Hockey History
Pat Falloon’s Advice for William Eklund
What advice does Pat Falloon have for William Eklund?
Like Eklund, Falloon was a lottery pick that went straight from the NHL Draft to the San Jose Sharks line-up.
Falloon also had his own challenges too: He was the expansion Sharks’ first-ever draft pick, and charged, as a teenager, with carrying a squad that won just 28 games in their first two seasons.
Falloon talks about how important it is for Eklund, a teenager walking into an NHL locker room, to latch onto a veteran mentor (49:25).
He recalls the end-of-the-season hot streak that helped him pace the expansion San Jose Sharks in goals and points (53:30).
Falloon met his share of celebrities in his time as an NHL player: He spent his 21st birthday partying with Baseball Hall of Famer George Brett (57:25).
Did all the losing with the San Jose Sharks as a teenager create bad habits in Falloon’s game? Falloon offers his thoughts (1:01:35).
He also elaborates on the career-altering shoulder injury that he suffered during his sophomore season in San Jose (1:05:37).
The Sharks started winning in Falloon’s third season, under new head coach Kevin Constantine — but Falloon and Constantine didn’t see eye to eye (1:13:07).
Falloon also expands on the one big regret from his career — he did score over 20 goals three times — that he didn’t take care of his body enough (1:16:50).
Finally, Falloon confirms the Doug Wilson Michael Jordan story (1:20:18).
And before Nick and I chatted with Pat Falloon, we also gave fresh takes on some big, megalodon-sized if you will, San Jose Sharks questions:
Can Jonathan Dahlen and William Eklund produce at a top-six level? (14:50)
Who will play net front on the power play? (22:00)
Are there signs of an Erik Karlsson comeback campaign? (31:40)
Can Adin Hill change the San Jose Sharks’ fortunes? (38:30)
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