I don't think Mike Grier is going to have a job next year.

[DingDongCharlie]

OP thought he was cooking making this thread. Thread only proves the OP is cooked.

 

[gary559]

I think Grier has done a really good job.

With that said, I get where the OP is coming from, they need to see some progress and Grier needs to go to phase 2 of the rebuild plan next year, but it’s overzealous to have making the playoffs as the measure of a successful season. They are still too early in the rebuild and have too much dead money/garbage contracts for that to be realistic.

In my opinion, the plan for phase 2 should be:

1. Find some more pump and dump candidates that would take a 1 year contract to up their value, but that have the potential to put up big numbers and improve the team in the short term. Victor Olofsson seems like a good candidate. On the open market, he might only be a $2-3 mil player on a 2-3 year deal based on the season he had. Sell him on a 1 yr deal at $4 mil, playing with one of the young guns, and eventually being traded to a playoff bound team.

2. Target a bargain UFA from a winning team that shakes loose due to cap concerns. A name that comes to mind is Nick Perbix from Tampa. He’ll turn 27 in June, is their #6 Dman, but could probably be a #4 in SJ. Underrated offensive ability. A slight overpay and longer term to secure him might be required, but it would have high probability that he outperforms the contract once given the opportunity.

3. Alter the futures strategy next year. They have 2 firsts and 2 seconds this year and next, as well as a deep prospect pool. Any trades of rental players should target 2027 and 2028 draft picks, as those should be the target years to make the playoffs. Then the script gets flipped and they are looking for rentals at the deadline and will have a wealth of picks to do so. Also, teams sometimes pay a little more for deferring to later years. If the Sharks are selling Wennberg at the deadline next year and his value is a 2026 3rd, maybe a desperate team with a shrinking competitive window is low on 2026 picks will part with a 2028 2nd instead.

Phase 2 should only be for 2025 off-season. 2026 off-season should be more aggressive with more serious ambition to make the playoffs. But 2027 is the off-season all the dead cap space is gone. That’s the year they should look at starting to be a perennial playoff team.

Thank for for getting it. I understand my posts are like abstract artwork, but the point was you need to get up and out or people will be calling for your head. And I respect Mike Grier.

 

[LinkGaetz23]

I wonder how many people said this about the Buffalo Sabres in 2014 or 2015.

It's possible that the Sharks will begin a "playoff run" in 2-3 years. It's also possible they won't, as it's very difficult to build an NHL team back to a level of sustained competitiveness after a long period at the bottom.

Anyway, as someone else said, it's far too early to judge Grier. So far, he cleaned house of veterans and contracts, which is kind of the easy part. But building it up only works if the drafting and development are really good, and that's where it gets dicey...

Check back in about two years and we evaluate how Grier did.

Drafting and accumulating assets so far has been pretty good. Sharks had what was rated the best prospect pool in the league coming into the season and several players significantly outperformed expectations this year (Cagnoni and Chernyshov) with few I can think of who were particularly disappointing. The team is a long way from being any good, but it's hard to imagine anyone doing much better in the situation the Sharks were in.

 

[TheDawnOfANewTage]

Sharks rebuild is going beautifully imo, but they do gotta focus on defense. They played some fun 6-5 games last year though, got some good young scorers. Celebrini is gonna be real good, dunno the ceiling on Smith and co.

 

[Boud]

Grier is doing a pretty damn good job in San Jose but I’m not surprised in the least to see this thread. I think there was a time a year back or maybe 2 where many people around here were saying that Grier was a poor GM. I can’t remember the reason but since then he’s done an excellent job and I don’t see any chances that he loses his job next season. People like to think that a bad team means a bad manager but that’s not true in this case.

He’s doing what he has to do. He’s building that team from the ground up and taking the long road. He’s stacking picks and prospects with an already talented group of young players on the team. Historically teams that succeed long term use this approach and with the cap going up he will have built a long lasting, well-rounded team in 2-3 years.

The Sharks are on a full on rebuild. They are not expected to win whatsoever in the next year and if things go right they will be fighting for a playoff spot in 2027. Unless thigs go south fast somehow … Grier will keep his job and have the opportunity to surround the team he built with good pieces.

He’s been doing a much better job than given credit for. That said, we will really see how good of a GM he is when his team starts being more competitive and deserving of upgrades. Stacking picks and prospects is the easy part. Building a winning team and having the correct balance within the roster is the hard part. For now though there is no reason to consider firing him, to the contrary I think he deserves some positive feedback.

 

[weastern bias]

Lol

Lmao, even

I've written dissertations on this before, so I'm not going to bother going into detail, but Mike Grier inherited the most desperate and hopeless roster/cap situation in the league and in less than 2 full years he cleared the salary ledger to where we actually have to spend $20M+ this summer to hit the cap floor and he turned us from being a treadmill team getting the 10th-ish pick every year to actually restocking at the top of the draft order with regularity

He's done a miracle of a job in the tear down, who knows if he can build a competitive team, but to date his job is an absolute A+ grade

And fair warning to those engaging with Bizz, he has never once had a correct opinion about anything ever, if you agree with him it's time to take a long, hard look in the mirror

 

[BB79]

Well they still finished dead last in the league and it wasn't even close so it wouldn't surprise me. That said, I still think he has about 2 years left, if there's no improvement he'll be gone

 

[KingJoffrey]

Sharks were huge mess three years ago.

Now they have bright future ahead them IF they don't try to rush it like Yzerman did.

Let your top talent grow. Sign them after their entry-level deals. Then when they are 21-22 year old then you pay and add PREMIUM talent via trade or UFA-market. Use capspace to premium talent, don't pick 3-4 glorified middle-six players and pay 5-6 mil for each of those. Target only the premium. If you only target those rather over pay 1.5 mil to get premium UFA than overpay 0.5 mil to get Andrew Copp.

 

[ExarKun80]

I'd take what Grier is doing over what Calgary is doing. You can bet that 4-5 seasons from now SJ will be in a much better postions unless they pull a Sabres but I doubt that.

I'm pissed off that we had Benning doing accidental tanks while tryhing to compete instead of a planned
tank. That's why our core was always flawed and never achieved anything since we could never build a solid defence under Jet Black. The Bald Bros managed to upgrade the defence for 1 season but f***ed it up soon after.

 

[Penguin Suited Up]

Thank for for getting it. I understand my posts are like abstract artwork, but the point was you need to get up and out or people will be calling for your head. And I respect Mike Grier.

It’s a weird way of making your point. You’re calling out Grier in a negative way after he’s done a great job so far. Why would he be on the “hottest” seat when there other GMs out there who aren’t doing their job well at all?

 

[Dicdonya]

Silly thread, no chance Grier is fired if they miss the playoffs.

He is like 2 full years into the rebuild, and done a great job with the tear down overall, he gets at least another 2-3 years to prove whether he can actually build a team and not just tear one down before wondering if he should get the boot.

 

[Djp]

If the sharks don't make the playoffs, or at least compete for a position. Two dead last finishes are an accomplishment on the boards but in the real world, it's an embarrassment. I think they have the tools and it's going to be time to stand and deliver. Another bottom 5 finish isn't going to cut it. He's my pick for GM on the hottest seat going in to next season.

These threads are in general dumb.

He takes over in 22 andd does drafts for 22/23
23/24
24/25

He inherented very little in the prospect pool. Unlike e other sports most draft picjs takr 6 years to be anything st the nhl level.

He's drafted 9 players in thr top 90 or so of each draft class.iirc he has 21st and 2 2nds for 25 draft


Celebrini and smith can't change the club alone.

 

[CanadienShark]

He's nowhere near the hot seat. By and large, Sharks fans have been thrilled with how he's managed the team so far. He was dealt a horrible hand and done surprisingly well. I've been critical of some deals, like the Burns trade, but looking back, I think he made the right move at the right time.

 

[Stewie Griffin]

Please my fellow Sharks fans, stop bringing up the "He started with nothing" comments...we sound like Yzerplan fanboys. It's giving me the shudders