SAN JOSE – Ryane Clowe’s new job as an assistant general manager with the San Jose Sharks was one he did not necessarily see coming.
Perfectly happy with his role inside the New York Rangers front office, Clowe was set to continue working as a senior advisor to general manager Chris Drury. Then, a couple of months ago, Drury got a call from Sharks GM Mike Grier asking if he could speak to Clowe about joining him in San Jose in another capacity.
Clowe, who was Sharks teammates with Grier from 2006 to 2009 and worked with him in the Rangers front office, listened and liked what he heard.
“I was part of a great organization, a great team that (just finished) making a run in the playoffs, and I just got a call from Chris,” Clowe said. “Once I spoke with Mike, and (we) went through it, it was an opportunity that I couldn’t turn down.”
The 41-year-old Clowe, who was drafted by San Jose in 2001 and spent eight NHL seasons with the team from 2005 to 2013, joins Joe Will and Tom Holy as Sharks assistant general managers working under Grier, who is in his third season at the helm.
While Will also works as the Barracuda’s GM and Holy oversees analytics, staff budgeting, and contracts, among other responsibilities, Clowe said his duties will revolve more around day-to-day hockey operations. That includes helping with scouting and development, working with the NHL and AHL teams, and the Sharks coaching staff.
“He’s a really bright guy, sees the game, can break down the game really, really well,” Grier said of Clowe. “So it’s another different perspective for me and our staff to have, and I think he’s going to be a great addition to our staff and the organization.”
It’s a chance for Clowe to impact the Sharks in a significant way. Working regularly with the Barracuda — with the team in the same building as the Sharks — also factored in his decision.
“Work with (Grier) daily, being out there daily, boots on the ground,” said Clowe, who is planning to relocate to San Jose. “Having a connection with the Barracuda right there was quite a big factor. Working for the Rangers, I would travel back and forth (from Florida). Being able to (remain) in San Jose is something I’m looking forward to.”
During the NHL lockout at the start of the 2012-13 season, Clowe served as an assistant coach with the ECHL’s San Francisco Bulls. But joining an NHL team’s front office or becoming a coach wasn’t on his mind until near the end of his career.
Three months after he was traded by the Sharks to the New York Rangers, Clowe signed a five-year, $24.25 million contract with the New Jersey Devils in July 2013. Concussions, though, prematurely ended Clowe’s playing career during the 2014-15 season.
Clowe said Devils president and general manager Lou Lamoriello then allowed him to be around the team’s front office. That continued when Ray Shero took over GM duties for the Devils in May 2015.
“I think culture is a word that gets tossed around pretty loosely nowadays, but I really understood when I went to New Jersey what that meant with Lou,” Clowe said. “It’s very clear, very transparent, everything’s in the forefront, nothing’s swept under rug. Every little detail matters, and I really embraced that.
“I could tell why Lou’s had success when I went there right away, and when I was done playing, he was tremendous to me.”
Clowe would be an assistant coach on John Hynes’ staff with the Devils from 2016 to 2018 before becoming the head coach of the ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers — an affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Clowe, a St. John’s, Newfoundland native, had to step down halfway through the 2018-2019 season because of concussion-related issues.
Clowe was hired by the Rangers during the 2021-2022 as a hockey operations advisor and was promoted to senior adviser for Drury last August.
Clowe assisted Drury in all areas of hockey operations. The Rangers reached the Eastern Conference Final this past year before they were eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers.
By joining Grier with the Sharks, he takes on some more responsibility and has a greater influence.
“I’m in no rush to get anywhere. To me, it’s just about the opportunity,” Clowe said. “The other (exciting) part … is you’re building from the ground up.
“In the last couple of years, with the job Mike and the Sharks have done, you get to come in, the foundation’s starting to be laid, and you can try to put your fingerprints on a little bit and help everyone, help the staff, and kind of do it together to build it up the right way, and that’s exciting.”
