SAN JOSE — Feeling his team needed a new voice as it enters into another phase of its rebuild, San Jose Sharks general manager Mike Grier fired his friend, David Quinn, as head coach on Wednesday after just his second season.
An emotional Grier said he finalized his decision to dismiss Quinn late Tuesday night. Grier recently met with players and others in the organization, including owner Hasso Plattner, about what the Sharks needed going forward after they finished this season with the NHL’s worst record.
Grier, who wants the Sharks to be a harder team to play against, said there were things “he would have liked to seen better” this season, but did not want to be specific about Quinn’s job performance.
“After going through our process, and digesting this going through the process of evaluating everything, I just felt this was what we needed to do,” Grier said. “A different voice for the group where the group is now and what’s needed for the group.”
Grier said assistant coaches, Scott Gordon, Brian Wiseman, Ryan Warsofsky, and goaltending coach Thomas Speer, are still with the organization but can pursue opportunities elsewhere. Otherwise, whoever replaces Quinn can decide whether he wants to retain those coaches.
Grier also announced that Ray Tufts, who just finished his 27th season as the Sharks’ head athletic trainer, will not return.
“He’s done a heck of a job taking care of our players and treating our players for such a long time and was part of a lot of success here,” Grier said of Tufts. “It was just another situation as we move forward, we thought it was in the best interests of the organization.”
Grier said at the moment no other major organizational changes are being considered, adding that “there’s probably some other things that need to be reviewed. But that’s what we had to take care of right now.”
The head coaching change is the Sharks’ third over the past five years. Pete DeBoer, who coached the Sharks for four-plus years, was let go by former general manager Doug Wilson in Dec. 2019, and Bob Boughner, who replaced DeBoer, was fired by interim GM Joe Will on July 1, 2022, shortly before Grier was hired.
Under Quinn this season, the rebuilding Sharks finished with the worst record in the NHL at 19-54-9, as their points percentage of .287 was tied for the third-lowest in the team’s 32-season history.
Quinn, hired in July 2022 just weeks after Grier came aboard, had one year left on his contract. Quinn posted a 41-98-25 record in two seasons, including a 0-10-1 mark through the first three-plus weeks of this year. The Sharks also allowed a league-high 331 goals.
The rebuilding franchise traded high-scoring winger Timo Meier to the New Jersey Devils in Feb. 2023 and three-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson to the Pittsburgh Penguins in August. The Sharks were also without captain Logan Couture for most of the season.
Grier, though, said the Sharks’ dismal record did not factor into his decision.
“Obviously, (the record is) something I was aware of, but at the same time, going into the season, I knew what the roster was,” Grier said. “I wasn’t expecting us to be a playoff team. This season did go a little worse than expected, but it’s not all performance-related.”
Grier left open the possibility of dismissing Quinn on Saturday when the team held exit interviews and cleaned out its lockers. Asked then if Quinn would return for a third season, Grier said, “I’m still kind of getting all the information I can and we’ll kind of go from there.”
At that time, there was repeated talk from Grier and the players about how the Sharks needed to be a harder team to play against. The Sharks allowed a league-high 226 goals during 5-on-5 play and were blown out by five goals or more 11 times this season.
The Sharks are hoping to take a step forward next season and by finishing with the league’s worst record, have a 25.5% chance of winning the NHL Draft Lottery and selecting center Macklin Celebrini, widely thought to be the best player available.
Celebrini, who won the Hobey Baker Award as college hockey’s top player, played one season for the Jr. Sharks while living in the Bay Area. His dad, Dr. Rick Celebrini, is the Warriors’ director of sports medicine.
“We went through a pretty lengthy process of evaluating the season and performances from everyone, myself included,” Grier said. “We just felt it’s the right time for where we are as a group and what this group needs moving forward.”
What do the Sharks need, Grier was asked.
“That’s something I’m not ready to get into,” Grier said. “I think meeting with the players and reviewing the season, I have an idea of what they’re looking for, what they need, and what I think they need. But I’ll keep that internal for that for now.”
Grier said he’s starting to compile a list of candidates he’d like to speak to about the Sharks’ coaching job. He does not have a timeline to name Quinn’s successor.
While Grier said it would be beneficial for the next Sharks head coach to have experience as an NHL or professional coach, he’s not ruling anyone out right away.
“It could be nice to have a younger person that the group could grow with, being that we’ll be a younger team,” Grier said. “But at the same time, there’s a lot to be said for experience, too, if there’s someone who comes in here that we think is a good fit to lead the group.”
Grier said right now he would expect John McCarthy to return as the Barracuda’s head coach, although the team’s assistant coaches, Kyle Hagel and Loui Mass, are on expiring contracts.
The Sharks’ AHL affiliate had playoff aspirations this season but finished with the league’s third-worst record at 24-34-10-4.
‘That a whole other subject,” Grier said of McCarthy, “but I expect Johnny Mac to be back next season.”
