<p>Long-time NHL executive Ray Shero has passed away at the age of 62.</p>



<p>Shero spent 30 years in the NHL as an executive, most recently as a senior advisor for the <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/minnesota-wild/line-combinations">Minnesota Wild</a> over the past four years.</p>



<p>Born in 1962, Shero played college hockey for St. Lawrence University of the NCAA. He served as captain in his final year in 1984-85 before retiring as a player. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 1982, but he never played in the NHL.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Shero began his career as an assistant general manager with the <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/ottawa-senators/line-combinations">Ottawa Senators</a> from 1993-98. From there, he joined the upstart <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/nashville-predators/line-combinations">Nashville Predators</a> as their assistant GM, holding the job from 1998-06 before getting his first GM job with the <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/pittsburgh-penguins/line-combinations">Pittsburgh Penguins</a> in 2005-06.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Shero led the team to the Stanley Cup in 2009 with a core that included Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Marc-Andre Fleury, among others. He’d hold the job until 2013-14, the same season he served as an assistant GM on USA’s Olympic hockey team.</p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="172"></div>



<p>Following his time with the Penguins, Shero became the GM of the <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/teams/new-jersey-devils/line-combinations">New Jersey Devils </a>in 2015 after a year away from the game. He oversaw a significant reshaping of their prospect system and drafted Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes with first-overall picks in 2017 and 2019, respectively.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Ray was the son of former NHLer Fred Shero, who won two AHL Calder Cups as a player and two Stanley Cups as a coach with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1974 and 1975.</p>



<p>“Ray Shero’s smile and personality lit up every room he walked into and brightened the day of everyone he met,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a league statement. “Widely respected throughout hockey for his team-building acumen and eye for talent, he was even more beloved for how he treated everyone fortunate enough to have known him.”</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="138"></div>
