Kevin R. Wexler/NorthJersey.com
The Minnesota Wild have begun some front office shuffling following their first-round playoff exit to the Vegas Golden Knights.
According to The Athletic’s Michael Russo, former New Jersey Devils General Manager, Ray Shero is set to join the organization in the role of Senior Advisor to the GM, replacing Jack Ferreira, who had previously held the title since 2018.
This will be Shero’s first foray back into an NHL front office since being his dismissal from the Devils on January 12th, 2020. The 58-year-old arrives in Minnesota with the prestige of being a Stanley Cup winner from his time with the Pittsburgh Penguins, having captured hockey’s top prize in 2009.
Without superstars like Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin at his disposal, however, Shero’s results as an executive have been less flattering. During his tenure in New Jersey, which began in 2015, the Devils qualified for the postseason only once in five years under Shero, earning just a single playoff win and never finishing higher than fourth in their division. In fact, the Devils finished dead-last in the Metropolitan Division three out of the five seasons with Shero at the helm, ultimately leading to his firing in the midst of another last-place finish.
What Shero does bring with him, in addition to his Stanley Cup from 11 years ago, is a penchant for headline-grabbing moves. While in New Jersey, Shero pulled off trades that brought him the likes of Taylor Hall, P.K. Subban, Sammi Vatanen, and Nikita Gusev. He was responsible for trading Hall away, as well, dealing him to the Arizona Coyotes in a multi-player trade on December 16th, 2020 in what was one of his last personnel moves as a Devil.
With an interesting offseason on the horizon, Wild GM, Bill Guerin has added some extra experience to his front office cabinet.
