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Tyler Toffoli To Return Against Predators; Duehr To Make Team Debut; Sharks Line Combinations

max miller
·2 min read

The San Jose Sharks are getting their leading goal scorer back in the lineup against the Nashville Predators on Thursday.

Tyler Toffoli will return to the Sharks lineup and play with his customary linemates, Macklin Celebrini and William Eklund. The winger leads the team in goals with 17 and missed the last three games with a lower-body injury that he suffered during a morning skate on Jan. 16 before the team's 4-1 loss to the New York Islanders.

"We were fortunate that [it] didn't linger longer, and to get him back is important," Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said. "[He's] important [because] he's a guy that knows how to play with a puck on the wall. He knows how to take pressure away when those situations come up. He's a veteran guy that's won a Stanley Cup. He's important for this group."

Walker Duehr will make his San Jose Sharks team debut after he was claimed off NHL Waivers from the Calgary Flames on Wednesday.

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Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky said he faced Duehr while coaching in the AHL and loved his game then.

"[He brings] some size [and] some speed. [He is a] north-south type of hockey player," Warsofsky said. "I coached against him when he was in Stockton when we were in the conference finals. I thought he was a really effective player in that series. [I] remember him really getting under a guys' skin and playing a heavy type of hockey, and that's what I need him to bring here."

Duehr told reporters he was excited for a fresh opportunity in San Jose.

"I'm really excited for the opportunity. I think they have a good group of guys here," Duehr said.

The Sharks will deploy Deuhr in a third-line role with Alexander Wennberg and Nikolai Kovalenko.

Yaroslav Askarov will start against the team that drafted him for the first time in his NHL career.

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