The San Jose Sharks won the game on Monday in San Jose against the Pittsburg Penguins, ending their eight-game losing streak. While recording a win is nice, the Sharks fell again to the Seattle Kraken last night in Washington. As the Sharks seem to continue to defend the team’s position at the bottom of the Pacific Division, it comes down to two things: What is working? And what isn’t?
Mikael Granlund and the members of the “70’s Line” (Macklin Celebrini, Tyler Toffoli, and William Eklund) are prime examples of what continues to work on this team.
Granlund, for example, received a secondary assist on Carl Grundstrom’s goal in the last three minutes of the first period. Granlund stopped the clearing attempt by the Kraken along the boards and disrupted the play enough to allow Grundstrom to execute a give and go with Will Smith. While Grundstrom’s return pass to Smith deflected off of a Seattle skate and into the net, it’s a goal the Sharks will take.
Granlund and Smith have been making statements in recent games with their famed “Granny-Smith” duo, making some nice tight assists and goals.
With the game tied at one thanks to the Grundstrom goal, the Sharks happily took a 1-1 game into the locker room after the first period.
But the Sharks were outscored 4-0 in the second period and by the time that 70’s line made an appearance, it was too little too late.
In the third, Toffoli got a clean pass from Celebrini with 11:54 left in the game, the result of a very impressive shift from the coveted 70’s line yet again. The group had a well-deserved game-winning goal on Monday against the Penguins, and they continued to shine last night.
The 70’s line was once again the Sharks’ best line on the ice. Natural Stat Trick reports that the Toffoli-Celebrini-Eklund line was the only line that was net positive in scoring chances. When on the ice, the trio created 10 scoring chances to the opponent’s 7.
Toffoli’s goal is where the scoring would end for the Sharks. Seattle added another one later in the game and the Sharks lost 6-2.
As we see here on the heat map from Natural Stat Trick, the Sharks were only successful with shots from one angle, something the team might want to take note of as they prepare for the final matchup of the season against the Kraken on April 5.

Until then, the Sharks are facing some hard losses this season, and they keep searching for answers.
Smith and Celebrini progress
While the Sharks, as a team, struggle to find a solution, certain individuals show strong advances to become a solid foundation for the team. Smith was on and off for the Sharks in the first half of the season, leading to questions about whether he would be sent to the AHL. Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky put those rumors to rest and assured fans Smith would stay in the NHL and be developed.
Smith is now on a six-game-point game-point streak, showing he is starting to pick it up and be a leader on this team.
Celebrini continues in the Calder Trophy race, making himself a great candidate. He currently holds a top-three spot on the Sharks for goals, right behind Toffoli and Granlund, making it clear he is now a leader on this team.
Celebrini’s assist on the Toffoli goal also puts him at 37 points in 42 games. He’s two points behind former Boston University teammate Lane Hutson of the Montreal Canadiens. Celebrini leads all Calder contenders in points per game.
The result of last night’s game in Seattle left a lot of unanswered questions on what the root of the issue is. Even following some trades, the Sharks still have trouble finding the team’s defense and overall strength as a group. Do they need to make more sacrifices or will change only be possible with another number one pick?
The Sharks return to San Jose on Tuesday.
Thrun drops the gloves
The game took a pause when Vince Dunn and Henry Thrun had a tilt over a shove on Brandon Montour by Luke Kunin.
While the fight was certainly entertaining, it did not change the fact that some things needed to change to get the Sharks back on their feet. At that point in the game, the Sharks had allowed a 1-1 game to become a 4-1 game in favor of the Kraken. With three goals allowed in the first six minutes of the second period, the Sharks were on their heels.
Scoring summary San Jose Sharks at Seattle Kraken Jan. 30, 2025
First Period
3:55 SEA Chandler Stephenson from Oliver Bjorkstrand and Eeli Tolvanen
17:55 SJS Carl Grundstrom from Will Smith and Mikael Granlund
Second Period
2:03 SEA Oliver Bjorkstrand from Chandler Stephenson and Vince Dunn
2:54 SEA Brandon Montour from Shane Wright
5:58 SEA Jaden Schwartz from Jamie Oleksiak
7:52 SEA Brandon Montour from Jared McCann and Chandler Stephenson on the power play
Third Period
8:06 SJS Tyler Toffoli From Macklin Celebrini and Henry Thrun
12:18 SEA Eeli Tolvanen from Joshua Mahura