Preview/Lines #36: Chrona Will Make 1st NHL Start Tonight

Well, no one said that playing in the NHL would be easy.

Magnus Chrona knows about that, for sure.

Chrona, 23, will be making his first NHL start tonight against Connor McDavid and the surging Edmonton Oilers tonight.

Chrona, 3-6-2 with a .900 Save % for the San Jose Barracuda in his debut pro campaign, had to cut short his AHL holiday break – next game scheduled for Dec. 29 – to join the San Jose Sharks in Los Angeles yesterday to cover for Mackenzie Blackwood, who’s dealing with an illness. Chrona backed up Kaapo Kahkonen in a 5-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings.

Now, Chrona will face the red-hot Oilers, winners of 10 of their last 13.

Chrona’s first NHL game wasn’t easy either.

On Nov. 4, that time in lieu of Kahkonen, he came on in relief of Blackwood, who had stopped just 12-of-18 shots against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Chrona didn’t fare much better, saving just 13-of-17.

The San Jose Sharks lost 10-2, the second straight game that they had surrendered 10 goals. That was the first time in over 50 years that a team had given up 10 or more goals in back-to-back games.

These are some tough circumstances for your NHL debut and your first start, not that Chrona is complaining.

“Just be calm,” San Jose Sharks head coach David Quinn told the Hockey News, about what he’s looking for from Chrona. “I know it’s going to be an exciting night for him and probably a little nerve-wracking all at once, but turn the nerves and excitement and feed off it.”

San Jose Sharks (9-23-3)

Per NHL roster report, #SJSharks have activated Carpenter from IR, while Smith is going on IR

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 28, 2023

Edmonton Oilers (15-15-1)

Oilers lines & pairings in San Jose:

RNH – McDavid – Hyman
McLeod – Draisaitl – Foegele
Kane – Ryan – Janmark
Erne – Hamblin – Brown
Holloway

Nurse – Ceci
Ekholm – Bouchard
Kulak – Desharnais
Gleason

Skinner
Pickard#Oilers

— Tony Brar (@TonyBrarOTV) December 28, 2023

Where to Watch

Puck drop between the San Jose Sharks and Edmonton Oilers is 7:30 PM PT at SAP Center. Watch it live on NBC Sports California. Listen to it on the Sharks Audio Network.