(Reuters) – Mike Grier became the first Black general manager in National Hockey League (NHL) history after he was appointed by the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday.
Grier retired from the NHL in 2011 after a 14-season career during which he appeared in 1,060 regular-season games with the Edmonton Oilers, Washington Capitals, Buffalo Sabres and Sharks.
Speaking at his introductory news conference, Grier said he felt great pride in being the NHL’s first Black general manager and hopes to pave the way for other minorities.
“Since my playing days the league itself has gotten more and more diverse, there’s more Black players in the league and more minorities in the league,” Grier told reporters.
“For me my job is to be the best I can for the San Jose Sharks organisation. If I do that hopefully it opens the door to give other opportunities to other minorities to get into front office positions and maybe lead a team down the road as well.”
Since retiring as a player, Grier has been a scout for the Chicago Blackhawks, an assistant coach with the New Jersey Devils and last season served as a hockey operations adviser for the New York Rangers.
Grier, whose older brother Chris is general manager of the National Football League’s Miami Dolphins, will now help to turn around a Sharks team that were a perennial contender for much of the last 18 years but missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs in each of the last three seasons.
Grier replaces Joe Will, who took over on an interim basis last November when Doug Wilson stepped away for medical reasons. Wilson announced in April that he would be leaving the Sharks after 19 seasons.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Toby Davis)
