Dec 31, 2010; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Ray Shero in attendance during practice the day before the 2011 Winter Classic against the Washington Capitals at Heinz Field. Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Ray Shero left a lasting legacy on the Nashville Predators and the hockey world in general before his passing last April.

On Friday, The National Hockey League announced that Shero has been named the recipient of the 2025 Lester Patrick Trophy for outstanding service to hockey in the United States.

The annual award, one of the most prestigious in hockey, was presented to the National Hockey League by the New York Rangers in 1966. It honors the memory of Lester Patrick, who spent 50 years in hockey as a player, coach and general manager and was a pioneer in the sport’s development.

Shero, a native of Saint Paul, Minn., who passed away April 9 at the age of 62, spent 13 seasons as an NHL general manager, including a Stanley Cup championship season with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2008-09. He also served as GM of the New Jersey Devils, in addition to long stints as an executive with the Ottawa Senators, Nashville Predators and Minnesota Wild.

“Ray Shero’s legacy as an NHL executive is immortalized by the engraving of his name on the Stanley Cup and the success of the Players he scouted, drafted and traded for in Pittsburgh, New Jersey, Ottawa, Nashville and Minnesota,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. “His contributions to growing the game in the United States are similarly noteworthy and extensive – from captaining his team at St. Lawrence University to helping assemble 13 U.S. World Championships teams to serving as an associate general manager for the 2014 U.S. Olympic Team.

“However, his true legacy will be as a man who embodied the best of our game: fierce competition on the ice and welcoming fellowship off the ice. 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.”

After a four-year playing career at St. Lawrence University, Shero worked as a player agent for seven years before becoming Assistant General Manager of the Senators in 1993. He spent five seasons in that position, before moving on to the same role with the Predators in 1998.

Shero was a key figure in guiding the Predators through their first eight years of existence in the NHL. He and former Preds general manager David Poile were close friends, with Shero attending Poile’s induction into the Hockey Hall Of Fame last November.

Following his time in Nashville, Shero was hired as Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Penguins in 2006. He helped build the Penguins squad that went to consecutive Stanley Cup Finals in 2008 and 2009 and emerged victorious over the Detroit Red Wings in the second of those two trips to capture the franchise’s third Stanley Cup.

Shero then became Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Devils in 2015. His last NHL role came in June of 2021, when he joined the Wild as Senior Advisor to the General Manager, a position which he still held at the time of his passing.