Sharks locker room: What does San Jose need to learn about winning in the NHL? A lot

“We don’t know what it takes to win in this league.”

You can’t argue with head coach Ryan Warsofsky after the San Jose Sharks lost to the Vegas Golden Knights 6-3 for the sixth straight season.

Shakir Mukhamadullin, Will Smith and Tyler Toffoli scored on Tomas Hertl’s return to the SAP Center.

Notably, this was the fifth game of those six straight losses in which the Sharks had a lead in the third period but then squandered it.

San Jose lost the game in near-record fashion, conceding two shorthanded goals in a 23-second span early in the final frame, turning a 3-2 lead into a deficit.

On October 13, 1991, in the Sharks’ expansion month, they surrendered two shorties in 12 seconds to the Chicago Blackhawks in a 7-3 loss.

So what do these San Jose Sharks have to learn about winning in the NHL?

The Sharks have said all the right things throughout the losing streak, cliché or not, it’s all true.

As Cody Ceci said after the 4-3 loss to Utah Hockey Club on Dec. 14, they need a “killer instinct” in the third period.

“You can dominate and they can rebound,” Jake Walman said after a 4-3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Dec. 17. “When something like that happens, it stays constant and kind of comes back to what we have.” “We’re good at it.”

“Special teams is huge,” Luke Kunin said after a 4-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 19.

In this case, the Sharks’ special teams are net -6 (three power play goals for, seven power play goals plus two shorthanded goals against).

“We just couldn’t kill plays,” Mikael Granlund said after a 2-1 loss at the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 21. “We didn’t really touch the puck and they won the battles, a lot of those things, and that gives them a lot of time in the ozone zone and just defending all day.”

The Sharks’ rule since 2019-20 is that if good teams want to play them, they just do it. Tonight, San Jose had a solid two periods of play, then Vegas prevailed in the final frame 12-3 and 5-0 High-Danger at 5-on-5.

“Massive mistakes. We give the breakaway to JT Miller, we take him down, 5 on 3, they score. Immediately afterwards we give up a 2-on-1, he misses. These are huge mistakes and we have to have some mental toughness to get through these times,” Ryan Warsofsky said after a 4-3 loss at the Vancouver Canucks on Dec. 23.

Conceding two goals while outnumbered within 23 seconds is considered a massive mistake.

So if they want to score points, the Sharks must learn to have killer instincts in critical moments, stay consistent in play and approach, improve special teams, finish defensive plays and avoid making one massive mistake after another.

This is a long checklist and progress will be gradual. A successful rebuild takes years, not months or days, and is about both better players and a better mindset.

For what it’s worth, opponents can see some progress.

“I know their record hasn’t been as good as they’d like lately, but when you watch them it looks like they’re in every game and finding ways to lose instead of winning,” Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy said. “It’s a learning curve for any team that goes through this. I just think they’re more competitive in terms of their attacking mentality and the way they want to play the game, and I saw that tonight as opposed to the first time (against…). San Jose).”

That’s true, as hollow as it sounds to the still-smart Sharks.

Ryan Warsofsky

Warsofsky, what happened with the shorthanded goals against the following:

We stopped running, stopped chasing the puck, and ended up in the back of our net.

Warsofsky: “We don’t know what it takes to win in this league.”

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 28, 2024

Warsofsky, on the Celebrini Line:

I think they’re doing some good things offensively.

But what we’re trying to build here are winning habits, core habits to win in this league, and you see organizations around the world in this league that are still struggling to figure out with their young players what it takes to win .

It has to start now. It can’t start in two or three years. It has to start now. This is a message to our group, to our younger players, to our older players, the winning habits that you have to play with to win in this league. It’s pretty simple and pretty straightforward. And if we don’t do that, it’s going to be a long process, and we don’t want it to be a long process.

Warsofsky on Shakir Mukhamadullin:

I thought he was one of our best D-men.

Warsofsky on the appearance of Alexander Georgiev:

I thought he made some good saves. when we needed him. I would have to go back and he would have to look at it. But tonight he was fine.

Will Smith

Smith on whether he felt he deserved it after a lot of scoring chances recently:

I think I was definitely due. Of course you want to take advantage of all your opportunities, but that just won’t happen if you don’t stick with it.

Smith, upon seeing the reception Tomas Hertl received:

It was great. I remember watching his games and his four goal game against the Rangers. So it’s pretty cool to see. Your reception was great.

Smith on whether he can pull off that famous Hertl move against Martin Biron:

I think so. Hopefully.

Shakir Mukhamadullin

Mukhamadullin on whether his first NHL goal helped him play with more confidence:

I try not to think about the points, but sometimes it stays in my head. But yes, I want to play more confidently, but there are still a lot of things I need to play better at.

Mukhamadullin, on how the Sharks are getting better in the third period:

We just have to play at the same pace as in the first two periods of the game.

Alexander Wennberg

Wennberg on whether something mental is stopping the San Jose Sharks from finishing games:

Not really.

Everyone here knows what to do. I feel like sometimes you get a bit too passive and worry about them scoring goals instead of just pushing.

But I think there’s nothing to worry about here. Of course we can learn from this. We’re going to be in this situation a lot more, so I think it’s just something to watch out for.