Five players who can make 2021 better
Erik Karlsson, Vlasic and Labanc can all make a huge difference
Things might have to go exceedingly well for the San Jose Sharks to make the 2021 NHL playoffs.
There can’t be significant injuries to star players like there were last season, they’ll need bounce-back years from both of their goalies, and they’ll have get off to a good start despite playing 14 of their first 18 games on the road.
That said, in the newly realigned West Division, the Sharks can still surprise some people. The Colorado Avalanche, St. Louis Blues and Vegas Golden Knights are the division’s heavyweights, but the fourth and last playoff spot appears to be up for grabs between the Sharks, Anaheim Ducks, Arizona Coyotes, Los Angeles Kings and Minnesota Wild.
The Sharks finished 29th out of 31 teams last season, and with training camp set to start today they will not be getting the benefit of the doubt by many prognosticators this year. But here are five players who can make the Sharks better than expected this season.
1. ERIK KARLSSON » In the 109 regular- season games Karlsson has played for the Sharks, one prolonged stretch stands out. In 18 games from Dec. 7, 2018 to Jan. 16, 2019, Karlsson had 27 points and helped the Sharks go on a 13- 4-1 tear. He was the best player on a deep Sharks team and would have again been in the Norris Trophy conversation that season had he not been injured.
It was a glimpse of what Karlsson can do if he’s fully healthy and engaged.
The Sharks need to see more of that player this season if they have any hope of making the playoffs,
and there’s reason to believe Karlsson, 30, can get there. Healthy after a nearly 11-month layoff, Karlsson will have a better chance of getting off to a good start now than he did in 2019 when he spent a good chunk of the offseason recuperating from groin surgery.
Karlsson will also have to be the key ingredient if the Sharks are to improve their power play, which ranked 23rd in the NHL in 201920, down from sixth the year before. From all indications, coach Bob Boughner will want the Sharks’ defensemen to activate more than they did in the past, which should be music to Karlsson’s ears.
Even in a down year, the Sharks were 16-12- 4 in games last season when Karlsson had at least one point, and 9-15- 0 when he was shut out. He finished with 40 points in 56 games.
Karlsson is the highestpaid defenseman in the NHL with a cap hit of $11.5 million per year for the next seven seasons. Now’s the time for him to show he was worth the investment.
2. KEVIN LABANC » Labanc, too, can be a difference maker when he’s on his game. All too often last season, though, Labanc’s effectiveness varied from one week to the next. He finished with 33 points in 70 games, down from the 56 points in 82 games he had the previous season, and had a team-worst -33 rating.
But his importance to the Sharks has never been greater than it is now. Awarded a four-year, $18.9 million contract extension in the offseason, Labanc, 25, wants to show that he can play in a top six role. Right now he figures to be the right wing on either the
first or second lines, along with being a mainstay on the first or second power play units.
“I’ve talked to ( Boughner) and I think that he sees me as a top-six guy. I see myself as a top-six guy,” Labanc said in October after he signed his extension. “I’ve got to make sure that I fulfill that role and make sure I’m putting the puck in the back of the net, but also I’m not giving up chances my own way.”
3. MARC-EDOUARD VLASIC » Now 33 years old and entering his 15th season in the NHL, Vlasic has to fight off the perception that his best days are in the rear view mirror.
Vlasic’s average time on ice in 70 games last season was 20 minute, 18 seconds, more than two minutes fewer than what it was just two years ago when he finished 11th in Norris Tro
phy voting.
Still, when the Sharks have last change, it’ll be Vlasic going over the boards right after the opposing team sends its top players on the ice.
This season, he’ll get a steady dose of Colorado’s Nathan Mackinnon and Mikko Rantanen, St. Louis’ Ryan O’reilly and Minnesota’s Kevin Fiala and Kirill Kaprizov.
So Vlasic’s value to the Sharks hasn’t changed, and if he can get back to being an elite shutdown defenseman, it’ll go a long way toward helping his team reach the postseason.
4. DEVAN DUBNYK » The Sharks will have more games on back- to- back nights (12) than any other team in the NHL. Just from that standpoint alone, the way Dubnyk plays this season will have a huge impact on whether the Sharks can remain in contention.
Dubnyk, 34, will split goaltending duties with Martin Jones, who has played some of his best hockey with the Sharks when he’s faced some internal competition. With the Sharks slated to play a game every other day for almost four months, they’ll obviously need two capable goalies.
Dubnyk, acquired in October from the Minnesota Wild for a 2022 fifth round draft pick, had a 12-15-2 record last season with an equally subpar 3.55 goalsagainst average. It was a tumultuous year for Dubnyk, who missed part of the season to be with his wife Jennifer full-time as she dealt with a serious medical situation.
With that in the past, it’s not a stretch to say Dubnyk can regain some of his previous form when he was one of the NHL’S winningest goalies. Of course, the Sharks have to help their goalies out by playing with more structure on defense — not a sure thing.
5. MARCUS SORENSEN » The Sharks’ top two lines will likely have to carry most of the goal- scoring load, But depth players like Sorensen will still need to provide some scoring punch to help balance the offense.
It’ll be interesting to see where Sorensen lands on the depth chart with Patrick Marleau and Matt Nieto back in teal. Can he still be an effective third line player like he was two years ago with Labanc and Joe Thornton, and finished with 30 points in 80 games?
Sorensen, 28, won’t have Thornton as his centerman this year. But he will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end and will no doubt have motivation to prove he can still play in the league . The Sharks need production from their bottom two forward lines and Sorensen, a 17-goal scorer two years ago, can play a role in that if he find some chemistry with new linemates.