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105-589: It is named in honor of former San Jose Sharks part-owners Kevin and Gayla Compton, whose gift led funding for the project. The new ice arena is located south of the Joyce Center, just north of Edison Road, and just west of the Harris Family Track and Field facility. The majority of the general public arena seating is of the chair-back variety. The facility includes two sheets of ice (one of them Olympic-sized), with limited seating availability for

210-666: A 15-game losing skid knocked the Barons out of playoff contention. At the end of the 1977–78 season , plans to buy the Coliseum outright fell through, and the Barons' small crowds and continuing struggles placed the franchise's viability in serious doubt. Meanwhile, the ownership of the Minnesota North Stars could no longer sustain the North Stars. Since Minnesota was perceived as the more desirable hockey market at

315-527: A Sharks defenseman. On May 8, 2023, San Jose was awarded the fourth overall selection in the 2023 NHL entry draft through the NHL's draft lottery process, their highest-held selection since the 1998 NHL entry draft . With the pick, San Jose selected center Will Smith out of the U.S. National Team Development Program . On August 6, San Jose traded Karlsson to the Pittsburgh Penguins as part of

420-688: A brief slump, general manager Harry Howell pulled off several trades in an attempt to make the team tougher. It initially paid off, and the Barons knocked off three of the NHL's top teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs , New York Islanders and Buffalo Sabres in consecutive games in January 1978. A few weeks later, a record crowd of 13,110 saw the Barons tie the Philadelphia Flyers 2–2. The bottom fell out in February, however, as

525-739: A disaster for the Sharks, when they lost in a four-game sweep to Detroit (in a rematch of the previous year) without even holding a single lead in all four games. However, the 1995 season also saw the only rainout in the history of the NHL, when the Guadalupe River flooded its banks in March 1995, making it impossible for anyone to get into the San Jose Arena for a game between the Sharks and the Detroit Red Wings. In 1995–96 ,

630-641: A first-round pick in the 2011 NHL entry draft to the Minnesota Wild for All-Star defenseman Brent Burns and a second-round pick in the 2012 NHL entry draft . This came after Setoguchi had signed a three-year, $ 9 million contract extension with the Sharks. The Sharks continued their off-season retool by orchestrating a second transaction with the Wild, shipping Dany Heatley to Minnesota in exchange for Martin Havlat , both to relieve cap space as Heatley

735-536: A game during their five-game away game stretch, DeBoer and his staff were fired. After DeBoer's firing, assistant coach Bob Boughner was named interim head coach. In March 2020, four months after Boughner became interim coach, the league was forced to suspend operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic . When the 2019–20 season resumed in June with the playoffs, the Sharks were not included. Boughner's interim label

840-493: A large home on the north shore of Nantucket since 1978. Gordon Gund attended Harvard University , where he majored in physical sciences and sociology and played ice hockey. He served in the United States Navy , becoming department head on two destroyers. He then started a banking career, specializing in corporate finance. He gradually began going blind in the 1960s due to retinitis pigmentosa . By 1970, Gund

945-585: A majority of his wealth to philanthropy. A native of Cleveland, Ohio , Gund is a member of one of the city's prominent families. His father George Gund II was president and chairman of Cleveland Trust when it was Ohio's largest bank. Gund II was famous for hiding his wealth from his family and hiding his philanthropy. His sister, Agnes , is a well known philanthropist in her own right. Gordon Gund resided with his late wife, Llura, in Princeton, New Jersey ; together they had two children. Gund has also owned

1050-802: A minority interest in the California Golden Seals of the NHL. The Seals had never been able to find success either on the ice or at the box office, and after plans for a proposed new arena in San Francisco were cancelled in 1976, he convinced majority owner Mel Swig to relocate the franchise from Oakland to the Gunds' hometown in June of that year. Renamed the Barons after the popular former American Hockey League team, they played at The Coliseum in Richfield , which had been vacated by

1155-454: A move which helped rejuvenate interest among the fan base. In 2005, Gund sold controlling interest of the team to Quicken Loans founder and billionaire Dan Gilbert , maintaining a minority ownership stake for himself. Gund has an NBA championship to his credit via his status as minority owner of the team during the 2015–16 title-winning season . In April 2021, Gund's minority share was bought by majority owner Gilbert. The city of Cleveland

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1260-454: A new building. With the completion of the new arena, the ice plant was removed from the Joyce Center's north dome, making its space available for a variety of other events. The main ice arena features a 200' x 90' ice rink. The facility is named the Charles W. "Lefty" Smith Jr. Rink, in honor of the first coach in the program's history. San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are

1365-611: A plan to relocate the franchise to the San Francisco Bay Area , the market they had vacated some 14 years earlier. Ziegler and the league refused to allow this move, but allowed the Gunds to sell the North Stars to Howard Baldwin and granted them an expansion team in the Bay Area, which became the San Jose Sharks , to start play in the 1991–92 season . With an expansion roster, the Sharks finished last in

1470-760: A professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California . The Sharks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference , and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainment Enterprises . Beginning play in the 1991–92 season , the team initially played its home games at the Cow Palace , before moving to its present home, now named SAP Center at San Jose , in 1993;

1575-547: A rotating captaincy. When the job eventually fell to Patrick Marleau, he kept the captaincy. During the off-season, forward Vincent Damphousse was lost to the Colorado Avalanche (but never played a game for them, as he announced his retirement during the 2004–05 lockout). The Sharks started the 2005–06 season slowly, dropping to last place in the Pacific Division. The team lost Alexander Korolyuk. After

1680-466: A row in February, and only a $ 1.3 million loan allowed the Barons to finish the season. They finished last in the Adams Division , and Swig sold his interest in the team to the Gunds. The Gunds poured money into the team, and it seemed to make a difference at first. The Barons stunned the defending Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens on November 23 before a boisterous crowd of 12,859. After

1785-475: A second trade: Milan Michalek and Jonathan Cheechoo were sent to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Dany Heatley and a draft pick. Assistant coach Todd Richards left and was replaced by Matt Shaw. Aside from the trades, several contracts were not renewed, including those of Mike Grier , Marcel Goc , Tomas Plihal and Alexei Semenov . San Jose also signed forward Scott Nichol and added grit to

1890-503: A string of outstanding performances. The Sharks finished the regular season with the best record in franchise history at 51–26–5. In the conference quarterfinals, the Sharks defeated the Nashville Predators for the second year in a row. In the conference semifinals, the Sharks were defeated for the second time by the Detroit Red Wings. In advance of the 2007–08 season , the Sharks updated their logos and jerseys to adjust to

1995-541: A ten-game losing streak, the Sharks traded Brad Stuart , Wayne Primeau and Marco Sturm to the Boston Bruins in exchange for star player Joe Thornton . The trade re-energized the team, and with Nabokov sharing starting duties with backup goaltender Vesa Toskala , the Sharks rallied back from their early-season slump to clinch the fifth seed in the Western Conference. In the playoffs, the Sharks defeated

2100-532: A three-team trade also featuring the Montreal Canadiens . San Jose received a conditional first-round selection from Pittsburgh in the 2024 NHL entry draft , along with forwards Mikael Granlund and Mike Hoffman and defenseman Jan Rutta . Gordon Gund Gordon Gund (born October 15, 1939) is an American businessman and professional sports owner. He is the CEO of Gund Investment Corporation. He

2205-439: A total of 56. The Sharks entered the 2006–07 season as the youngest team in average age, as well as the biggest team in average weight, and they raced out to a 20–7–0 start, the best in franchise history. A concern made by fans and members of the media was the lack of a left winger to play on a line with the duo of Thornton and Cheechoo. Wilson seemingly addressed this issue by acquiring 25-year-old 20-goal-scorer Mark Bell from

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2310-590: Is the former co-owner of the San Jose Sharks ( National Hockey League ) from 1992 to 2002, former principal owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers ( National Basketball Association ) from 1983 to 2005, and former principal owner of the Cleveland Rockers ( Women's National Basketball Association ) from 1997 to 2003. Gund lost his sight to retinitis pigmentosa and was a co-founder of Foundation Fighting Blindness. Gund's brother, George , held

2415-540: The 2008–09 season . Todd Richards , Trent Yawney and Jay Woodcroft were named assistant coaches, while Brett Heimlich was named staff assistant. During the off-season, San Jose's major headlines included signing defenseman Rob Blake , acquiring defensemen Dan Boyle and Brad Lukowich , as well as trading defenseman Craig Rivet to the Buffalo Sabres . Midway through the season, San Jose added playoff warrior Claude Lemieux to their roster. Lemieux, 43 years old,

2520-549: The 2011–12 season with a 43–29–10 record, good for 96 points and the seventh seed in the Stanley Cup playoffs. However, after winning Game 1 of their first-round series with the St. Louis Blues in overtime, they lost the final four games of the series, marking the second time they lost in the conference quarterfinals under Todd McLellan. Despite the underachievement of the previous year, it was announced that McLellan would remain on

2625-547: The 2017–18 season , the Sharks once again finished in third place in the Pacific Division. They swept the Anaheim Ducks in the first round of the 2018 playoffs , but lost to the expansion Vegas Golden Knights in six games in the second round. The 2018–19 season saw another playoff berth for the Sharks, overcoming a 3–1 series lead, once again by the Vegas Golden Knights, and in a dramatic comeback in

2730-506: The 2022 NHL Global Series , with an exhibition match against Eisbaren Berlin in Berlin , Germany on October 4, 2022, and a two-game series against Nashville in Prague , Czech Republic to kick off the 2022–23 regular season on October 7 and 8. On February 25, 2023, the Sharks retired Patrick Marleau's number 12 in a pre-game ceremony prior to San Jose's game against Chicago. Marleau's number

2835-685: The Cleveland Crusaders of the World Hockey Association when they moved to Saint Paul, Minnesota to become the second incarnation of the Minnesota Fighting Saints . The Barons only drew 10,000 or more fans in seven out of their 40 home games. They were also troubled by an unfavorable lease with the Coliseum. In January 1977, Swig hinted the team might not finish the season because of payroll difficulties. The Barons actually missed payroll twice in

2940-725: The Los Angeles Kings 6–0. On December 3, against the Hartford Whalers at the Cow Palace, right winger Rob Gaudreau scored the first hat-trick in franchise history; he also scored the team's second-ever hat-trick nine days later against the Quebec Nordiques . The inaugural year also saw the introduction of the San Jose Sharks mascot, "S. J. Sharkie". On January 28, 1992, at a game against

3045-544: The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim . In the 2001 playoffs , the St. Louis Blues eliminated the Sharks in six games in the first round, avenging their 2000 defeat by San Jose. The team's breakout year was 2001–02 . Veteran Adam Graves was acquired for Mikael Samuelsson , and the Sharks won their first Pacific Division title. They then defeated the Phoenix Coyotes in the first round of the 2002 playoffs , but fell to

3150-415: The Minnesota North Stars , which they purchased that year. They had long wanted to bring hockey back to the Bay Area, and asked the NHL for permission to move the North Stars there in the late 1980s, but the league vetoed the proposed move. Meanwhile, a group led by former Hartford Whalers owner Howard Baldwin was pushing the NHL to bring a team to San Jose , where a new arena was being built. Eventually,

3255-796: The Nashville Predators in the conference quarterfinals before falling to the Edmonton Oilers in the conference semifinals. Joe Thornton was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player, as well as the Art Ross Trophy for leading the League in points, with 125. Jonathan Cheechoo was awarded the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy for scoring the most goals during the regular season, with

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3360-659: The New York Rangers , the then-unnamed mascot emerged from a Zamboni during an intermission. A "Name the Mascot" contest began that night, with the winning name of "S. J. Sharkie" being announced on April 15, 1992. For their third season, 1993–94 , the Sharks moved to their new home, the San Jose Arena , and were placed in the Western Conference's Pacific Division . Under head coach Kevin Constantine ,

3465-399: The defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings in the second round of the playoffs. Prior to the 2013–14 season , the Sharks unveiled new uniforms, which included less orange, along with adding a lace-up collar. In addition to the new uniforms, prior to the start of the season, Brett Heimlich took on the additional role of statistical analyst for the coaching staff. The Sharks started

3570-543: The following season , the Sharks finished in third place in the Pacific Division, but were defeated by the Edmonton Oilers in six games in the first round of the 2017 playoffs . Following the season, long-time stalwart Patrick Marleau left the team to sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs, ending his 20-year tenure with the team. He left holding almost every offensive record in team history, such as power-play goals, goals, short-handed goals and games played. In

3675-479: The Barons' roster. After the NHL geographically realigned their divisions in 1981 , placing the North Stars in the rough-and-tumble Norris Division , the Gunds would see attendance drop at the Metropolitan Sports Center while the team struggled on the ice. While there was a strong core of die-hard fans, the team often struggled to sell out its home games. By 1990, the Gunds had decided on

3780-770: The Bay Area can be traced to the San Francisco Shamrocks of the Pacific Coast Hockey League from 1944 to 1950. The Sharks origins began with the San Francisco Seals of the Western Hockey League (WHL) when they were awarded an expansion franchise for San Francisco on April 23, 1961, to former Vancouver Canucks owner Coleman (Coley) Hall, on the condition that an ice surface is installed in the Cow Palace. The Seals won three WHL championships and were renamed to

3885-605: The California Seals in 1966, playing their games at the Oakland Coliseum Arena . The following season, the California Golden Seals joined the NHL, played their seasons from 1967 to 1976, who were neither successful on the ice nor at the box office. Gordon and George Gund III became minority owners of the Seals in 1974, and were instrumental in their move to Cleveland in 1976 and a 1978 merger with

3990-627: The Chicago Blackhawks. Despite scoring a goal in his first two games with San Jose, Bell was widely considered a flop in San Jose. Off-ice issues, including being cited for drunk driving and an alleged hit-and-run contributed to his on-ice play. By the end of the season, Bell was consistently either a healthy scratch or a fourth-liner. Two significant trades were made at the trade deadline for defenseman Craig Rivet and winger Bill Guerin . The trades coincided with Nabokov putting together

4095-457: The Coliseum, and attendance figures stayed high. According to the Cavs' media guide, the Cavs had the highest attendance figures in franchise history in 15 of the last 16 seasons, heading into the 2004–05 season. His most notable achievement in the final years of his ownership was drafting high school prodigy and Akron, Ohio native LeBron James with the first-overall pick in the 2003 NBA draft ,

4200-401: The Colorado Avalanche in the second round. Following the 2001–02 season, the Gunds sold the Sharks to a group of local investors headed by team president Greg Jamison . With starting goaltender Nabokov and defenseman Mike Rathje in contract disputes with general manager Dean Lombardi and the retirement of veteran defenseman Gary Suter , the team got off to a terrible start. Kyle McLaren

4305-407: The Colorado Avalanche. In the conference semifinals, the Sharks defeated the Detroit Red Wings. The eventual Stanley Cup champions, the Chicago Blackhawks, beat the Sharks in the conference finals with a four-game sweep. On June 23, 2010, Wilson announced that they would not offer an unrestricted free agent contract to long-time goaltender Evgeni Nabokov after playing ten seasons with the team. Due to

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4410-532: The Dallas Stars for a seventh-round draft pick in the 2015 NHL entry draft . Then, they acquired forward Joel Ward , goaltender Martin Jones , and defenseman Paul Martin . They also named forward Joe Pavelski the team's captain. Nearly one year after Peter DeBoer's arrival and a shaky start, the Sharks surged in the second half of the season to return to the playoffs, finishing with 98 points and third in

4515-456: The Dallas Stars in the conference semifinals. Game 6 required four overtime periods, and was the longest game in the team's history. This was the Sharks' third playoff loss to Dallas. The Ron Wilson era officially came to an end on May 12 when the Sharks fired him, citing San Jose's disappointing second-round losses in the previous three seasons. Wilson ended his tenure in San Jose with 206 wins, 122 losses, 19 ties, and 48 losses in overtime or in

4620-521: The Gunds were concerned about the name's potentially negative association with weapons, and went with the runner-up, "Sharks." The name was said to have been inspired by the large number of sharks living in the Pacific Ocean. Seven varieties live there, and one area of water near the Bay Area is known as the " red triangle " (hence the triangle in the team's logo) because of its shark population. Matt Levine—the team's first marketing head—said of

4725-403: The League struck a compromise: the Gunds would sell their share of the North Stars to Baldwin's group, with the Gunds receiving an expansion team in the Bay Area to begin play in the 1991–92 season and being allowed to take a certain number of players from the North Stars to their new club. In return, the North Stars would be allowed to participate as an equal partner in an expansion draft with

4830-424: The NHL standings in their first two seasons, when they played out of the old Cow Palace , a facility the Seals and the NHL had rejected in 1967. With the opening of the San Jose Arena in 1993, however, the Gunds would be able to spend more on the team, and they made waves throughout the NHL with high-profile first-round upsets in the 1994 and 1995 playoffs. While the franchise could not maintain consistent success on

4935-425: The Pacific Division and missed the playoffs for the first time in ten years. On April 20, 2015, the team announced that they had agreed to "part ways" with McLellan, Johnson and Woodcroft, as well as Video Coordinator Heimlich. On May 28, 2015, the team named Peter DeBoer as their head coach. During the off-season, the Sharks let John Scott and Scott Hannan leave as free agents. They traded goalie Antti Niemi to

5040-713: The Pacific Division. They defeated the Los Angeles Kings in five games, the Nashville Predators in seven games, and the St. Louis Blues in six games to win the Western Conference championship. This marked the first time in franchise history that the Sharks advanced to play in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Sharks ultimately lost the Stanley Cup Finals in the best-of-seven series against the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games. In

5145-500: The Red Wings, and new head coach Darryl Sutter . For the next two years, the Sharks made the playoffs, yet never advanced past the first round. In 1999, San Jose acquired former Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens star Vincent Damphousse . San Jose's luck changed in the 1999–2000 season , when the Sharks finished with their first-ever winning record. In an upset on par with the one they had pulled on Detroit six years earlier,

5250-526: The Rockers. The team folded after the 2003 season as the league was not able to find new ownership for the team. Gund Arena became a cornerstone of the redevelopment of Downtown Cleveland , which was also bolstered by Jacobs Field , the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , and the new Cleveland Browns Stadium . Under Gund's ownership the Cavs also hosted the 1997 NBA All-Star Game. The Gunds would also operate one of

5355-773: The SAP Center is known locally as "the Shark Tank". The Sharks are affiliated with the San Jose Barracuda of the American Hockey League (AHL) and the Wichita Thunder of the ECHL . The Sharks were founded on May 9, 1990 after the owners of the Minnesota North Stars sold the stake to award the NHL franchise based in the San Francisco Bay Area . They were the first team to be based in

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5460-409: The Sharks capped with a Devin Setoguchi overtime winner gave the Sharks a 6–5 victory and tied them for the second-biggest comeback in Stanley Cup playoff history. They would go on to win Game 4, lose Game 5 and finally win the series in its sixth game, with captain Joe Thornton scoring the series winner in the third overtime game of the series. The Sharks advanced to the conference semifinals to face

5565-407: The Sharks earned their second-straight playoff berth and again reached the second round. Ray Whitney scored a goal in double overtime of Game 7 of the conference quarterfinals against the Calgary Flames . Key Sharks players included goaltender Arturs Irbe, defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh and forwards Igor Larionov and Sergei Makarov . Despite their success against Calgary, round two would prove to be

5670-515: The Sharks finished in seventh place in the Pacific Division, 14th place in the Western Conference, and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season. The Sharks were led in scoring by defenseman Erik Karlsson , who finished with 101 points and 67 assists, both of which are records by a Sharks defenseman . He scored a pair of goals on April 10, in Winnipeg to become the sixth defenseman in NHL history to record 100 points and first since Brian Leetch in 1991–92 . His goal, assist and point totals at

5775-419: The Sharks finished last in the Pacific Division and failed to make the playoffs. The team also underwent major changes: during the season, they traded Ozolinsh and Larionov, and Irbe, who had suffered an off-ice injury, was released at the end of the season. The team began rebuilding, acquiring forward Owen Nolan from the Colorado Avalanche , as well as several other players. Constantine was fired midway through

5880-530: The Sharks from 2006 to 2009 and was a member of the Sharks 2008–09 Presidents' Trophy-winning team, immediately began reshaping the team. On July 13, the Sharks traded longtime defenseman Brent Burns to the Carolina Hurricanes and signed forwards Oskar Lindblom , Nico Sturm , and defenseman Matt Benning . On July 26, Grier named former Rangers head coach David Quinn as the team's new head coach before later hiring Scott Gordon and Ryan Warsofsky as assistants. San Jose opened its season in Europe as part of

5985-439: The Sharks managed to eliminate the St. Louis Blues , who had finished first overall in the league that year, in seven games. However, the Sharks were defeated in the second round of the playoffs by the Dallas Stars . It was their second time losing to Dallas. In 2000–01 , Kazakh goaltender Evgeni Nabokov won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's best rookie. The team also acquired Finnish star forward Teemu Selanne from

6090-421: The Sharks pulled off the biggest turnaround in NHL history, finishing with a 33–35–16 record and making the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in team history with 82 points, an NHL record 58-point jump from the previous season. They were seeded eighth in the Western Conference playoffs and faced the Detroit Red Wings , the top-seeded Western Conference team and a favorite to win the Stanley Cup . In one of

6195-416: The Sharks' futility in the standings, the team led the NHL's merchandise sales with $ 150 million, accounting for 27% of the NHL's total and behind only National Basketball Association champions Chicago Bulls among all North American leagues. Several team "firsts" happened in the 1992–93 season. On November 17, 1992, San Jose goaltender Arturs Irbe recorded the first shutout in team history, defeating

6300-425: The St. Louis Blues in the conference quarterfinals and the Colorado Avalanche in the conference semifinals. The San Jose Sharks, for the first time, progressed to the conference finals. However, they fell to the Calgary Flames, with ex-Sharks coach Daryl Sutter behind the Flames' bench and former Sharks goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff in net. During that season, San Jose, without a captain following Nolan's trade, utilized

6405-411: The Vancouver Canucks. San Jose dropped the first two games of the series at Rogers Arena in Vancouver but rebounded with a 4–3 victory thanks to two first-period goals by Marleau in Game 3. However, they lost the fourth game of the series and eventually were eliminated from the playoffs after a Game 5 in Vancouver that featured a game-tying goal by the Canucks' Ryan Kesler with 18.3 seconds remaining in

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6510-411: The alternates. On February 7, 2010, San Jose acquired Niclas Wallin from the Carolina Hurricanes . On February 12, 2010, San Jose traded Jody Shelley to the New York Rangers for a draft pick. The Sharks finished the regular season leading the Western Conference with 113 points and being the second team in the NHL after the Washington Capitals . In the conference quarterfinals, the Sharks eliminated

6615-414: The bench for a fifth season. Prior to the lockout -shortened 2012–13 season , Hockey Hall of Fame player and coach Larry Robinson was added to McLellan's coaching staff to assist with San Jose's penalty-killing unit, which was 29th in the NHL during the previous season. Assistant coach Jim Johnson was also added to bring a defensive style to the play of the Sharks. Brett Heimlich was also promoted to

6720-463: The biggest upsets in Stanley Cup playoff history, the underdog Sharks shocked the Red Wings in seven games. In Game 7 at Joe Louis Arena , Jamie Baker scored the game-winning goal in the third period after goaltender Chris Osgood was out of position and the Sharks won 3–2. In the second round, the Sharks had a 3–2 series lead over the Toronto Maple Leafs , but lost the final two games in Toronto , including an overtime loss in Game 6. In 1994–95 ,

6825-412: The cap issue, the Sharks had to choose between former captain Patrick Marleau and Nabokov. On July 1, 2010, the Sharks signed goalie Antero Niittymaki from the Tampa Bay Lightning . On September 2, 2010, the Sharks signed former member of the Chicago Blackhawks and Stanley Cup-winning goaltender Antti Niemi to a one-year contract. Niemi was the goaltender who helped the Blackhawks defeat the Sharks in

6930-405: The conference finals the season before. On March 1, 2011, Niemi signed a four-year contract extension with San Jose worth $ 15.2 million. On March 31, 2011, the Sharks clinched their 13th (and seventh consecutive) playoff berth in franchise history with a 6–0 victory over the Dallas Stars. Five days later, they clinched their sixth Pacific Division championship. Entering the 2011 playoffs as

7035-416: The end of the season led all NHL defensemen, and he was named to his seventh NHL All-Star game. On May 4, Karlsson was named a Norris Trophy finalist. On May 10, he was named a finalist for the Ted Lindsay Award , given to "the most outstanding player in the NHL" as voted by fellow members of the NHL Players' Association. He was awarded the Norris Trophy on June 26, the third of his career and second won by

7140-469: The first round of the playoffs. The team was heavily criticized for once again failing to succeed in the postseason. General manager Doug Wilson promised the team would undergo significant changes in the off-season. In the 2009 off-season, Wilson held to his word with many major moves. The first was Christian Ehrhoff and Brad Lukowich to the Vancouver Canucks . It was widely believed that San Jose made this trade so it could free up salary cap space to make

7245-498: The first three games of a series. However, they would not become the fourth team in history to pull off the comeback as the Sharks prevailed, 3–2, with the game-winning goal scored by former captain Patrick Marleau who had endured media criticism from former teammate and now NBC Sports Network television personality Jeremy Roenick for his lackluster play in Game 5 of the series against the Red Wings. The Sharks advanced to their third conference finals series, their first playoff meeting with

7350-622: The founding franchises of the WNBA , the Cleveland Rockers . They would also bring hockey to Gund Arena, in a revived version of the Cleveland Barons , who were the top minor-league affiliate of the Gunds' San Jose Sharks when the International Hockey League 's Cleveland Lumberjacks folded. In addition to his sports franchise interests, Gund and his family have large interests in public companies such as Kellogg's (6.3%) and Align Technology (5.6%) In 2015 Forbes estimated his family's net worth at $ 3.5 billion. In 2014, along with his wife, Gund signed The Giving Pledge , committing to give

7455-494: The fourth time in the 97-year history of the NHL where a team lost a best-of-seven series after winning their first three games). After the loss, general manager Doug Wilson described the Sharks' playoff failures "like Charlie Brown trying to kick a football". On August 20, 2014, head coach Todd McLellan announced the team would go into training camp for the 2014–15 season without a captain, and that all players (including former captains Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau) would have

7560-639: The ice, they have enjoyed a high level of popularity, and their home arena is consistently one of the loudest in the NHL. In February 2002, the Gunds sold the Sharks to a consortium, named San Jose Sports & Entertainment Enterprises (SJSE). Gordon sold his share outright while George retained an ownership share as one of the partners in SJSE. The Gunds purchased majority interest in the Cleveland Cavaliers from Ted Stepien for $ 20 million on April 7, 1983. Stepien's Nationwide Advertising Service Inc. and new cable television station Sports Exchange were also part of

7665-402: The new Bay Area team. On May 5, 1990, the Gunds officially sold their share of the North Stars to Baldwin and were awarded a new team for the Bay Area, based in San Jose. The owners paid to the league an expansion fee of US$ 45 million and the new franchise was approved on May 9. Over 5,000 potential names were submitted by mail for the new team. While the first-place finisher was "Blades",

7770-559: The new Rbk EDGE jersey. The Sharks rode on a very hot streak in the month of March. They were aided by the trade-deadline acquisition of Brian Campbell , for whom they gave up Steve Bernier . Going the entire month without a regulation loss, the Sharks captured their third Pacific Division title with a franchise-record 108 points. San Jose started the 2008 playoffs beating the Calgary Flames four games to three in San Jose's first-ever Game 7 on home ice. San Jose eventually lost to

7875-479: The new name, "Sharks are relentless, determined, swift, agile, bright and fearless. We plan to build an organization that has all those qualities." For their first two seasons, the Sharks played at the Cow Palace in Daly City , just outside San Francisco, a facility the NHL and the Seals had rejected in 1967. Pat Falloon was their first draft choice and led the team in points during their first season. The team

7980-453: The newly acquired McGillis was traded to Boston, Bryan Marchment went to Colorado, and American Hockey League (AHL) star Shawn Heins and forward Matt Bradley were moved to the Pittsburgh Penguins . The Sharks acquired Alyn McCauley and Wayne Primeau during this season. Reportedly, due to having just acquired the team as well as the team's bad start, the ownership group wanted general manager Dean Lombardi to move high-priced players on

8085-424: The next year on a new, freestanding, on-campus ice arena designed to meet the needs of both the nationally ranked Irish men's hockey team and the local community. Construction began on March 15, 2010 on the 5,022-seat arena, which opened on schedule on October 18, 2011. The University originally had planned to renovate the current Joyce Center ice facility, but additional studies changed that plan to instead feature

8190-474: The opportunity to compete for the captaincy. No captain was named during the season. The Sharks hosted the 2015 Stadium Series against the Kings at Levi's Stadium in February 2015, losing 2–1. Earlier in the season, the Sharks were in playoff contention, but they would ultimately lose games to key Western Conference opponents as the season went on. Despite posting a record of 40–33–9, the Sharks finished fifth in

8295-485: The region since the California Golden Seals relocated to Cleveland in 1976. The Sharks have advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals once, losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 . They have won the Presidents' Trophy once, as the team with the league's best regular season record in the 2008–09 season . They have also won six division titles as a member of the Pacific Division since 1993. Professional hockey in

8400-505: The role of video coordinator to assist the new coaching staff. Along with the two coaches, veteran defenseman Brad Stuart was re-acquired in order to bolster the Sharks' blue line, and on January 12, he played in his first game at HP Pavilion in over seven years. In the first round of the 2013 playoffs , the Sharks swept the Vancouver Canucks, their first series-sweep in franchise history. The Sharks would subsequently fall 4–3 to

8505-470: The roster. Lombardi failed to do so and consequently lost his job. During that debacle year for San Jose, there were some bright spots. Jim Fahey led all rookie defensemen in the NHL in points, despite playing in only 43 games. Lombardi's tenure with the team ended with his dismissal on March 18, 2003. Doug Wilson was named to the role on May 13. The 2003–04 season , under new general manager Doug Wilson and head coach Ron Wilson saw another turnaround for

8610-587: The sale. The transaction was approved by the National Basketball Association (NBA) Board of Governors one month later on May 9. The league also arranged for the Gunds to pay a cash sum for a first-round selection in each of the subsequent four NBA drafts to recover the ones traded away by Stepien. They succeeded in keeping the team in Cleveland, Ohio and at Richfield Coliseum , which they also owned. Stepien had threatened to move

8715-413: The season 8–0–1, and were the last team in the NHL to stay undefeated in regulation until October 25, when the Sharks lost to the Boston Bruins. In the first round of the 2014 playoffs , the Sharks were matched with rivals and eventual Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings. Although the Sharks took a 3–0 series lead, the Kings came back to tie the series before advancing with a 5–1 win in game seven (only

8820-432: The season and replaced by interim coach Jim Wiley . During the 1996 off-season, Dean Lombardi was hired as general manager. The next season was no better under Al Sims , with the Sharks again finishing last and winning only 27 games. Their standing would help them draft Patrick Marleau in the 1997 NHL entry draft . The Sharks returned to the playoffs in 1997–98 with goaltender Mike Vernon , whom they acquired from

8925-402: The season, key forward Marco Sturm suffered a broken leg/ankle injury. In response, San Jose acquired Curtis Brown . They posted the third-best record in the NHL with 104 points (31 more than the previous season, and the first time the team had earned 100 points), won the Pacific Division championship and were seeded second in the Western Conference. In the 2004 playoffs , the Sharks defeated

9030-490: The second seed in the Western Conference, the Sharks opened their playoff run with the franchise's first-ever playoff series against division and state rivals, the Los Angeles Kings. After winning Game 1, 3–2 in overtime on a Joe Pavelski goal, the Sharks dropped the second game of the series 4–0, heading to Staples Center with the series tied at one apiece. The Kings took another 4–0 lead in Game 3 but five-second-period goals by

9135-525: The second sheet. Offices, locker room, and training facilities for the Notre Dame hockey program are located within the facility. The weight room within the building is available for use by all Fighting Irish varsity athletes. Eight auxiliary locker rooms are available for campus and community use of the facility. On February 12, 2009, the University of Notre Dame announced it would begin construction

9240-468: The shootout in 385 regular season games and a 28–24 record in 52 postseason games. He moved on to be hired as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, along with assistant coaches who were also two former Sharks, Tim Hunter and Rob Zettler , to make up the Toronto coaching staff. On June 11, 2008, the San Jose Sharks named former Detroit Red Wings assistant coach Todd McLellan as their new head coach for

9345-450: The team by signing Joe Callahan , Jed Ortmeyer and Manny Malhotra , plus Benn Ferriero . Jeremy Roenick and Claude Lemieux both announced their retirements from the NHL. Another major move by San Jose was stripping Patrick Marleau of the captaincy and assigning it to the newly re-signed Rob Blake. One reason for the move was that Marleau was named captain by Wilson and McLellan wanted to name his own. Dan Boyle and Joe Thornton were named

9450-518: The team sought a permanent candidate for the role. The team missed the playoffs for the third straight season, and head coach Bob Boughner and other members of the coaching staff were relieved of duties in the summer in advance of the Sharks naming a new general manager. On July 5, 2022, the Sharks hired former player Mike Grier to serve as their new general manager, becoming the first black general manager in NHL history and fifth general manager in franchise history. Grier, who played in 221 games with

9555-405: The team to Toronto . The Gunds replaced the team's logo and uniform design, replacing the "swashbuckling swordsman" with the team's nickname of 'Cavs' with a stylized 'V' made of a net and basketball. Under the Gunds' ownership, attendance figures started to rise, and the Cavs enjoyed a period of competitiveness on the basketball court. In the 1994–95 season , Gund Arena was built and replaced

9660-413: The team, resulting in the team's best season to that point. An injection of youth, with players like Christian Ehrhoff and out-of-college signing Tom Preissing , and the influx of energy from Alexander Korolyuk jump-started San Jose. Doug Wilson acquired Nils Ekman , and a line of Ekman, McCauley and Korolyuk provided strong play for San Jose, with all three players enjoying career years. Midway through

9765-612: The third period as well as a quirky bounce off a side stanchion that allowed Kevin Bieksa to score the overtime goal that advanced Vancouver to their third Stanley Cup Finals and left the Sharks eliminated in Round 3 for the second consecutive postseason. The first major move made by San Jose in the 2011 off-season was to trade popular winger (and former first-round pick) Devin Setoguchi, the Sharks' 2010 first-round pick Charlie Coyle and

9870-495: The third period of game seven in the first round. The Sharks would go on to defeat the Colorado Avalanche in the second round in seven games to make it into the conference finals, falling to the eventual Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues in six games. On October 8, 2019, after two seasons in Toronto, Patrick Marleau was re-acquired by the Sharks. On December 11, 2019, with the Sharks at 15–16–2 and failing to win

9975-400: The third-seed Detroit Red Wings, whom they had defeated in five games during the previous postseason's second round. Just like the year prior, the Sharks won the first three games of the series and lost the fourth but instead of replicating the previous year's success in Game 5, the Sharks dropped two more games as the Red Wings became the eighth team in NHL history to force a Game 7 after losing

10080-498: The time, NHL President John Ziegler oversaw a merger between the two franchises, with the Gunds assuming ownership of the North Stars. Minnesota moved into Cleveland's position in the Adams Division. Within three seasons, the North Stars would make the 1981 Stanley Cup Finals , thanks to the Gunds' willingness to invest in the team and the addition of a number of talented players, including goaltender Gilles Meloche , from

10185-556: Was acquired in a three-way trade with the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins . Dan McGillis was acquired in exchange for long-time Shark Marcus Ragnarsson , but the team could not turn itself around. Sutter was fired and replaced by Ron Wilson midway through that season. Near the 2003 NHL trade deadline , captain Owen Nolan was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs, signaling a new era in Sharks history. In addition,

10290-608: Was granted one of the original 8 franchises of the WNBA in October 1996. The Cleveland Rockers got their nickname from Cleveland's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . In 1997, they started with such players like Isabelle Fijalkowski and former Harlem Globetrotters member Lynette Woodard , who had been the first female player in Globetrotter history. In October 2003, Gund announced that his Gund Arena Company would no longer operate

10395-416: Was named the team's first captain and All-Star representative in the inaugural season. However, the Sharks' first two seasons saw the typical struggles for an expansion team. The 71 losses in 1992–93 is an NHL record, and they also suffered a 17-game losing streak, while winning just 11 games and earning a mere 24 points in the standings. Kingston was fired following the end of the 1992–93 season. Despite

10500-623: Was placed in the Campbell Conference's Smythe Division . George Kingston was their first head coach during their first two seasons. Though the 1991–92 roster consisted primarily of NHL journeymen, minor leaguers and rookies, the Sharks had at least one notable player when they acquired 14-year veteran and former Norris Trophy -winning defenseman Doug Wilson from the Chicago Blackhawks on September 6, 1991. Wilson

10605-435: Was rejoining the NHL after a five-year absence. At the trade deadline, San Jose acquired checking-line winger Travis Moen and the injured defenseman Kent Huskins from the Anaheim Ducks. The Sharks finished the regular season as Presidents' Trophy champions with 53 wins and 117 points, both franchise records. Despite their successful regular season, the Sharks were eliminated by the eighth-seeded Anaheim Ducks in six games in

10710-506: Was removed on September 22, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic , the divisions for the 2020–21 season were realigned. The Sharks played in the West Division . The Sharks missed the playoffs for the second year in a row. General manager Doug Wilson took medical leave beginning November 26, 2021, and resigned while away from the team on April 7, 2022. Assistant general manager Joe Will was elevated to interim general manager while

10815-407: Was slated to carry a cap hit $ 2.5 million greater than Havlat's for the duration of their respective contracts and to acquire a player in Havlat with a history of playoff production at the expense of Heatley, whose postseason numbers with the Sharks had been far less than stellar – the forward had managed to score just five goals in 32 playoff games in two years with San Jose. The Sharks finished

10920-618: Was the first to be retired in franchise history. The speedy forward retired with 1,607 regular season appearances for San Jose and held almost all franchise offensive records. Following a series of smaller trades in January and early February, San Jose and New Jersey Devils executed a blockbuster 11-piece trade on February 26, in which the Sharks sent star forward Timo Meier to New Jersey in exchange for multiple future assets, including two conditional first-round draft selections, 2020 first-round pick Shakir Mukhamadullin and winger Fabian Zetterlund . In their first season under Grier and Quinn,

11025-790: Was totally blind. In 1971, Gund co-founded the Retinitis Pigmentosa Foundation (now known as The Foundation Fighting Blindness ) which supports research to find cures and treatments for retinal degenerative diseases. The blindness did not prevent him from being active in business and philanthropy. Gund is the former President of the Board of Trustees of his alma mater, Groton School in Groton, Massachusetts . He has honorary doctorates from Gothenburg University in Sweden, University of Maryland, Baltimore , Whittier College and

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