If this is the end for Mario Ferraro with the San Jose Sharks, it’s been a great ride.
The now-veteran defenseman joined the Sharks as a rookie in 2019-20, the start of the organization’s seven-years-and-counting streak out of the playoffs. Double-digit losses, last place finishes, lagging attendance, long-time teammates being traded, Ferraro has lived it all the last seven years.
It probably made this season, the San Jose Sharks’ best point total since 2018-19, all the more special for Ferraro. Now an unrestricted free agent, Ferraro did not have much of an update regarding conversations with Mike Grier.
Grier speaking after Ferraro, however, stated that the Sharks’ lifer will “probably at least test free agency, then we’ll go from there.”
So was this exit interview the last that we’ve seen of Ferraro with the San Jose Sharks?
What did Ferraro say of his time in teal? What did Ferraro enjoy about this season? What’s he think of the team’s future? The 27-year-old discussed all that, and more, at his exit interview:
Ferraro, on what the team learned playing meaningful games late in the season:
Collectively as a team, we have a lot of guys in our room that have played in big games and have won Stanley Cups. And, we got a blend of guys that are younger [and] haven’t been in as many big games and meaningful games. I’m one of them. It was so much fun playing in those tighter hockey games. And, so we got some experience. We got some inexperience. And I think that it takes blending together and gaining some chemistry to kind of find a groove as a team.
You see in past Cup winners, a lot of the teams that win have been in the playoffs before and fell short a couple times before they actually took home the Cup. So, I think that’s kind of where we went. Even though we weren’t in the playoffs, just [being] in that race for the last month of the season, month and a half. We fell short this time, but we’re learning [by] playing in those games. How important, not just those games [are], but how important the points are at the beginning of the season.
Obviously, we don’t want to look back and be like, ‘oh, this loss here, this loss there.’ But there were some conversations after losses at the beginning of the season, [about how] we don’t want, in April, to be thinking… these points matter. ‘We’re going to wish we had these points.’
So, just a little maturity, and stuff like that. But, it’s a growing process. It’s been a long haul here for my seven years. And, I’m just grateful for this good little run that we had. We’ve taken a big step forward. So, it’s a big learning curve.
Ferraro, on what he wants in his next contract:
I just want to play. I’m playing in the NHL. I have the same mindset as when I came here on an entry-level [contract.] I’m just grateful to play in this league. And I just want to play for as long as I can in this league. Whatever happens, happens.
I don’t take any moment for granted or anything for granted in this league. You look at Mike [Aldrich] retiring this year. You look at [John Klingberg who] hit 700 games. Every year I’ve been here, for a long time, you see a lot of guys retire and miss the game so much.
I played with [Brent] Burns and one thing he’s always told me is ‘never give up a chance to get out there [and] get on the ice.’ You never know when it’s going to end. So, I’m just so grateful to be playing in the National Hockey League. To have played here, for the Sharks, for the last seven years. So when I think about a next contract, I just want to play.
Ferraro, on the San Jose Sharks’ fan base throughout the rebuild:
It was awesome this year. It was an incredible experience. I’m so grateful for the fans here. Sharks fans have been unbelievable over the years that I’ve been here. I said this before, but I think that it says a lot about a fan base, how much they respect their team, and how much they show up, when they show up in the hard times.
Obviously, this year was a good year. It was a packed house, and we’re grateful for that, but I’m extremely grateful for the ones who were sticking with me when it wasn’t too pretty for six, seven years. The last few years. That’s when it hits home, for sure, and you realize how great this fan base is. So, thank you Sharks fans for everything, especially this year. And keep it coming, because there’s a lot of good years ahead for this group.
Ferraro, on what seven years in San Jose has meant to him:
I remember sitting on the beach at the cottage up north in Toronto. I was talking to my cousin, Anthony. I was like, ‘All I want to do is play in the NHL. I just want to play one game, one game in the NHL. If I play one game, I’m so forever grateful. That’s it.’
And then that year, signing an entry-level contract, coming into camp, I had no idea if I would make the team. I remember Pete DeBoer calling me in, saying exactly the role that I should play this year and I should give myself a chance to make [the roster]. And I did that, and he gave me an opportunity.
And I played my first game, and then after that, it was ‘Okay, now I want to play two games.’ And then ‘three games.’ After that, halfway through the season, ‘Okay, I gotta stay here. I gotta stay up all year.’ Then the next year, it’s like, ‘Okay, now I gotta make the team again,’ because I still didn’t feel as solidified.
Every year, I go in with the mentality that I haven’t made the team, because I always think back to that moment when I’m sitting on the beach, I want to play my first game—and now I’m here. I played over 400 games, played seven years here, and it’s just it’s crazy how time flies by. I’m so grateful for the Sharks organization for giving me this opportunity. Because as much as I have other goals now, my dream was to play one game. The Sharks gave me that opportunity.
So, I have a lot of people to thank, the list goes on. Doug Wilson and his team drafting me and giving me an opportunity here. The coaches I’ve had along the way: Pete DeBoer, Bob Boughner, David Quinn, and obviously [Ryan Warsofsky] right now. I’ve had a lot of assistant coaches, great assistant coaches that I’ve built great relationships with. And Mike Grier for giving me another four years to extend my stay here.
So, I have so many people to thank. I’m missing a million people in this organization. It goes on and on. I’ve built so many great relationships, but we’re running out of time in this interview. And I’ll see them today, and I’ll give them my personal thanks. Whatever happens, I don’t know.
I hope I’m back, but it’s been an extraordinary time here, and I’m so grateful for everybody. It’s an extremely classy place here. I’ve been living my dream for seven years, so I’m so grateful.
Ferraro, on his thoughts of Sam Dickinson in his 19/20-year-old season:
To be honest, I don’t know what it’s like. I came [into the NHL] after two years of college. He’s a lot younger than I was when I came in. And I can’t imagine- he came in as I would have gone [to] my first year at UMass. So, in terms of what he’s done, I think he’s done a great job. Coming into this league as a defenseman is not easy.
He also came into this year, which was the first year, like we talked about, in a long time, where we’re in tight games, meaningful games… He experienced NHL hockey, one goal games, tight tied games in the third period, pushing for a playoff spot: and I thought he did a great job overall throughout the year.
You can see his confidence is growing. I do think he has a big ceiling. I think there’s a lot more that he has. His best is far from here. I think the biggest thing about him is his personality. He’s willing to learn. He listens. Had him as a as a partner a couple times, but even off the ice, you can see that when you give them your two cents, or your advice, or you tell him something that’s maybe some constructive criticism, whatever it is- he’s listening. And he tries to do it. And you could see that he does. When the coaches tell him things, he’s listening in video.
And I think another thing too about him, sorry I’m kind of going on but I love the kid. He’s a great kid. Off the ice, he’s a great personality, but I like he has a short memory. And what I mean by that is, on the ice, things happen. He forgets them quick. And that’s so important in this league. That was one of my Achilles heels early on, and it still is. I make a mistake, and sometimes one bad shift can lead to another, and then another, and another one after that. And next thing you know, you play two or three bad games in a row.
He’s got a short memory. So, that’s important, because mistakes are going to happen to anyone in this league. The Sharks should be excited about him.