“I’m just really excited to wear my flip-flops to the rink.”

No doubt, Michael Kesselring is excited to join the San Jose Sharks, and not just because of the weather.

The 6-foot-5 defenseman, a part of the JJ Peterka trade to the Utah Mammoth last summer, joined the Buffalo Sabres with high expectations. Kesselring had just posted seven goals and 29 points in 2024-25, and looked like an up-and-coming blueliner.

But Kesselring could only manage two assists in 34 appearances in Buffalo, a frequent healthy scratch.

The San Jose Sharks acquired Kesselring from the Sabres two weeks ago, and promptly signed him to a three-year, $13.5 million contract, a signal of their faith that he’ll rebound.

Kesselring, in his first San Jose media availability, revealed the extent of the injuries that he played with last season.

Kesselring expects be completely healthy by training camp.

The gregarious right-hander was candid about what went wrong in Buffalo, shared his goal to be a bona fide top-four defenseman in San Jose, talked about knowing Will Smith and Collin Graf and Ryan Warsofsky well, and thanked Jason Demers for JD’s mentorship.

Michael Kesselring, on what went wrong with the Sabres:

To be honest, there’s just a lot.

Never been hurt during the year like that, I was kind of trying to play catch-up all year. My knee injury, it was a partially torn quad tendon, a pretty good tear, and basically any time I bent my right leg, I got knee pain. It’s still something I’m dealing with right now, it’s almost back to 100 percent, but it’s something the doctor said would take a year to get better.

To be honest, I probably rushed myself back the first time I came back, and then I come back again, I have a high ankle sprain, another tough kind of hockey injury, that lingered for a long, long time.

Mentally, it just wore me down, not being able to be myself on the ice, and everyday going out for practice, being in pain a little bit, or one day my knee feels good, the ankle hurts, and one day the ankle feels good, and the knee hurts.

It was just a mental battle throughout the year. When I was out, those 4D started playing really well, they were playing a ton of minutes, and credit to them, they completely earned it. I let that affect me a little bit too much mentally. I should have accepted my role probably a little bit more towards the end of the year, just being really hard defensively, and going from there.

It was a learning lesson, for sure, learning curve, and everything that I took out of the year just dealing with adversity and knowing how to deal with injuries now, going through something like that, makes me even hungrier. I’m just really excited for the fresh start.

I know two years ago, I had a really good year in Utah, and to be honest, after World Championships, after winning, I was like, I’m just getting started. Just went on pause for a year, but I’m extremely confident that I can grow my game from what I showed in Utah, and take a next step with not only finding my game again, but taking another step in being a top-four 6-foot-5 right shot defenseman that can skate, that can shoot the puck, that can get in the play, that can close plays, and looking to build off that.

Being good defensively to start and then letting my offense take over, I felt like maybe I was chasing it a little bit in Buffalo, trying to make a big impression early and after being hurt, that’s something I took away from the year.

I’m working on that side of the game too, my mental side. I have a mental coach now this summer.

Kesselring, on why he enjoyed playing for Warsofsky and gold medal-winning USA at Worlds in 2025:

Obviously, it’s a short tournament, and it’s a little bit different style hockey than the NHL.

I felt like I had a lot of success under him, and I felt he pushed my buttons the right way at that tournament, and really got the most out of me and the role I played at that tournament. I know he really thinks highly of me as a player, and that was a big part of me wanting to come to San Jose, too, is I know the coach really sees my potential. We both understand what I need to bring to the table and what I need to do to keep growing. I think he’s going to be hard on me but push my buttons in the right way and be positive when I need positive and be negative when I need a little kick in the butt. I have a lot of faith in Warso.

Winning together brings you that much closer. I thought, just at that small sample size of the tournament, he pushed everybody’s buttons the right way, and the group came together really well for such a short time. That was probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing hockey, the coaching staff plays a big part in that.

Kesselring, on how he knows Smith and Graf:

Smitty, I met skating in Woburn.

When you get older, you don’t follow the younger kids as much, and there’s a little NTDP kid on the ice, backhand toe-dragging guys, and I’m like, who’s this kid? And everybody told me, Will Smith, he’s gonna go in the top-10, and I’ve skated with him ever since.

Great kid, obviously, I played a few world championships with him as well. You knew what was coming since college, since he was NTDP…

We’ve talked about Smitty a lot, but he reminds me of [Clayton] Keller a lot, just the elite vision and stick skills, and being able to make plays that other guys don’t see…

Graffer, skate with him a little less, but I always see him throughout the summers. Great story, he had a big year this year, can score, skill, beat you 1-on-1, so I’m really excited to play with him as well. It’s always good to see a story like that, he’s a late bloomer, really worked his way into the league.

Kesseling, on Jason Demers:

I have JD to thank a lot for everything. I know he was pumping my tires pretty good.

I met him at Oilers’ camp the year before I got traded to AZ, and he kind of just took me under his wing. I’m very grateful for him. He’s probably one of the most important people I’ve met in my hockey life and in my career. He was kind of my partner, basically, that whole season in Bakersfield, and he was just really good for me that year.

Playing with an experienced vet, someone that I have similar traits to, he just really took me under his wing, and he helped me with the mental side of the game. Still is. Helped me understand what it’s going to take to play at the NHL level, helped me make that jump, helped me really take off that year in Bakersfield.

He’s one of the first people I called about my deal, I owe him a lot, and I want to prove to him that I’m going to be the player that he thinks I can be, and take that next step. He’s been nothing but great to me.

He’s kind of like my father figure in hockey, it’s gonna be good to have him around. I know he’s gonna be around the team a little bit this year. It’s really exciting to play somewhere he played, and he knows it’s a good spot for me.

See the full interview here