SAN JOSE – Forward William Eklund will return to the lineup Saturday when the San Jose Sharks play the New Jersey Devils, in search of their second straight win.

Eklund, who missed 4 games, is tied for second on the Sharks with 27 points in 36 games. San Jose went 1-3-0 in his absence and finished in eighth and final place within the Pacific Division with 30 points entering Saturday.

Eklund will play on a line with center Mikael Granlund and fellow wing Fabian Zetterlund. Granlund, the oldest of the trio at 32, leads the Sharks with 35 points in 39 games.

“Grandpa (Granlund) there can help them a little bit,” Warsofsky said on the road with Eklund, 22, and Zetterlund, 25. “He takes him under their wing. He's helping these two young players who are still trying to figure out how to play consistently in this league, and I think Granlund has done a great job of helping them individually.

“But of course the chemistry between them was good this year. I’ve said it the last few games: We need to get some lines in place here as far as chemistry goes.”

Granlund's production has slowed recently, with three assists in eight games, but Warsofsky said his play has been higher overall.

“Last game he was skating, he was busy playing hockey,” Warsofsky said of Granlund. “He had a difficult task. We want to compete against really good centers and collect points. … He's had a tough job here lately just trying to get his offense going because I think he's so on the defensive side.

“But we have to make it work.”

To create a roster spot for Eklund, the Sharks placed defenseman Jake Walman (lower body injury) on injured reserve.

Walman, who hasn't played since being injured within the Sharks' game against the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 21, skated for the third consecutive day Saturday morning, nevertheless it stays unclear when he’ll give you the option to return. Warsofsky said Walman must complete a full practice before he can play in a game.

Sharks center Nico Sturm, whose appearance against the Devils is taken into account questionable, can be axed. Luke Kunin will take Sturm's place as center on the Sharks' fourth line. Sturm blocked a shot by defenseman Darren Raddysh in the primary period of Thursday's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning and didn’t play on Friday.

Goaltender Yaroslav Askarov will start again for the Sharks after making 24 saves in San Jose's 2-1 win over the Lightning. Since returning to the Sharks on December 18, Askarov is 1-2-1 with a .919 save percentage in 4 games.

Askarov was recalled from the AHL's Barracuda after goalie Vitek Vanecek suffered a fractured cheek on Dec. 17 when he was hit within the face by a puck that flew into the dugout.

The Sharks haven’t won consecutive games since defeating the Seattle Kraken on November thirtieth and the Washington Capitals on December third. Since then, San Jose has a record of 2-10-1, with 4 of those losses coming by one goal in regulation time.

With Walman missing the last five games, Henry Thrun has stepped in with Cody Ceci for the Sharks' top defensive pairing.

During that point, Thrun averaged 19:53 of ice time, playing greater than 21 minutes in three of the last 4 games. Thrun played 21:16 and had 4 shots on goal and two blocked shots in Thursday's win.

“I enjoyed Henry's game against a really talented team, and he'll have another tough task tonight,” Warsofsky said of the talented Devils, led by center Jack Hughes. “But I think his game is since he got out of the lineup there (for three games in mid-December), he's put some games together. He's had some good play and at the NHL level that's what it's all about. You stack your games, and then you might have one where it's your “C” game and you still find a way to be effective.

“So I gave him a lot of credit. Again, a guy who has struggled at times, but as a young defender he's learning. He's doing better. He takes part in the coaching and then you see the results.”

Originally published: January 4, 2025 at 10:46 am PST

Mackenzie Blackwood made 44 saves for his former team because the San Jose Sharks defeated the New Jersey Devils 1-0 at Prudential Center on Sunday to start a four-game road trip.

Blackwood made 25 saves in the primary two periods, but particularly excelled within the third period with 19 saves, including six in a shootout after defender Mario Ferraro was called up for a catch with 3:32 left in regulation.

Blackwood, who spent the primary five seasons of his NHL profession with the Devils, now has 11 profession shutouts. The 44 saves he made in a 1-0 shutout win are probably the most in Sharks team history.

“It’s pretty cool for me,” said Blackwood, who was drafted by the Devils in 2015 and played for the team from 2018 to 2023 before being traded to San Jose. “I have spent a lot of time here. I have good relationships with a lot of people in this room. These are great people. I'm really lucky to have been able to join the league with such special people and it was a pleasure for me to start there.

“It’s pretty fun to be able to do that tonight.”

Nico Sturm scored the one goal of the sport for the Sharks (5-9-2), who won for the fifth time of their last seven games.

“I think the games we won this year, we played very simply for the most part,” Sturm said. “With the squad composition we have, we have to play like that.”

With 16:21 remaining in the primary period, Sturm was credited together with his third goal of the season.

After a powerful forecheck, Sturm took control of the puck behind the Devils and played a backhand forward pass intended for Carl Grundstrom. But the puck went off former Shark Timo Meier's skate and past goaltender Jake Allen, giving San Jose a 1-0 lead.

The Sharks thought they’d taken a 2-0 lead when Fabian Zetterlund sent the puck over the goal line on a second attempt amid a scramble in front of the Devils' net. But after initially deeming the goal good, the on-ice officials discovered that Zetterlund had illegally touched Allen's pad before the goal.

Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky considered difficult the officials' call but decided the danger wasn't price it. Had the challenge been unsuccessful, the Sharks would have been assessed a delay of game penalty.

“I'm a little lost for words because I think if you call it on the ice, then (the Devils) should have to challenge it,” Warsofsky said. “We thought about it. It was a difficult question.”

Blackwood, who was traded from the Devils to the Sharks for a 2023 sixth-round draft pick on June 27, 2023, made his second start against his former team.

Blackwood faced New Jersey once last season, on Feb. 27 on the SAP Center, but an injury forced him to depart the sport after just 17 minutes. Kaapo Kähkönen gave the Devils seven goals on 31 shots in relief because the Sharks suffered a 7-2 loss.

Blackwood now has a 3-4-2 record, 3.10 goals against average and a .910 save percentage. He is entering the ultimate yr of the two-year contract he signed with San Jose on July 1, 2023, as an unrestricted free agent.

“He was outstanding, probably the best I’ve ever seen him,” Warsofsky said of Blackwood. “You could tell he was well-rehearsed and focused and was really good at tracking pucks.”

The Sharks began Sunday with a 1:5:1 away record. Their only road win was a dramatic 5-4 time beyond regulation victory against Utah on October twenty eighth. That time they erased a three-goal deficit in the ultimate five minutes of the third period before Alexander Wennberg scored in time beyond regulation.

SMITH SITTING: Rookie center Will Smith received one other day of development on Sunday, his fourth in 16 games this season. Smith also wore no clothing last month in away games against the Winnipeg Jets, Los Angeles Kings and Utah Hockey Club.

Without Smith, who had two goals and one assist in 12 games as a rookie, the Sharks are actually 2-2-0 in games. Smith has yet to play in games on consecutive days this season, a trend that can proceed Monday, when Smith is predicted to be back within the lineup when the Sharks play the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Sharks are giving Smith and rookie centerman Macklin Celebrini intermittent “development days,” no less than for the primary half of the season, attempting to help each players adjust to the hectic travel and game schedules of their first NHL seasons.

Wennberg replaced Smith because the Sharks' third-line center for Sunday's game, with Barclay Goodrow and Luke Kunin on the wings.

Celebrini centered a line with Ty Dellandrea and Tyler Toffoli on the wings, and the Sharks reunited the “Lund line” for Sunday, with center Mikael Granlund twiddling with William Eklund and Zetterlund.

Eklund had a season-low 15:20 of ice time within the Sharks' 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Thursday. Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said after the loss that he needed more from Eklund, who has one assist in his last 4 games.

Eklund, Zetterlund and Granlund became the Sharks' top forwards late last season, combining for 58 points in the ultimate 24 games in March and April.

WALMAN STILL OUTSIDE: Defenseman Jake Walman practiced Saturday but missed his third straight game Sunday, and missed the second straight game with an upper-body injury. Walman leads all Sharks defensemen with nine points in 13 games.

After Monday, the Sharks will finish their road trip with games against the New York Rangers on Thursday and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday.

Originally published: November 10, 2024 at 6:37 pm PST