San Jose Sharks have captain Logan Couture present in their locker room, but miss him on the ice. The Sharks have tried their best to hold their own this season, but have come up short more times than they would like. Multiple players on the ice embody the term “leader”, yet there is not a single one who is deemed as the captain.
San Jose Struggling to Keep Their Motivation Going Without a Leader Present
With 51 games played this season, the Sharks are 14-31-6 and sitting last in the Pacific Division. They have been without their captain since January 31, 2024, and even then he was limited to six games. His presence off the ice is felt, but more importantly, there is no set leadership on the ice. The team is struggling to find a win, what they need is a captain on the ice to provide leadership throughout their games.
Couture has been dealing with a severe groin injury which has kept him from playing. He was given the title of “Captain” in 2019-2020 and has kept the title, despite his absence. Couture has been working hard with the Sharks training staff to rehab and work on getting better. He has been present during the Sharks games and has made himself available to his teammates and rookies.
Warsofsky says there hasn’t been much progress on Couture’s injury, though he stopped short of ruling him out for the season.
Says Couture still attends every home game & #SJSharks coaching staff consults w/ him all the time.
Says he often sees Smith & Celebrini w/ Couture at…
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) January 6, 2025
Regardless of his presence in the arena and around the team, Couture is nowhere close to making it back to the ice. It is speculated that this will be his last season in the league, which leaves the question of, why not crown a new captain this season?
Sharks in Dire Need of a Captain to Lead During Games
A captain is someone that the fans all know, someone who represents the club and someone who encourages the players. Without a captain present during games, there is a lack of stability, something that is noticeable throughout their record this season alone.
The Sharks have struggled to remain consistent this season and have failed to play a full 60 minutes. They either play the first two periods or don’t wake up until the third. This was noticeable in the two recent games against the Nashville Predators.
On January 21st, the Sharks ended their road trip in Nashville. They dominated the first period, but struggled during the second and third periods, losing 7-5. They gave up and lost their sense of drive to win or hold the lead.
On January 23rd, the Predators visited San Jose. The Predators dominated the first period, however, the Sharks woke up in the second and third periods to bring the score 6-5, but once again lost. Their consistency in playing a full three periods is hit-and-miss and unacceptable.
Without a captain on the ice, the team has fallen apart, there is no motivation and a lack of direction. Right now San Jose has seemed to let the 18-year-old rookie, Macklin Celebrini be their driving force.
Warsofsky, on the energy that the Celebrini line provided at times: “We shouldn’t need to have an 18-year-old be our energy line. We need him and the rest of our guys to be energy lines. We need to play with energy every single time we’re on the ice.”
— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) January 8, 2025
Sharks Have Dynamic Alternate Captains Who Embody the Term “Leader”.
San Jose has five alternate captains who have helped their team grow and develop despite their losses. Mario Ferraro, Barclay Goodrow, Mikael Granlund, Luke Kunin and Tyler Toffoli proudly sport the “A” on their chests each game. They bring different forms of leadership to their gameplay and practices and have taken the rookies under their wings.
If the Sharks were to name an alternate captains as their sole leader, it could improve the team dynamic during games would improve and lead to winning games.
Main Photo: Thomas Salus- Imagn Images
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