• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar

San Francisco Sports Today

San Francisco Sports News Continuously Updated

  • Baseball
    • A’s
    • Giants
  • Football
    • 49’ers
    • Raiders
  • Basketball
    • Kings
    • Warriers
  • Sharks
  • Earthquakes
  • Colleges
    • San Jose State
    • Stanford
    • University of California, Berkeley

Sharks Season Preview: Defense that trusts is defense that triumphs

October 14, 2021 by Fear The Fin

Erik Karlsson #65 of the San Jose Sharks and Isac Lundestrom #21 of the Anaheim Ducks go for the puck at SAP Center on October 04, 2021 in San Jose, California
Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

The chemistry on a healthy blue line means improvement is surely guaranteed.

The San Jose Sharks’ home opener is a few days away, which means it’s the perfect time to preview their defense for this upcoming season.

Once the opening night roster was dropped, we had a pretty good idea of the direction the Sharks are going in with their defense for their 2021-22 season. The mood; stalwart (and highly-paid) veterans, paired with some young talent.

The opening night roster lists Brent Burns, Mario Ferraro, Santeri Hatakka, Erik Karlsson, Jake Middleton, Radim Simek and Marc-Edouard Vlasic on the blue line.

I really like what I’ve been seeing with the Sharks’ defense throughout training camp and the preseason. Brent Burns, Erik Karlsson and Marc-Edouard Vlasic are the undeniable veterans of the Sharks defense, though that comes with a perception of being less effective. Sure, they’re not getting any younger, but the reason they’re still so highly valued is because they’re versatile and influential in their own right.

The general vibe of the Sharks exiting training camp is that there’s only one choice: be better than last year. With a reworked goaltending tandem and the influx of some young talent, there’s no reason that the Sharks’ defense can’t rebound this season.

Overall, for the returning defenders, their individual stats were poor last year, but some of that can be contributed to San Jose’s lack of confidence in their goaltending and less than stellar record.

Physicality hasn’t been a problem for the D-corps, but chemistry has cause issues in the past (notably, Burns has rotated through a cast of partners, all supposedly his perfect match). Head Coach Bob Boughner has made chemistry a priority when assembling his opening night roster, which is why there are a few younger players who are still adjusting to the NHL level, like Middleton and Hatakka. Ferraro will be expected to take another demonstrative step in his development this season as well, as the in-between rookie.

If you caught the Sharks’ final preseason game on Oct. 9, then you’ll know exactly what I mean by chemistry. That final game was a 4-0 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights, and was everything you would want to see from a team going into the regular season. The passes were crisp, the energy was high, and you could tell that they trusted each other, from goaltender to D-pairs to forward lines.

That game also gave us a preview of the Sharks defensive lines. I wouldn’t expect them to change much beyond the likely swapping of Vlasic for Middleton, due to Sharks’ coaching’s emphasis on establishing solid pairs and chemistry.

The pairs in that game were:

Ferraro — Burns
Hatakka — Karlsson
Middleton — Simek

Hatakka and Karlsson were the standout pair, with an undeniable energy on the ice. From the moment the puck hit the ice, Karlsson and Hatakka were feeding off each other. They hit big, but were integral pieces to the Sharks’ zone entries and forecheck. Karlsson ended the night with two assists. Burns and Ferraro aren’t to be missed either; Burns snagged himself the fourth goal of the night. I’m not totally sold on Middleton quite yet, and he may be an interchangeable piece with Vlasic or Simek.

The expectations are high with the Sharks defense going into this season. Yes, Martin Jones struggled in net last season, but the defense in front of him struggled first. Vlasic played 51 games for 6 points and a -8, Burns played 56 games for 29 points and a -13, Ferraro played 56 games for 17 points and a -6, Karlsson played 52 games for 22 points and a -18, and Simek played 40 games for 6 points and a -9.

There’s no denying that each of them has to improve. Burns and Karlsson can easily exceed 20 points per season again, and Ferraro is able to hit the 20-point mark too. Vlasic and Simek may not reach that level, but that isn’t necessarily their role. Middleton and Hatakka are a question mark of how offensively-minded they can (or should) be. Middleton ended the Barracuda season last year with 7 points and a +4 in 22 games, but beyond a few hits and a giveaway, he wasn’t the most impressive defender on Oct. 9.

Hatakka is exciting, because he was kind of a dark horse throughout training camp. All our eyes were focused on William Eklund and Adam Raska, but Hatakka has earned his place on this roster through sheer hard work and a maturity on the ice that makes you forget he’s only 20 years old. He slots right into the defensive lineup, and looked comfortable and in control with Karlsson. He put up 7 points in 44 games in the Finnish Liiga last year, but he has a high suspected ceiling — one the Sharks are betting on.

Overall, I’m excited about where the Sharks’ defense is ahead of opening night. It’s unchanged enough to prove that management still trusts and believes in their veterans, but has enough new talent to revitalize the line up.

The Sharks will play their first game of the regular season on Oct. 16 at SAP Center against the Winnipeg Jets. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. PT/10 p.m. ET.

Filed Under: Sharks

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Two-Way Deals: 7/1/25
  • ESPN wants the 49ers to extend this player who is far from a fan favorite
  • Who is the 49ers “safety blanket” receiver?
  • Has Brock Purdy become underrated?
  • 49ers 90-in-90: San Francisco’s second-round pick might be the Niners’ most important rookie in 2025

Categories

  • 49'ers
  • A's
  • Earthquakes
  • Giants
  • Kings
  • Raiders
  • San Jose State
  • Sharks
  • Stanford
  • Uncategorized
  • University of California, Berkeley
  • Warriers

Archives

  • July 2025
  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021

Our Partners

All Sports

  • San Francisco Chronicle
  • San Francisco Examiner
  • The Mercury News
  • 247 Sports
  • Bleacher Report
  • Forgotten 5
  • Golden Gate Sports
  • The Sports Fan Journal
  • The Spun
  • USA Today

Baseball

  • San Francisco Giants
  • Oakland A's
  • Last Word On Baseball - Oakland A's
  • Last Word On Baseball - San Francisco Giants
  • MLB Trade Rumors - A's
  • MLB Trade Rumors - Giants
  • White Cleat Beat
  • Around The Foghorn
  • Athletics Nation
  • McCovey Chronicles

Basketball

  • Golden State Warriors
  • Sacramento Kings
  • A Royal Pain
  • Amico Hoops - Kings
  • Amico Hoops - Warriors
  • Blue Man Hoop
  • Golden State Of Mind
  • Hoops Hype - Warriors
  • Hoops Hype - Kings
  • Hoops Rumors - Warriors
  • Hoops Rumors - Kings
  • Lets Go Warriors
  • Last Word On Pro Basketball - Golden State
  • Last Word On Pro Basketball - Sacramento
  • Pro Basketball Talk - Warriors
  • Pro Basketball Talk - Kings
  • Real GM - Warriors
  • Real GM - Kings
  • Sactown Royalty

Football

  • San Francisco 49ers
  • Las Vegas Raiders
  • 49ers Gab
  • Just Blog Baby
  • Last Word On Pro Football
  • NFL Trade Rumors - San Francisco 49ers
  • NFL Trade Rumors - Las Vegas Raiders
  • Niners Nation
  • Niner Noise
  • Niners Wire
  • Our Turf Football
  • Pro Football Rumors - 49ers
  • Pro Football Rumors - Raiders
  • Pro Football Talk - 49ers
  • Pro Football Talk - Raiders
  • Raiders Wire
  • Silver And Black Pride
  • Total 49ers

Hockey

  • Blades Of Teal
  • Fear The Fin
  • Last Word On Hockey
  • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Talk
  • The Hockey Writers

Soccer

  • Center Line Soccer
  • Last Word on Soccer
  • MLS Multiplex

College

  • Busting Brackets
  • California Golden Blogs
  • College Sports Madness
  • College Football News
  • Rule Of Tree
  • Saturday Blitz
  • The Daily Californian
  • The Stanford Daily
  • Zags Blog

Copyright © 2025 · Magazine Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in