MONTREAL, CANADA - NOVEMBER 29: Assistant coach Ryan Warsofsky of the San Jose Sharks handles bench duties during the third period against the Montreal Canadiens at Centre Bell on November 29, 2022 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The San Jose Sharks defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-0. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)

The San Jose Sharks named Ryan Warsofsky as head coach, the team announced Thursday.

Warsofsky, 36, served as the Sharks’ assistant coach the past two seasons, primarily overseeing the team’s defense and penalty kill.

“We’re very excited to announce Ryan as the 11th head coach of the San Jose Sharks,” said Sharks general manager Mike Grier in a statement. “His track record of success at nearly every level of hockey as a head and assistant coach speaks for itself. Ryan knows our existing group well, has the respect of the players who he will be working with, and will be a great teacher for the young players who will be joining our organization.”

 

Grier took a good bit of time with his second head-coaching hire after cutting David Quinn loose on April 24. A wide net was cast as he talked to numerous candidates. Ultimately, Grier opted to stay in-house by promoting Warsofsky instead of going with other reported finalists Marco Sturm and Jeff Blashill.

Those that were pining for Sturm will be disappointed that the 45-year-old didn’t get his first NHL head-coaching shot as he played for the Sharks in his first seven seasons and has had success coaching internationally for Germany. He also guided the Ontario Reign, the AHL affiliate of the Los Angeles Kings, to the third round of the playoffs this season.

Now, Warsofsky steps into his first NHL head-coaching job as the youngest bench boss in the league.

The Washington Capitals’ Spencer Carbery was previously the NHL’s youngest active head coach when he was hired at age 41 last year. The Chicago Blackhawks hired a 33-year-old Jeremy Colliton — who was recently hired as an assistant in New Jersey to new Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe — in 2018.

Warsofsky, however, has been on an upward trajectory for some time now. The native of North Marshfield, Mass., started as an assistant coach with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays before becoming head coach and leading the club to the 2017 Kelly Cup Final in his first season. Warsofsky moved on to the AHL in 2018 as an assistant for the Charlotte Checkers under Mike Vellucci.

Warsofsky took over the Checkers a year later as Vellucci, now an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins, left to helm the Penguins’ AHL affiliate. As the Carolina Hurricanes switched their affiliation from the Checkers to the Chicago Wolves, Warsofsky stayed on as head coach and led the Wolves to a Calder Cup championship in 2022. He parlayed that into the assistant gig with the Sharks under Quinn.

Warsofsky’s promotion won’t just raise some eyebrows because of his youth but because both the Sharks’ defense and penalty kill, which Warsofsky oversaw, took significant steps backward last season. San Jose allowed a league-high 326 goals, 28 more than the next closest team, and Sharks goalies were peppered with an average of 35.1 shots on goal, also the most in the NHL. The penalty kill dropped in effectiveness from eighth in 2022-23 to 28th in 2023-24.

All that can be partially blamed on a defense corps guided by Mario Ferraro and a group of declining veterans, green youngsters and castoffs from other teams.

Grier has what Cap Friendly projects as more than $36 million of cap space for 2024-25 and figures to make some moves this summer to improve the club’s competitiveness. San Jose was the worst team in the NHL last season, finishing last in the Pacific Division with a 19-54-9 record.