Will Smith to join Sharks on road trip; Michael Misa plays again, tough guy scratched

SAN JOSE – Injured forward Will Smith will join the San Jose Sharks on their upcoming road trip against Eastern Conference teams, but it remains unclear when he’ll play again, coach Ryan Warsofsky said Sunday.

Smith, who was injured in the Sharks’ Dec. 13 road game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, skated again on Sunday and is slated to practice with the team again on Monday, although it was uncertain whether he’ll once again be in a non-contact jersey. Smith practiced with the Sharks on Friday in an orange non-contact jersey.

The Sharks begin a four-game road trip on Thursday against the Washington Capitals, followed by games against the Detroit Red Wings on Friday, the Florida Panthers on Jan. 19, and the Tampa Bay Lightning on Jan. 20.

“When he’s back, he’s back. Still a little ways away here,” Warsofsky said of Smith. “So, step one was practicing with our team, and then we’ll get to (his return to a game) at some point.”

Warsofsky said he was unsure, as of Sunday, whether Sharks forward Philipp Kurashev will also join the team on the trip. Kurashev also sustained an upper-body injury in the game against the Penguins and is thought to be roughly five or six days behind Smith in terms of a return to the active roster. Both are on injured reserve.

At the time of his injury, Smith was the Sharks’ second-leading scorer with 29 points in 33 games, and Kurashev had 15 points in 31 games.

The Sharks have withstood their absences, and the absence of some defensemen, going 7-4-0 since Dec. 13. They entered their game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday on a three-game win streak and in third place in the Pacific Division.

Asked how his team has been able to withstand some of these injuries, Warsofsky, naturally, credited the play of his top two centers, Macklin Celebrini and Alex Wennberg, defenseman Mario Ferraro, the contributions made by Barracuda callups Igor Chernyshov and Pavol Regenda, and the players’ overall attitude and approach.

“I think we just have the mindset, we’re going to show up, and we’re going to compete, and if someone goes down, the next guy’s got a great opportunity,” Warsofsky said. “I don’t think it’s like, ‘Oh, poor us.’ We don’t have that mindset. Every team goes through injuries. We’ve talked about it. Next man up. We’ve got to make sure we’re ready to do what we do well, and that’s our identity as a hockey team.

“We’ve gotten some big buy-in on how we need to play. Is it perfect? No, it’s not. But more times than not, our guys have a true feel for how we need to play, what we need to do with the puck, and what we need to do without the puck. That’s really helped our group.”

KLINGBERG OFF IR

Defenseman John Klingberg was activated off IR on Sunday and will play against the Golden Knights, entering the lineup for Nick Leddy, who will be a healthy scratch.

Klingberg, who is second among all Sharks defensemen in points (16) and average time on ice (21:37), was injured in the Sharks’ Dec. 31 game against the Minnesota Wild. The Sharks, before Sunday, had gone 3-1-0 in his absence.

Nick Leddy came out of the lineup for Klingberg.

MISA RETURNS, REAVES SITS

Sharks rookie center Michael Misa will play his first NHL game in over two months on Sunday, as he draws into the lineup place of winger Ryan Reaves, who will be a healthy scratch.

Misa returned to the Sharks on Tuesday after he played for Canada at the IIHF World Junior Championships. He practiced with the Sharks on Friday and against the Golden Knights, and was slated to center the third line with Jeff Skinner and Collin Graf on the wings.

Adam Gaudette, who centered the Sharks’ third line in overtime wins over Los Angeles and Dallas, will slide to the fourth line with Zack Ostapchuk and Barclay Goodrow.

Misa’s last game with the Sharks came on Nov. 1 when he had just over 10 minutes of ice time in the Sharks’ 3-2 overtime win over the Colorado Avalanche.

“I’d like to see his pace up,” Warsofsky said when asked what he wants to see from Misa. “I’d like to see him be able to skate, not think as much, (use) his hockey sense. (He’s) smart. He can make the reads with him without the puck. I want to see him doing it with some pace.”

Warsofsky did not offer a specific reason for scratching Reaves, who had been in the Sharks’ lineup for 14 straight games before Sunday. Reaves has three goals and has been in four fights in 38 games this season while averaging 7:59 in ice time.