San Jose Sharks Fire Coach Bob Boughner And His Staff

SAN JOSE, CA — The San Jose Sharks have fired coach Bob Boughner and his staff after the team missed the playoffs each of the last three years.

The team confirmed the moves Friday after reports surfaced Boughner and assistants John MacLean and John Madden were told Thursday night they were being let go. Video coach Dan Darrow was also fired.

No replacements were immediately named.

The moves come as the organization continues searching for a general manager. Doug Wilson stepped down after nearly two decades on the job.

Prior to missing the playoffs three straight seasons, the Sharks made 14 playoff appearances over 15 seasons. That included a trip to the 2016 Stanley Cup Final.

Boughner, 51, replace Peter DeBoer in December 2019 and has coached the Sharks for the past 2 1/2 seasons. Under his tenure, the Sharks amassed a 67-85-23 record.

"It has become apparent that the organization is in the process of an evolution," Interim GM Joe Will said in a statement. "The bottom line is we have missed the playoffs for the past three seasons, which isn't acceptable to our owner, our organization, or to our fans. As part of this evolution and evaluation, we felt it was in the best interest of the club to allow the next Sharks general manager to have full autonomy related to the make-up of the on-ice coaching staff moving ahead."

Boughner had one year remaining on his contract at $1.5 million, The Associated Press reported.

"The past two-plus seasons have been extremely challenging — on and off the ice — and Bob and his staff worked admirably under some very difficult circumstances," Will said. "This change is not an indictment of their performance as much as it is a recognition of the complete organizational reset that we feel is in the best interest of the team at this point."

The Associated Press contributed reporting.