Preseason Preview/Lines #2: New Group, New Questions Tonight

What am I looking for in the San Jose Sharks’ second preseason tilt?

Here’s what I’ll be watching tonight at SAP Center: Can Ryan Merkley start to do what it takes to seize an NHL job?

Luke Kunin is the only Shark to play both exhibition games so far: Kunin confirmed that they want to see his training camp line with Nick Bonino and Noah Gregor in game action. So we’ll see if Gregor-Bonino-Kunin can become a momentum-shifting third line.

Because of how competitive things are up front in this camp, it stands out to me that the Sharks didn’t cut Tristen Robins and Danil Gushchin in initial cuts. Curious to see them against better competition than the Rookie Faceoff.

San Jose Sharks (1-0-0)

Head coach David Quinn says James Reimer will start tonight and go all the way. They didn’t reveal lines during morning skate, but here’s the line-up and some expected lines.

#SJSharks #GoKingsGo line-ups tonight, Bordeleau, Eklund, Meier, Couture, Hertl, Karlsson should play (I don't see them down here for AM non-game players' practice) pic.twitter.com/4vY8zFgTMM

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) September 25, 2022

Power play lines this morning tell a story too, excited to see what Gushchin and Max Veronneau bring to the table:

#SJSharks power play units tonight look like:

Ferraro-Kunin-Gushchin-Veronneau-Bonino
Merkley-Pouliot-Sturm-Lorentz-Reedy

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) September 27, 2022

As for starting Mario Ferraro over Ryan Merkley on the power play, the message is probably the same to youngster Merkley as it is to William Eklund or Thomas Bordeleau: “Take a job.”

Sharks Training Camp: Quinn Still High on Vlasic, Eklund & Bordeleau Must ‘Take’ Jobs (+)

Anaheim Ducks (1-0-0)

It looks like the Ducks are running an inexperienced group out there tonight. I’ve heard a lot of hype about defenseman Olen Zellweger, so excited to see what he brings against elevated competition.

Where to Watch

Puck drop between the San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks is at 7:30 PM PT/10:30 PM ET at SAP Center. Listen to it on the Sharks Audio Network. And…

Yup #SJSharks streaming the game tonight on their platforms too: Team website, Sharks app, NBC Sports California app

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) September 27, 2022