Still not sure why Mike Grier traded a pair of second-round picks for Kiefer Sherwood?

On Tuesday, Sherwood reminded us, scoring the game-winner and producing that rare highlight-reel puck battle assist, leading the San Jose Sharks to a 7-5 victory over the Montreal Canadiens.

It’s fine if they flip Sherwood, but stop the slander. What an effort. 💪 #SJSharks pic.twitter.com/c9LrUUW2Mj

— SnipeCity420  (@SnipeCity420) March 4, 2026

Still not sure why Grier re-signed the 30-year-old winger to a five-year, $28.75 million contract?

On Friday, Sherwood reminded us, not only scoring the game-tying goal, in a disappointing 3-2 OT loss to the St. Louis Blues, but giving a flat San Jose Sharks squad a jolt of energy all night, be it by scoring, his eight hits, or keeping puck after puck alive on the forecheck.

CHIEF KIEF 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/YT3AE5Xdio

— Sharks on NBCS (@NBCSSharks) March 7, 2026

“He was really good. He’s a competitive kid. He’s a warrior,” San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “The desperation, in the way he plays every shift. It’s like his last. I think a lot of our guys could take a lot from that.”

Even his cellys hit different.

Now that’s a celebration.😏 pic.twitter.com/0oIZV0J5CO

— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) March 7, 2026

Sherwood’s impact wasn’t limited to on the ice, either.

“You can feel it on the bench. You can see it, the way he’s vocal,” Warsofsky said.

It’s no exaggeration to say Sherwood willed the Sharks to point, on a night they should’ve steamrolled a Blues squad that dressed 13 forwards and five defensemen after dealing captain Brayden Schenn and top-four blueliner Justin Faulk before Friday’s Trade Deadline.

“He drags guys into the fight” is a hockey cliché, not always easy to explain. But Sherwood’s performance tonight was the textbook definition of that, and proof positive why players like him are special and essential to winning.

Ryan Warsofsky

Warsofsky, on what else he needs to see from Will Smith, besides better puck management:

Just overall skating and getting on pucks.

Will Smith

Kiefer Sherwood

Sherwood, on what the San Jose Sharks did better in the third period, when they held the Blues to one shot, as opposed to earlier in the game:

Probably just simplify or execute a little bit on the breakouts, probably gave us a little bit more possession. Skating into pucks a little bit…I think we gotta do a better job of keeping the puck away from [Jordan Binnington] so we can hammer their D a little bit. Obviously, they only had five in this game, so I think after a while, we were starting to get our forecheck working and get pucks back and let our plays develop from there.

Mario Ferraro