The San Jose Sharks' problems are plentiful. One issue looms larger than others

gqlshare

Oct 20

SAN JOSE – Four games into the season and almost all the major concerns regarding the San Jose Sharks are being borne out.

Playing the NHL's most difficult schedule to date, the Sharks, without Logan Couture and Mikael Granlund, are not only having all kinds of trouble scoring but have also developed a penchant for giving up deflating goals at the most inopportune times.

And without Erik Karlsson, the Sharks' present defense corps has combined for one assist.

Add it all up and the Sharks, who begin a five-game road trip on Saturday in Nashville, are the NHL's last remaining winless team with a 0-3-1 record.

"Listen, we all knew the challenge we had on this homestand, right? Let's be honest," Sharks coach David Quinn said Thursday after his team's 3-1 loss to the Boston Bruins. "We feel like we're not that far off."

The combined record of the Sharks' first four opponents, Vegas, Colorado, Carolina, and Boston, before Friday's games, was a remarkable 15-2-0. Things let up a bit for San Jose on Saturday with the Predators and their 2-3-0 record, but the Sharks' bigger issue of trying to figure out ways to win without two of their top three centermen in Couture and Granlund still looms.

San Jose Sharks' William Eklund (72) and San Jose Sharks' Tomas Hertl (48) skate off the ice following their 3-1 loss to the Boston Bruins at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

The Sharks have scored just one goal in three of their first four games and only six for the season.

Anthony Duclair's goal off an assist from Tomas Hertl at the 11:13 mark of the third period Thursday against the Bruins got him off the schneid. But fellow forwards Alexander Barabanov and Luke Kunin both remain without a point, and Mike Hoffman and William Eklund have one point each.

"I'm just looking for a full 60-minute effort for myself," Duclair said. "It's always nice to see the puck go in the back of the net. It was good for my confidence, especially before the road trip. Hopefully, it's the start of something special."

Still, the Sharks are desperately looking for ways to solve their issues at center.

Thomas Bordeleau's ice time has now shrunk in four consecutive games as he only played 11:08 on Thursday. Instead of dressing Jacob Peterson as their third-line center against the Bruins, the Sharks went with Kunin, whose experience in the position over the past three seasons is limited at best.

Beyond that, Quinn only has so many levers to pull, so many buttons to push.

Hertl is the No. 1 center and Nico Sturm is being used in the bottom six. The rest might be up for grabs with Couture and Granlund both out for an undetermined amount of time.

While Couture is staying home for the Sharks' five-game, nine-day trip that also has dates with Florida, Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Washington, Quinn said Granlund will travel, although it's still unclear as to when the Finnish forward will play again.

"It'll sure be nice to get Granlund back and Couture at some point as well. That'll make a big difference for us," Quinn said. "In essence, when you lose those two guys, you lose six players, You lose those two guys, they're going to certainly elevate the play of the two wings."

San Jose Sharks' Tomas Hertl (48) takes a shot against Boston Bruins' Matt Grzelcyk (48) in the third period at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

Of the 15 goals the Sharks have allowed in four games this season, five have come in the final two minutes of a period. One prevented the Sharks from beating the Avalanche at home last weekend, and on two other occasions, the Sharks allowed two goals just seconds apart shortly before intermission.

The latest example came Thursday, as a scoreless game turned into a two-goal Bruins lead in the final 1:54 of the first period. Brad Marchand scored at the 18:06 mark, and James van Riemsdyk scored from near the crease just 21 seconds later, pushing the puck — and Kaapo Kahkonen's pad – across the goal line for his third goal of the season.

"What's killing us right now are the late goals late in periods," said Duclair. "We've given (those) up a couple of games in a row now, so, try to defend a little harder closing out periods and just battle all over the ice."

"It's demoralizing when you get down 2-0, right? It's the psyche part of it that we've got to be better at," Quinn said.

Maybe the Sharks can build on some of the things they did against the Bruins, such as the way they established some offensive zone time. Regardless, the Sharks will look at every possible way to avoid losing five straight games for the second consecutive year.

"We did some good things tonight," Quinn said. "We're in a hockey game and we just take our foot off the pedal a little bit and we pay the price, So we've got to learn to finish periods and play the full 20."