The Sharks Sterility Stare (Redux) continues this weekend with another check in on everyone’s favorite NHL hockey mascot. Come on, nothing is more frightening than the shark: admit it. But right now, there is very little bite behind the San Jose hockey team, yet there is a ray of hope, as always. Check it out, folks:

San Jose current record for 2024-2025: 3-8-2 (.308)
Sharks projected record for 82 games this season: 24-56-2 (.305)
NHL record for worst season in 82-game history: 14-57-11 (.238)

There you have it (for now). The Sharks actually won three straight games since our last entry in this series, not only shaking the specter of no wins yet this year—but giving the illusion they belong in the league again. It started with a comeback win on the road in Utah against “the Hockey Club” where San Jose was down 4-1 entering the third period before scoring three goals to force overtime and then winning it in OT.

The exact opposite of what happened to them on Opening Night. They have learned, folks; they have learned.

And for longtime fans of the Sharks, that’s a good sign for a squad so young. They followed up the comeback road victory with two wins at home over teams that hurt them in the 2010s playoff era: the Los Angeles Kings and the Chicago Blackhawks. Not that anyone remembers 2010 or 2014 anymore, but it was two more good signs the team isn’t going to be as bad as the winless start suggested. And that’s relief for the Bay Area.

We’ve had our AFL (1967) and NFL titles (1976, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1988-1989, 1994) here already, for sure; we’ve had plenty of World Series wins (1972-1974, 1989, 2010, 2012, 2014); we even have had some NBA successes (1975, 2015, 2017-2018, 2022), too. But the Stanley Cup is the one thing that has escaped the grasp of San Francisco Bay Area sports fans—and it will continue to do so for some time. But it’s the only thing left now.

For a Bay Area sports fan to die happy, they will need an NHL title for the Sharks. The good news is that No. 1 overall pick Macklin Celebrini is still out with an injury, so hopefully the San Jose roster will be ready to go for him when he returns. The team also can look forward to the eventual arrival of defenseman Sam Dickinson to the big-league club, the No. 10 overall pick in the last draft. Celebrini and Dickinson, forever!

Well, someday soon, at least … Sharks fans know how to dream big; they’ve been doing it for a long time.