Ray Shero doesn't believe he's in familiar territory as general manager for the New Jersey Devils as he was almost a decade ago when hired by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the same role.
Still, it's hard to ignore the comparisons.
The Penguins had just completed a fourth straight season of having failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs when Shero was hired to replace Craig Patrick as GM in May 2006. Patrick, an iconic figure in Pittsburgh, had served as GM for 16 seasons.
"It's never a seamless transition; going into Pittsburgh there were people working for Craig for 16 years, so it takes a little time.