DENVER -- The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced Wednesday that the organization has fired six members of its hockey operations staff, including head coach Tony Granato.

Also fired were assistant coaches Jacques Cloutier and Dave Barr, goaltending coach Jeff Hackett, assistant to the General Manager Michel Goulet and video coordinator PJ DeLuca.

The team has not said who will replace Granato and when that decision will be announced, but announced that Greg Sherman, 39, will be the new general manager. Sherman has spent the last seven years as the team's assistant general manager and has been associated with the franchise for the last 13 years.

Sherman replaces Francois Giguere, who was fired in April following the team's worst finish since moving to Denver in 1995.

"We all know the task ahead and we need to get to work. There are a lot of things to be done here. I am surrounded by a group that has great knowledge of the business and we are looking towards the future with a lot of optimism. Our fans can rest assured that every effort will be taken to bring an exciting brand of hockey back to Pepsi Center," Sherman said.

Granato joined the Colorado Avalanche as an assistant coach just before the 2002–03 season and was promoted to head coach in December 2002 when the team fired Bob Hartley, who had led the team to the Stanley Cup. Granato was replaced by Joel Quenneville in 2004, and re-assigned as an assistant. After Quenneville was fired in May 2008, Granato was once again named head coach.

The first sign that Granato's job was in jeopardy came when the team courted Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy to be their coach. Roy turned them down after spending two weeks mulling the offer.

Quenneville now coaches the Chicago Blackhawks, who advanced to the Western Conference finals before being eliminated by the Detroit Red Wings.

Sherman inherits a roster strapped by salary cap constraints. They have only about $10 million to $12 million in which to fill out the team, and 14 players with contracts that account for nearly $44 million next year.

It's a figure that doesn't include captain Joe Sakic, who spent most of the year on the injured list, and goaltenders Peter Budaj and Andrew Raycroft, who are unsigned for next season.

Sakic has yet to decide if he'll return for a 21st season.

A perennial Stanley Cup contender after moving from Quebec to Denver in 1995, the Avalanche missed the playoffs for a second time in three seasons as they stumbled to a last place finish in the Western Conference, scoring a league-low 190 goals.

When Giguere was fired, team president Pierre Lacroix stepped in to oversee the Avalanche.

"The immediate future of this franchise is my primary concern, so it was important to act now and start the process of restoring this franchise to where it belongs," Lacroix said in April.

Lacroix served as president and general manager of the franchise for 11 seasons, putting together the pieces for two Stanley Cup championships.

The Avalanche were besieged by injuries last season and went long stretches without Sakic, offensive threat Paul Stastny and top defenseman Adam Foote.

Avs Announce Other Members Of Management Team

On Wednesday, Lacroix announced a new management structure for the team, headed by the 39-year-old Sherman.

Craig Billington, 42, was appointed as vice president of hockey operations and assistant general manager.

David Oliver, 38, was named director of player development and will continue to serve as general manager of Colorado’s AHL affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters.

Eric Lacroix, 37, was also hired as the director of hockey operations. Lacroix spent last year as a pro scout with the Phoenix Coyotes after serving as co-owner/assistant coach for the Arizona Sundogs.