Sharks Sports & Entertainment laid off 16 employees from its business staff earlier this week, although a spokesman for the organization said the cutbacks were not directly related to the severe financial duress brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

The layoffs, which took place Tuesday, included executives and managers involved in corporate partnerships, suite sales and marketing, according to information obtained by this newspaper. Hockey operations front office members were not affected.

“As it has done each summer for the last several years, Sharks Sports & Entertainment conducted an internal strategic assessment to determine if the organization was aligned with its business objectives,” an statement by the organization read. “To better align brand asset fulfillment and revenue generation, Sharks Sports & Entertainment implemented internal structural changes that resulted in the elimination of 16 positions.”

Since the moves are related to restructuring, the layoffs are permanent, as in, there are no plans to rehire staff once the NHL is able to start the 2020-2021 regular season and fans are once again allowed to attend games.

“Employees affected by the changes will be offered severance and benefits packages,” the statement continued, “as well as outplacement support, to help with their transition.”

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SAP Center in San Jose has been dark for nearly five months after Santa Clara County health officials instituted a shelter in place order to help contain the pandemic, which, as of Wednesday, had claimed 196 lives in the county. In May, the NHL canceled the remainder of the regular season and announced a new, expanded playoff format, of which the Sharks were not included.

The Sharks still had five home games left to play when the NHL paused its season March 12. The league has tentatively announced that the 2020-2021 regular season will begin Dec. 1, but it is unknown as of now whether fans will be allowed back into arenas this winter.

The Sharks underwent significant structural change earlier this year. In January, Sharks majority owner Hasso Plattner named Jonathan Becher the sole president of SSE and that John Tortora, who had served as co-president with Becher since 2017, would be leaving the organization.

The pandemic, though, may have forced SSE to accelerate its internal review and look for inefficiencies. The Sharks have said for years that they lose money, but that those losses would be much greater this season.

“It’s clear to me that the losses for the season will significantly exceed what we’ve traditionally experienced, and be the largest its been before,” Becher said March 31. “I can’t give you a number, but it will be a big number.”