The San Jose Sharks ’three-month search for a general manager ended in a barrier-breaking hiring, as the team turned former NHL Mike Grier into the first black GM in league history.
“It means a lot to me,” Grier said in his introductory press conference Tuesday. “It’s not something that takes me lightly. I realize that there is a responsibility that the territory entails. But I am for that. How I behave and how this organization behaves, I think we will do well and we hope that let’s leave a mark and open some doors for people to follow. “
Grier takes the place that opened when Doug Wilson retired for health reasons on April 7th. Wilson had taken a leave of absence in November with Joe Will playing the interim role ever since.
Team President Jonathan Becher said Grier emerged from a group of dozens of candidates because of his experience as a player, scout, coach and executive over the past few decades and his commitment to building a winning culture in San Jose.
But he also acknowledged the historical nature of the rent.
“I hope it serves as inspiration for a lot of people and that it’s the first and certainly not the last,” Becher told Grier.
Grier spent three of his 14 seasons in the NHL with the 2006-09 Sharks. He retired in 2011 after playing 1,060 career games, and has spent time as an explorer in Chicago, assistant coach in New Jersey, and most recently as a hockey operations advisor to the New York Rangers, where he was hired. they gave many of the assistant responsibilities. general manager.
The hiring comes less than a week after Will announced that head coach Bob Boughner and three of his aides would not return next season. Will said he made the move two months after the season ended to give the new GM a blackboard.
Grier has a tough job in San Jose trying to rebuild a team that has lost the playoffs for three consecutive seasons for the first time in franchise history.
Grier will have to get to work quickly, dealing with the project on Thursday and Friday, the start of free agency next week and the need to hire a technical body and build the main office.
Grier, who played three of his 14 seasons in the NHL with the Sharks, could switch defenders Brent Burns or Erik Karlsson to create more flexibility. “We need to be patient and stick with the vision we believe in,” he said Tuesday. (Marcio Jose Sanchez / Associated Press / Archive)
He is not interested in complete reconstruction
Grier said draft and free agency are the immediate priorities, as well as trying to create more salary flexibility if possible before moving on to looking for coaches.
“I think it’s a challenge to try to put everything in order as soon as possible, but still do it the right way and be thorough,” he said. “It’s all a challenge, but it’s all I want.”
Grier said he is not interested in tearing down the team and doing a complete rebuild, but acknowledged that taking a step back to move forward may be necessary.
San Jose has many high-priced veterans on the roster and could bet on replacing defenders Brent Burns or Erik Karlsson or buying defender Marc-Edouard Vlasic to create more flexibility.
“It’s definitely a balance,” Grier said. “I don’t want to go ahead and be the kid in a candy store and say, ‘I can go get this. I can go get this.’ We have to be patient and stick with the vision we believe in and not I think we will mark a path and follow the course and we will not rush anything and we will move forward and end up making a hole that cannot be overcome in the future. “
Grier comes from a family of successful sports executives. His brother, Chris, serves as general manager for the NFL’s Miami Dolphins, and his father, Bobby, was a longtime head office coach and executive for the New England Patriots and Houston Texans.
Grier said he has been preparing for this new role since he was about 10 years old in conversations he had with his brother and father.
“Growing up we talked about the challenges of creating lists and things like that at dinner,” he said. “I would like to talk about football, they would like to talk about hockey. I rely a lot on them. They have a different perspective because of sports, but I definitely rely a lot on them and I trust their input.”
The NHL has emphasized diversity with several women who also have opportunities in office positions and on training teams.
The Arizona Coyotes announced Tuesday that Kelsey Koelzer and Kori Cheverie will be coaching under the direction of head coach Andre Tourigny during the team’s development program next week.