Grier being named general manager of Sharks 'amazing for hockey'

Mike Grier is aware of the significance of the moment, of the expectations to produce a championship team on the ice and to inspire and help open doors for others off of it.

Grier was introduced as the general manager of the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, becoming the first Black GM in NHL history.

It's a role he's not taking lightly.

"It's something I'm extremely proud of," Grier said. "My job is to do the best I can for the San Jose Sharks organization, and 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."

Grier's rise has already given hope, and bragging rights, to several Black players, coaches and executives, past and present, who said having a Black person in such a high-level position has been a long time coming.

Bill Riley, who became the NHL's third Black player when he joined the Washington Capitals in 1974, said he took time from painting his boat on Amherst, Nova Scotia, to tell anyone who would listen about Grier being named the Sharks' new GM.

"This is probably, without question, the greatest piece of history that's happened in the NHL since Willie (O'Ree) broke the (color) barrier," said Riley, who played 139 games for the Capitals and Winnipeg Jets from 1974-80 and was coach and general manager for Moncton of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in 1996-97. "There were a lot of good hockey people, capable and knowledgeable Black guys, that never got the opportunity."

Bryant McBride, who become the NHL office's first Black executive in 1992 and founded NHL Diversity, the precursor to the League's "Hockey Is For Everyone" initiative, in 1994, called Grier's hire a game changer for the NHL.

"It's been the 'Old Boy's Club' forever," McBride said. "Mike's one of the very few guys that has penetrated through that throughout his career. He's trusted in those circles. He's a bright guy, smart hockey guy. Mike's had it since college where people gravitate to him because he's a really good leader, and people respect that."

John Paris Jr., who became the first Black coach to win a professional championship in 1994 when Atlanta of the International Hockey League defeated Fort Wayne in the Turner Cup Final, said seeing Grier ascend to general manager is a dream come true.

"It's groundbreaking," said Paris Jr., who also served as coach and general manager of Macon of the Central Hockey League from 1996-1999. "He has the qualities to be there, otherwise they wouldn't be hiring him. He just happens to be Black. For us, for people of color, we want more people for follow. It's a proud day for hockey and a proud day for our community."

Grier is the latest of a small but growing number of Black senior executives -- those who report directly to a team owner, president or general manager -- on an NHL team.

There are now at least seven, including Tampa Bay Lightning chief operating officer Mark Pitts and Brett Peterson, who became the NHL's first Black assistant general manager when the Florida Panthers hired him on Nov. 17, 2020.

"Since my playing days, the League itself has gotten more and more diverse," Grier said. "There's more Black players in the league and minorities in the league. There's more women and minorities in front office, scouting and coaching positions. So from my standpoint, that's something that I'm happy to see and excited to see."

Peterson said he was thrilled by Grier's hire.

"Mike (was) an accomplished player, he's a better human," Peterson said. "He's a leader. He happens to be a person of color, and I couldn't be happier that he's helping move this thing forward."

Last season, Grier was the hockey operations adviser for the New York Rangers, helping them with hockey-related decisions and off-ice player and prospect development. He also helped with on-ice development with Hartford, their American Hockey League affiliate.

Prior to joining the Rangers, Grier was an assistant coach with the New Jersey Devils for two seasons (2018-20) and a professional scout for the Chicago Blackhawks for four seasons (2014-18).

Selected by the St. Louis Blues in the ninth round (No. 219) of the 1993 NHL Draft, Grier had 383 points (162 goals, 221 assists) in 1,060 regular-season games over 14 seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, Capitals, Buffalo Sabres and Sharks, making Tuesday a bit of a homecoming for the 47-year-old.

Grier also had a stellar college career, getting 120 points (59 goals, 61 assists) in 114 games over three seasons with Boston University. As a sophomore in 1994-95, he helped the Terriers win the NCAA championship and was a Top 10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, which is presented to the top NCAA Division I men's player.

Throughout it all, helping to grow hockey and make it more diverse has been part of Grier's portfolio, and among the ways he did that was by working with O'Ree, the NHL's diversity ambassador, at clinics.

"To share moments with Willie and talk to him during those camps and clinics was something that meant the world to me," he said.

Grier also co-coached all-minority teams from the NextGen AAA Foundation that competed the past two years at the Beantown Summer Classic, winning their division of the prestigious New England tournament in 2020.

Reggie Millette, who played on that team and is now a forward at American International College, said Grier's hire by San Jose was "amazing for hockey."

"It's going to be awesome to see how the San Jose Sharks are in the coming years," Millette said. "Everybody's going to be watching him. I think it's awesome for the hockey world, for his family, things of that nature."