5 Reasons Why Sharks Are Playing Better (+)

Have the San Jose Sharks found their way?

San Jose started out 0-10-1 with a staggering -42 Goal Differential. They were on pace to be outscored by 313 goals, more than even the expansion Washington Capitals’ NHL-worst -265 in 1974-75.

The Sharks were on pace to be the worst team in NHL history.

But a team meeting with GM Mike Grier on Nov. 6 and some soul-searching appears to have put San Jose back on their way.

The Sharks are 5-5-1 with a -10 Goal Differential in their last 11.

“Everything that could have gone wrong in the first 11 games did go wrong, from injuries to the schedule. You map it out, it was a difficult stretch for us for a lot of reasons,” head coach David Quinn explained. “Give our guys credit for okay, that happened. Now let’s get back to playing the way we think we’re capable of playing and see what happens.”

Here are five things that have put San Jose back on the right path.

Goaltending

The San Jose Sharks have had one shelter through this storm, their goaltending.

Both Mackenzie Blackwood and Kaapo Kahkonen have consistently given the Sharks a chance to win all season.

Per SPORTLOGiQ, the duo is seventh in the NHL with an .805 Inner Slot Save %, fourth with 14 Quality Starts (defined as a game where the goalie earns a Goals Saved Above Expected of at least one), and second with five Steals (defined as when the number of goals a goalie saves above expected makes the difference in the outcome).

Blackwood, in particular, has shone. The starter is 3-3-1 in the team’s last 11 games with a sparkling .924 Save %, sixth in the NHL in that stretch.

For the season, he’s second in the league with 10 Quality Starts and tops with three Steals, and 16th in both Slot (.848) and Inner Slot Save % (.812). Kahkonen, by the way, is 10th with an .833 Inner Slot Save %.

Considering all the rubber that Blackwood has got in front of – he’s faced 36.6 Shots Against Per 60, third-most in the league behind Kahkonen (37.2) and Jake Allen – he’s the easy choice for team MVP so far this season.

“He’s been an elite goalie for us this season,” Quinn said.

Tomas Hertl

Hertl has been playing some inspired hockey.

In the absence of Erik Karlsson and Timo Meier, both traded, and Logan Couture, injured all year with a nagging lower-body injury, Hertl is the sole star in the Sharks’ line-up, and he’s played like that, especially recently.

Hertl, even missing the last contest with a mid-body injury, a 2-1 victory over the Washington Capitals, leads the Sharks with nine points in his last 10.

More importantly, the first-line center is making his teammates better.

Whoever he’s played with recently, William Eklund, Fabian Zetterlund, or Mike Hoffman, has seen more success with him than without him.

One way that Hertl has contributed to his wingers’ success? He’s been the nexus of offense for the goal-starved Sharks.

After just 12 Slot Passes in the first 11 games this year, Hertl has 21 in his last 10, leading San Jose.

Naturally, he leads the team with nine Primary Assists – three times more than any other Shark.

Goal-Scoring

The San Jose Sharks have found some scoring punch, after a dismal 12 goals through their first 11 games.

Powered by Mike Hoffman, who’s gone on a goal-scoring tear with six goals in the last seven, and Luke Kunin, who’s posted four goals recently, San Jose has scored an unremarkable, but at least competitive, 24 goals in their last 11.

It’s worth noting where Hoffman has scored all his goals.

Those are the red shapes, all around the middle slot.

It’s good to see a scorer as dangerous as Hoffman in the high-danger areas.

As for Kunin, who had just one goal in his first 11 games, it was just a matter of time. He’s second on the Sharks with 27 Slot and nine Inner Slot Shots – he’s been going to the dirty areas all season.

“Right around the net. On the doorstep,” Quinn said. “We’re getting more of it. We just got to keep adding to it.”

Baby Sharks

Slowly but surely, the younger Sharks are taking on larger roles on the team and contributing to winning hockey.

Eklund, Zetterlund, Calen Addison, Nikita Okhotiuk, and Ty Emberson are among the 24-or-younger standouts.

Eklund, San Jose’s 2021 seventh-overall pick, is the big name. After a slow start, one goal and one assist in his first 11 games, he’s bounced back with three and three in his last 11.

The 21-year-old is second on the Sharks, after Hertl, with 00:37 OZ Possession Time Per Game. The small-but-crafty winger has done a good job of helping San Jose hold onto the pucks down low.

Zetterlund, 24, has probably made the biggest impact. He’s really taken off recently, going from 14:34 ATOI in his first 11 games to 19:14 in his last 11. That’s not the only area where he’s made a significant jump.

He now leads the team in Shot Attempts, Shots, and Quality Chances.

Is this the most confident that Zetterlund has been in the NHL?

“I would say that,” he acknowledged. “I’m feeling really good about myself.”

Addison, Okhotiuk, and Emberson are all 23-year-old defensemen.

Addison, acquired on Nov. 9 from the Minnesota Wild, has helped stabilize the San Jose power play. Since then, they’ve struck at a 21.7 percent success rate, 10th in the league.

Okhotiuk is fourth among Sharks defensemen at 19:03 ATOI in the last 11 games, and his 8.19 Blocks Per 60 lead the team.

Emberson has upped his minutes and physicality, going from 16:12 ATOI and 4.93 Hits Per 60 (in six games) of the first 11 to 18:25 ATOI and 7.33 Hits Per 60 (in eight) of the last 11. He’s also formed a credible pairing with San Jose’s top defenseman, Mario Ferraro, in the last seven contests.

Feeling Good

The San Jose Sharks’ first wins, 2-1 over the Philadelphia Flyers on Nov. 7 and 3-2 over the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 9, got the ball rolling.

“There’s a certain momentum effect,” Nico Sturm said. “Getting those first couple of wins out of the way, getting some points.”

Momentum, of course, can go the other way, and it had been for the Sharks.

“When we were in that 11-game spiral, with every game, it gets worse,” Sturm shared. “You feel like you can’t win, no matter what.”

Hopefully, San Jose has gotten through the worst, with the best yet to come.

They’re certainly in a better place mentally to play their best.

“I think guys can sleep a little bit easier now than they probably did three weeks ago. They’re not as worried when they go home. They can recover better because they’re not stressed up to the wazoo because of what’s been going on,” Sturm said. “It all just comes together, and it helps everybody out there.”