Arguably the mental leader of the San Jose Sharks, Vincent Desharnais spent his Olympic break with family and kids on an outdoor rink.
His summer mental work is well documented, as the Sharks’ d-man went multiple days without his phone turned on. Desharnais would once again do that during this current break, but not as clean-cut as the off-season.
“It was not a complete block off, but I did turn the phone off for a few days in a row. Just be a normal human being, and not just always be on my phone and look what’s going on,” Desharnais told SHD exclusively. “The best part was watching the Olympics. Watching curling and speed skating. The skiers, like the ski jumps, I think it’s insane. Like, those guys are crazy. So I did a lot of watching the Olympics by the fireplace, the phone off. Like, literally, every day I was by the fireplace, and it was awesome.”
After spending some time in Florida, the San Jose Sharks defenseman went home to the Montreal area and stayed with his parents. At the same time, he gets a home-cooked meal from his mother, a pasta.
“Tortellini, Rose sauce. Like a spicy vodka,” Desharnais said. “I don’t know her recipe. I don’t know if she puts crack in there or something, but it’s just like the second I taste it, it just reminds me of my childhood.”
Desharnais also told SHD he skated on an outdoor (ODR) rink for hours one day. The 6’7 defenseman got to play the game he loved with kids on an outdoor rink for hours.
“One thing I did [that] was really cool, I went and played ODR. I went there for one day and was there for three hours outside,” Desharnais said. “It was a gorgeous day, and I just played pickup hockey with some kids, and it was the best time ever. I was like a little kid at Christmas again.”
Often paired with Sam Dickinson on the blue line this season, Desharnais knows that the entire San Jose Sharks team was ready for a break. Towards the end of the time off, Desharnais was itching to get back on the ice.
“It is good to be back to see all the boys. Towards the end, it was kind of getting long,” Desharnais said. “Everyone’s happy to see each other. Everyone feels refreshed, and it’s good to be back on the ice and skate, battle, and score some goals together. It’s just fun to be back.”
The Sharks will be in a tight race for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and Desharnais will be a big part of the team’s success.
“The break came at a good time, and I think everyone needed to go on their own reset. Now we have a week of practice to get our confidence back, get back into it,” Desharnais said. “You can tell everyone is more excited. Everyone is a little bit lighter, the bodies are feeling better. Overall, it was a good break for everyone. We are just putting the emphasis on one game at a time, and we’ll be ready for Thursday.”