the playoffs, the Oilers returned to the playoffs in 1997 and would make the postseason in four more seasons. In 1997 and 1998, they managed first-round upsets of the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche, respectively, backstopped by goaltender Curtis Joseph. However Sather was unable to retain Joseph, who signed as a free agent with the Toronto Maple Leafs for 1998–99, and the Oilers were eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs by the Stars from 1999 to 2001. Sather left the Oilers organization in 2000 and was succeeded as general manager by outgoing head coach Kevin Lowe. However, the deficiencies in player development under Sather would hamper the Oilers for several years to come. Since 1991–92, they have only finished with 90 or more points five times. New York Rangers In 2000, Sather joined the Rangers to become their president and general manager. He hired Bryan Trottier as head coach in 2002. The former Islanders' great, hated by the Rangers' fans, was fired 54 games into the 2002–03 season. Sather took over as head coach and remained as head coach into the 2003–04 season, eventually relinquishing the job to assistant coach Tom Renney; his record as Rangers coach was 33–39–11–7 over 90 games. That pushed his NHL career win total to 497, 19th all-time. Some good, young players were also drafted during his tenure as the Rangers general manager, such as Henrik Lundqvist, Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan, Marc Staal, Derek Stepan, Chris Kreider, and Carl Hagelin. The team greatly improved after the lockout under Renney, making the Stanley Cup playoffs four consecutive years. After the Rangers lost in the second round of the 2007 and 2008 playoffs and were struggling to make the playoffs in 2009, Sather fired Renney and replaced him with John Tortorella. The Rangers made the playoffs as the seventh seed but ultimately lost in the first round to the Washington Capitals in seven games. The Rangers failed to qualify for the playoffs in 2010, resulting in some fans holding a rally asking the team to relieve Sather of his position as general manager. The Rangers would later advance to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2014 with Tortorella's replacement, Alain Vigneault. He stepped down as the general manager on July 1, 2015, and resigned from his position as president on April 4, 2019, announcing his decision to take on the roles of senior advisor and alternate