“Excited to be back in Bay Area” – San Jose Sharks hire Mike Grier as first Black general manager in NHL history


“Excited to be back in Bay Area” – San Jose Sharks hire Mike Grier as first Black general manager in NHL history

Mike Grier

Former American ice hockey winger Mike Grier was hired by the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday. His appointment was historic as he became the first Black general manager in National Hockey League (NHL) history. 

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Grier, 47 replaces Doug Wilson, who stepped down on April 7 after 19 seasons to focus on his health. On the other hand, assistant GM Joe Will held the position while the Sharks conducted their search.

Really excited to work and to be back in the Bay Area,” he said, as quoted by NHL.com. “I know there’s been lots of ups and downs but I’m ready to work hard and get at it and get this thing back on track. We’re going to start winning some games in “Shark Tank” and get it going again. See you soon.”

“Trying to get better and make the roster better”

Mike Grier
Mike Grier

Grier, who played for the Sharks from 2006-09, said there is no timetable to hire a coach after Bob Boughner was fired on July 1. Notably, San Jose has not reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the past three seasons after qualifying 14 of the previous 15. They were 32-27-13 this edition, lagging 20 points behind the Nashville Predators for the second wild card from the Western Conference.

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We’re not looking to tear this down, like Arizona (Coyotes) or some teams have done in the past,” Grier said. “Yes, there are some challenges with the (NHL) salary cap, but I think the majority of the League is dealing with the flat cap and they have the [same] issue.

“So for us, we’re not looking to rebuild …there are a lot of ‘R’ words you could use. For us, there might be a few bumps in the road ahead, but we’re going to try and get better and try to make the roster better.”

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