It might not seem like much to go from 5-15-2 to 6-11-5 from one year to the next, but the San Jose Sharks could tell you how it feels different now.
In Ryan Warsofsky’s first season as head coach, the Sharks are no NHL big shot. But this revamped club is not the pushover it was on numerous nights last season. The Sharks are still at the bottom of the Pacific Division and on the lowest rung of the 32 teams, but Warsofsky has them in virtually every game and even winning points in a few close ones.
Take a late third-period goal in Philadelphia that got them a point. Or erasing a three-goal deficit in Pittsburgh to force another overtime. Or their most recent game Thursday in St. Louis where Alex Wennberg scored with 8.8 seconds left to pull the Sharks into another extra session, making two points possible when they shouldn’t have been.
Even a road loss to one of the league’s best in Dallas had them one shot away from another tie game until the Stars iced the win with two empty-net goals. The Sharks aren’t good, and they’ve only begun building a new foundation, but this won’t be a club that finishes with only 19 wins or a minus-150 goal differential. Wins against them won’t come as easy.
“We’ve come to believe that and come to feel that, understand that we’re never going to give up,” Warsofsky said. “We can come back from any deficit. We’ve done a good job of that this year. There’s obviously some areas in the game that can continue to improve.
“I give a lot of credit to the group in there to stick together. We’ve been through a lot the first 22 games. Even this last 2 ½ weeks the travel, the time change, the difference. We haven’t practiced much. The execution was a little bit lower the last couple games. I think more fatigue kind of set in a little bit.”
One-fourth of their schedule is behind them and it’s a good time to take stock of performances through the roster. We’ll keep Yarsolav Askarov out of this as he’s played only one game with the Sharks, but his debut Thursday was an auspicious one as he shook off a Nathan Walker goal 11 seconds in and stopped 29 of 31 Blues shots.
We’ll also leave out Logan Couture and Thomas Bordeleau as Couture hasn’t played as he deals with injury issues and Bordeleau has been in the AHL after being set back by a lower-body injury through the preseason.
Stock way up
Macklin Celebrini, Mackenzie Blackwood, Mikael Granlund, William Eklund, Fabian Zetterlund
Let’s see, there are the four goals Celebrini has scored in only nine games that he’s played. Or what about the strong backchecking that he’s already committed to doing as an 18-year-old center playing top-six minutes? Or that he’ll keep his team alive with a diving play to break up a sure empty-net goal? Or that each charge into the offensive zone invokes excitement and possibility?
Maybe we’ll just consider what he did on Monday for his first game-winning goal.
MACKLIN CELEBRINI IN OVERTIME!
HIS FIRST NHL GAME-WINNING GOAL!#TheFutureIsTeal pic.twitter.com/cMOjEA2Hyf
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) November 19, 2024
Celebrini missed 12 games due to a hip issue and it hasn’t been perfect (Wednesday’s game in Dallas is an example). He has ground to make up in the Calder Trophy conversation, but some good health and production on the power play could close the gap on early leading candidates, such as Matvei Michkov and Logan Stankoven.
Blackwood, meanwhile, isn’t going to be among any league leaders, but he’s been outstanding with a .908 save percentage while saving nearly four more goals than expected, per MoneyPuck. The impending free agent also had a 44-save shutout against his former club, the New Jersey Devils.
There’s a reason Warsofsky has reunited Granlund with Eklund and Zetterlund as his wingers. They just work together. Last season’s best line is leading the way again. Granlund’s great revival in San Jose continues as he’s at a point-per-game pace while scoring nine times and leading the team in assists (15) and points (24). Eklund had an early stretch of seven points in seven games and is now cooking again with seven points in his last six, including a two-goal game against the Red Wings. Zetterlund isn’t shooting the puck as much, but he’s scoring at a higher rate while posting better defensive metrics in 5-on-5 play.
Stock up
Tyler Toffoli, Jake Walman, Alexander Wennberg, Timothy Liljegren
Toffoli has given San Jose immediate payoff for its $24 million investment with a hot start and another current goal spurt to lead the club with nine. The one thing that keeps him from the “stock way up” column is that the Sharks give up more defensively at 5-on-5 when he’s on the ice.
Walman has been the team’s best defenseman. He plays a high-event game that can get him into trouble on occasion, but it’s also produced chances the Sharks have capitalized on. He’s flourishing after getting lost in the crowded defense mix in Detroit. He has 10 points in his last eight games and he’s a plus player at even strength.
Wennberg has helped the Sharks upgrade at the center position. The 30-year-old Swede is doing what the team needs need in the third-line role. He’s been their best defensive forward when it comes to expected goals against per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play (2.44); he’s winning faceoffs at a career-best 54.4 percent and he has chipped in two overtime winners.
Meanwhile, the Sharks are seeing the strong underlying numbers that Liljegren brought to Toronto and there’s nothing wrong with having a plus-1 rating in 10 games since the trade.
Stock flat
Will Smith, Vitek Vaněček, Jack Thompson, Henry Thrun, Luke Kunin, Ty Dellandrea, Barclay Goodrow, Carl Grundstrom, Nico Sturm
The 19-year-old Smith is still finding his stride while occasionally sitting as part of a development plan. He has been moved to the wing and is now playing on a line with Celebrini. It’s tough to be too critical of someone just starting out in the NHL, even if he was a top-five pick in his draft year. Smith, who got both of his goals on Oct. 31 against Chicago after not appearing on the scoresheet in his first eight games, has flashed his vision and playmaking, but it’s also taken him some time to find the right pace consistently.
While Blackwood has stepped forward as the No. 1 in goal, Vaněček has been capable in most of his starts. Two games — a seven-spot allowed against Vegas and his last injury-abbreviated outing in Pittsburgh — have skewed his numbers worse than what his play has been.
Thompson has shown some offensive instincts from the blue line, but the pickup of the right-shooting Liljegren has cut into his ice time.
Thrun handled more minutes when Walman was sidelined for a few games, but the third-pairing role suits him as he tries to keep a spot that younger, high-upside prospects are pushing toward.
The remaining five are doing what you would expect from veteran grinders mostly slotted on the bottom two lines. All have made the Sharks deeper up front and more competitive on a nightly basis. Kunin and Sturm, who are on expiring deals, are the holdovers from last season. Kunin’s gritty play sets an example for more talented mates to follow, while Sturm remains a faceoff ace and penalty killer properly suited as their 4C. Goodrow, Dellandrea and Grundstrom are the additions and won’t put up many points, but they’ll battle and compete. If anything, Goodrow is probably playing more minutes than he should.
Stock down
Mario Ferraro, Jan Rutta, Danil Gushchin, Givani Smith
There weren’t any expectations of the Sharks’ defense morphing into a group that squeezed the life out of teams, but three regulars who eat a consistent number of minutes on the blue line being in this section isn’t a promising sign.
The good thing with Walman’s overall fine play is that it takes some of the load off Ferraro, who was tasked with a top-pairing role last season. The bad thing is that Ferraro’s play has taken a turn for the worse with a little less responsibility. Per Evolving-Hockey, his xGA/60 has shot up to 3.63 after posting a 2.99 in 2023-24. Offense isn’t Ferraro’s forte but he’s a non-factor so far, as is Rutta.
Rutta’s defensive metrics are slightly better, but he’s also been tasked with fewer minutes against top lines. Though they’re just two parts to the penalty kill, the unit’s competency helps. (San Jose is tied for 12th).
Gushchin is back in the AHL as he couldn’t parlay a strong preseason into a material impact in his 10 games with the Sharks. He had one assist and 13 shots (33 shot attempts) on goal. Smith has long been a part-timer, but after appearing in 36 games last season he has appeared in only five of the first 22 contests. His ice time is also down from 7:49 on average in 2023-24 to 5:47.
Stock way down
Cody Ceci, Klim Kostin
Going from a Stanley Cup finalist in Edmonton to a recent bottom-feeder with San Jose was going to do a number on Ceci’s metrics. But the veteran, who was acquired from the Oilers in August, has the worst xGA/60 (3.48) among their defensemen. Natural Stat Trick also has him being on the ice for 104 more scoring chances against than what the Sharks create in 5-on-5 play. He’s also been on the ice for 21 even-strength goals against, tying him with Ferraro for the most on the team. The disparity in high-danger chances (99 allowed, 52 generated) outdistances any other player.
Even though the offseason changes to the forward group made a spot in the lineup more tenuous, Kostin has been a disappointment. Warsofsky has given the 25-year-old more turns lately, but he hasn’t played 10 minutes in any game since the season’s first week. Kostin has been more physical in his return to action, but he has only eight shots on goal in his 11 contests after scoring five times in 19 games following his acquisition from the Red Wings.
(Top photo of Macklin Celebrini: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
