Sharks Hire Mike Grier as Their New General Manager, Make NHL History

The San Jose Sharks have hired Mike Grier as their new general manager, becoming the first black general manager in the franchise and NHL history.

The announcement came on Tuesday that Grier accepted the position and was ready to move forward. His first course of action? The NHL Draft, which occurs this Thursday and Friday at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Grier is taking the role of turning around the Sharks franchise, which has been on the decline for a few seasons now.

Grier, a 14-year veteran NHL forward, was the 219th pick in the 1993 NHL Draft by the St. Louis Blues. He would go on to have a solid playing career, scoring 162 goals and 221 assists for 383 points in 1,060 games. He announced his retirement on 12/1/2011.

Before accepting this role with the Sharks, Grier was the hockey operations advisor for the New York Rangers. His other employment includes being an assistant coach for the New Jersey Devils between 2018-2020, and held a professional scout position for the Chicago Blackhawks between 2014-2018.

Grier comes to San Jose with high integrity, character, and the willingness to change this team around sooner than later. He knows the challenge ahead and in the Western Conference, it will not be easy. The free agency period will be interesting to see which route the Sharks go with Grier in charge.

Not only is this a good hire for the Sharks but it is also a great hire for the league. For years there have been vacancies in the head coaching, assistant coach, management, and general manager positions with many of those not being offered to minorities. With this hire and females being hired into top-notch positions with NHL teams across the board have we seen a change in the guard as to who is hired in the league? It certainly seems this is a win for everyone involved.