{"id":63297,"date":"2025-11-21T06:33:34","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T06:33:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/63297\/"},"modified":"2025-11-21T06:33:34","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T06:33:34","slug":"sharks-klingberg-honest-in-self-assessment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/63297\/","title":{"rendered":"Sharks’ Klingberg Honest In Self Assessment"},"content":{"rendered":"

San Jose Sharks defenseman John Klingberg didn\u2019t hold back when he told SHD what was going wrong that led to him being a healthy scratch<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Sharks defenseman hasn\u2019t played well of late, and knows it. He was frustrated with himself and will use the benching as motivation. Both Klingberg and Timothy Liljegren will play against the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday.<\/p>\n

At 33, Klingberg has seen the NHL change in many forms. As you\u2019ll read in this conversation, Klingberg knows he can\u2019t be doing too much.<\/p>\n

Here is my conversation with the San Jose Sharks d-man after morning skate.<\/p>\n

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Max Miller (MM): How did the reset and watching one game from up top feel?<\/p>\n

John Klingberg (JK): \u201cIt sucks. Sucks, but it is what it is. Come back in and try to build on my game.\u201d<\/p>\n

MM: What is the message from Coach Warsofsky about what he wanted you to see during this reset?<\/p>\n

JK: \u201cWell, I think it\u2019s been pretty inconsistent. That would probably be it. I take so much pride in my game, and I think sometimes I have to probably put a leash on myself. I\u2019m trying to do a little bit too much, and I guess it kind of looks careless and shit from the outside.<\/p>\n

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For me, it\u2019s more about competing and trying to be involved and be a difference maker. But it doesn\u2019t work that way. The game has changed a little bit, too, since I came into the league. There\u2019s so much more north-south now. I mean, it was North South back then, too, but a bit more room to maybe be east west and make those plays. But now the game, I feel like, every team in the league takes so much pride in forechecks. The puck needs to get deep in their zone to be able to create.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s almost the same in PP. It\u2019s tough to create a play, draw up a play, because the PKS are so good. All these seam passes and open net tap ins and the PP comes from a shot attempt and then creating a second opportunity, where they\u2019re struggling to find their spots, and all of a sudden you have a tap in on the back door. I feel like that\u2019s the same way now, five on five.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s tough to come in, create an entry, and then score off of that. It has to be puck won from a forecheck, or anything, to be able to create a scoring chance from that. That\u2019s part of it is being more involved in that team game and then creating opportunities from there. <\/p>\n

Right now, I feel like I\u2019m chasing the game a little bit and trying to create a little bit too much, and that\u2019s when those obvious mistakes happen. The puck goes the other way. It\u2019s been a part of that. <\/p>\n

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I think defensively, it\u2019s been pretty solid. Obviously, my game is with the puck offensively and trying to create, but defensively, I feel like it\u2019s been pretty good. The PP, I think it\u2019s been okay as well. I think we just need to create more. Because I think entries are good. We\u2019re getting in the zone and all of that. Just creating that second opportunity is going to be huge on the PP.\u201d<\/p>\n

MM: You mentioned putting a leash on yourself. Did you feel like you were struggling and trying to do too much to get out of it? Kind of like \u2018I gotta make a play\u2019?<\/p>\n

JK: Yeah. I know my game. It\u2019s the same for every player; if you think too much, it doesn\u2019t work that way, but if you just play, let the game come to you. That\u2019s when you play at your best. If you ask any player in any sport, when they play their best and perform their best, they usually don\u2019t think at all. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s probably what I\u2019m going to try to do. I\u2019m just going to try to go out there and play the simple game and then just let the game take over and build on that. <\/p>\n

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I mean, it might not happen in one or two games, but just keep building on that game, and make less mistakes in the long run. That\u2019s just going to create confidence in my game that I\u2019m going to be able to take a step forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

MM: You mentioned people saying things on the outside?<\/p>\n

JK: \u201cI don\u2019t know that. I don\u2019t know that, but I\u2019m just saying, when those [big] mistakes happen, that\u2019s pretty obvious. So it\u2019s an obvious mistake, and those are the ones that I have to limit.\u201d<\/p>\n

MM: Even when you go over film with coaches and they point out your mistakes, how do you prevent yourself from beating yourself up too much?<\/p>\n

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JK: \u201cI think it comes back to the simple game is a good game too. Like if I see a chance to create, maybe don\u2019t try to force it, just let it happen, if it happens. But maybe then just put the puck down deep again and then let the forwards work on it, instead of me trying to create from the blue line, and then it turns over into two and one the other way. Those are the things that I\u2019m gonna have to limit a little bit. Which I am gonna do.\u201d<\/p>\n

MM: You and I have talked about keeping the joy of the game<\/a>. It sounds like there was a lot of frustration on your part, like self-criticism. Is tonight a night where you have to try to simplify and have fun again?<\/p>\n

JK: \u201cYeah. Easier said than done, but that\u2019s what\u2019s gonna happen here. I\u2019m gonna have to try to just go out there and, like I said, let the game come to me. Don\u2019t try to force too much. Just go out there, and even if there is a four-on-three, and I know that it\u2019s a risk play, just put it down deep. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s tough for me to say that, because you want to create, but that\u2019s just how the game is now. It has changed, and the forecheck is a big part of it. So it\u2019s okay to put it deep and let the forwards go to work for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Klingberg was put back on the San Jose Sharks\u2019 top unit during morning skate. Ryan Warsofsky<\/a> said changes were coming after the team\u2019s last win over the Utah Mammoth.<\/p>\n

The forward group remains the same with Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, Alexander Wennberg, and William Eklund on the top unit.<\/p>\n

Klingberg said he didn\u2019t believe his scratching was because of the power play, but rather because of his 5-on-5 play. During SHD\u2019s conversation with Klingberg, other reporters joined the scrum and asked the Sharks\u2019 d-man about how the communication has been with Warsofsky.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, absolutely, it was [open] before too, but I think also he\u2019s still getting to know me. I\u2019m still getting to know him a little bit,\u201d Klingberg said. \u201cWe\u2019ve had a great relationship so far. If there\u2019s something on your mind, I don\u2019t feel like I\u2019m not gonna go and talk to him about it. So it\u2019s been a good talk, and I\u2019m ready to move on and try to play better hockey.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Puck drop is at 7 p.m. and will be exclusively on ESPN+ and Hulu.<\/p>\n

Read more news and stories about the San Jose Sharks on\u00a0Sharks Hockey Digest<\/a>! Bookmark the page and follow Sharks Hockey Digest on Twitter @SharksHKYDigest<\/a>!\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"San Jose Sharks defenseman John Klingberg didn\u2019t hold back when he told SHD what was going wrong that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63298,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[38119,1034,1706,1036,88,90,89,98,4174,755],"class_list":{"0":"post-63297","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-jose","8":"tag-healthy-scratch","9":"tag-john-klingberg","10":"tag-los-angeles-kings","11":"tag-ryan-warsofsky","12":"tag-san-jose","13":"tag-san-jose-headlines","14":"tag-san-jose-news","15":"tag-san-jose-sharks","16":"tag-sharks-news","17":"tag-sj-sharks"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63297","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63297"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63297\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63298"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}