SAN JOSE – The Sharks placed Mario Ferraro on injured reserve Saturday, meaning the energetic, heavy-minute defenseman will have to miss at least the next three games just as the team is trying to pull out its most recent funk.
The nature of Ferraro’s injury or when it might have taken place was not immediately clear. Ferraro did not practice Saturday but he played over 21 minutes in the Sharks’ 5-2 home loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Friday.
The Sharks close out their two-game homestand on Sunday against the Vancouver Canucks, then begin a four-game road trip next week with stops in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, and Buffalo.
Ferraro will miss the games against the Canadiens on Tuesday and the Maple Leafs on Wednesday but would be eligible to return for the Sharks’ Dec. 3 game against the Senators. San Jose then closes its road trip Sunday against the Sabres.
The Sharks presently have six other defensemen on their active roster and it would appear, barring a recall from the AHL, that Nick Cicek would take Ferraro’s spot in the lineup for Sunday’s game.
Cicek has played in five games for the Sharks this season, all earlier this month as Radim Simek recovered from a mild concussion. Cicek averaged 15:16 per outing and mostly earned positive reviews.
The Sharks had just six defensemen on their active roster earlier this month but might want to carry a seventh defenseman with them for at least the first half of their upcoming road trip as insurance against another injury.
Ferraro has played in all 23 Sharks games this season and is averaging 22:49 in ice time per outing, second only to Erik Karlsson among all skaters (25:15), Ferraro has one goal and four assists this season and is the team’s leader in shorthanded time on ice, with an average of 2:38 per game.
The Sharks are already without defensemen Nikolai Knyzhov (Achilles) and Markus Nutivaara (lower body), who are both out long-term.
Ferraro had to miss 19 games last season as he was placed in COVID-19 protocol in late December, needed dental surgery in late January, and needed surgery again the following month after he suffered a fractured lower left fibula. The Sharks’ record in those games was 7-10-2.
Friday’s loss to the Kings was the Sharks’ fourth in five games as they remain mired in seventh place in the Pacific Division with a 7-13-3 record.
Forward Nico Sturm skated again Saturday and is eligible to come off IR on Sunday. Sturm has been recovering from an upper-body injury he suffered in a Nov. 19 game against the Rangers as he was checked hard into the boards by New York forward Ryan Carpenter.