San Jose Sharks
Sharks Locker Room: Key to “Better Hockey”?
Maybe last year, and certainly the season before, a 3-2 comeback shootout loss, complete with a first NHL goal from a top prospect, would be okay for the San Jose Sharks.
But head coach Ryan Warsofsky is trying to set a higher standard, and just maybe, the Sharks are getting there soon.
San Jose is 4-4-1 in their last nine and has been competitive in every single game in this stretch.
Sam Dickinson scored his first NHL goal off a brilliant Will Smith pass, and the Sharks tied it late, before falling in the shootout to the Detroit Red Wings.
But post-game, the discussion with Warsofsky wasn’t about a moral victory, it was about real wins.
“We wanted to keep this thing going,” Warsofsky said of the Sharks’ almost three-game winning streak against all current playoff teams. “That’s the name of the game. Our guys are a little bit crushed in there, because we wanted win.”
Warsofsky, however, put a finger on a glaring problem that will prevent San Jose from consistent winning hockey, an issue that has plagued the Sharks even in this recent three-game points run.
“Puck management has got to be cleaned up,” he said tersely, “or we’re going to be shooting ourselves in the foot very soon.”
That’s a message to the veterans, like John Klingberg, and to the youngsters, like Macklin Celebrini, to cut it out with the turnovers.
San Jose isn’t going to be a Stanley Cup contender overnight, but can they improve throughout this season in this essential to winning hockey?
Warsofsky believes so: “The confidence is coming, the belief is coming. We can get better. We can get a lot better. I know we got some results, but I think there’s a team in there that can really be consistently very good, night in and night out, and we’re going to keep pushing and challenging to get to that standard.
“There’s better hockey in us coming.”
For the first time in a long time, it feels like this just might be happening sooner for the Sharks than later.
Ryan Warsofsky
Warsofsky, on San Jose Sharks trying to establish a higher standard:
We want to win. That’s the name of the game. Our guys are a little bit crushed in there, because we wanted win. We wanted to keep this thing going.
The confidence is coming, the belief is coming. We can get better. We can get a lot better. I know we got some results, but I think there’s a team in there that can really be consistently very good, night in and night out, and we’re going to keep pushing and challenging to get to that standard.
There’s better hockey in us coming.
Warsofsky, on the key to a higher standard:
Puck management has got to be cleaned up, or we’re going to be shooting ourselves in the foot very soon.
Warsofsky, on Ethan Cardwell’s game:
Cards was good, was skating. I thought he was trying to add some purpose to his game, some conviction was some something we talked about with him.
Sam Dickinson
“It was a hell of a pass, right before it we made eye contact, and at that point, I think I knew it was coming."
Sam Dickinson on his 1st NHL goal, talks Will Smith’s assist & Ryan Warsofsky chirping him: https://t.co/Z3fPmQX0tk
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) November 3, 2025
Mario Ferraro
Ferraro, on if there’s a feeling in San Jose Sharks room now that they’re never out of a game:
I mean, lately, it does definitely feel like that. That’s got to be a part of our identity. So we got to keep that moving forward. Whether we’re down in games or we have a lead, we got to play the same way.
Ethan Cardwell
Cardwell, on playing for the San Jose Barracuda last night, then for the San Jose Sharks tonight:
I mean, it’s really no issue. Any night you get to play in the NHL, it’s pretty special. You can figure out of way to get your legs going. So a couple Red Bulls and I was good to go.
Worth noting, this was the Sharks 8th game in 13 days.
7 of 8 were either tied or 1 goal games (excluding empty net)
The guys were a little impatient trying to make plays. Looked like they were rushing to create scoring chances before their teammates were ready to support. So a little disjointed but the idea feels like it’s there.
Good observation. In my experience, impatience is often a sign of fatigue.
The sharks are looking like there is tangible growth this year, so far anyway. They’re building something and when this machine gets going, it’s gonna be a monster.
When Mac took that roughing with the best young defenseman in the league who is a foot taller than him and then kept chirping with him in the box it gave me goosebumps, it validated what I already knew, that this kid is a dog. He’s not the biggest guy but I had hoped that maybe he would have a little Marchand in him to fortify his skill set for the playoffs when our time comes and he does. I just can’t wait until he gets a power forward RW on his line.
It is really exciting to see him fired up, chirping, taking no shit when appropriate.
Yah especially once he’s got man strength. I think he’s quite strong already, but in a couple years? With that tenacity? oooo
He’s already got man strength. That’s a huge reason he was so successful last year and so far this year. He wouldn’t have done so well in that one on one with Seider if he didn’t have it already.
A 2-1-1 homestand against three top 10 teams is fantastic for these Sharks. Its good they’re disappointed they didn’t pull out the win here, but so far this season is what a reasonable step forward looks like. Now they just have to keep it up!
And in the middle “1”, they outshot their opponent 40-14. Keep it up, boys.
Seattle should be a winnable game, the kind this team needs to build on if they are going to start climbing the ladder.
Pohlkamp getting the love from DFO.
https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/nhl-prospect-roundup-10-players-dominating-ncaa-hage-hutson-horcoff-martone
Man I love Pohlkamp and I have been following him since we drafted him even when everyone was saying we had no one in the pipe on the right side I was confident Pohlkamp was going to be one of three RDs. I think he will fit solidly into the second pair.
I was just thinking about it and as a fanbase very accustomed to watching games slip away in the 3rd with coughed up leads, getting a late goal and taking a fresher team to OT is a major step forward. And it was a beautiful pass from a 20 year old to a 19 year old. These are wonderful times to be alive.
2nd time a Sharks player is one of the 3 stars of the week — Kurashev is 3rd star. I didn’t have that one of my bingo card.
Distant memory Klim Kostin signs in the KHL
all this per The Hockey Guy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qva6l6UbLQ
From my perspective SD looked unleashed. Put him with a stay at home RD and let him go. Bet he starts piling up points and puts all the Buium nonsense to rest.
He has looked really good with Shakir imo. Small sample size and it puts Mukh on his opposite side but he seems to handle it well and I liked what I saw against the Avs and in bits last night.
Agreed but I think Shak needs to play higher in the lineup and get to where he’s a big minute muncher. That definitely a feels like a future top 4 pairing though. As JD on LOS pointed out, SD was 65% corsi in this game. That’s awesome.
I like the idea of keeping them together as a third pair and letting them grow into more responsibility together. Eventually, they take over and push Ferraro-Klingberg down to the third pair.
I think if they want to win more games now, Shak can handle more responsibility now than SD.
Rempe to IR.
He was injured by Ryan Reaves in their fight.
Reaves is also on IR. He was injured on a breakaway …
You know this is old news right?
Rempe’s sister spilled the beans on that injury. He broke his thumb in the fight.
Not surprised. He fights like a rock troll. Hope he never learns to box.