SAN JOSE – Say this about the way the San Jose Sharks’ active roster is put together: When coach Ryan Warsofsky wants to make a change on defense, he has no shortage of options.
Sunday, it was again John Klingberg’s turn to take a seat in the press box, as the Sharks prepared to face the Boston Bruins at SAP Center to finish a four-game homestand.
Playing on back-to-back days, Warsofsky said he wanted to get fresh legs into the lineup Sunday, as rookie Sam Dickinson entered the lineup for Klingberg. But it was clear, too, that Warsofsky thought Klingberg’s miscue helped the Ottawa Senators earn a 3-2 win over the Sharks on Saturday.
Klingberg scored a power-play goal for the Sharks in the first period. But he was also on the ice late and out of position in the third period when the Senators got a 2-on-0 and scored what would become the game-winning goal.
As Sharks forwards Will Smith and Philipp Kurashev headed off the ice on an ill-timed line change, Klingberg was too far to the outside when Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson sent a pass right past Shakir Mukhamadullin to Drake Batherson.
Batherson passed to Dylan Cozens, whose shot on a forehand-to-backhand move was saved by Sharks goalie Alex Nedelkovic. Klingberg got back but was unable to clear the puck off the goal line before Tim Stutzle arrived and poked it across with 6:38 left in the third period for the go-ahead goal.
“We don’t scan well enough as a defense, we don’t read it,” Warsofsky said. “It’s a quick game. So, we’ve got to be able to read quick. Again, the change isn’t (ideal), but it’s a 2-1-2 (neutral-zone forecheck). We should be able to defend that pretty easily.”
Klingberg, signed to a one-year, $3 million contract as a free agent in July, was a healthy scratch for the first time this season on Tuesday when San Jose hosted Utah.
“I’m a defenseman. I’ve got to know what’s going on behind me,” Klingberg said after Saturday’s game. “But I’m thinking it’s a 1-1-3, so I’m gapping up on (Stutzle) and then they pass it, and there’s a breakaway 2-on-0 behind me. So, I’ve got to realize that a lot quicker.
“(Nedeljkovic) obviously makes a huge save, and then I kind of get stuck with my stick in his pad. Otherwise, I’m clearing out (the puck) on the goal line.”
Veteran defenseman Nick Leddy will also be a scratch for a third straight game Sunday, as the Sharks had eight available defensemen against the Bruins. They will soon have a ninth, as Vincent Iorio finishes up his two-week conditioning loan with the Barracuda.
The overabundance of blueliners has created a bit of a tricky situation for Warsofsky, who has to dress the best lineup he can for every game while ensuring that the team’s youngest defensemen – Dickinson and Mukhamadullin — are still playing and developing the proper way.
Asked Sunday how tenable it is to continue to have nine defensemen, while only having 12 forwards, Warsofsky said, “It is what it is. We’ll focus on today, and the guys on the roster, and we’ll make do.”
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But after Skinner was injured against the Calgary Flames on Nov. 13, the Sharks recalled Zack Ostapchuk from the Barracuda, and Warsofsky has liked how the 6-foot-4, 212-pound center has played ever since.
When Skinner and Michael Misa get healthy enough to play, Ostapchuk could be returned to the AHL. But Warsofsky said Ostapchuk is “fighting, scratching and clawing to stay here. Competes every shift, skates, gets physical, plays towards his identity. He’s playing like there’s no tomorrow. We need more guys with that (attitude).”
The Sharks have another challenging week ahead, as they travel to play the Colorado Avalanche, who are on top of the NHL standings, on Wednesday, return home to play the Vancouver Canucks on Friday, and the travel to play the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday.
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