The San Jose Sharks got a first look at Ivar Stenberg in preseason action, and he wasted no time showing up in the details.
Stenberg’s debut came in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Vegas Golden Knights at SAP Center, where Michael Misa also scored for San Jose. The result mattered less than the stretch of play that followed, because the Sharks’ young forward looked engaged in all three zones and kept turning up in the right places.
That started early. In the first period, Stenberg had two shifts in the first three minutes and came away with three defensive stops, a strong sign of the kind of attention he was giving away from the puck.
He later picked off another play and set up Misa for a one-timer that tested Hart. Misa’s shot looked sharper than it did last season, and the chance came off a Stenberg takeaway that turned defense into offense in a hurry.
San Jose, though, opened the game looking out of sync. Pucks were missing sticks, passes were dying short, and the Sharks spent much of the first period trying to find a cleaner rhythm against a Vegas group that looked more connected early. Askarov was busy holding things together while the Golden Knights piled up chances, including a heavy edge in high-danger looks at 5-on-5.
The Sharks did start to settle in before the first intermission. Luca Cagnoni began to push the pace from the back end, and he was part of one of the night’s best looks when he found Misa for a deflection that rang off the post.
Cagnoni then came down and hammered a shot off the iron himself. By that point, San Jose’s power-play groups were also taking shape, with Cagnoni, Misa, Stenberg, Chernyshov and Wennberg on the first unit, and Pohlkamp, Orlov, Gasseau, Bystedt and Toffoli on the second.
The second period was where the Sharks really found their footing. Stenberg kept showing the right instincts, including a clean defensive read when Trouba came down for a shot.
More importantly, he kept looking composed in transition and around the puck. Wennberg and Cagnoni drove one of the period’s best offensive shifts, and Stenberg was right in the middle of a rush sequence that ended with Hart robbing Graf.
Cagnoni also kept surfacing as a creator, while Stenberg and Wennberg stood out as the Sharks’ most noticeable individual performers. Pohlkamp had his moments too, including a strong end-to-end push that set up Gasseau for another quality chance. Hart answered again.
Trouba, meanwhile, stood out for his passing. On his first pass, he was consistently finding teammates in stride, long or short, and the puck delivery was clean when he wasn’t under pressure. The kind of stretch-passing touch he showed is why he ranks so high in that area.
The third period brought the game’s only two goals. San Jose finally cashed in on the power play when Misa scored, with Stenberg picking up an assist on a play that stayed simple and got pucks toward the net. Chernyshov may have deserved one too, but the bigger point was that the Sharks kept the puck moving and made something happen by keeping it direct.
Vegas answered with a Holtz goal after the Sharks failed to get the puck in deep and couldn’t fully clear the zone. Holtz found space and beat Askarov high.
There were still flashes from San Jose late. Huntington came through with a strong backcheck to erase what looked like a dangerous Vegas 2-on-1 after Cagnoni bobbled a puck at the offensive blue line. Gasseau also did a good job protecting the puck in front before getting it into the slot, and there was a late chance that looked like Chernyshov had Toffoli with an open net.
Overtime opened with Cagnoni, Chernyshov, Misa and Stenberg. Pohlkamp then created another look by beating his man 1-on-1 and getting a backhand on Hart.
The final note belonged to Stenberg again: tired, behind the net, he resisted the easy high pass to Orlov and instead sent the puck to the neutral zone to force a change. It was the kind of smart, low-risk read that stood out all night.
San Jose didn’t get the win, but Stenberg’s debut fit right into a preseason game that gave the Sharks plenty to like.
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