Dan Rusanowsky: San Jose Sharks Improvements, Prospects, Leadership, and the 2025 NHL Draft.

Dan Rusanowsky: San Jose Sharks Improvements, Prospects, Leadership, and the 2025 NHL Draft.

[Music] Dominate. Dominate. Dominate. Dominate. Dominate. I did not go on the play. I came to dominate. Dominate. Dominate. Dominate. Martin being checked by Theodore. Puck came out, but Eric Carlson intercepts, moves across the line, leads. Barkley Goodro gets around the defense, shoots, he scores. Barkley Goodro is the hero for the Sharks in overtime in game seven. The Sharks were down by three goals. They came back. They took the lead. And then after Vegas titling Good is the big man on campus. Sharks win 54 and they win the series in seven. Puck far side. Tierney protected giving to Donsway behind the nets. Turning shooting star Unice Donsky. 742 left to go in overtime. And the kid from Finland snaps one past Murray to give the Sharks life in the Stanley Cup final. The Sharks win 3-2. And Dunoy is the man who does it. Celebrating on the right wing side. Spinama play to the net. Chip score. I think that went off the defense and that should be Meckllin celebrating his goal with William Ecklan right in front of a net. It’s past goalender Joel Hoffer and the Sharks are up one- nothing at 701 of this first period. And you can’t write a script much better than that with celebrating in on the very first goal of the season. What’s up hockey fans? Welcome back to Shark Territory and another episode of Frostbin presented by the Hockey Podcast Network. I am Aaron James joined by Mike Han and Tyler Castillo and we are absolutely honored and thrilled to be joined by Foster Huitt Memorial Award recipient, hockey hall of famer and radio playby-play broadcaster since day one for the Soundsy Sharks, Dan Rousenowski. Dan, welcome to the show. Great to be with you guys. Thank you. Thanks so much for jumping on, Dan. Uh really great to have a Sharks legend here with us. Um, as much as I’d like to geek out with you over the the Stanley Cup playoffs right now, uh, I know our time is a little bit limited, so I just want to jump right into talking teal. Does that sound all right with you? Fine with me. Awesome. So, uh, first thing I want to talk about is this past season, the 2425 season. Uh, the Sharks finished with 52 points, finishing last in the Pacific Division and in the league. Uh, the year prior, 23-24. where the team finished with 47 points, also bottom of the Pacific, bottom of the league. You know, that doesn’t scream massive improvement. Uh that, you know, what was it? Five points more. Uh what would you say is an area in which this team did improve that may not show up on the wins or losses column? That’s the interesting uh story about last season for the Sharks is they had a great deal of improvement in the way that they played in the culture that they that they brought into the locker room with some of the additions uh certainly to the talent level with the additions of Mlin Celerini and Will Smith and for part of the season Luca Canon and players of that nature Shakir Muka Mulan and they showed a lot of progress in terms of of learning how to work together and to become a difficult team to play against. You know, that was the the goal of the season for Ryan Warsovski when he took over as head coach. He said, “I want this team to be a tough out. I want this team to be difficult to play against and I want to regain and reclaim the respect uh that we need to have in the National Hockey League.” And I think by and large they did that. There’s still a little bit of work to do in that regard, but they made a great set of strides forward into being a respected team and being told by teams that are at the top of the conference and in the league that they were tough to beat or that they were disappointed in losing to the Sharks, which did happen on a couple of occasions. So, I think that that’s the first step to get the culture together, uh, to raise the talent level and also to to have a little window of hope for the future with some of the guys that haven’t even gotten here yet, showing a lot of talent in the leagues that they’re playing in. So, all in all, a real step forward for the team. Yep. A good step forward. Uh, a lot of, uh, first timers in the NHL, a lot of rookies on this team. Uh, but someone that may not be talked about as much as someone like Celabbrini or Will Smith, a rookie in his own right, Ryan Warovski, his first uh, head coaching job in the NHL. What did you see from Warsawski that was maybe something different? Well, first of all, I think he’s a very focused individual. Not that David Quinn wasn’t, but but just in in a way that that I think the way he conducted his practices really showcased exactly the kind of coach he was going to be. He uh didn’t leave any stone unturned. He wanted to make sure that the players worked as hard in practice as they did in every game. Effectively, if you work really hard in practice, the games seem easy by comparison. And I think that he had some of that, you know, in his his DNA. The other thing is is he brings a winning history to the team in that he’s got a couple of Calder Cup championships. One as an assistant coach and that was in Charlotte and then the other one as a head coach of the team in Chicago in 2022. He brought Andrew Podarolski into the organization, was a big part of the reason why Potsy was uh was on the Barracuda this year and was the MVP of the league and the leading scorer of that league. But I think that the the reasoning for that is that he’s just such a good bench coach. He understands what the young player needs in terms of being cajol or pushed or encouraged. And he works really well with his his staff, too. really relied on Doug Huda and on Jeff Oler and on of course Thomas Spear the goalending coach and and Brian Weisman who was the special teams guy that does such a good job. So I think that he’s he’s a combination of being a good manager being a good psychologist understanding people and the other part of it is just that that that attention to to detail and hard work every single day that the that the team assembled together and I think those are things that are great signs. definitely noticed the hard work mentality this season. Sharks losing a lot of close games whereas 23 24, you know, uh a blowout would happen every every now and again. So, it was certainly refreshing to see some tighter games, a few more wins and uh just a just a change in the mentality of the team. Uh guys, do you want to jump in? Yeah, I mean just back to your first uh response, you were talking about bringing in uh locker room presence and some of the players and everything. I was just wondering for the Sharks moving forward, you know, we have players like Selbrini and Smith and Eklan. Do you think the problem now or the goal now is to fill in the holes on the roster? uh whether it means positioning or just uh veteran presence or is it more so of just surrounding uh support for the young guys? Well, that’s an interesting question and a very good one because I can go in about six different directions with that. The first thing is that the tearown is basically over. Uh they they really needed to clear out salary cap space. They had to make sure that that they created opportunities for young players. But then the second point that you made was uh in bringing in a guy like Tyler Tofoley, they brought somebody that was going to be a very happy to be in San Jose, b somebody with experience who’s already won a Stanley Cup and knows what it takes, and c the willingness to work with some of these young players and be a good example. And we saw that all season long. I mean, I I know you guys knew about the story of the sleepover that these guys had in Tyler Toldi’s room after they won that one game on the road. and and these are little things that are good stories, good human interest type things, but very important in building a closeness w with the team culture and being a good example for players like Celabbrini and Smith. So, I think that that that what Mike Greer is going to try to do now is begin to fill in and look for more to Foley types while also simultaneously keeping in mind that he’s got to be very responsible with the way he spends his money because in two years Mlin Celery and Will Smith’s entry-level contracts will be over. they’re obviously uh given the the progress that they’re making are going to get paid a nice hefty sum, you have to make sure that you don’t overspend before then and you have to make sure that you’re responsible. So those are all of the the balls that are in the air for Mike Greer to juggle and to make sure that that you know when the music stops to use another reference that there’s a seat for the Sharks to sit in and I think that he’s doing a great job of that. Yeah. And then um you know just like what you were talking about about this transitional era, was there any other comparison in the Sharks history that kind of reminds you of what we’re going through now? Absolutely. It reminds me of the late 1990s when the Sharks were out of the playoffs for a couple of years and drafted a kid named Patrick Marlo second overall and then they had a couple of other young kids in the organization. Brad Stewart, Scott Hannon, Marco Sturm, Andre Zusen, Jonathan Chichu. That was kind of the next core group. And you notice that all those guys didn’t stay here. Some of them moved on. Brad Stewart was part of the Joe Thornton trade for instance. Marco Sturm was too. But because they were all together and growing together, they were surrounded by veteran players, people like Murray Craraven and Ronnie Sutter and play and Mike Vernon and Kelly Rudy. And so I think that the same sort of story is happening now that we’ve got the Batman and Robin so to speak with Celbrini and Smith and now they’re filling in with, you know, I’m really excited about this kid Sam Dickinson who’s playing junior in in uh the Ontario Hockey League with London and he’s having an incredible season and finishing things up. I at as we record this, they’re still playing. So, that’s something that that also is something exciting to to look forward to in the development camp and in the training camp to see where these guys end up. And of course, um you know, surprises like Colin Graph coming into the organization as a free agent. That was a really good signing and you know, he turned out to be a a solid player for the Sharks and also at the end of the season for the Barracuda to get some playoff experience. So, um those are some of the things that that that kind of get to me in terms of now and in the future. Yeah. Anybody else want to join in? Yeah, Erin, I want Erin, I want to let you jump in, but there’s just a good segue here that I just wanted to uh to touch on. Uh Dan, you mentioned Sam Dickinson, Colin Graph, who isn’t so much of a prospect anymore, but you mentioned some prospects. Is there a uh a prospect that you’re really interested in that maybe isn’t getting the attention or the hype as Sam Dickinson, the Chernavves, the Muskies? Well, I think that Chernishoff is the one that intrigues me the most because there are a lot of people that tell me that he might even be ready for the NHL next season. And if that’s the case, that’s an incredible pickup. Um, Musty is is a work in progress. I think he’s going to be just fine, but he probably needs a little bit more seasoning. We saw him in the Calder Cup playoffs for a game or so, and it looked like he, you know, was a little bit wideeyed, but but in general in in pretty comfortable with where he ended up being. Um, also, um, you you take a look at at some of the other young kids coming in. I’m so excited about Dickinson. I really am. I think that this kid is really going to be a great player. And, um, also Casper Halton, he’s another guy on the London Knights that’s showing that he can score goals. He can put the puck in the net. He’s got an NHL shot now. So, the question is, um, is he going to improve his skating and is he going to improve his play away from the puck enough to play at the NHL level? He’ll probably need some time in the American Hockey League, but boy, when he gets there, he’s going to be a big scoreer in the AHL, too, I think. So, those are just a couple of people that that really come to mind. And I I’m not sure exactly what, you know, I haven’t even mentioned Ascarov yet, the goalender. should be probably getting a lot of games in the NHL next season. But the thing that excites me the most is the Sharks have a couple of first round picks this year. And they’re going to get very good hockey players here that may be some of the most exciting young players in the organization. And I’m also looking to see if they draft another goalender because you have to keep those guys in the pipeline each year. You need a younger guy to be pushing the next group. And uh you know, as they say, if you throw enough mud on the wall, some of it’s bound to stick someplace. That’s generally the way it is with goalenders. But uh that combined with Ascarov’s development, I think we should be very excited, too. And I haven’t even mentioned Muka Madulan. I mean, he’s somebody that had the shoulder injury, looked like he became an NHL player last year, but that’s another guy that I think you have to keep your eye on. And if you think about, you know, a veteran that’s played, it’s going to be 20 years next year, Mark Edward Blic, a shutdown type defenseman. I think Muka Medullan can do that with a little bit of offensive flare and so that’s something to really look at closely as well. Yeah, a lot of uh exciting players in in the Sharks pipeline and you know Halton and Dickinson showing that they can perform on a big stage. Casper getting that uh that playoff MVP for London in the OHL. Uh really exciting to [Music] see. All [Music] right, San hockey fans, we appreciate your support and love here on Frost Spitten, the official podcast of Shark City Hockey. And with that, we would like to just take a brief moment to hear from the sponsors of this show. Unfortunately, the Warriors have been eliminated from postseason uh NBA action, but that does not mean that you cannot make the rest of the playoffs even more exciting for you this season. So, here’s something special for first timers. New DraftKing customers bet $5 and get $200 in bonus bets instantly. That’s right. 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For additional terms and responsible gaming resources, see dkg.co/audio. [Music] All right. So, since we’re talking about the upcoming draft, we have the combine that’s literally around the corner at the beginning of the month. Uh, by then, the Sante Shark scouts should really know who are um the ranking on their own draft board. So, are there any prospects, we’ve heard about, you know, um the top two, we could even go as far as like the top seven prospects. Is there any prospects late in this first round that really excite you? Um, well, it it dep, you know, it really depends on exactly how the top part of it goes because sometimes guys that are that are slated in the top 10 or 12 end up sliding down a little bit further. I know that William Ecklan’s brother, Victor, is one of the top ranked Europeans. He’s number two right now as far as the European group by central scouting. I don’t think he’s going to make it to the 20s when the Sharks get that second first round pick. He’s going to end up somewhere else. Um, but everybody that I talk to within the organization, whether it’s Scott Fitzgerald or Chris Mohouse or any of the other scouts, they tell me that that this year’s draft, they’re looking at between six and seven players that are all kind of in the same ballpark. I don’t think that they’re expecting that uh uh that Schaefer, the defenseman, is going to be available. He’ll probably get drafted first overall by the Islanders, but if not, he’ll be in that mix, too. And they didn’t even definitely say that he was their definitive number one. So, it’s going to be very interesting to see how that all plays out. I know that there are several forwards that that are really on the top of their list. Everybody talks about Michael Misa who plays for Sageno. And of course, he and Chernishoff played together on the same team this season. So, maybe you can think about chemistry there, but also there are a lot of people that really like James Hagens, the young kid from Hop Hog Long Island, who uh, you know, would love to be drafted by the Islanders, but probably won’t be given the fact that the Islanders won the lottery. So, um I I I think it’s going to be a really fascinating uh set of of players to look at. There are several others, too, that are coming up that uh um that probably deserve some uh some real scrutiny. There are a couple of goalenders, names are kind of not on my mind right now, but some that played in the U8 tournament for for Canada. Um at least one that that might go to late in the first round and maybe in early in the second or third rounds. And those are generally where the the surprises of the draft are found. You know, we can always remember Joe Pavvelski 205th overall and you have Genja Bachov 219th. They’re going to be players like that in this draft too. You know that they’re going to be there. I think it’s safe to say even though there’s a lot of u hype and noise just being surrounded with the number uh two pick overall that Mike Greer is going to hold on to this pick. I know he did mention that he will listen to calls like he supposedly did last season. Um, so I’m thinking if you’re a betting man, it’s safe to say that the C Sharks are not going to entertain uh trading away the second overall pick this season. It depends on what the offer is, right? What if uh you know somebody drafting third or fourth uh offers you that pick and then some other asset that you really want and you’re still going to get a player that you want? I mean, those are the things that they have to consider. And obviously, um, you know, it used to be in the old days that the the teams would be on the draft tables all next to each other and, you know, they could go and talk and find out who is interested in whom, but now with this being a virtual draft, I think that changes the percentage a little bit. So, um, that’s going to be another factor that we have to pay attention to. Now, now you mentioned it being a virtual draft. Do you have any insight on how that will work? because I know it’s still hosted at uh is it Crypto.com or it’s it’s a facility in Los No, it’s it’s at the theater next door where they have the Grammys and everything else which is right right near where uh uh Crypto.com Arena is. But um there are the top 50 as I understand it. They’re going to have the top 50 or so rated players that were rated by Central Scouting present at that location in Los Angeles. And there will be a radio row and there will be a place for people to interview people and so forth. Uh the the actually the national networks and the both the US and Canada and probably internationally will be there too. But everybody else will be holed up in their war rooms in their individual communities. And of course our Sharks audio network setup is going to be right at the draft party at SAP Center. And we’ll also have a special show that will be running during the course of that as the selections are made and we’ll have Mike Greer and we’ll have several other people on our show. So, we hope everybody tunes into that. But um the the interesting thing is is that they they did it this way. And I think the reason why they did it is because there’s such little time between the actual draft date near the end of the month of June and when unrestricted free agency opens up on July the 1st that they feel that they wanted to have everybody in their war rooms preparing for that as well so that they didn’t have to necessarily transfer and move. And that’s probably part of the reason why they did it that way. But it’s going to be u another interesting thing because again I really like the fact that that that you had that party at the draft with everybody getting together and with you know players hugging their moms and everything else. And sometimes when you had a surprise you would have a guy that was sitting in the stands not expecting to be uh drafted really high up. I remember Becket Senica went to Anaheim. He was expected to go lower, went third overall. That kind of a thing does happen. And so, you know, who knows? Maybe that’ll happen with the San Jose Sharks this season, too. But those kinds of things are a little bit anticlimactic now, especially if one of those players is not actually present at the uh the location in Los Angeles and maybe sitting at home. And I guess they probably do it on Zoom or something else. But uh to actually coordinate that is going to make things challenging. But I still think that in terms of the planning and in terms of really the the privacy of some of the decisions so that they’re not overheard on the draft floor is going to improve things for each individual team. So we’ll see how it all works out. It’s going to be fascinating. Well, at least you could probably say that they uh they ended with a bang as far as a live draft goes doing it at the sphere. Uh a tremendous atmosphere like you said the the Senica drafted at third overall. Uh that was a surprise for everyone. And then you have like the Selen Deion and and all these celebrities doing uh their their draft announcements. That was a lot of fun to watch. Well, it still might happen. I mean, at least in the first round, who knows who’s going to be in the theater there and what you know what the teams have planned. And again, I think that part of this is a work in progress because this is the first time we’ve actually done it in this way. And then the next question will be will it continue after this season in this way? I know the NFL has gone to it. some other leagues have talked about it. So, um we’ll see what happens with the NHL. Well, uh just going back to uh this past season, 2425, uh I wanted to ask you, was there a particular storyline that you really enjoyed following throughout the course of the season? Well, it was just really great to see how Mlin Celbrini and Will Smith a became really close friends after being great rivals at BC and BU for Smith and Celbrini respectively. Um that was fascinating to see. I I really enjoyed the development of people like Mario Ferraro in in the leadership department. Um I think that he’s been an important player on this team and also the Tyler TFoley story. I mean, think about it. He could have gone anywhere. Chose to come to San Jose, scored 30 goals this this past season and I think that those are a couple of the storylines that I really enjoyed following during the course of the campaign, guys. Sure. Um so back to this past season. So, we are really in the transition of new era Sharks hockey here with the raising of Joe Thornton’s banner, joining Patrick Marlo at the tank, uh Logan Couture, our captain, announcing his retirement. Um, how do you see the leadership core developing forward and um the next season for the Sounds Sharks? Well, I would like to address that one topic you brought up. You know, you asked me what storylines I really enjoyed last year, but the one that I didn’t enjoy was the one involving Logan Couture, the fact that he’s had to step aside from the game because of the fact that his health is just not allowing him to play. Um, that’s really really unfortunate. And, you know, it’s it’s another area where you feel some regret, too, because as we all know, when the Sharks make the playoffs, Logan Couture is at his best. and for the last six seasons he hasn’t been able to show that during some prime years of his career. So that’s really unfortunate. U but he was a great captain. He’s a great person and I I know that he’s going to be around. He’s, you know, married a girl from the Bay Area and he’s got a nice family and all of that is burgeoning and he’s able to enjoy that. But it won’t be too long before at some point he probably wants to get a little bit more active in the game. Very similar to what Joe Thornton and Patrick Marlo and Ryan Klo and some of the other sharks that have retired have have gone through. Um, so I I think that that’s going to be interesting. In terms of the leadership, I don’t think there’s any doubt in my mind that Mlin Celterini has leader written all over him. However, um, does that mean you just hand him the captaincy at age 19? I don’t think that’s going to work that way. You may recall a few years ago the Sharks picked up Rob Blake and the veteran defenseman near the end of his career was named captain of the San Jose Sharks in that sort of transition period. um they had gone through you know just Thornton and Marlo and so forth and finally settling on Joe Pavvelski which was a great choice and then after that Logan Couture also a great choice. So um you know it’s going to be interesting to see who actually does uh take over that position. I think down the line as I said we expect Mlin probably to be that guy but uh not maybe not necessarily sooner than later and you want to do that at the right time. So the question is will somebody else be acquired like a Rob Blake type to be named captain of the team? Will they pick one of the guys that are here that have worn the A people like Ferraro or or uh you know Tofoley or somebody like that or do they feel that those are great alternate captains and and and great uh second in command guys to find another alpha dog that comes in here that that can really put his arms around the team and and help lead them back to the promised land. So, um, that’s going to be one of the great storylines of not only the summer, but also next season because there’s a real chance that they could just go with three alternate captains or maybe four and, uh, and let things sort of settle out and and have people earn their positions. So, um, you know, you you never know. You don’t always have people going straight up in a in a trend upwards. Sometimes it’s like a stock market chart where you have a great start and then people know who you are and you you kind of step back a little bit and then you learn to forge your way ahead as you develop your game as a pro. So, um those are all things that are going to be happening this coming season and I’m really looking forward to the team taking a big step forward. Um you know, I think realistically we can say that if they’re in the in the conversation for the playoffs right around the trade deadline, I think they’ve made great progress. Um there’s still a long way to go and there’s a lot of work to be done, but the good news is that there’s light at the end of the tunnel for this organization and that means they’re going to get back to where they belong and that is challenging for a Stanley Cup. I love it. That’s really well said. Um I just have one final question on my end. Uh, but you were talking about like how uh Mike Greer expects to get more tofullies and I’m just wondering from the player perspectives uh just seeing the San Jose Sharks uh just with the core young group and uh of course Tyler toy do you think that’s on their radar for upcoming free agency as San Jose being a destination to land? I think it’s starting to become that way. I think that the first step with that was where we started this conversation and that is the Sharks becoming a a tough team to play against but b earning that respect around the league which they seem to have vacated in a couple of tough years. So that work is being done and as I said there’s still some work to be done in that area but when you have players like Celbrini and you have Smith and you have a young talented kid like Canonei or Dickinson or Muka Madulan or Ascarov uh you want to be part of that. You definitely want to be part of that if you’re a veteran hockey player. Um, it’s a different type of a of a setup for somebody that uh, you know, that may want to be in a in a marquee market like Toronto or New York, an original six city. But this, you know, San Jose is a great hockey city and it’s a great place to live. I can’t think of a better place to live in the world. And then if you have young, talented people like like the ones I mentioned and several others that are coming in here, why wouldn’t you want to be part of that? You want to, you know, be part of that solution that brings a team to glory in the Stanley Cup. There’s no um stigma about playing in the state of California anymore after all of the 20 years that the Sharks were great and LA and Anaheim have had great seasons. All those teams are on their way up. And then you’ve got Vegas, you got Edmonton, you’ve got, you know, all these teams in the Pacific division that are very challenging. So, I think that it should be an attractive place for somebody to play. And you, you know, you throw in that that final caveat, and that is uh what I said before that this is such a great place to live. If you have a family, it’s fantastic. So, uh, there would be no reason why anybody wouldn’t want to certainly consider San Jose very very seriously. Yeah, I’m looking forward to see uh which players are thinking of San Jose on their destination, Mike Hunt or Aaron? Yeah, absolutely. So, um, sticking on the future next season, Dan, uh, do you have any hot takes or bold predictions on on things that maybe we could see? Well, are you asking me for a prediction as to where they’re going to finish? Is that what you’re Is that what you’re kind of driving at? Uh, it could be that or it could be Colin Graph will score 25 goals. Just something maybe that, you know, the average fan might not consider. Well, I I I think that if Chernoff can earn a spot full-time in the NHL, that will be a very big story. Don’t forget that he had a very serious shoulder injury last year. Uh, the same thing with Jake Furlong, who played in the AHL. um really had a I don’t want to say it was a wasted year, but it was a tough year because he was rehabbing shoulder surgery pretty much all summer and that slows down your development. Right now, Muka Madulan is kind of in the same position because he’s uh he’s had to have shoulder work. So, um that’s something that that’s going to be an interesting scenario for uh for the team. Also about who’s going to really step forward and be the goalender. Asof is kind of projected to that point, but who’s he going to play with? Is it going to be Roman off? Is he going to come back? Is it is it going to be another veteran goalender that decides to come to San Jose to be kind of like a Kelly Rudy or a Mike Vernon type? Um or is somebody else going to come to the four? Is there going to be a big trade over the course of the next few months? I think there’s a chance of that happening, too. And you know, how will the Sharks shore up the defense? How will they get better at that position? To me, that’s going to be one of the big stories. Um whether or not they can find that guy that can be um kind of a more of a number one type defenseman, number one and two. that’s what they’re looking for. They’ve got guys in the system now that that are building up to that, but are they there now? And I think that that’s probably an area where they’ll focus on in terms of trying to get either free agents or trades made um to get those players into the organization. But Mike will do that in a very deliberative fashion and a collaborative fashion, too. He’s very good at working with his staff and I think that’s a great strength of his. So, um I think that the best decisions will be made and uh we’re going to have some fun with this team. I’m telling you right now, it’s going to be exciting. Yep. The the roots have been planted. The the vibes are great. Uh you you recall probably Randy saying the most fun last place team you’ll ever watch. And uh I think that rings pretty true right now. Well, it does. And you know, the the story of that is just how great and how talented CBrine Smith and all these young players are. That’s why they were uh so much fun. Uh because they made life more fun for some of the veterans. And I think that one of the things that the Sharks benefited from last season is when they did clear out some of the roster during the tearown. What they also accomplished is they got guys in here that hadn’t been through that and didn’t have that scar tissue. And so uh that that was something that that probably needed to be done to give those players a fresh start somewhere else, but also uh to bring in guys that that wouldn’t get bummed out if if they had a four or five game losing streak because that’s just naturally the way it goes. You know, you referenced the earlier the blowouts that happened two years ago that didn’t generally happen. Blowouts still happen either way every year in the NHL, even for great teams. But it’s how you deal with those those challenges and how you deal with um the ups and the more of the downs um as a NHL player and how you approach that with an even keel that these players are continuing to learn. And as I said, it’s it’s h pretty great to see. Absolutely. I think it’s uh it’s really important uh not only to develop that winning culture, but for players like Celibbrini and Smith who have probably done a good amount of winning throughout their entire hockey lives. Uh it’s important to learn how to lose too and how to respond to that. Well, you certainly don’t uh ever love losing. They hate losing, which I love to see that in in these guys, but they also try to approach it constructively and professionally. And let’s not forget uh this last season both Salrini and Smith came out of college. So effectively when you’re in junior when you’re in college uh yes it is more professional these days in the way these guys train their whole lives but they’re still playing hockey as a game and it’s fun. But now when they get to the NHL, when they get to the American Hockey League, they’re playing for a living. And that’s a different relationship that you have with the with the actual game. And it’s an adjustment for a lot of people. Um those guys had to adjust to an 82game schedule. There was a little bit of load management early, especially a little bit more for Will Smith than for Mlin, but Mlin got injured at the beginning of the season. So that was a bit of the load management, I suppose. But by January, it was pretty obvious that these guys had adjusted. Now they know what it takes. Now they know how they’re going to have to train in the summer. Now they know where they have to improve. And so, um, it it’s always interesting to see how, uh, the next season results for these guys. And again, we’re not going to necessarily see a straightforward path upward every single year for every single player, but I think that that what we’ll see is a trend that will go in that direction and we’ve already seen it. Absolutely. It’s a it’s an exciting time to be a Sharks fan. No doubt about that. Uh guys, do you have any final thoughts? That was fantastic. Dan, thank you so much. Um, as you mentioned earlier, you could um catch Dan Rosenowski and all the talent on the Sharks Audio Network. They’re going to be doing a draft party live from the SAP Center at San Jose. Of course, the Sharks Audio Network is 247. You can access it anywhere around the world. Great content from game day all the way to the playbyplay call from Guyowski. I personally a big fan of your Sharks morning skate. So, uh, once again, I just want to, um, say thank you so much for, um, joining us today. We’re absolutely honored to have, uh, you know, picked your brain a little bit about Sharks hockey, and we are so delighted to hear all your insights on, uh, Team Till. Well, you know, as well as I do that I love talking hockey 247, just like our audio network. And, you know, Drew and I are doing a playoff show a couple of days a week. That’s been fun. Um, you mentioned the morning skate, you mentioned the Teal Report, um, and of course, all of our coverage and we’ve got that all through the summer. a lot of interesting things happening. So, uh, we invite everybody to join us. We thank you for all the support and, uh, all of you guys, thanks a lot for having me today. Thanks so much, Dan. We really appreciate it. Anytime. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for enjoying another episode of Frost Bitten presented by the Hockey Podcast Network. Don’t forget to like and subscribe. Whether you are watching this video on YouTube or listening to the audio version on your favorite podcast platform and of course don’t forget to hit up Shark City Hockey team on social media at Shark City Hockey. Hey, coming.

Exciting news, hockey fans! 🎉 Join us as we welcome San Jose Sharks legend and Hockey Hall of Famer, Dan Rusanowsky, to the show! He’ll dive into the Sharks’ improvements for the 2024-25 season, share his thoughts on promising prospects, and discuss the positive culture shift within the team. Don’t miss out on insights about team leadership and the upcoming NHL Draft! Tune in and get ready for all things Sharks!

Frostbitten is the exclusive San Jose Sharks and San Jose Barracuda hockey podcast featuring team coverage delivered by Bay Area natives and lifelong fans. We break down San Jose hockey action, react to Bay Area hockey headlines, and share stories of the fan experience that you can only get from inside the heart of Sharks Territory – the Shark Tank!

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