Ryan Lin is still settling into his first San Jose Sharks development camp, but one part of the transition has been easy: he already knows the guy sharing the room with him.
Lin and fellow prospect Colton Roberts were teammates with the Vancouver Giants for a season, and they also train together in the summers back in British Columbia. That familiarity has made the first few days smoother for Lin, the 5-foot-11 right-handed defenseman who the Sharks took at No. 21.
“We’re good friends, so it’s nice,” Lin said. “I didn’t see him during the season because he’s in Colorado, so it’s nice to see him again.”
Roberts, a 2024 fifth-round pick, has been helping show Lin the ropes at camp. And while Lin is new to the organization, he’s already made an impression on San Jose Barracuda head coach John McCarthy.
“I thought Lin was competitive as well,” McCarthy said. “I liked that he was working inside on loose pucks. You could see why they were selected where they were.”
Lin has also had a memorable reunion with Adam Gaudette, and the connection goes back seven years. When Gaudette was with Vancouver, he came to one of Lin’s youth practices in British Columbia and held a shootout contest. The prize was Gaudette’s stick, and Lin won it.
“There’s so many little storylines. I’m not even sure how exactly I met him, but I think he was friends with one of my teammates’ dads when I was 10, 11 years old.
When he was playing for Vancouver he came up to one of our practices, and we had a shootout competition at the end, and whoever won, he gave them their stick. I won, so I have Adam Gaudette’s stick in my house still.
It’s a pretty cool story, now that he’s here too.”
He added, “He sent a text to one of our guys, and that was pretty cool. Kind of a full circle moment, and I guess he knows me now.”
Lin even has a framed photo with Gaudette at home, though he never imagined the two would end up in the same organization.
“I framed the picture with me and him, so I didn’t really think that we could be teammates one day, hopefully.”
As for whether Gaudette might get that old stick back, Lin left the door open.
“I might give his back if he wants it. I don’t know. I haven’t seen him yet, but hoping to meet him soon.”
The draft itself has been a whirlwind for Lin, who said the last several days have brought a mix of nerves and excitement after San Jose moved up six spots to get him.
“It feels good. I’m not going to lie, they obviously used a lot to jump up those six picks and get me.
But I feel like I can show them that I deserved that pick. They did use a lot, so I’m going to try to prove them right.”
“The last five days for me have been pretty overwhelming. It was stressful for a bit, but now it’s just pure excitement. This organization is going up rapidly, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Lin also talked about the player he followed most closely growing up in British Columbia: Quinn Hughes.
“I was a Canucks fan. I really liked Quinn Hughes when he was there.
He’s one of the best defenders in the league, and anything I could pick from his game. I’d watch all 82 Canucks games being a fan.
So I watched him a lot, and really liked him.”
At camp, Lin said he’s already picking up details from development coach Luca Sbisa, whom he just met a few days ago.
“On the ice today, Luca Sbisa (Development Coach). I just met him a few days ago, but I’m already learning a lot of stuff from him. Obviously he had a long NHL career, so I’m excited to learn more from him too.”
He also noted the value of being around a Sharks staff that includes Patrick Marleau, Joe Thornton and other veterans with long NHL resumes.
“The staff they have here in San Jose, they have countless NHL games under their belts. So it’s a special place to get drafted to, and to have all these resources available, and all these people who want to help me get better as much as I do, it’s nice.”
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