SAN JOSE – The Sharks are dealing with some mixed news on the injury front but forwards Jeff Skinner and Michael Misa could be available to play on Wednesday when the Sharks host Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals.
However, Misa could also be assigned to the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda to begin a conditioning loan if he agrees.
Misa and Skinner, now on injured reserve, both took part in Tuesday’s practice at Sharks Ice, with Skinner taking reps with the second power play unit.
Skinner, 33, was injured in the first period of the Sharks’ game against the Calgary Flames on Nov. 13, and Misa, 18, was injured during the team’s morning skate on Nov. 5 before a road game against the Seattle Kraken.
The Sharks already have 23 players on their active roster and might need to assign someone to the Barracuda to clear a spot for Skinner if he’s available to play against the Capitals, who had won four straight games before Tuesday. The 40-year-old Ovechkin, the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer with 909 goals, is still the Capitals’ second-leading scorer with 25 points in 26 games.
Misa, who was taken second overall by the Sharks at the NHL Draft in June, has three points in seven NHL games this season. If Misa agrees to join the Barracuda on a short-term basis, it could work as a natural bridge to Hockey Canada’s training camp for the IIHF World Junior Championship, which begins later this month in Minnesota.
Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said he was planning to speak with general manager Mike Grier about the next step for Misa and a possible stint in the AHL, where he would be reunited with winger Igor Chernyshov, who was named the AHL’s Rookie of the Month for November when he had 10 goals and six assists.
The Barracuda hosts the Tucson Roadrunners on Friday and Saturday at Tech CU Arena. Hockey Canada will announce its World Juniors training camp roster on Dec. 8, and the team’s camp begins on Dec. 12 in Niagara Falls, Ontario.
“Obviously, coming from that league, I think it’s very beneficial to play there and have success there, and get your feet wet there and go through it,” said Warsofsky, who spent three seasons as a head coach in the AHL, winning the Calder Cup in 2021-2022 with the Chicago Wolves.
“It’s not an easy league. So we’ll come up with a game plan here in the next 24 hours and go from there.”
Misa, an Oakville, Ontario native, would be an asset to a Canadian World Junior team that is looking to win the gold medal for the first time since 2023. Misa was the Canadian Hockey League’s leading scorer last season, when he was left off Hockey Canada’s selection camp roster, with 134 points in 65 regular-season games with the Saginaw Spirit.
DESHARNAIS WEEK TO WEEK
The Sharks are now at eight healthy defensemen, as Vincent Desharnais is week-to-week with an upper-body injury that forced him out of the lineup for the last three games. Before Desharnais was examined again on Monday, there was some hope that he could return at some point during the team’s upcoming road trip that begins Friday in Dallas and ends Dec. 13 in Pittsburgh.
Desharnais, who had become a mainstay of the team’s improving penalty kill, played his most recent game on Nov. 26 when the Sharks lost 6-0 to the Colorado Avalanche. Warsofsky said Desharnais had been dealing with the injury for some time.
The 6-foot-7, 225-pound Desharnais had played in 19 of the Sharks’ last 20 games before he had to miss the team’s games against the Vancouver Canucks and Golden Knights on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
Desharnais has averaged 16:33 in ice time in 20 games this season, is third on the team with 34 blocks, and was regularly used on the Sharks’ penalty kill, which entered this week ranked 14th in the NHL at 81.1%. Entering November, the Sharks’ penalty kill ranked 30th at 63.9%.
PRACTICE REPORT
Center Alexander Wennberg did not practice on Tuesday with an upper body injury and is questionable to play on Wednesday, Warsofsky said. The injury happened during Monday’s game, a 6-3 Sharks win over the Utah Mammoth.
Winger Ryan Reaves was given a maintenance day on Tuesday and is expected to be available to play against the Capitals.