TORONTO — John Klingberg didn’t forget how to play hockey overnight.

So it was understandable when the veteran defenseman greeted my joke about the continuation of the John Klingberg Comeback Tour — he’s got two goals and five points in his last three games — with a bemused expression. Klingberg assisted on the first goal and scored the late game-tying strike in the San Jose Sharks’ 3-2 OT win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“I mean, if you guys say so?” Klingberg said.

Klingberg thinks that he’s been getting better since late November, with some obvious roadbumps.

“Ever since my first scratch, honestly, there’s been some hiccups, but I think that was a time for me to reflect, to go back and just look at my game and see what I can do better. And then I feel like I’ve been building since that,” he said.

Klingberg was scratched on Nov. 18 versus the Utah Mammoth, then back-to-back against the Boston Bruins and at the Colorado Avalanche on Nov. 23 and 26.

“But obviously, for you guys and for everyone else, you see the production, and just because I had production the last three games, you guys think I’m back, but that’s not how it works,” he said. “I think I’ve been working hard the last few weeks here just to find my game. And right now, you see some production. It’s probably going to go up and down a little bit. But like I said, if I feel good and play good on my 5-on-5 game, it starts there.”

That’s fair enough. The San Jose Sharks’ 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Nov. 28, for example, stood out as a solid two-way effort for Klingberg.

“He was our best defenseman tonight,” head coach Ryan Warsofsky said. “I thought he’s calmed his game down, especially at the offensive blueline, just kept his game more direct and simple, and that’s led to him being a little bit more confident with puck play and defending.”

As Klingberg said, he’s not going to keep producing at a 1.33 points per game clip from his last three contests, but for sure, it should be clear now why GM Mike Grier signed him to a one-year, $4 million pact over the summer.

The San Jose Sharks weren’t in the market for top-of-the-line free agent blueliners, but Klingberg’s high-end smarts and puck-moving ability — has had two top-six Norris Trophy finishes in his 20’s — made him an intriguing injury bounceback candidate.

Online, Warsofsky took some derision last week, when I highlighted this quote from him, on Klingberg’s ultimate potential at 33 years old, “He gives flat passes. He can read and manipulate a power play. He can distribute it.”

“He gives flat passes. He can read and manipulate a power play. He can distribute it.”

Warsofsky speaks honestly about Klingberg: How does he have to change his game? Why could he still be #SJSharks‘ best option as PP quarterback? https://t.co/TtSGEpPImt

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 7, 2025

That’s exactly what Klingberg did here, and not even on the power play, on the Dmitry Orlov goal tonight.

This wasn’t a power play, but this was an example of why Klingberg keeps getting chances for #SJSharks, his ability to manipulate defense up top.

Cowan and Stecher (and maybe Hildeby) bite on his shot, then a clean pass to Orlov, who has a great shot, but certainly benefits…

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 12, 2025

Klingberg has actually been doing this all year (read my game notes this year), it’s just been obscured by his ugliest “do too much” mistakes this season.

But just maybe, two months into the season, Klingberg has found not the fountain of youth, but the fountain of don’t do.

“You got to realize, as you’re getting older, but also dealing with health issues, you’re not going to be the same player,” Klingberg, who’s dealt with persistent hip issues over the last half-decade, admitted. “I’m starting to understand more and more that I can’t chase the game like I used to do. It has to come to me.”

Ryan Warsofsky

Alex Wennberg

John Klingberg

Klingberg, on if his confidence flagged at all this season: “Sometimes, it takes a toll on you, for sure. But I think you got to realize, as you’re getting older, but also dealing with health issues, you’re not going to be the same player. I’m starting to understand more and more…

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 12, 2025

Sam Dickinson

Dickinson, on stepping on hometown ice for the first time for an NHL game during warm-ups: “It’s really cool. Looked right up into the stands and saw lots of people who I knew were coming. You know, couple signs, which is pretty funny. It was really cool and really exciting.”

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) December 12, 2025