles History: Feb. 15

Feb. 15, 1972 -Bill Torrey, 38, an Executive Vice President with the Oakland Seals, is named the team's first General Manager.
Torrey was hired by Roy Boe, the Islanders first owner, who found Torrey on the recommendation of broadcaster Tim Ryan, who had worked for a time in Oakland alongside Bow Tie Bill. Torrey was the first employee in team history.
From
Stan Fischler's Maven's Memories
:
Tim clued in Boe so Roy then turned to Nelson Doubleday, who had been a minority owner of the Seals. Doubleday immediately seconded Ryan's motion.

As a result, Torrey bought a one-way ticket to LaGuardia Airport and then hopped a cab to Long Island and his first sane full-time job in the National Hockey League...

Bow Tie Bill's own first Isles' contract meant that his youthful dream of making it really big in the NHL was realized but not as a player. In a sense being GM was even better; or as comic Mel Brooks once said, "It's great being king."
Torrey, who earned the nickname 'The Architect,' helped transform the Islanders from an expansion team to a dynasty with its legendary four-straight Stanley Cup wins from 1979-83.
In 1995, Torrey was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.