Sharks Locker Room: KISS

ANAHEIM — When you’re losing, no one wants to talk about the lessons learned. The San Jose Sharks may have received a different lesson than usual though, after a 6-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday. This comes on the heels of a 5-2 defeat to the Edmonton Oilers the night before, losses which put San Jose’s playoff hopes on life support.

The lessons learned may be the only positive takeaway from all this losing. The Sharks are now four points out of the last wild card spot in the West, held by the Los Angeles Kings, four games left, no games in hand on the Kings, three teams to leapfrog. The different lesson tonight?

San Jose, curiously, has come out flat in back-to-back nights, in the biggest games of the season. Whatever the reason, pressure, fatigue, line-up decisions, youth, you name it, there’s a better way to handle a lack of energy to start a game, which is a fairly normal thing, especially in the second half of a back-to-back in an 82-game season. “Everybody has these games this season, because the way the schedule is, no excuses,” 2018 Stanley Cup winner Dmitry Orlov said.

“You have to still show up. You don’t feel great, but play short shifts, play simple and then during the game, you’re still gonna get to your game. Get a feel.