The Sharks arrived back in San Jose early Wednesday morning, eager to begin a lengthy break that will no doubt help heal some injuries and provide a needed mental respite after a busy few weeks since the Christmas break.
Once that break ends, the Sharks will have a clear idea of what they need to do to advance to the playoffs for the first time in three years.
Entering Wednesday, the Sharks find themselves five points back of third place in the Pacific Division and two points out of the Western Conference’s second wild-card spot. From Feb. 7-13, a host of postponed games will be made up and the Sharks, by the time they play again on Feb. 14 against Edmonton, will know exactly what kind of challenge they’ll have in front of them.
“We’re in the fight,” coach Bob Boughner said Tuesday night.
“We’re right here and whether it’s fighting for a wildcard spot or fighting for second or third in our division, it’s all in our sights. But we know we have a lot of work to do and we know we can’t win one, lose one on the way in. We have to go on some stretches here and it’s going to be a good challenge for us.”
Still, after the break, San Jose will have four games left with both Anaheim and Edmonton, three with Los Angeles and two each with Calgary, Dallas and Vancouver, giving Boughner hope that his team can still make some noise with 36 games left.
The Sharks, though, only have 16 more games until the NHL trade deadline on March 21, when some big decisions are going to have to be made.
But that’s a conversation for another day.
Takeaways from the Sharks’ 1-1-2 road trip:
REIMER KEEPS SHARKS AFLOAT: It’s not an exaggeration to say the Sharks are going to go as far as James Reimer takes them.
Reimer played all 242 minutes and 26 seconds of the road trip and stopped 133 of the 144 shots he faced for a .924 save percentage and was the biggest reason why the Sharks were able to get four of a possible eight points.
In Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime loss to Tampa Bay, Reimer made a huge save on Brayden Point near the start of the third period that prevented the Lightning from taking a 3-1 lead, which might have decided the game.
Just 46 seconds after Reimer’s save, Logan Couture scored on the power play to tie the game 2-2 and give the Sharks an opportunity to collect a point.
“That can’t be said enough, how great he’s been,” Sharks defenseman Brent Burns said of Reimer. “I like to tell him it’s about time he started working and playing back-to-back. The rest of us have to do it, he should have to do it.”
The Sharks anticipate that Adin Hill will be healthy and available for their first game back on Feb. 14, and Hill has been better in recent weeks. Still, one has to figure Reimer, if he stays hot, will get the bulk of the work, especially later this month with the only back-to-back coming Feb. 26 and 27 at home against Boston and Seattle, respectively.
MORE CONTRIBUTORS: Timo Meier and Tomas Hertl only had one point each on the road trip, which earlier this season likely would have meant a much less successful string of games.
But the Sharks got some offensive contributions from some less usual sources over the last week, as Jonathan Dahlen and Nick Bonino each had four points in four games. Of the 11 goals the Sharks scored, three came from Dahlen and two came from Rudolfs Balcers.
Andrew Cogliano, Matt Nieto, Nicolas Meloche and Noah Gregor had one goal each.
Dahlen looks like a new player since he and Boughner had a heart-to-heart late last month when he feared that he might become a healthy scratch. Balcers now has four goals in six games since he returned from a knee injury on Jan. 13.
“He adds a different dimension for us in the top six with the speed and skill,” Sharks captain Logan Couture said of Balcers. “Right now, he’s all over the puck. When he’s playing well, he’s tenacious on the forecheck with a good stick. He’s not the most physical player, but he’s so intelligent. (Dahlen’s) a very smart player as well.
“So we can’t count on Timo and Tommy to score 50 goals this year. So we’ve got to get offense from other guys and myself included.”
SHIFT ON DEFENSE?: What does it say when Nicolas Meloche and a less-than-100 percent Jaycob Megna are both getting into the lineup ahead of Radim Simek?
Maybe it means the Sharks are going with the biggest defense corps they can find once they resume play on Feb. 14.
Boughner has liked how the 6-foot-6 Megna has played since he came back into the lineup in early January. Despite playing with an injury, Megna averaged over 20 minutes of ice time on the trip. The 6-3 Meloche, too, has mostly been steady as he averaged 17:32 per game and chipped in with a goal and an assist.
Jake Middleton, at 6-3, returned Tuesday and didn’t look out of place with 15:33 of ice time.
The six defensemen that skated Tuesday – Burns, Megna, Meloche, Middleton, Mario Ferraro and Marc-Edouard Vlasic — average 6-foot-3 and 216 pounds.
Simek, listed at 6-foot-0 and 204 pounds, might have a tough time getting back into the lineup right away.
With the disappearance of taxi squads after the all-star break, one figures that Ryan Merkley will be assigned back to the Barracuda.
