Sharks make it official, name Boughner head coach

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[September 23, 2020]    The San Jose Sharks named Bob Boughner as the ninth head coach in franchise history on Tuesday.

 

Boughner, 49, served as the Sharks' interim coach after guiding the team for 37 games during the 2019-20 season. He posted a 14-20-3 record with San Jose after the team fired head coach Peter DeBoer on Dec. 11.

"I'm very excited about the opportunity to return to the San Jose Sharks organization as head coach," Boughner said Tuesday. "I want to thank (owner) Hasso Plattner and (general manager) Doug Wilson for their trust in me. Last year was a difficult season for everyone but I think we learned a lot about ourselves as a group and we made some positive strides over the second half of the year.

"I've been in contact with many of our players over the break and, as a coaching staff, we are going to make it clear that our team is going compete every night, play hard and be a tight group on and off the ice."

Injuries to defenseman Erik Karlsson and forwards Tomas Hertl and Logan Couture limited the Sharks, who finished with 29-36-5 record and a Western Conference-worst 63 points.

"Bob did a tremendous job last season, getting our group back to playing with an identity and structure that we need in order to be successful," Wilson said. "We saw a marked improvement in our play in several key areas during the second half of the season, before losing some key players to injury."

Boughner rejoined the San Jose coaching staff prior to the season after spending two seasons as the head coach of the Florida Panthers. He produced an 80-62-22 record with Florida, which missed the playoffs both seasons.

Boughner previously served as an assistant coach with the Sharks from 2015-2017. He also had a stint as an assistant with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2010-11.

The Sharks also named Rocky Thompson as associate coach and John Madden as assistant coach.

"We're also very pleased to add Rocky and John to our staff. Both come with a wealth of experience, both in playing the game and as teachers and leaders," Wilson said. "With a healthy and motivated group of players, we are confident that this staff will do a terrific job leading our group in the coming years."

--Field Level Media

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