One of the Sharks’ biggest problems might not be solved this season

There are a few reasons why Macklin Celebrini should be considered for the Hart Memorial Trophy this season if the Sharks somehow make the NHL playoffs for the first time since 2019. But here’s one:

When Celebrini has had at least one point in a game, the Sharks have won almost twice as often as they’ve lost. When Celebrini has been held off the scoresheet, not only have the Sharks failed to win a game so far this year, but their offense has often gone completely silent.

Such was the case again Friday as Celebrini and the Sharks’ top line were mostly held in check in a 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars. Collin Graf continued his solid play of late by scoring his fourth goal of the season in the second period, but San Jose didn’t do much otherwise in what was its fifth straight loss on the road.

Celebrini thought he had a goal in the third period as he ripped a one-timer past Stars goalie Jake Oettinger that would have cut Dallas’ lead to 3-2 with 2:20 left in regulation time. But after a coach’s challenge by the Stars, Sharks forward Philipp Kurashev was ruled to have been offside 24 seconds before the goal.

That’s five straight road losses by the Sharks, who, going into Sunday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes, are 13-7-1 this season when Celebrini has a point. When he doesn’t, they are now 0-6-2, managing only eight goals.

“We had some trouble,” winger Jeff Skinner said of Friday’s first period, when the Sharks managed just three shots on net. “Obviously, it’s a good team. There’s not a lot of space. Couldn’t really get to the inside much, and they closed the lanes up and were blocking shots.

“I thought as the game went on, we got better. We had some (power play) looks, just couldn’t find one when we needed it.”

Throughout the season, and especially on the road, Celebrini and his line have usually had to go against the opposing team’s top defense pair.

On Friday, that often meant skating against the Stars’ Miro Heiskanen, a possible Norris Trophy candidate, and Esa Lindell.

Celebrini, Will Smith and Tyler Toffoli all had one shot on goal, and when they were all on the ice together at even strength, they were out-chanced 5-1, per Natural Stat Trick.

That’s going to happen from time to time against elite teams, and the Sharks have another one on tap Sunday in Raleigh, as the Hurricanes are one of the league’s stingiest in terms of allowing even-strength scoring chances. The Sharks already know this, as they were flattened 5-1 by Carolina in San Jose on Oct. 14.

But when the Sharks play these teams, it’s incumbent now, and for years to come, that they get some secondary scoring to support the top line.

Going into Sunday’s game, the Sharks have scored 82 goals this season with Celebrini, Smith and Toffoli accounting for 33 of them, or roughly 40% of the team’s total. Going into Saturday, San Jose, now 11th in the Western Conference, is 25th in the NHL at 2.79 goals per game.

The problem for the Sharks is that their secondary scoring issues might not be solved this season. So while continuing to build out the defense corps will likely be general manager Mike Grier’s top priority next offseason, adding some scoring depth might not be far behind.

Adam Gaudette and William Eklund have seven goals each, and Philipp Kurashev has six. Gaudette and Eklund are both signed past this season, and Kurashev will be a restricted free agent.

Prospects like Michael Misa, Igor Chernyshov and Quentin Musty might not be far removed from helping the big club, but some roster holes will still likely need to be filled via trade or free agency.

For now, it’s easy to see that if Celebrini isn’t producing, the Sharks are probably not winning.

So if the Sharks can stay in the playoff picture, defy the prognosticators and get in, then Celebrini should no doubt be considered for the Hart, given to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team. Across the league, when it comes to Celebrini, there likely wouldn’t be an argument.

SHOT SUPPRESSION

The Stars’ 24 shots on goal Friday were actually the fewest that Sharks goalie Yaroslav Askarov has faced in a game that he has finished this season. It was also tied for the second-fewest San Jose has allowed all season.

Of course, the Stars, after Friday’s games, were tied for first in the NHL with a 13.3 shooting percentage.

If the Sharks can do something similar on Sunday, that would be quite an accomplishment. The Hurricanes are second in the NHL in average shots per game (33.2).

It was unclear whether Warsofsky would start Askarov or Alex Nedeljkovic against the Hurricanes. Nedeljkovic was a second-round pick by Carolina in 2014, and played 29 games with the team from 2017 to 2021 before he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings for Jonathan Bernier and a 2021 third-round draft pick.