Like father, like son? Sharks’ Dahlen carving his own path to the NHL
SAN JOSE >> Jonathan Dahlen has been in the Bay Area for about a month now and recently he drove out to see the South Bay home where his parents used to live.
His dad, Ulf Dahlen, came to the Sharks in a March 1994 trade and spent just less than three years with the organization. He helped the Sharks earn two landmark first-round playoff series victories, wins that laid the groundwork for the team to flourish in the region for years to come.
Jonathan Dahlen wasn’t yet born when his dad played for San Jose, but now, more than 23 years later, he too has an eye on making an impact in the NHL.
“I played against his dad for years, so I see a lot of similarities,” Sharks assistant coach John MacLean said of Jonathan Dahlen, “and his dad was a good player.”
Dahlen will start to make his case tonight as the Sharks play split-squad preseason games on the road. One group that includes Tomas Hertl and Erik Karlsson will play in Anaheim at 5 p.m., and another, with Dahlen, is scheduled to play against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena at 7 p.m.
“I obviously want to show my best side, but just show I can handle the system and show (coach Bob Boughner) that he can trust me in situations,” Dahlen said. “Try to impress from that standpoint and obviously try to be creative in the offensive zone.”
Ulf Dahlen, now 54, played for six teams over a 14-year NHL career. He had 655 points in 966 games, reaching the 20-goal mark in eight seasons.
Jonathan Dahlen, 23, has yet to play his first NHL game, and after three days of training camp, was still trying to take everything in, talking to his dad on a regular basis.
“He’s really excited to hear how it’s going,” Dahlen said. “We’re talking every day here and he’s giving me advice every day. He’ll probably be watching preseason games in the middle of the night. It’s nice having him to talk to. It’s pretty funny that (my parents) were here that long ago.”
The Sharks might need younger wingers like Dahlen to produce, especially with leading scorer Evander Kane’s return to the league in question after the NHL opened another investigation into alleged off-ice wrongdoings.
The Sharks might need to rely on some younger forwards to help make up for some of the offense that could be lost for an indefinite period.
Dahlen, 23, started training camp on a line with Logan Couture and Timo Meier. While nothing is set in stone as far as forward lines go, he’s clearly been given an opportunity to show he can play with skilled forwards.
“When he’s on the offense, he has an engine. He competes hard, takes pucks to the net and he’s making little plays in traffic, which is encouraging,” Boughner said. “I want to see him in an NHL game against NHL players. That’s going to give me a lot better read on where he’s at and if he’s ready.”
Dahlen, listed at 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, was a second-round draft pick of the Ottawa Senators in 2016 and later traded to the Vancouver Canucks. He played 52 games with Vancouver’s AHL affiliate in Utica, N.Y., collecting 31 points, before he was acquired by the Sharks in Feb. 2019 for forward Linus Karlsson.
Canucks GM Jim Benning at the time of the trade said Dahlen had requested a change of scenery. Dahlen on Saturday didn’t want to elaborate on his experience with the Canucks, saying he still has good friends on the team, including Elias Pettersson.
Before the 2019-2020 season, the Sharks, feeling like his progress had been slowed, returned Dahlen to Timra IK in Sweden to help him get his production back on track.
Dahlen then dominated the Allsvenskan, Sweden’s second-best pro league, with 148 points in 96 games the last two years. He led Timra to the league championship, which got the club promoted to the top-tier Swedish Hockey League.
“Every hockey player gets his own path, and my path became getting traded here, going back home, and back (to San Jose),” Dahlen said. “Maybe not the normal one, but I don’t mind it.”
The Sharks in June re-signed Dahlen to a one-year, one-way contract.
“I think I’ve matured a lot, and my game’s a lot more mature than it was when I was 20 or 21,” Dahlen said, adding that his game has “grown in every part, but mostly I’d probably say defensively. The offensive mind is still the same, just everything else is growing.”
Dahlen would seem to have a good chance to make the Sharks given that he would have to clear waivers to be sent the Barracuda. San Jose’s front office likely doesn’t want to risk losing him to another team for nothing.
Regardless, he still must prove he can play in the NHL.
“When you give a guy that kind of a contract, obviously the plan is for him to try and get an opportunity to make the big team, and we’ll see what happens there,” Boughner said.