SAN JOSE — Amid every part that occurred this weekend earlier than the San Jose Sharks raised No. 19 to the rafters at SAP Heart, one factor struck Ryan Warsofsky about these standout groups that Joe Thornton led years in the past.
“What I see with the alumni and the guys that came back is how much they care for each other, and that’s what we’re trying to do in there,” Warsofsky mentioned Saturday evening, wanting within the course of the Sharks’ locker room.
“The (Joe) Pavelskis, the Douglas Murrays, Patty Marleaus, that group of players, they cared about each other, and that’s what we need here. And this next generation that’s coming, we need to care about each other, and that’s why that team and those teams that Jumbo was on had so much success.”
Macklin Celebrini additionally famous how a lot love these Sharks groups and their followers had for one another.
“I think that was pretty special, how many people came out to support him,” Celebrini mentioned of Thornton. “That just shows how important he was to the fan base and to this franchise, and the impact he made on those people.”
It would take a while for the Sharks to start having fun with that very same kind of chemistry and stability these Thornton/Pavelski/Marleau-era groups had.
In spite of everything, the rebuilding Sharks will seemingly endure vital roster modifications over the following a number of months, with the commerce deadline in March and eight gamers set to turn into unrestricted free brokers subsequent summer time.
‘I think we’ve made strides. We have now a detailed group,” Warsofsky mentioned. “I think we’ve made strides. But again, to have that level of success is a good care that comes with that, and we’re not there yet.”
It would take simply as lengthy for these Sharks to turn into playoff contenders, notably Stanley Cup contenders.
The Sharks’ 4-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday evening was their sixth in seven video games, because the momentum they created just a few weeks in the past – with 5 wins in seven video games – has began to dissipate.
Main 2-1, the Sharks allowed an even-strength aim to Dylan Cozens on the 2:07 mark, and an unassisted shorthanded aim to Alex Tuch simply 3:20 later.
Rasmus Dahlin added an empty web aim with lower than a second left to seal a irritating loss for the Sharks, who desperately needed to win on the evening Thornton was given the final word particular person honor.
“It was awesome to see all the videos. I thought his speech was amazing,” mentioned Barclay Goodrow, one of many few remaining Sharks gamers who had been teammates with Thornton. “Obviously, you can see the amount of guys he’s had an impact on, not only on the ice, but off the ice. Personally, he was great for me. Big impact on my career, just teaching me what it takes to stick around at this level.
“It was just overall a great, great ceremony. Would have been even better to get the win tonight for him.”
There’s just one Joe Thornton, however Warsofsky is assured Celebrini can emulate ‘Jumbo’ in some respects as he positive aspects extra expertise.
Similar to Thornton, Celebrini’s drive, competitiveness and want to be nice set him aside at each stage so far.
Celebrini might be a bit of method off earlier than he begins to put on a letter for the Sharks, nevertheless it appears to be a secure guess that he’ll be the crew’s captain sooner or later. When that occurs, he’ll need to begin to take cost of the room, holding guys accountable whereas additionally ensuring the crew’s tradition is the place it must be – identical to Thornton did.
Celebrini lives at Thornton’s home, so it stands to cause that he’s taking in as a lot as he can from the Sharks and NHL legend.
“Macklin’s got god-given leadership qualities. He’ll be a really good leader, and when the time is right,” Warsofsky mentioned. “No days off, like (Thornton) said. He worked on his craft, worked on his body, he worked on his mental game. All the things that go into being really, really good, one of the best of all time, the greats do something a little bit different.
“Tom Brady, Tiger Woods, Joe Thornton, they’re driven by something that’s inside themselves, and that’s what great athletes do. Macklin’s starting to see that a little bit, I’m sure, and Will (Smith), living with (Marleau), So we’re very fortunate both players care deeply about trying to help our team.”
Like everybody else in attendance Saturday, Celebrini was blown away by what he noticed and definitely hopes his No. 71 can be a part of Thornton’s No. 19 sometime as properly.
“I mean, isn’t that every kid that’s watching, especially watching that,” Celebrini mentioned. “I’d bet if you asked every kid in the stands today, if they played hockey and loved it, that’s where they would want to be at the end of it.
“There’s a reason why it’s so special. It’s incredibly hard to do. The way (Thornton) did it was incredible, the amount of games he played, the highlights that they were showing is … like a dream one day.”
