2024-01-23 19:44:06
San Jose Sharks’ Mario Ferraro (38) skates on the ice during warmups before their game once morest the Toronto Maple Leafs at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
SAN JOSE – A San Jose Sharks team that was just starting to get a bit healthier now has to deal with the absence of do-everything defenseman Mario Ferraro, whose lower body injury is expected to keep him out of the lineup for at least the immediate future.
Ferraro exited Monday night’s game with Los Angeles early in the second period following he fell awkwardly into the boards following contact with Kings forward Trevor Lewis. Ferraro missed the rest of the game, which the Sharks won 4-3 in a shootout.
Ferraro was still undergoing evaluation on Tuesday, Sharks coach David Quinn said, adding that the team is confident that the injury is “nothing serious.”
“He’s going to be out for a little bit. Don’t have a timeline yet,” Quinn said Tuesday before the Sharks hosted the New York Rangers. “Not as bad as we thought, so it’s not going to be an extended period of time.”
Ferraro was chasing following a loose puck in the offensive zone to the left of the Kings net when it appeared Lewis made contact with him from behind. The two players’ skates then appeared to get tangled up, sending Ferraro careening into the boards.
Ferraro remained on the ice for a few moments before he was able to get up and make his way toward the Sharks’ bench. He was helped off the ice by teammates, then hobbled as he walked gingerly back toward the team’s dressing room.
Ferraro came back out on the ice and skated briefly near the end of the second intermission — presumably to test out the injury — before he returned to the Sharks’ dressing room for the rest of the game.
Ferraro’s absence leaves a huge void, on the ice and off, for a Sharks team that just got back captain Logan Couture and fellow center Nico Sturm.
Ferraro leads all Sharks skaters in average time on ice (22:56) and before Tuesday’s games, was second in the NHL with 138 blocks. He also led all Sharks defensemen with 14 points, including 13 assists.
Ferraro is also the Sharks’ vocal leader whose presence is missed whenever he’s not in the lineup.
“He’s our best defenseman. Clearly, our best defenseman,” Quinn said. “So, it hurts. It hurts but it’s an opportunity for other guys and everybody’s got to be a little bit better.”
“He’s a big part of our team and obviously a very loud, talkative guy,” Sharks defenseman Calen Addison said of Ferraro. “He’s one of a kind.”
Without Ferraro on Monday, the Sharks leaned on Henry Thrun and Jan Rutta, as both finished with over 25 minutes of ice time. Thrun was also counted on to play big minutes on Dec. 31, when Ferraro was injured in the first period once morest the Colorado Avalanche.
Does Thrun, 22, have to be the lead horse now?
“He’s certainly growing into that role,” Quinn said of Thrun. “He’s a guy that can develop in the National Hockey League and he’s done a really good job of taking on responsibility but not getting in the way of his development. That’s huge.”
After Tuesday, the Sharks next play the Buffalo Sabres at home on Saturday. That’s followed by a home game once morest the Seattle Kraken on Jan. 30 and a trip to face the Anaheim Ducks the following night.
After that, NHL All-Star weekend begins, followed by a week-long bye for San Jose, which has its first game in February in Winnipeg on Valentine’s Day.
The Sharks are already without three other injured defensemen right now in Matt Benning, Jacob MacDonald, and Ty Emberson. Benning is out for the season following he had hip surgery in December, but Quinn said MacDonald (lower body) is getting close to a return. Emberson (upper body) is behind MacDonald in terms of a timeline.
With Ferraro unavailable, Addison will return to the lineup Tuesday. Addison has been a scratch for four straight games and in 28 games with the Sharks this season, has seven points and is averaging 17:45 in ice time.
Addison said the message from the Sharks’ coaching staff has been to “play with more tempo, move my feet, skate with the puck, will the puck, make plays, and just tempo all over the ice.”
GRANLUND UPDATE: It appears Sharks center Mikael Granlund will not return to the lineup before the start of the NHL All-Star break. Quinn feels it’s not practical for Granlund, on injured reserve with an upper-body ailment, to try and rush back just to get in one or two games when he can take his time and continue to let his injury heal during the extended break.
“He’s got an opportunity to get three full weeks without missing any hockey games. You don’t get that opportunity very often,” Quinn said. “So unless (Granlund’s) begging me and telling me ‘Hey, I’m 100% fine,’ I don’t see the point in it. But we’re not there yet.”
Granlund was injured in the third period of the Jan. 16 game in Chicago when he was hit by Blackhawks forward MacKenzie Entwistle, and Tuesday marked his first time back on the ice as he did some light shooting.
NOTE: The Sharks reassigned Scott Sabourin back to the Barracuda. Sabourin played in three of seven games since his recall on Jan. 9, getting in one fight and averaging 9:17 in ice time per game.
1706048282
#Mario #Ferraro #injury
