Mike Grier Is the Best GM in the NHL — And It’s Not Even Close

Three years ago, the San Jose Sharks were the worst team in hockey. Not bad in a competitive sense, not struggling through a transition year, but genuinely, historically bad. A franchise that had spent the better part of two decades as a perennial contender had bottomed out completely, left with an aging core, bad contracts, and no clear path forward. The rebuild was not coming. It had already started, whether the organization was ready or not.

Mike Grier was ready.

What Grier has built in San Jose since taking over as general manager in 2022 deserves to be recognized for what it is -- one of the most impressive front office turnarounds in recent NHL history, executed with a patience, intelligence, and organizational clarity that few executives in the league can match. The Sharks are not just better. They are built correctly, and that distinction matters more than any single win total.

The Draft Record

The foundation of everything Grier has constructed runs through the draft, and the results speak for themselves.

In 2022, his first draft at the helm, Grier traded down and accumulated picks rather than reaching for a name at a slot that did not warrant a reach. That kind of disciplined, process-driven thinking set the tone immediately. He was not going to chase. He was going to build.

In 2023, he selected Will Smith fourth overall, a high-end American center with the offensive instincts to anchor a franchise for years, and added Quentin Musty in the late first round, a power forward with a rare combination of size and skill that teams spend years trying to find. Kasper Halttunen in the second round added to a class that quietly became one of the deeper hauls of that draft year.

Then came 2024, and Grier did something that almost never happens in the NHL. He won the lottery and selected Macklin Celebrini first overall. Celebrini is already establishing himself as a legitimate star, a player who arrived in San Jose and immediately looked like he belonged at the highest level. Alongside Celebrini in that draft, Grier took Sam Dickinson eleventh overall, a defenseman with top-pairing upside who adds another long-term cornerstone to the blue line.

In 2025, he added Michael Misa second overall, another elite center with the kind of offensive ceiling that makes opposing coaches uncomfortable, and paired him with Joshua Ravensbergen in the first round, a goaltender who projects as a legitimate starter at the NHL level. Having a pipeline that includes Celebrini, Smith, Misa, and Dickinson at the top is the kind of draft haul that franchises spend a decade trying to assemble. Grier did it in three years.

Now, heading into the 2026 draft, the Sharks hold the second overall pick after another lottery result that landed in their favor. Grier was characteristically measured about it when asked if he would consider trading down. "I am always open to listening to what is out there," he said. "If people have ideas or thoughts, I will listen."

That is the answer of a man who knows his leverage and is not afraid to use it.

The Trade Record

Drafting well is one thing. Knowing when to move veterans for maximum return and then deploying those assets intelligently is another skill entirely, and Grier has demonstrated it repeatedly.

The Timo Meier trade to the New Jersey Devils was a masterclass in selling high. Meier was a legitimate top-line winger, but he was also a player entering the final stretch of his prime on a team that was not going to compete for a championship anytime soon. Grier extracted Fabian Zetterlund, Shakir Mukhamadullin, a first-round pick that became Quentin Musty, and additional prospects and picks. He turned one player into a collection of assets that accelerated the rebuild by multiple years.

The Erik Karlsson trade to Pittsburgh followed similar logic. Karlsson is one of the most talented defensemen of his generation, but his contract was an anchor on a rebuilding team's cap flexibility. Getting Ryan Graves, a first-round pick that became Sam Dickinson, and additional pieces in return was an exceptional return for a player the Sharks could not realistically build around.

The Tomas Hertl trade to Vegas, which brought back Yaroslav Askarov, addressed the one area where the rebuild had been most uncertain. Finding a franchise goaltender is the hardest thing to do in hockey, and Grier turned a veteran center into one of the most talented young goaltenders in the world. Askarov gives San Jose a potential long-term answer in net to pair with the offensive firepower arriving up front.

Then there is the Jake Walman situation, which is the kind of move that separates good GMs from great ones. Walman arrived in San Jose as a capable but unremarkable defenseman, the kind of player who gets lost in the shuffle on a contending roster. Grier recognized his value, developed him into a more complete player, and then flipped him to the Edmonton Oilers at exactly the right moment, receiving Carl Berglund and a 2026 conditional first-round pick in return. Walman subsequently signed a seven-year, $49 million extension with Edmonton. Grier essentially turned a reclamation project into a first-round pick by being smarter than the team on the other side of the transaction.

The Culture Piece

What often gets lost in the asset management conversation is the human element of what Grier has built. San Jose went through a painful, prolonged bottoming-out process that tested the patience of everyone connected to the franchise. Keeping a locker room together, maintaining organizational direction, and continuing to develop young players through that kind of sustained losing requires a front office culture that does not panic and does not deviate from the plan.

Grier never deviated. Every move he made was connected to a clear organizational vision -- accumulate elite young centers, build the blue line through the draft, find the goaltender, and surround the core with the right complementary pieces. There was no splashy free agent signing to appease a frustrated fanbase, no panic trade that mortgaged the future for a short-term boost in the standings. Just consistent, disciplined execution.

Where the Sharks Are Now

San Jose Sharks president Jonathan Becher on making Mike Grier the first Black GM in NHL history: "We hired the best general manager available. Mike just happens to be Black."

— Ken Campbell (@Ken_Campbell27) July 5, 2022

San Jose nearly made the playoffs this season. For a team that was one of the worst in the league just two years ago, that trajectory is remarkable. Celebrini is already producing. Smith is developing. Misa is on the way. Askarov is waiting in the wings. The blue line is young and improving. And the 2026 draft is about to add another elite piece to a core that is already deep enough to be genuinely frightening.

There is an old saying in hockey that you have to be good to be lucky and lucky to be good. Grier has been both, and the results are visible in every layer of the organization he has constructed.

San Jose Sharks | Mike Grier | Macklin Celebrini | Will Smith | Michael Misa | NHL Draft 2026 | Sharks Rebuild | NHL GM Rankings 2026