Defenseman Jan Rutta will return to the lineup on Friday night when the San Jose Sharks face the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place, looking to end a seven-game losing streak.
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San Jose Sharks’ Marc-Edouard Vlasic nominated for award Rutta has been practicing in recent days, but last played on Jan. 23 when the Sharks faced the Nashville Predators and has missed the last 27 games with a lower-body injury.
Rutta, who was on injured reserve, returns two days after defenseman Mario Ferraro sustained a broken foot in the Sharks’ 8-7 overtime loss to the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday. Ferraro blocked a Matt Boldy shot late in the second period as he stood near the Sharks’ net.
Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said Friday morning that his defense pairings for the game, San Jose’s fourth-to-last this season, had not yet been finalized. This season, Rutta, playing mainly in a third-pair role, has eight points in 51 games, averaging 17 minutes in ice time.
Goalie Georgi Romanov, still looking for his first NHL win, is slated to start Friday’s game. Romanov faced the Oilers on April 3 and made 35 saves in a 3-2 Sharks loss. For the season, Romanov is 0-4-0 with an .873 save percentage.
The Oilers have lost two of their last three games and entered Friday in third place in the Pacific Division with 95 points, four points behind second-place Los Angeles. Both the Oilers and the Kings have four games remaining.
The Sharks enter Friday five points behind the Chicago Blackhawks for 31st place in the NHL. To avoid finishing in 32nd and last place for the second straight season, the Sharks would need to pick up at least six points in their remaining games and have the Blackhawks lose their last three games in regulation time.
Whichever team finishes in 32nd place will have the best chance (25.5%) of winning next month’s NHL Draft Lottery. No team has finished in last place overall since the Buffalo Sabres brought up the rear in 2013-14 and 2014-15.
The Sabres still have not made the playoffs since 2011, when Sharks general manager Mike Grier, now 50 years old, was on the Buffalo roster. The Sharks have now missed the playoffs in six straight seasons.
WENNBERG UPDATE: Sharks winger Alexander Wennberg confirmed to Swedish news outlet hockeysverige.se that he will represent his home country at next month’s IIHF World Championship. The tournament is being co-hosted by Stockholm, Wennberg’s hometown, and Herning, Denmark.
Sharks winger William Eklund confirmed recently that he will also play for Sweden during the tournament. Last week, it was announced that Warsofsky would be the head coach for Team USA’s entry. The event runs from May 9-25.