The Latest: Sharks back at practice, play Sat night vs Blues
San Jose Sharks defenseman Brent Burns, center, celebrates with teammates Patrick Marleau (12) and Mario Ferraro (38) after scoring a goal against Minnesota Wild during the first period of an NHL hockey game in San Jose, Calif., Monday, Feb. 22, 2021. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___The San Jose Sharks have returned to practice and are set to play the St. Louis Blues as scheduled on Saturday night after having one game postponed because a player tested positive for the coronavirus. Tomas Hertl was placed on the COVID-19 list on Wednesday, leading to the team canceling practice that day and postponing Thursday’s game against Vegas. With no other players or staff testing positive since then, the Sharks were allowed to return to practice Friday and will host St. Louis the next night. ___The Atlantic Coast Conference will expand use of KINEXON SafeTag contact tracing devices by equipping players, coaches and Tier 1 personnel for its upcoming men’s and women’s basketball tournaments.
'Sloppy' hockey is the name of the game early in NHL season
San Jose's Erik Karlsson (65) handles the puck against Minnesota Wild's Nick Bjugstad (27) in the third period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, Jan. 24, 2021, in St. Paul, Minn. San Jose won 5-3. (AP Photo/Stacy Bengs)With an outbreak delaying the Dallas Stars' opener, Rick Bowness got to watch a lot of hockey in the first couple of nights of the NHL season. “It was entertaining hockey, but it was a little sloppy,” Bowness said. “We’re staying in 5-star hotels, get to play hockey, so I can’t complain,” defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic said. Ad___Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Sharks look to make most of extended road trip
FILE - In this Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, file photo, San Jose Sharks' Erik Karlsson, of Sweden, skates during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the St. Louis Blues in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)A disappointing 2019-20 season kept the San Jose Sharks out of the NHL bubble when the season restarted following the long break for the coronavirus. The Sharks are set to open the season on an eight-game road trip before their first two scheduled home games Feb. 1 and 3 against Vegas. San Jose has six of eight games on the road after the opening two home games, hosting Anaheim on Feb. 13 and 15. The Sharks then come back home Feb. 26 and are scheduled to play 24 of their last 38 games in San Jose.
Sharks retain Bob Boughner as coach, removing interim tag
Sharks general manager Doug Wilson formally retained Boughner as San Jose's coach Tuesday, removing the interim tag to make him the ninth full-time head coach in franchise history. He’s very open-minded in looking to find solutions.”Boughner also hired Rocky Thompson as his associate coach and John Madden as an assistant coach. Mike Ricci, the former Sharks forward who became an assistant under Boughner, will be an NHL development coach. Thompson succeeded Boughner as the head coach at Windsor in 2015, and he won the Memorial Cup in 2017. He spent the past three seasons as head coach of the AHL's Cleveland Monsters, Columbus' top affiliate.