Ryan Warsofsky, Sharks break down San Jose's 4-1 win vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

Ryan Warsofsky and other Sharks speak to reporters following San Jose’s 4-1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night at SAP Center.

Ryan Warsofsky, Sharks break down San Jose’s 4-1 win vs. Toronto Maple Leafs originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Video Transcript

Midline, what can you say about the chemistry between you guys and the outputs?

Yeah, obviously, it’s, you know, we’re just trying to have an impact, on each game.

obviously, you know, it’s big to get, to get that first goal, and yeah, we just, you know, we try to bring the same game every night, you know, to, try to do the little things effectively.

you know, get pucks out, get pucks in, that kind of stuff.

And, you know, it’s always a bonus when, when you find the back of the net.

You guys are coming off a, losing streak.

Now you guys are on a, on a winning streak, a four-game winning streak here.

How have you seen this team grow, from that losing streak?

Yeah, I think, you know, obviously, having a los- losing streak, this time this season isn’t ideal but, you know, I think it’s, it’s a testament to kinda the character in the room and, and s- you know, the maturity that we’ve, you know, shown throughout this year to, to bounce back and, you know, realize, what we had to do to turn it around.

And, you know, I think, you know, the last four games have, been much improved and, you know, just carry, carry as much momentum as we can into the next one.

Okay.

Was that first period in Nashville kind of the turning point maybe for you guys?

yeah, I mean, that wasn’t pretty, so I think, you know, I think we weren’t, we weren’t playing great, up until that point and, but, you know, I think we turned it around and, you know, you just gotta stay hot.

The Maple Leafs are the number one face-off team in the league.

Zach Wostoczek won 80% of his draws, I think for the game he gets one more.

What’s it say about his play, especially the last two nights, but especially in, in an area that doesn’t really get looked at too much?

Yeah, it’s huge.

I think, you know, that’s one area he’s, really worked on, this year and, you know, obviously if, if you’re winning face-offs, you’re, you’re, you’re trusted more, all over the ice.

And, yeah, it’s, it’s nice having him and, and Gauds both being able to take face-offs left and right side.

So they’ve, they’ve both done a good job and, yeah, it’s, it’s, you know, it’s big in a game if you can, you know, st- start with the puck more often than not.

Your fourth line has really grown into a big identity line.

You guys seem to just gel right away.

What makes your trio work so well every night?

I think we just, like I said, we just play a simple game.

We, we read off each other.

Don’t really do, anything fancy.

You know, forecheck, as hard as we can, and, yeah, just, just try to work off each other.

you’re familiar with the championship standard.

In a game like tonight, did it feel like, you know, if you’re talking about wanting more from this team still, taking it to another level, you know, was there more that you guys could have done to kinda put this game away sooner?

We won the game 4-1, you know?

I don’t think, a win’s a win.

It’s two points.

You know, it’s, it’s hard enough to get a win in this league, especially this time of year, so I think, we’re not getting picky.

Trina, you guys were great in the, in the penalty kill for a long time now, and tonight you guys get those two short-handed chances.

What you saw on that one, the one with Benberg?

Yeah, he made, he made a great pass to me.

you know, I just I needed to get, get it over his pad and, you know, he made a, he made a good save.

Was it important for you guys to get a win tonight without- Couple more Celebrini, you know, dominating like he usually does kind of thing?

I know he had a point tonight, but support from this group that you guys, you know, can win without him if, if, if Celebrini’s without his scoring.

Yeah, 100%.

I think, you know, the more, you know, secondary scorer we can have, take, you know, a little bit of weight off his shoulders maybe, obviously we’ll, we’ll take that.

You guys got a couple more back-to-backs.

Last one here.

What do you, what do you kinda take away from this game in terms of things you did well on a back-to-back or maybe things you guys need to improve on?

Yeah, I think, you know, I think, I think we played pretty well for the most part.

There’s You know, they had a push in the third period, and Ned came up, big with, with some huge saves, especially, you know, the breakaway, that Knies had.

So, yeah, I think, you know, little things here and there we can maybe improve on but, you know, I think for the most part, in a back-to-back we did pretty well.

Okay, thanks, Gabe.

Thanks, Gabe.

Nick, I wanna congratulate you on some 20 goals there.

What’s that milestone mean to you?

yeah, you know, it’s exciting.

You know, in the, intermission if you asked me at the start of the year, I probably wouldn’t have said I would’ve got there.

So it’s, it’s a nice milestone to get and it’s, you know, it’s an even bigger two points.

You know, we’re all, we’re all working towards playoffs here, so I’m happy to help contribute with, in the goal and then, we closed it out well there.

How have you guys been able You know, you had the little losing streak and now you’ve won four in a row.

How did you guys so quickly turn it around?

I think it’s just desperation.

Like, we knew, we knew our season was on the line there.

We were in a tough stretch and, you know, it’s, it was basically a do or die type game in, in Columbus and, you know, we played, we played well that game before but it, you know, it didn’t go our way.

So, I think we were building towards a better process and now the, results have started to come.

You guys really controlled the game on a, on a back-to-back here.

How did you feel the puck management was?

A lot of these issues that maybe were happening in some of the losses didn’t look like they popped up tonight.

How did you guys control that?

I think it was pretty good.

You know, there were some there were definitely some lulls but, you know, they, they have some good players.

They can make plays, too.

I think, but for over the 60 minutes I thought it was pretty good.

Just to say, how, how good did it feel to not have to have a game de- decided in the final minute like it was the last three games ?

Yeah.

No, a little less exciting, you know?

Maybe, maybe one day we, we’ll get up enough so the, the team won’t pull the goalie, so there’s always some nerves there when, when it’s six on five.

But, yeah, definitely a little bit more in control at the end there than the past.

And tonight was a pride night.

what was important for you to have pride tape around your helmet?

Yeah.

You know, hockey’s for everyone.

You know, I just wanna do, wanted to support and, you know, the fans were, were really good.

You know, they’re showing their support and showing their support for us, too, and it was, it was a great night.

You guys are, uh-As of, as of right now, I mean, how excited, how excited are you, and how much are you looking forward to maybe the next eight games here?

Just Super, super excited.

You know, we, we don’t have a lot of off days, but I think that in a sense that might be helping us just ’cause if we can You know, we’re starting to get on a roll.

We’ve, We’re just, you know, day off tomorrow, but we’re right back at it, and then, you know, right back at it again.

So it’s, I think this, this tight schedule is, is, is really helping us for sure.

Yeah.

Important to, to get some, you know, secondary scoring, you know, here for this team, and that, you know, Mack, didn’t This is only the second time this year you guys won without Mack getting a, a point in a game.

I mean, just important for this team to show they can, they can get the job done even, even if Mack doesn’t score.

Yeah, I, I mean, you know, it’s yeah, we He’s just, does a lot for our team obviously, and he, he gets points in a lot of games as you can tell.

We’ve only won twice.

So, but yeah, I mean, no team’s gonna, you know, no team’s gonna win games without depth sc- depth scoring.

You know, even in, in playoffs you look at the teams who’ve won, you know, they have depth scoring the whole se- the whole, playoff run.

Colin, can you take us through your, your goal where Michael Mies is like a dog on a bone there?

How, how have you felt Mack chemistry’s put up with him, and how do you think it worked out on your goal there?

yeah, I think it’s been, I think it’s been good the last, or I guess the last few games that we’ve, we’ve played together.

You know, we didn’t get any results in, I guess St. Louis or Columbus, but I thought we played really well those games and, you know, they were coming and, you know, we even had more opportunities tonight, but it was nice to, as a line, to get one together.

And you mentioned the- Last one here urgency and desperation maybe that you guys needed in that losing streak.

Is that something that you guys had to learn as a team, that you guys had to up your level at this, at this time of the season?

That losing streak maybe taught you that?

For sure.

I think, you know, we have a lot of young guys, but you know, last year at this point we were done, or not obviously done, but we were out of playoffs and, you know, it was a different sorta mentality and that sorta thing.

And, you know, for us, we’re, we have an opportunity to do something special and, you know, do something that, that no one thought we could do at the start of the year.

So I think that that’s, that sort of common goal has, has brought us together and basically given us desperation, yeah.

Okay.

Thanks, guys.

Colin, you blocked the shot.

Just feel good to, to contribute there and, you know, at the end of the game, block the shot and still get up there at the end of the empty net scorer?

Yeah.

You know, that’s the sort of thing we gotta do here.

I think everybody knows when it’s time to, to lay a body on the line and gonna do it so, you know, it was my time.

Your, your goals the last two, I know goals have been a little hard to come by for you, but have been, you know, either spectacular with a whack or a weird bounce.

I mean, does it, does it feel good to get, you know, one that just kinda gets into something that maybe gets you on a roll here?

Yeah, for sure.

You know, I feel like, you know, it’s been a theme of my year a little bit, creating a lot of chances, but you s- can’t, can’t get the puck in, so it’s nice to get a bounce finally.

What did you see on that open net where you almost had it seems like?

Yeah, you, you saying it right there, you know?

So, yeah, you know.

Was it defender’s stick or did you go in?

It was.

It was a good, good play by him.

What do you say about, Colin Graf and just what you’ve seen, from, his growth as a player, the last couple of years?

You know, he’s been huge.

You know, obviously, coming like he did, he’s been doing really good things for, for our PK and, you know, all throughout the lineup.

He can play everywhere, so you know, he- he’s gonna be a really big piece here, and I think he’s, he’s proving that every day.

Colin talked about desperation as kinda what’s been fueling this winning streak.

Just how important is it to get these results and make that push for the playoffs?

Yeah, you know, you gotta be desperate here.

I think, you know, it’s, it’s, it’s a big stretch of game coming up here, and we gonna be really hungry.

you know, Saturday’s gonna be a hungry team coming here as well.

They wanna, wanna get to that playoff so, you know, we just wanna keep going here.

Did that losing streak kinda, teach you guys that you guys had to kinda up your level in, in March higher than it, than it had been?

Yeah, you know, I feel like throughout that losing streak too, we were doing f- good things, but also like, you know, now we’re on, on the roll here, we gotta just kinda keep going and, you know, if we feel it, we just gotta keep feeling it.

Tony, what are you, what are you learning from Alex Wennberg during this period?

Obviously, you guys get, obviously get matched up quite a bit against the other team’s top line.

What is he telling you?

What are you, what are you kinda showing you in terms of what you guys need to do against those type of, type of players?

Yeah.

He’s, he’s been doing that his whole career, I feel like, and, you know, he’s been one of the best shut down players that I’ve been playing with and, you know, he’s pretty skilled as well, so, the best way to try to shut down a, a good line is being there.

So, so it’s pretty much what we try and do.

Not that you need extra motivation for Saturday’s game against Nashville, but can you guys maybe take what happened last week into this game Saturday with a little chip on your shoulder?

Yeah, for sure.

you know, coming into our, our building now, so we, we, you know, we just gonna, you know, keep on going on this roll here and just kinda go into Saturday’s game with a lot of desperation.

You’ve been part of this rebuild for a long time and have been kinda waiting for these games.

Now that you’re in them, how good does it feel to be in them and not just, you know, competing, but winning these games as, as handedly as you won tonight?

Yeah, you know, you know, I’ve been, been saying that before.

It’s, it’s been I was sick of losing and then now we’re winning and it, it feels really good.

you know, it goes into your, to your, to your off days as well.

You, you feel a lot better about yourself and, you know, we, we just gonna try and keep doing that and I think we could be a real successful team.

How’d you guys feel you managed maybe some of the- A couple more you know, puck possession tonight?

Just looked like, you know, some of the problems earlier in the year with the puck management really didn’t crop up tonight.

How’d you guys feel you, you managed that tonight?

really good.

As you say, I think, you know, obviously there’s gonna be some areas that we gotta clean up, but other than that, I feel like we did a lot of good things out there, controlling the, the pace a little bit and, you know, obviously getting that win, it’s, it’s nice.Yeah.

Thanks, Aki.

Thank you.

number one for face-off percentage in the league.

how do you feel about how your team did tonight winning majority of those?

Yeah, I thought we did a good job in the face-off circle.

I think when we won ’em, we had a better plan, and we executed better than last night, so that was a big I was obviously disgusted this morning.

so that was a big plus to see us improve on our exit plans.

Lately, Celgren and Smith obviously have been, you know, going off, but tonight, the rest of your lines were able to contribute.

How do you- Yeah their production?

Yeah.

It’s something we talked about, right?

We, we need, we need guys to, to, you know, contribute in other a lot of different areas, and you know, obviously Graff scores one.

Meese makes a nice play on that one.

Aki’s getting the big goal there.

you know, God’s at the end of the game.

So, you know, Chucky’s to, to start the game, that line was really good.

So, the more we get more guys we got going, the more guy contributing is gonna help our group in the long term.

What else can you say about Ostafchuk’s performance so far?

I mean, he just gets better and better.

you know, he’s a big man that can skate.

The play he makes at the end of the game, probably not a lot of people notice, but he goes through that guy on the wall, wins the puck on the wall, ices the game.

did a really good job tonight in the face-off circle.

Knows what to do i-in critical situations throughout the game.

He’s learned a lot.

His pace, yeah, I mean, I can’t say enough about the kid.

He’s played some really good hockey for us.

coach, your players said, said that it was desperation.

Would you agree on that, or would you or, or would you say a different adjective?

Of course, desperation, I would say something else.

Well, this time of year you have to play with de- you know, a hard, you know, high level of desperation, you know?

And I thought at times we did a good job of that tonight.

You know, at times we got a little bit loose in, in the second, you know, second half, that second period, and at times through the third.

But, again, this time of year, you gotta take the two points.

We’ll learn from it.

We’ll move on.

We’ll have a good meeting on Saturday morning and get ready for the, you know, arguably the biggest game of the year.

tonight, you know, talking about maybe, the moments where you guys had lulls and recognizing that you got the two points, but what could be better to kind of put this game away sooner?

just managing the pucks and through the neutral zone would, would be one, and, and, and having a, an awareness of you know, we play back to back.

We wanna get four lines rolling.

We wanna have short shifts and roll ’em over and, there’s just moments, you know, when we get stuck out there and, and longer shifts is where we get in trouble.

Was that, was that game against Columbus last week kind of a most of the power ever type of game, you know?

I think it was more of, a game that was really important for us to, to win and come home and feel good about ourselves.

Yeah.

We knew it was in there.

We’ve played some good hockey this year.

We’ve beaten some really good teams.

You know, we’ve, we’ve carried games at times and, and, and won games.

It wasn’t like we’ve been under siege and, you know, one of our goalies s-stood on his head and we won a game.

We, we’ve, we’ve played complete games a-and I think we just needed to get back to maybe getting a result to feel good about ourselves.

Mac’s obviously been unreal here these last three games.

Important for the group to, to show it can, it can win even though he doesn’t, you know, score.

Yeah, for sure.

It’s gotta take a group effort if we’re gonna do this thing.

It’s all about the team, and, Mac would be the first one that said, would say that as well.

Do you feel like the goaltending is settling into a good rhythm, both Aski and Ned right now?

They just both kinda seem to have settled down.

No, no weak ones the last few games here.

Yeah.

you know, both of them, really good performances these last two and, you know, I think they’ve stepped it up another level as well as far as, you know, we’re playing pretty much every other day to get their rest, get the recovery.

We’re gonna need both of them.

When you look at just the puck management, look like tonight there were some areas where you guys could still improve, but overall, especially in the third, just looked like there’s no real big turnovers.

There’s no high danger turns.

Yeah.

How’d you feel the team managed it tonight?

I thought once Ned made that big save there and, you know, the glove saves on the backside, our group kinda figured out how we needed to play in the next, you know, seven and a half minutes.

So, again, that was a big l- you know, learning moment that we’ll learn from and, and we’ll get better from.

there’s a few moments in between then and, before then that we need to, need to clean up.

Colin Graff reached 20 goals.

What can you say about him?

Yeah.

Had a hell of a year so far and, again, move him all over the place, left wing, right wing.

With Mac, now, now with Meese, you know, he just does his thing.

He’s a good pro.

he’s earned a lot of trust in the coaching staff in a lot of different situations.

Speaking of Colin, um- Take a few more here he had mentioned that, you know, if you had asked him, you know, whatever, before the season about him hitting 20 goals, he probably had said, “No, I don’t think I’m gonna do that.”

So what can you say specifically about just his goal scoring this year and, you know, has it been surprising or what elements have you seen that have helped him, get to 20 here?

Well, he, you know, he’s it’s not like he didn’t score in college.

He, he was a top player in, in the NCAA and, and he, you know, we saw that and, and Mike and, and the scouts saw that, and that’s why we, we signed him.

So, you know, I think he’s a guy that had it in him, there just needed to be a little bit tweaking of where to go and to score in the National Hockey League.

It’s difficult.

you gotta find but he-he’s got a really h-high hockey sense a-and he picks things up really quickly, and I think that’s kinda what has helped him, you know, put the puck in the back of the net.

You know, you talked a lot about the fourth line for that first goal, where he wins the face-off, Dvorak wraps around the board, neutral zone, gets a pass back, and scores.

It seemed like everybody contributed, and all that happened so smoothly.

Yeah.

I, I mean, that’s what it’s all about.

You, you know, everyone on the same page and being predictable and know where pucks are going.

That’s when you can play fast a-and that line did a really good job.

I mean, we use, we use them in all different situations.

You know, they shut down the Tavares line, big D-zone face-offs.

you know, they earned their ice tonight.

And what about the penalty kill tonight?

I mean, they had a-almost more better chances, you know, than the Leafs did on their power play other than the score.

Yeah.

We really don’t wanna get scored on the penalty kill.

Yeah.

So, again, there’s, you know, a read there we can make it a little bit better.

Mm-hmm.

but, you know, our PK has been pretty good here lately.

I just wanna get one more in about the goaltending.

Do you see it as you’ve got, like, a number one guy right now, or is it sort of you’re gonna play the hot hand or kind of alternate?

How do you view this situation between the two?

Yeah, I think they com-complement each other really well and, and they both have, Ned has given us some really good games here as of late.

Aski’s coming off a really good game.

We play a lot of hockey.

Yeah, a lot of hockey coming, a lot of, you know We still have two more back to back.

So again, we’ll, we’ll go through it and, and look at it and, and then we’ll go from there.

You guys are in the- Last one second wildcard spot as, as of right now, I’d imagine that- Oh, really?

if someone had told you that, in August or September that eight games last week you’re in a playoff spot, what would you say?

Yeah.

Oh, man.

we would take it.

We would take it and, and focus on where we are right now.

And there’s nothing we can do with You know, just What I’ll say is the group in there believes in it, and we can write about it, and we can talk about it all we want, but when someone believes in something and they believe in each other, that-that’s when you make moves, and that’s when you make, strides, and that’s where you see a lot of success come from.

And that group is extremely coachable.

They’re, they’re great, great human beings.

they’re, they’re great guys of high character, and they care about one another, and I think that’s what’s so powerful about that.

So, you know, I can’t look back.

I’m not gonna look forward.

We’re gonna just gonna be right where our feet are.

Okay.

Thanks.

Thank you, guys.

Ryan Warsofsky, Sharks break down San Jose’s 4-1 win vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

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