Former San Jose Sharks hero starts new role with Pittsburgh Penguins
Former San Jose Sharks general manager Doug Wilson, now in improved health, has been hired by the Pittsburgh Penguins to be a senior advisor of hockey operations.
Per the Penguins, Wilson “will provide counsel, opinions and expertise to hockey operations leadership on all matters including personnel decisions” and will join the team at various points during the season and offseason.
“Doug brings over 40 years of NHL experience to our program,” said Kyle Dubas, the Penguins’ president of hockey operations and general manager, in a statement. “Doug will serve as a source of both experience and wisdom to our entire hockey operations department. His ability to maintain high standards of performance and professionalism over two decades with Sharks is the type of consistency we all aspire to these positions.”
Wilson, 66, stepped down as the Sharks’ GM in April 2022 to focus on his recovery from an undisclosed health issue, but also noted at the time that he wanted to continue his career in the NHL in the future. Wilson’s health improved earlier this year, and speculation began about a possible return to the NHL in some capacity.
Starting in May 2003, Wilson was the Sharks’ general manager for 19 years. In that time, the Sharks had the third-highest regular season winning percentage in the NHL and made the playoffs 14 times, reaching the Western Conference final five times and the Stanley Cup Final once in 2016. The Sharks also won the President’s Trophy in 2009 for having the NHL’s best regular season record.
The Sharks organization honored Wilson for his accomplishments with a special ceremony last October, raising a banner with his initials to the rafters at SAP Center before the team played the Chicago Blackhawks.
Wilson was traded by Chicago to the expansion Sharks in 1991 and served as San Jose’s captain for two years until his retirement in 1993. Wilson was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2020 and inducted in November 2021, shortly before he began what was originally intended to be a temporary medical leave of absence.
In a Stanley Cup-or-bust move in Sept. 2018, Wilson acquired Karlsson from the Ottawa Senators for a host of players and draft picks, then signed the Norris Trophy winner to an eight-year, $92 million contract extension the following spring. The Sharks have missed the playoffs each of the last four years and are in the midst of a rebuild under Mike Grier, now in his second year as the team’s GM.
READ MORE
PITTSBURGH, PA — When the Penguins begin the 2023=24 season next month, they will have a new TV broadcast tandem.
According to multiple reports over the Labor Day weekend, play-by-play announcer Steve Mears and analyst Bob Errey will not return to the telecasts. Radio play-by-play man Josh Getzoff is expected to move to the TV side. Radio analyst Phil Borque might join him, although former Penguin Colby Armstrong is expected to play a prominent role on the TV side.
Penguins reporter Dan Potash is expected to return.
The moves have not been officially announced by the Fenway Sports Group, which is purchasing the Penguins broadcast home AT&T SportsNet and rebranding it SportsNet Pittsburgh as of Oct. 1. But Errey confirmed to The Athletic that he and Mears will not return to the TV broadcasts.
It’s currently unclear who will be the play-by-play announcer on the radio broadcasts, although one possibility would be Mears essentially switching places with Getzoff.
Errey, a former Penguins first-round pick, had been in the broadcast booth for 22 years. Mears, a Murrysville native, had been the TV play-by-play man since 2017.
Leave a Reply