SAN JOSE – Most of those who follow the San Jose Sharks agree that the team might be some time away from regularly being able to beat the NHL’s best. Still, players and coaches have talked repeatedly about taking a step forward this season after spending the previous two years in last place.
Another season at or near the bottom of the league standings would be considered a failure by everyone in the organization, particularly owner Hasso Plattner.
Perhaps that’s what made the Sharks’ comments after their 5-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday at SAP Center a bit alarming.
Players and coaches spoke about not working hard enough, about not having enough compete against one of the NHL’s better teams. And this was only the third game of the season.
For a Sharks team trying to climb out of the basement, those qualities should be non-negotiable, especially while playing at home and attempting to prove to your fanbase that this season might be a bit different than the last few.
“I just didn’t think we had our juice. We didn’t have much energy. Didn’t compete hard enough,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said.
No one wants to overreact this early in the year. But the Sharks were outshot 25-1 in the game’s final 29:18, and trailing 3-1 after 40 minutes, they failed to get a shot on goal in the third period. Their last shot, courtesy of Adam Gaudette, came with 1:29 left in the second.
“I even thought going into the third period, even though we were down two goals … we felt pretty good about finding our game,” Warsofsky said. “We just never were connected and couldn’t really get anything going, obviously, offensively. It was kind of men versus boys tonight.”
The Sharks are now in their 34th season, and Tuesday’s game marked just the fourth time they’ve been held without a shot in a period as they were smothered by the tight-checking Hurricanes. The last time the Sharks went a whole period without a shot was on Oct. 11, 2014, when they didn’t get a shot in the third period in a home game against the Winnipeg Jets, but still won 3-0.
There was no such consolation on Tuesday, aside from the fact that they now have two days of practice before they play their first road game on Friday against the Utah Mammoth.
“I thought we had some really good looks in the first period, and after that, it seemed like they just outworked us and we couldn’t find a way to battle back,” Sharks winger Tyler Toffoli said. “They started putting a lot of pressure on us, and we just didn’t win enough battles, low and on the walls, especially on the walls, and that’s what they do best. That’s where they keep the pressure on.”
San Jose Sharks’ Macklin Celebrini (71) fights for the puck against Carolina Hurricanes’ Nikolaj Ehlers (27) in the third period at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
If the Sharks get regularly outworked — and not every team works like the Hurricanes do — then this season will not be much different from the last three, when San Jose had a combined record of 61-148-37.
“It’s a game of inches out there. We need to work hard and outwork the other team. I don’t think we did it today,” Sharks winger William Eklund said. “We’re not good enough. We’re gonna come and work (Wednesday).”
The Sharks should have won their first two games last week, as they held late third-period leads against both the Vegas Golden Knights and Anaheim Ducks.
But starting shortly after a game-tying goal by Eklund on Tuesday at the 4:38 mark of the second period, which Warsofsky called “a pretty lucky goal,” considering it got through the legs of Carolina goalie Brandon Bussi, who was making his first NHL start, the Sharks were unable, or perhaps unwilling, to match the Hurricanes’ compete level.
“I think all around, we were not good enough today, as simple as that,” Eklund said. “Not good enough in battles and puck play. I’ve got to make way better plays out there.”
Eklund wasn’t alone. His line with Toffoli and Macklin Celebrini, per Natural Stat Trick, was outchanced 11-2 by the Hurricanes during 5-on-5 play. The Sharks’ third and fourth lines were not much better, and the three new Sharks defense pairs Warsofsky trotted out Tuesday struggled mightily in handling Carolina’s forecheck.
Defenseman Sam Dickinson, playing in his second career NHL game, was caught out of position or flat-footed a couple of times on two Hurricanes goals. But he was far from the only culprit on defense, and Warsofsky and his staff, once again, might need to figure out some new combinations.
Waiting to play are Shakir Mukhamadullin and Vincent Desharnais. Mukhamadullin has been scratched from the last two games, and Desharnais hasn’t played yet this season.
The Carolina Hurricanes celebrate a goal by Carolina Hurricanes’ William Carrier (28) against San Jose Sharks goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (33) in the second period at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
What needs to be better?
“Just overall, everyone’s compete level,” Warsofsky said.
The Sharks’ power play created some good looks, but still managed just four shots as they went 0-for-5.
“I thought we should have had four power play goals tonight,” Toffoli said. “I thought we had some really good looks. (Will Smith) early. (Eklund) in the second. Me in the third. I thought we had some good looks. The type of penalty kill that they have, obviously, they (apply) a lot of pressure, but we definitely had some really good looks.”
Despite the result, nothing was going to dampen Michael Misa’s night.
Misa’s parents flew in from Toronto on Tuesday, and his older brother Luke, a freshman hockey player at Penn State, arrived late Monday. They got to see Misa take a solo lap and receive a loud cheer to begin warmups.
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Misa tried to make plays with the puck, and he set up Dmitry Orlov for a shot on net during his first shift in 5-on-5 play. He finished with 15:06 of ice time, not bad for a debut.
“I thought I came out fast. Had some chances early in the first,” Misa said. “I thought as the game went on, our overall effort wasn’t there, I don’t think, including me. I don’t think I was great defensively today. It’s going to come with learning and playing against very good players. Just got to get back into practice.”
As do his teammates, who, despite earning points in their first two games, probably got a pretty big wake-up call from the Hurricanes. If they have any hope of taking a step forward this season, then getting outworked like they did Tuesday has to become a thing of the past.
“We know what (our best game) looks like,” Warsofsky said. “We’ve got to get back to feeling what it looks like and doing it consistently.”
San Jose Sharks’ William Eklund (72) can’t get a shot past Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Brandon Bussi (32) in the second period at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
