San Jose Sharks’ David Quinn to coach USA men’s national hockey team

USA Hockey has announced that San Jose Sharks coach David Quinn will lead the men’s national team for the upcoming World Hockey Championship in Finland and Latvia in May.

It will be Quinn’s second consecutive year coaching USA, following up on a year that also saw him coach at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

“It’s great to have David coaching our team again this year,” said Chris Clark, USA’s GM. “He knows the player pool extremely well and understands the dynamics involved in preparing a team to win a gold medal on the world stage.”

Quinn, 56, has been a mainstay with USA Hockey over the past three decades. He first served as an assistant coach at the 1999 World Championship before becoming the USNTDP coach in 2002-03. He served as an assistant at various other events before landing his first NHL head coaching gig in 2018-19, where he spent three years with the New York Rangers. He spent the 2021-22 season focused on the American national team before landing with San Jose thsi season.

Quinn’s Sharks team sits 31st out of 32 teams in the NHL, just two points ahead of Columbus for last. They will miss the playoffs and instead look to nab Connor Bedard at the NHL Draft, with the team holding the second-best odds.

Ryan Martin and Craig Conroy were also named to the team’s management group under Clark’s guidance.

USA has struggled at the World Championship over the tournament’s history, winning gold twice – 1933 and 1960. They have won bronze four times over the past decade, including in 2021, and finished fourth last year. The tournament will take place from May 12-28, playing the defending champions from Finland to kick off group play on the opening day. USA will get its first look in a pre-tournament game against Germany on May 9.