The Sharks filled the vacancy on the coaching staff left by Bob Boughner with a familiar name, as Rob Zettler has been hired to join Pete DeBoer's staff. Zettler will work primarily with the defensemen and penalty kill.
Zettler, 49, formerly served as a Sharks assistant coach under Ron Wilson from 2002 through 2008. The Sharks appeared in the Western Conference Final in 2004, and won the Pacific Division in 2004 and 2008. Zettler is also a former Sharks player, claimed from Minnesota in the 1991 expansion draft. The defenseman posted one goal and 18 assists for 19 points in 196 games from 1991-94.
"It is both an exciting challenge and a privilege to come back to an organization that I have so much passion for, and I am happy to get my family back home to San Jose," Zettler said in a statement. "I want to thank Pete, Doug [Wilson] and his staff for their time during the hiring process and for this opportunity. Ultimately, I want to win, and I look forward to working together and building on the success this staff has had."
Wilson said: "[Zettler's] familiarity with our organization, many of our players and our area cannot be overstated."
Most recently, Zettler was the head coach of the Syracuse Crunch (AHL) from late in the 2012-13 season through 2015-16. He posted a 108-90-41 record with Syracuse, the primary affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
"Rob has extensive experience working as a coach at the NHL level and developing prospects as a head coach in the AHL," DeBoer said. "As we researched candidates during this process, reputable people that I spoke with kept coming back to me with the same words: communicator, teacher, and professional. We think he will be a tremendous asset to our staff."
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Boughner, an assistant under DeBoer for the last two seasons, was named as the head coach of the Florida Panthers.
