Zack Ostapchuk is happy to sign a long-term deal with the San Jose Sharks.<\/p>\n
The 23-year-old RFA inked a four-year, $9.4 million contract ($2.35 million AAV) on Saturday.<\/p>\n
The 6-foot-4 center doesn\u2019t have big plans yet for his first big contract.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got to take my workout group out for breakfast. That\u2019s about it,\u201d he laughed. \u201cGuys I\u2019ve grown up with, couple guys play NCAA, a couple guys in the AHL, there\u2019s eight of us, so I\u2019m gonna have to do that tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
The San Jose Sharks\u2019 fourth-line center chatted about why he was excited to sign a longer contract, what he\u2019s working on to get better over the summer, and skating with Sharks first-round pick Keaton Verhoeff.<\/p>\n
Zack Ostapchuk, on why he wanted to sign a long-term deal with the San Jose Sharks:<\/p>\n
It\u2019s just an exciting time to be here, and I just kind of wanted to be around as long as I can, so when a four-year deal was offered, that\u2019s something that was really important to me. I wanted to be around here and grow with this group.<\/p>\n
Ostapchuk, on what he\u2019s looking to improve this summer:<\/p>\n
It\u2019s your typical get bigger, stronger, and faster in the gym. On the ice, there\u2019s been a lot of net front stuff. I\u2019ve been working on my faceoffs a lot. I want to keep that going. Another big thing I\u2019m really working on is my edgework, being able to hang on to pucks and use my size down low. That\u2019s the next step of my game, being able to do more with the puck down low, drag guys around with me, and create space out there.<\/p>\n
Ostapchuk, on the San Jose Sharks\u2019 center group:<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a really good group, obviously. Mack and [Michael Misa] are still really young, they\u2019re going to be top-notch players in this league. We all get to look up to a guy like [Alex Wennberg]. He\u2019s a guy who does it at both ends of the ice. One of my favorite players to watch, honestly. I took a lot from him this year, so we all get to look up to him.<\/p>\n
Ostapchuk, on meeting Verhoeff this summer:<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve skated with Verhoeff a little bit the last [couple] weeks. He\u2019s really good. I kept telling him every time he\u2019d score a goal, that would look good in teal.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s from the Edmonton area too, I know guys that work out with him and stuff, they all have nothing but great things to say about him. He seems very respectful, hard-working, but he\u2019s a fun guy. Got him talking and stuff, and usually for a young guy, maybe that\u2019s hard, but he was all smiles on the ice, he\u2019s just having fun out there, and that\u2019s something I like a lot. <\/p>\n
He can rip the puck, we had a shooting coach come in\u2026I was out there with him, and he just kept scoring.<\/p>\n
Ostapchuk, on where the San Jose Sharks fell short last year:<\/p>\n
Maybe it\u2019s just our consistency? That five-game losing streak really, really kind of sunk our ship. We tried battling back after that. We went on a little run, but I think it\u2019s just learning lessons, right? We were a young team, we wanted it so bad, but we gotta bring it every single night, right from the drop of the puck. I think we know that now. We learned our lessons, so I think this year we\u2019re gonna come back with a little more consistency.<\/p>\n