Sharks coach challenges players before daunting stretch: ‘Are we pretenders?’

SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks do not have the luxury of facing a handful of fellow rebuilding teams before they begin their Christmas break.

The Sharks play the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night to close a three-game homestand, then face the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks, on Saturday and Monday, respectively, before returning to San Jose for a three-day respite.

Nathan MacKinnon and the Avalanche are just outside of a playoff spot in the Western Conference in terms of points percentage. The Oilers and Canucks, two teams with plenty of firepower, are just ahead of them. All three were playoff teams last season, with the Oilers going all the way to the Stanley Cup Final before losing to the Florida Panthers in seven games.

The Sharks entered Thursday having won just one of their last six games. They started this homestand with one-goal losses to the Utah Hockey Club and Winnipeg Jets.

Still, these next three games are another barometer for the Sharks (11-18-5) to see how far they have come since last season.

San Jose has competed hard against some playoff-contending teams this season, including two wins over the Los Angeles Kings and one over both the New Jersey Devils and Washington Capitals. But against quality opponents, the Sharks have often come up short.

Now’s an opportunity to show some growth.

“This is a stretch for us — these five, six games – that are, ‘What are we all about? You know? Are we pretenders? Are we just going to float around and try to stick around, or are we going to go attack and try to win some hockey games? Because I know that this group in there can win hockey games.” Warsofsky said.

“I know we can. We’ve seen it. We’ve had some good success here of playing with an identity, and when we play with that identity, we’re a hard team to play against. We just have to start getting some results.”

Defenseman Timothy Liljegren will be a healthy scratch Thursday, as the Sharks are dressing Henry Thrun and Shair Mukhamadullin on their third defense pair and moving right-shot defenseman Jan Rutta up to the second pair to play alongside Mario Ferraro.

Thrun and Mukhamadullin shoot left, but Mukhamadullin will play on the right side. Thrun is re-entering the lineup after being a healthy scratch for the last three games.

Liljegren was acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 30 for defenseman Matt Benning and two draft picks. He did not play in the Sharks’ Oct. 31 game against the Chicago Blackhawks but was in the team’s lineup for the next 22 games, collecting six points while averaging close to 19 minutes in ice time.

Liljegren has one point, an assist, in his last seven games and had 16:18 in ice time for the Sharks during their 4-3 loss to the Jets on Tuesday.

“I thought (Liljegren) had an up-and-down game,” Warsofsky said. “I thought he did some good things, and he struggled in some areas. (Mukhamadullin) is probably in that same boat. He’s a younger guy that’s trying to find to his consistency at this level, and it’s just extremely difficult.

“So he’s made some mistakes that we need to continue to work with him and correct, but he’s a big guy, long reach, we have high hopes for him.”

Liljegren was the only Sharks player to have a plus rating in the game against the Jets. While the NHL’s final stats for each game are unreliable, Liljegren was also listed as having two giveaways.

Warsofsky felt some of Liljegren’s reads and puck decisions could be a bit sharper. The Sharks enter Thursday having won just one of their last six games.

“We’re going to challenge him to be better than he believes he can be,” Warsofsky said. “And that’s not just (Liljegren); that’s every defenseman and every forward in that locker room. We’re going to push and challenge them to be the best they possibly can be and better.

“We need (Liljegren) to be a really good defenseman for us to start winning some hockey games.”

Thrun had eight points, all assists, and had been averaging just over 16 minutes in ice time in the 27 minutes he’s played per game. Thrun said the last time he and Mukhamadulllin were paired together was during the 2023 rookie tournament in San Jose.

Thrun joined the Sharks in March 2023 and has never been a healthy scratch for three straight games in the NHL.

“It’s a new challenge, new adversity, and something that I try to take as much positive as I can of out of it,” Thrun said. “It’s hard. You want to be in every night and try to help the team win, but I’ll try to learn from it and figure out how I can be better for it.

“It’s a tough challenge and something I’ve never experienced at all in my hockey career. It’s been tough, but I’ve been happy with the way I’ve kind of worked through it, and I’m excited to have a chance to respond tonight.”