San Jose Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer was less than forthcoming when facing the media today, but he did reveal a few interesting pieces of information as relayed by beat writer Curtis Pashelka. Among them was the fact that energy-liner Barclay Goodrow will be out more than a week. Goodrow will not be be out for a “significant amount of time”, but his upper body injury should keep him sidelined through the Sharks’ busy four-game week. Goodrow has had an odd NHL career, skating in 60 games in his rookie season in 2014-15, only to play in only 14 games and three games respectively in the past two seasons. Goodrow already has two points in six games in 2017-18, which would put him on pace for the best scoring numbers of his career should he play in 60 games again. Goodrow is a reliable fourth-liner and an ace on the face-off dot, so San Jose will be looking forward to getting him back on track as soon as possible.
- Joining Goodrow on the injury report is winger Melker Karlsson, who DeBoer states was “banged up” against the Boston Bruins on Saturday night. Karlsson is also suffering from an upper body injury and is day-to-day. However, unlike Goodrow, Karlsson is relied upon for offense in San Jose and one of the league’s lowest scoring teams and worst powerplay units can ill-afford any extended absence for the two-way forward. Karlsson too was on pace for a career high in points with three goals and three assists in 18 games, but this injury could bring him back down to the consistent low-20’s range he has shown in his first three seasons.
- Perhaps the most interesting topic discussed with DeBoer today, albeit not quite newsworthy, was whether he had considered moving Brent Burns back to forward. DeBoer answered with a resounding “no” before expanding on his perceived ridiculousness of the notion. Granted, Burns is the reigning Norris Trophy winner as the league’s best defenseman, but the idea of playing him at forward is not as ludicrous as it may seem. Burns has played a substantial amount at forward during his time in San Jose and regardless of his performance last season is nonetheless goal-less through 18 games and has just seven assists. Conversely, the big blue liner scored 75+ points in each of the past two seasons. Given the team’s overall offensive struggles, if one of the league’s top scoring defenseman continues his disappearing act, maybe DeBoer will revisit a shakeup at some point.