SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks activated center Nico Sturm off injured reserve Monday and made room for him on the 23-man roster by assigning defenseman Jack Thompson to the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.
The transactions mean that the Sharks currently have 14 forwards, six defensemen, and three goalies: Mackenzie Blackwood, Vitek Vanecek, and rookie Yaroslav Askarov.
Sturm’s return to the Sharks’ active roster was believed to be imminent after he showed signs of improvement last week and practiced with the team on Sunday. He also took part in the Sharks’ morning skate on Monday, when he was officially considered a game-time decision by coach Ryan Warsofsky.
The Sharks play the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night in the second game of a four-game homestand. Warsofsky did not say who his starting goalie would be.
Warsofsky said he had a few players who were “nicked up” and considered game-time decisions, although it would be a surprise not to see Sturm, a mainstay as the Sharks’ fourth-line center, play against the Kings.
Sturm, injured in the Sharks’ game earlier this month against the New York Rangers, is the Sharks’ faceoff leader by percentage and is one of the team’s leading penalty-killing forwards.
Thompson has been on the Sharks’ roster for almost the entire season and played in 13 of the team’s 23 games. His five points are third-most among all Sharks defensemen, as he’s averaged just under 16 minutes of ice time per game.
The Sharks have had three goalies on their roster since Nov. 18, when they recalled Askarov from the Barracuda. At the time, Vanecek was considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury, but Vanecek backed up Blackwood on Saturday in the Sharks’ 4-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres.
Askarov made his Sharks debut on Thursday, making 29 saves in a 3-2 shootout loss to the St. Louis Blues.
It’s unclear how long the Sharks plan to keep three goalies on their active roster.
Both Blackwood and Vanecek are pending unrestricted free agents, and speculation is that one could be dealt to another team before the NHL trade deadline on March 7.
Kevin Weekes of ESPN and the NHL Network posted on the social media platform X on Monday that the Carolina Hurricanes “are exploring potential goalie options in the market.” Frederik Andersen is out eight to 12 weeks after knee surgery, and Pyotr Kochetkov left Saturday’s game at Columbus after colliding with defenseman Sean Walker. Kochetkov is now in concussion protocol.
