SAN JOSE BARRACUDA ANNOUNCE CHANGES TO COACHING STAFF
May 18, 2022
San Jose, CA – San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) Interim General Manager and Barracuda General Manager Joe Will announced today that the San Jose Barracuda (@SJBarracuda), the Sharks top developmental affiliate in the American Hockey League (@TheAHL), have made several changes to their coaching staff.
John McCarthy, a long-time member of the Sharks and Barracuda organization as a player and coach, will serve as the second head coach in the team’s history. McCarthy, 35, has spent the last two seasons as a development coach for the Barracuda after serving as an assistant coach for part of the 2019-20 campaign following his retirement as a player for medical reasons.
“John McCarthy is a natural fit as the next head coach of the San Jose Barracuda,” said Will. “His leadership skills and professionalism, matched with his hockey IQ, have allowed him to succeed throughout his long and distinguished career with the Sharks and Barracuda. These traits, which he showed extensively as part of our player development staff over the last two years, will be a great asset for our developing players.”
“I am honored to be named the head coach of the San Jose Barracuda,” said McCarthy. “I have been a member of this organization for 13 years and could not be happier to have this opportunity. I’d like to thank the organization for putting their faith in me to lead this group, and I’m excited to get to work on developing the next wave of players for the Sharks.”
Roy Sommer who has served as the head coach for the Sharks top development program for the past 24 seasons, will become a senior advisor for the Barracuda. In this role, he will assist Will with various scouting and player development efforts in the AHL.
The following changes were also announced today:
· Assistant Coach Jimmy Bonneau has been reassigned to his former role as a professional scout
· Assistant Coach Michael Chiasson has accepted a position as an agent with CAA Hockey working with Pat Brisson
· Goaltending Coach Dany Sabourin has decided not to return to the Barracuda to return closer to his home in Quebec
Video Coach, hockey operations manager Nick Gialdini will remain in his current role. Additional members of McCarthy’s coaching staff will be announced at a later date.
McCarthy, who was selected by the Sharks in the seventh round of the 2006 NHL Draft, holds all major Barracuda franchise records as a player, including games played (275), goals (62), assists (76), points (138), and shorthanded goals (5). He served as the Barracuda team captain from 2016-2019 and also served as the captain of the Worcester Sharks for the 2012-13 season.
In 577 career AHL games with Worcester, Chicago, and San Jose, he collected 297 points (130 goals, 167 assists), 233 penalty minutes and a plus-62 rating.
He also posted 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 27 playoff games with the Barracuda over the four seasons, including the team’s 2017 appearance in the Western Conference Finals.
In addition, McCarthy skated in 88 NHL games with the Sharks between 2009-2016, accumulating six points (three goals, three assists) and 22 penalty minutes.
In total, McCarthy appeared in 640 regular season games with San Jose's NHL and AHL franchises.
In 2018, McCarthy was selected to the United States Men's Olympic Ice Hockey Team, appearing in five games at the Pyeongchang Olympics.
Prior to his professional career, McCarthy spent four seasons at Boston University, including serving as a co-captain on their 2009 National Championship team.
Sommer, 65, concludes his legendary coaching tenure with the Sharks organization after 24 seasons, compiling an 808-721-48-159 (W-L-T-OTL/SOL) record.
Each of those wins has come behind the bench of San Jose's AHL affiliate (Kentucky 1998-01, Cleveland 2001-06, Worcester 2006-15, San Jose 2015-22).
He finishes as the American Hockey League’s all-time leader in games coached (1,736) and coaching wins (808).
“Roy is a legendary figure in hockey and his accomplishments both on the ice and in player development speak for themselves,” said Will. “We thank him for nearly a quarter-century behind the bench of the Barracuda and the Sharks, and we are excited that he will remain a part of our organization moving forward.”
Sommer collected the 800th AHL win of his career on Jan. 8, 2022, against the Henderson Silver Knights. On Dec. 3, 2017, he became just one of seven coaches in professional hockey to reach 700 coaching wins between the NHL, AHL and ECHL.
Sommer received the A.R. Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL Coach of the Year after leading the Barracuda to a 43-16-4-5 (.699) record and the franchise’s first Western Conference Final appearance in 2016-17.
Over the course of his AHL coaching career, Sommer has mentored more than 150 players that would go on to play in the NHL, including Logan Couture, Tomas Hertl, Timo Meier, Kevin Labanc, Joe Pavelski, Dan Boyle, Thomas Greiss, Jason Demers, Justin Braun, Miikka Kiprusoff, Evgeni Nabokov, Jonathan Cheechoo, Ryan Clowe and Douglas Murray.
Sommer also served as an associate coach for the Sharks for part of the 2019-20 season, before rejoining the Barracuda as the team’s head coach prior to the 2020-21 season. He was an assistant coach with the Sharks from 1996-1998.
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