Another game, another extra-time win for the San Jose Sharks. To an extent, it’s almost impressive how unsustainable this season has been for the organization. With so much hype surrounding the young talent and new additions to the roster, plus the always blossoming Macklin Celebrini, fans around the league were excited and wary of the predicted dominance of the team. However, this season has been nothing short of disappointing for fans and players alike with the team showing serious signs of regression from last season.
Last night the Sharks won 6-5 in shootout over the Utah Mammoth, but got the win in the most difficult way possible. After 65 minutes of play, San Jose only had 21 shots on goal. Considering the depth of high-octane offense on the roster, it’s not unreasonable to expect the team to be putting up 30 shots on goal a night, but they’re getting nowhere near that number day in and day out. This is a major step back for the team, with them seemingly scared to shoot or looking for the perfect shot. Goals aren’t scored by passing, yet that’s how the majority of the rare sustained offensive zone time is spent.
That being said, a number of the young guys keep showing up despite it all. In last night’s matchup, defenseman Eric Pohlkamp recorded his first NHL goal! Pohlkamp, who has such a powerful and effective shot he was banned from shooting one-timers during practice his freshman year at Bemidji State University because he kept accidentally hurting his teammates who went to block, has been incredibly impressive in just six appearances with 3 points (1G, 2A) and +3. In every appearance he is confident, calm, and continues to improve. His coolness under pressure and ability to adapt to the fast pace of the game is admirable, especially considering his defensive partner.
Head coach, Ryan Warsofsky, has a tendency to insist on evening out young combinations with a veteran presence. This is great in theory (it should help their development right?), but has been disastrous in practice. Pohlkamp has been repeatedly paired with Dmitry Orlov, who has been detrimental to not only whoever has the misfortune of being paired with him but also the rest of the team. With 310 minutes on ice recorded this season so far, Orlov averages 3.49 goals against average per hour. This is evident every night, with Orlov frequently being out of position and causing turnovers.
Orlov did exactly this last night on Utah’s first goal: he was completely out of position, leaving Pohlkamp to single-handedly (and unsuccessfully) pick up the slack. Perhaps the most frustrating piece of this is the way his occasional offensive flares, plus Pohlkamp’s excellence, masks his complete defensive failings. With 4 points last night (1G, 3A), his offensive performance completely eclipsed his repeatedly awful defensive play. Detrimental doesn’t feel like a strong enough word for the negative impact Orlov has on the team, and we’re lucky Pohlkamp is so elite he isn’t being dragged down by him like Luca Cagnoni was.
Yet despite this all, Warsofsky manages to praise Orlov and give him ample opportunities. Warsofsky likes to do this with the majority of the veterans, while claiming the young players who are fighting against their poor play have to earn their ice time. Plus, he repeatedly hypes the veterans up to the media while throwing the young players under the bus. It’s frustrating to be a Sharks fan right now, and a deep internal look has to be done to see any form of improvement.
Add us as a preferred source on Google