BOOGEYMAN FIRED BY THE SHARKS

The San Jose Sharks have fired Head Coach Bob Boughner following three seasons of missing the playoffs. Boughner's .449 win percentage from an overall 67-85-23 record in San Jose is the franchise's worst since 1997 when Al Sims coached the club.

Elliotte Friedman reports that the decision happened at 11 PM Thursday night. Boughner reportedly had one more year, with a $1.5 million salary, remaining on his contract. Boughner's staff of John Madden, John MacLean, and Dan Darrow were also released from the team.

ESPN reports that Interim General Manager Joe Will had this to say about the decision:

As we progress through our search for the next general manager of the Sharks following 19 seasons under Doug Wilson's leadership, it has become apparent that the organization is in the process of an evolution. The bottom line is we have missed the playoffs for the past three seasons, which isn't acceptable to our owner, our organization, or to our fans. As part of this evolution and evaluation, we felt it was in the best interest of the club to allow the next Sharks general manager to have full autonomy related to the makeup of the on-ice coaching staff moving ahead.

The late firing comes as a surprise to some and Will expresses that it was because Boughner was still a part of the Sharks' plans. Now, the Sharks Front Office has "come to the conclusion" that they wanted a "fresh start" moving forward.