Board Member

JOHN TORTORA
Co-President
San Jose Sharks and Sharks Sports & Entertainment

John Tortora is president of the Sharks, promoted to the position on Dec. 21, 2017. In this new role, Tortora, 49, co-shares the overall leadership of the business with Jonathan Becher, and is specifically responsible for overseeing the company’s venue operations and the company’s financial, human resources, and legal functions. Both Becher and Tortora work closely with Sharks General Manager Doug Wilson in establishing and maintaining a centralized and collaborative vision for the entire organization, encapsulating both hockey and business operations.

Tortora also serves as an alternate governor for the San Jose Sharks to the National Hockey League’s (NHL) Board of Governors and for the San Jose Barracuda to the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Board of Governors.  Prior to his promotion, Tortora served as chief operating officer of the Sharks since 2013 and executive vice president and general counsel from 2011 to 2013.

Over the last five years, Tortora focused on creating new opportunities to connect with Sharks fans, corporate partners, and the community, highlighted by a series of high-profile organizational events and projects.

One such event occurred on Feb. 21, 2015 when the Sharks hosted the 2015 Coors Light Stadium Series at Levi’s Stadium, which was Northern California’s first professional outdoor hockey game.  The sold-out contest was an overwhelming success, drawing a crowd of 70,205 fans, making it the third-largest attended game in NHL history.  In connection with this game, Tortora facilitated the Sharks participation in the four-part, EPIX television series, “Road to the Stadium Series,” which offered a uniquely unfettered look into the day-to-day life of the Sharks players in the weeks preceding the outdoor game.

Later in 2015, Tortora reaffirmed Sharks Majority Owner Hasso Plattner’s long-term commitment to the City of San Jose by extending the Sharks’ management agreement to operate SAP Center, without any financial risk to the City, and providing a framework under which the Sharks can continue to call San Jose its home through the 2039-40 season. 

In conjunction with Wilson, Tortora also helped spearhead the relocation of the Sharks AHL development club from Worcester to San Jose as a part of a new Pacific Division of the AHL.  Beginning with the 2015-16 season, the San Jose Barracuda provided a new opportunity for Sharks fans to watch future Sharks players develop at the SAP Center, while enabling the Sharks hockey operations staff to oversee the organization’s strong and evolving core of prospects more closely.  Related to the relocation of the Barracuda, Tortora oversaw the upgrade of Solar4America Ice at San Jose to include a $4 million locker room and practice facility for the newly-relocated AHL team as well as the renovation of two of the four ice-sheets at Solar4America Ice this past summer.    

2015-16 also witnessed a season-long celebration of the franchise’s 25th Anniversary and its great fans, highlighted with a gala to commemorate the organization’s first 25 years in the Bay Area. Fittingly, the season culminated with the franchise’s first trip to the Stanley Cup Final.

In 2016-17, under Tortora’s direction, the Sharks continued their long-standing track record of outstanding customer service, marked by the organization receiving recognition from JD Power & Associates as the professional sports team with the best overall fan experience in the Bay Area.

For the 2018-19 season, Becher and Tortora successfully bid to host the 2019 NHL All-Star Weekend on January 25-26, 2019, the first time that the Sharks are hosting the weekend since 1997 and represents the highlight of a year-long celebration of 25 years of SAP Center, which opened in 1993.

Prior to joining the Sharks, Tortora spent 14 years with the NHL office in New York, rising to the level of Vice President, Media, where he was actively involved in the launch of the NHL Network in Canada and the United States and directed the NHL’s federal lobbying efforts in Ottawa and Washington.

After graduating magna cum laude in accounting from Seton Hall University in 1991, Tortora attended Seton Hall University School of Law, graduating in 1994 and serving as editor-in-chief of the Seton Hall Journal of Sport Law. 

A native of New Jersey, Tortora is a member of the New Jersey and New York State Bars and is a registered in-house counsel with the State Bar of California.  Tortora also is active with a number of community groups.  A four-time marathoner, Tortora and his wife, Debbie, have two teenage children.