{"id":220,"date":"2025-10-13T02:21:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-13T02:21:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/220\/"},"modified":"2025-10-13T02:21:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-13T02:21:13","slug":"san-jose-sharks-haunted-by-familiar-problems-in-loss-to-anaheim-ducks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/220\/","title":{"rendered":"San Jose Sharks haunted by familiar problems in loss to Anaheim Ducks"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN JOSE \u2013 The San Jose Sharks made several moves<\/a> in the offseason to try to address their most glaring issues,<\/a> which included a repeated inability to protect third-period leads.<\/p>\n

Two games into the 2025-26 season, the heartache that the Sharks have felt in that area<\/a> has only gotten worse.<\/p>\n

Just two days after coughing up a late third-period lead to the Vegas Golden Knights then losing bizarrely in overtime,<\/a> the Sharks had it happen again on Saturday against the Anaheim Ducks.<\/p>\n

Leading by one with under a minute left, the disorganized Sharks were unable to slow down the Ducks as Chris Kreider pounced on his own rebound<\/a> and beat goalie Yaroslav Askarov from in close.<\/p>\n

Then, in the first minute of overtime, Macklin Celebrini turned the puck over in the Ducks\u2019 zone, leading to a Leo Carlsson goal on a 2-on-1 going the other way to hand the Sharks a 7-6 loss.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201c(Carlsson) was coming out with probably more speed than I thought, and I kind of found myself in a position where I felt I needed to try to make a move,\u201d Celebrini said. \u201cHe had a good angle, and it can\u2019t happen. I can\u2019t turn over the puck there. I can\u2019t give up that chance for them.<\/p>\n

\u201cLive to fight another day sometimes, and that\u2019s a mistake that I\u2019m going to have to sleep on.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky called Celebrini\u2019s turnover \u201cawful,\u201d but added it\u2019s, \u201cNot just Mack. Really, our whole game wasn\u2019t great, let\u2019s be honest. So, keep working with these young guys and our team here to have an understanding of what that looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udea8LEO CARLSSON CALLS GAME \ud83d\udea8<\/p>\n

WE WIN!!!#FlyTogether<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/zovBwOTaUO<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) October 12, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t the same kind of game as the Sharks\u2019 4-3 loss<\/a> to the Golden Knights on Thursday. San Jose played with more structure and mostly took better care of the puck that night until a pair of embarrassing gaffes by goalie Alex Nedeljkovic led to a heartbreaking loss.<\/p>\n

Saturday, the Sharks rarely played with any structure and fell into a run-and-gun game with the Ducks who, as it turns out, are much better at both running and gunning.<\/p>\n

The Sharks, per Natural Stat Trick,<\/a> allowed 20 high-danger chances to the Ducks, compared to just seven against the Golden Knights. San Jose\u2019s offense was clicking, but its defense took the night off.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe should be 2-0,\u201d Warsofsky said.<\/p>\n

What do the Sharks need to do better defensively as a team?<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything,\u201d Warsofsky said.<\/p>\n

The Sharks were listed as having 20 giveaways<\/a> against the Ducks, including eight in the third period.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need some poise,\u201d Warsofsky said. \u201cWe\u2019re chucking pucks around in the defensive zone, on breakouts, our D-zone structure, just chucking it around, and they were all over us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Sharks\u2019 record when they led after two periods last season was a dismal 12-8-4, a primary reason they finished in last place in the NHL standings with a 20-50-12 record. In the wake of that calamity, the Sharks overhauled their defense corps<\/a> and goaltending and brought in some new faces up front.<\/p>\n

That was supposed to help solve the issue but it hasn\u2019t paid off so far, although the two points they\u2019ve collected match the total the Sharks had through their first nine games last season (0-7-2).<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew it was going to be a work in progress to get everyone on the same page,\u201d Warsofsky said. \u201cWith a lot of new players, it takes time to build the chemistry, not so much offensively, but defensively, with our puck play in the defensive zone and the neutral zone.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SanSan Jose Sharks’ Ty Dellandrea (10) skates on the ice against Anaheim Ducks’ Jacob Trouba (65) in the third period at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (Shae Hammond\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Sharks\u2019 top two lines were absolutely caved<\/a> at even strength by the Ducks\u2019 top lines, so it\u2019s fair to assume Warsofsky will juggle those combinations ahead of Tuesday\u2019s game against the tight-checking Carolina Hurricanes.<\/p>\n

As for who the Sharks\u2019 goalie will be, who knows? Askarov may have let in one or two questionable goals, but he was under siege all game. He certainly had a more challenging night than Ducks goalie Petr Mrazek, who faced just six shots in the third period and had 17 saves for the game.<\/p>\n

Nedeljkovic is likely eager to get back in a game after the opener and would like to face his old team. In nine career games against Carolina, with whom he began his NHL career in 2017, he is 5-3-1 with a .918 save percentage.<\/p>\n

Askarov, too, would like an opportunity to get the sour taste of Saturday\u2019s loss out of his mouth. As would the skaters in front of him.<\/p>\n

The Sharks remain confident, for good reason, that the moves they made in the offseason will pay off. It\u2019s just a matter of when.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just need to kind of relax,\u201d Celebrini said. \u201cI think part of it is we want it so bad that maybe we\u2019re overthinking. Maybe we just kind of panic sometimes, and it\u2019s just frustrating when you\u2019re that close.\u201d<\/p>\n

WAIVER WIRE<\/p>\n

The Sharks placed defensemen Jack Thompson and Lucas Carlsson on waivers on Sunday. If another NHL team does not claim Thompson and Carlsson before Monday morning, both will be assigned to the\u00a0AHL\u2019s San Jose Barracuda.<\/p>\n

Thompson, 23, and Carlsson, 28, began the year on the Sharks\u2019\u00a0injured non-roster list.\u00a0Thompson sustained a lower-body injury during the team\u2019s preseason game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 3, and Carlsson had a lower-body injury and was unable to take part in any preseason games.<\/p>\n

Thompson, acquired in 2024 from Tampa Bay, has 10 points in 33 games with the Sharks and 23 points in 43 games with the Barracuda. Carlsson, now with his third NHL team, was signed by San Jose as a free agent to a two-year contract in 2024 and had four points in 13 games with the Sharks last season.<\/p>\n

The Sharks are already carrying eight defensemen on their roster.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe San Jose Sharks celebrate San Jose Sharks’ Ryan Reaves (75) scoring a goal against the Anaheim Ducks in the first period at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (Shae Hammond\/Bay Area News Group)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Originally Published: October 12, 2025 at 5:10 AM PDT<\/p>\n