Sutter, Assistants Fired by Sharks

The San Jose Sharks fired Coach Darryl Sutter and assistants Lorne Molleken and Rich Preston on Sunday in a dramatic shake-up of a slumping team.

Doug Wilson, the Sharks’ director of pro development, and scout Cap Raeder will coach the team until a new coach is named.

With San Jose off to an 8-12-2-2 start, General Manager Dean Lombardi decided to replace Sutter, who had led the Sharks to five consecutive seasons of improved point totals while helping to build them into a Stanley Cup contender.

San Jose became a consistent winner in Sutter’s tenure, but he couldn’t accomplish much this season with an underachieving club that’s been one of the NHL’s biggest disappointments.

“Darryl was an integral part of the growth of this team the past five seasons,” Lombardi said. “This was not an easy decision to make.”

Following Saturday night’s 3-2 home loss to Phoenix, the Sharks are in last place in the Pacific Division, which they won last season.

San Jose got off to a slow start while goalie Evgeni Nabokov and defenseman Brad Stuart held out, but their returns haven’t helped. The Sharks have struggled to score and they have allowed more goals than any division team except Phoenix.