Sometimes no news is the news.
TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reported Thursday that Rocky Thompson, who had been the head coach of the AHL's Chicago Wolves for the past three seasons, was accepting a position with the Sharks. Included in Dreger's report was the information that interim head coach Bob Boughner had signed an extension to become the permanent head coach in San Jose.
He’s headed to San Jose to assist Bob Boughner, who is believed to have earned an extension. https://t.co/KIMWWmmJFS
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) July 16, 2020
But some local reporting seemed to contradict Dreger's report that Sharks general manager Doug Wilson already had made up his mind on the team's head coaching vacancy.
Doug Wilson, regarding Bob Boughner’s status, via text: "The process continues and there is nothing to update on Boogie's situation."
— Kevin Kurz (@KKurzNHL) July 16, 2020
From #SJSharks GM Doug Wilson: "At this time, we have nothing official to report in regards to our coaching staff for the coming season. The process of identifying candidates to fill out our staff is on-going."
— Curtis Pashelka (@CurtisPashelka) July 16, 2020
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Boughner took over the helm in December after Peter DeBoer was fired midway through his fifth season with the organization. DeBoer had led the Sharks to the playoffs in each of the past four years, but San Jose got off to a woeful start in 2019-20, going just 15-16-2 before DeBoer's dismissal.
Boughner wasn't able to pull the Sharks out of the bottom of the Pacific Division standings, but San Jose showed some positive signs prior to the NHL's season pausing on Mar. 12.
Wilson could keep things simple and just retain Boughner as the head coach going forward, but the GMÂ understandably doesn't want to leave any stone left unturned in the search process.