1991–92 San Jose Sharks season

The 1991–92 San Jose Sharks season was the Sharks' inaugural season. They finished in sixth place in the Smythe Division with a record of 17 wins, 58 losses, and 5 ties for 39 points. Goaltender Jeff Hackett was named team MVP.

1991–92 San Jose Sharks
Division	6th Smythe
Conference	11th Campbell
1991–92 record	17–58–5
Home record	14–23–3
Road record	3–35–2
Goals for	219
Goals against	359
Team information
General manager	Jack Ferreira
Coach	George Kingston
Captain	Doug Wilson
Alternate captains	Kelly Kisio Neil Wilkinson
Arena	Cow Palace
Average attendance	10,888
Minor league affiliate(s)	Kansas City Blades
Team leaders
Goals	Pat Falloon (25)
Assists	Pat Falloon (34)
Points	Pat Falloon (59)
Penalty minutes	Link Gaetz (326)
Plus/minus	J. F. Quintin (+2)
Wins	Jeff Hackett (11)
Goals against average	Jeff Hackett (3.84)
1992–93 →

The last remaining active member of the 1991–92 San Jose Sharks was Ray Whitney, who retired after the 2013–14 season.

Offseason

Connection to Minnesota

The Gund family had been partners in the Oakland Seals franchise which was moved to Cleveland to become the NHL Cleveland Barons. This franchise was merged with the North Stars franchise and the Gunds became partners in the North Stars' franchise. The Gund family had long wanted to bring hockey back to the Bay Area, and asked the NHL for permission to move the North Stars there in the late 1980s, but were vetoed by the league. Meanwhile, a group led by former Hartford Whalers owner Howard Baldwin was pushing the NHL to bring a team to San Jose, where a new arena was being built. Eventually a compromise was struck by the league, where the Gunds would sell their share of the North Stars to Baldwin's group, with the Gunds receiving an expansion team in the Bay Area to begin play in the 1991–92 NHL season.^[1] In return, the North Stars would be allowed to participate as an equal partner in an expansion draft with the new Bay Area team. Neither team retains the history of the Seals/Barons franchise.

On May 5, 1990, the Gunds officially sold their share of the North Stars to Baldwin and were awarded a new team in the Bay Area, based in San Jose. Over 5000 potential names were submitted by mail for the new team. While the first-place finisher was "Blades", the Gunds were concerned about the name's negative connotations (weapons, etc.) and went with the runner-up, "Sharks". The name was said to have been inspired by the large number of sharks living in the Pacific Ocean. Seven different varieties live there, and one area of water near the Bay Area is known as the "red triangle" because of its shark population. The team's first marketing head, Matt Levine, said of the new name, "Sharks are relentless, determined, swift, agile, bright and fearless. We plan to build an organization that has all those qualities."^[2]

Drafting

On top of the normal expansion process, the Sharks participated in a draft to select players from the North Stars. The Sharks and Stars then participated in an expansion draft. Both teams selected in the NHL Entry Draft. The Sharks selected second-overall in the first round, and then first-overall in the following rounds. The Sharks selected Pat Falloon with their first pick, regarded widely as a draft bust.

Captain

Defenseman Doug Wilson was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks. He was named the franchise's first team captain.

Regular season

The Sharks played their first ever game on October 4, 1991, against the Vancouver Canucks at Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, losing 4–3 to the Canucks. Craig Coxe scored the first goal in team history. The next night, on October 5, the Sharks played their first ever home game at the Cow Palace, losing 5–2 to Vancouver. The club earned their first victory during their third game, on October 8, as Kelly Kisio scored the game-winning goal at 16:45 of the third period, leading the Sharks to a 4–3 win over the Calgary Flames. Goaltender Brian Hayward made 36 saves to earn the victory.

After recording their first win, the Sharks lost their next 13 games, falling to 1–15–0, before putting together back-to-back wins over the Edmonton Oilers and New York Islanders. The team earned their first ever tie against the Detroit Red Wings on November 14, as the teams skated to a 3–3 score. On November 29, after losing their first 13 road games, the Sharks earned their first ever point on the road, as San Jose tied the Edmonton Oilers, 4–4, at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta. The next night, on November 30, the Sharks held off the Calgary Flames for a 2–1 victory at the Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, earning their first ever road victory.

Throughout the season, the Sharks allowed 10 or more goals in a game three times, which included a club-record 11 goals allowed against the Detroit Red Wings on February 15, 1992, as Detroit defeated the Sharks, 11–1. The team did not earn any shutouts during the season. The most goals San Jose scored in a game was on February 26, as the Sharks defeated the Quebec Nordiques, 7–4. The team was shut out nine times, the first one being on October 23, losing 3–0 to the Hartford Whalers.

Overall, San Jose finished the season with a 17–58–5 record, earning 39 points, and sixth place in the Smythe Division, 35 points behind the fifth-place Calgary Flames, and 42 points behind the Winnipeg Jets for the final playoff position in the division.

Rookie Pat Falloon led the club with 25 goals, 34 assists and 59 points in 79 games. David Bruce was the only other Shark to score 20 or more goals, as he had 22 goals and 38 points in 60 games. Brian Mullen scored 18 goals and 46 points in 72 games. On defense, Doug Wilson had nine goals and 28 points in an injury-shortened 44 games to lead the blueline. Link Gaetz provided the team toughness, earning 326 penalty minutes in only 48 games, while chipping in with six goals and 12 points.

In goal, Jeff Hackett earned the most playing time, going 11–27–1 with a 3.82 GAA and .892 save percentage in 42 games.

The Sharks finished the season 22nd in both scoring (219 goals for) and goaltending (359 goals against).^[3]

Season standings

Smythe Division^[4]

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Vancouver Canucks	80	42	26	12	285	250	96
Los Angeles Kings	80	35	31	14	287	250	84
Edmonton Oilers	80	36	34	10	295	297	82
Winnipeg Jets	80	33	32	15	251	244	81
Calgary Flames	80	31	37	12	296	305	74
San Jose Sharks	80	17	58	5	219	359	39

Campbell Conference^[5]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Detroit Red Wings	NRS	80	43	25	12	320	256	98
2	Vancouver Canucks	SMY	80	42	26	12	285	250	96
3	Chicago Blackhawks	NRS	80	36	29	15	257	236	87
4	Los Angeles Kings	SMY	80	35	31	14	287	296	84
5	St. Louis Blues	NRS	80	36	33	11	279	266	83
6	Edmonton Oilers	SMY	80	36	34	10	295	297	82
7	Winnipeg Jets	SMY	80	33	32	15	251	244	81
8	Calgary Flames	SMY	80	31	37	12	296	305	74
9	Minnesota North Stars	NRS	80	32	42	6	246	278	70
10	Toronto Maple Leafs	NRS	80	30	43	7	234	294	67
11	San Jose Sharks	SMY	80	17	58	5	219	359	39

Divisions: NRS – Norris, SMY – Smythe
bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results

1991–92 game log: 17–58–5 (Home: 14–23–3 ; Road: 3–35–2)
October: 1–13–0 (Home: 1–4–0 ; Road: 0–9–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Arena Record Pts 1 October 4 @ Vancouver 3–4 Pacific Coliseum 0–1–0 0 2 October 5 Vancouver 2–5 Cow Palace 0–2–0 0 3 October 8 Calgary 4–3 Cow Palace 1–2–0 2 4 October 10 Winnipeg 4–5 Cow Palace 1–3–0 2 5 October 12 @ St. Louis 3–6 St. Louis Arena 1–4–0 2 6 October 13 @ Chicago 3–7 Chicago Stadium 1–5–0 2 7 October 16 @ Los Angeles 5–8 Great Western Forum 1–6–0 2 8 October 17 Minnesota 2–8 Cow Palace 1–7–0 2 9 October 19 Boston 1–4 Cow Palace 1–8–0 2 10 October 23 @ Hartford 0–3 Hartford Civic Center 1–9–0 2 11 October 25 @ Buffalo 1–3 Buffalo Memorial Auditorium 1–10–0 2 12 October 26 @ New Jersey 0–9 Brendan Byrne Arena 1–11–0 2 13 October 29 @ NY Islanders 4–8 Nassau Coliseum 1–12–0 2 14 October 31 @ Philadelphia 2–5 Spectrum 1–13–0 2
November: 4–7–2 (Home: 3–3–1 ; Road: 1–4–1) # Date Opponent Score OT Arena Record Pts 15 November 2 @ Quebec 3–6 Colisée de Québec 1–14–0 2 16 November 4 @ Toronto 1–4 Maple Leaf Gardens 1–15–0 2 17 November 8 Edmonton 6–2 Cow Palace 2–15–0 4 18 November 9 NY Islanders 4–3 Cow Palace 3–15–0 6 19 November 12 Buffalo 1–7 Cow Palace 3–16–0 6 20 November 14 Detroit 3–3 OT Cow Palace 3–16–1 7 21 November 16 @ Vancouver 0–1 Pacific Coliseum 3–17–1 7 22 November 19 Los Angeles 2–3 OT Cow Palace 3–18–1 7 23 November 22 Toronto 1–3 Cow Palace 3–19–1 7 24 November 23 @ Los Angeles 4–6 Great Western Forum 3–20–1 7 25 November 26 Vancouver 4–1 Cow Palace 4–20–1 9 26 November 29 @ Edmonton 4–4 OT Northlands Coliseum 4–20–2 10 27 November 30 @ Calgary 2–1 Olympic Saddledome 5–20–2 12
December: 3–8–1 (Home: 3–3–1 ; Road: 0–5–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Arena Record Pts 28 December 3 Los Angeles 3–2 OT Cow Palace 6–20–2 14 29 December 5 Pittsburgh 0–8 Cow Palace 6–21–2 14 30 December 8 @ Edmonton 1–3 Northlands Coliseum 6–22–2 14 31 December 10 Winnipeg 3–3 OT Cow Palace 6–22–3 15 32 December 12 Edmonton 6–3 Cow Palace 7–22–3 17 33 December 14 Minnesota 2–3 Cow Palace 7–23–3 17 34 December 16 @ NY Rangers 3–4 OT Madison Square Garden 7–24–3 17 35 December 17 @ Pittsburgh 2–10 Civic Arena 7–25–3 17 36 December 19 @ St. Louis 0–4 St. Louis Arena 7–26–3 17 37 December 21 Quebec 4–1 Cow Palace 8–26–3 19 38 December 26 @ Los Angeles 3–5 Great Western Forum 8–27–3 19 39 December 28 Vancouver 2–3 Cow Palace 8–28–3 19
January: 3–8–1 (Home: 2–4–0 ; Road: 1–4–1) # Date Opponent Score OT Arena Record Pts 40 January 3 Philadelphia 3–1 Cow Palace 9–28–3 21 41 January 4 Montreal 0–1 OT Cow Palace 9–29–3 21 42 January 7 @ Vancouver 1–4 Pacific Coliseum 9–30–3 21 43 January 8 @ Calgary 3–10 Olympic Saddledome 9–31–3 21 44 January 11 @ Minnesota 4–7 Met Center 9–32–3 21 45 January 12 @ Winnipeg 4–3 Winnipeg Arena 10–32–3 23 46 January 14 @ Los Angeles 3–3 OT Great Western Forum 10–32–4 24 47 January 21 @ Edmonton 2–9 Northlands Coliseum 10–33–4 24 48 January 24 Calgary 2–3 Cow Palace 10–34–4 24 49 January 25 Edmonton 5–2 Cow Palace 11–34–4 26 50 January 28 NY Rangers 2–4 Cow Palace 11–35–4 26 51 January 30 St. Louis 2–4 Cow Palace 11–36–4 26
February: 3–8–1 (Home: 3–3–1 ; Road: 0–5–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Arena Record Pts 52 February 2 @ Winnipeg 0–6 Winnipeg Arena 11–37–4 26 53 February 4 Hartford 6–5 Cow Palace 12–37–4 28 54 February 5 Chicago 5–2 Cow Palace 13–37–4 30 55 February 9 @ Washington 2–6 Capital Centre 13–38–4 30 56 February 12 @ Montreal 1–6 Montreal Forum 13–39–4 30 57 February 14 @ Buffalo 6–7 Buffalo Memorial Auditorium 13–40–4 30 58 February 15 @ Detroit 1–11 Joe Louis Arena 13–41–4 30 59 February 18 Washington 2–4 Cow Palace 13–42–4 30 60 February 21 Vancouver 3–5 Cow Palace 13–43–4 30 61 February 23 Calgary 2–4 Cow Palace 13–44–4 30 62 February 26 Quebec 7–4 Cow Palace 14–44–4 32 63 February 28 Montreal 3–3 OT Cow Palace 14–44–5 33
March: 3–11–0 (Home: 2–4–0 ; Road: 1–7–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Arena Record Pts 64 March 1 Philadelphia 0–1 Cow Palace 14–45–5 33 65 March 4 Los Angeles 3–4 Cow Palace 14–46–5 33 66 March 6 Pittsburgh 3–7 Cow Palace 14–47–5 33 67 March 8 Toronto 4–1 Cow Palace 15–47–5 35 68 March 10 @ Chicago 1–5 Chicago Stadium 15–48–5 35 69 March 11 @ Winnipeg 0–3 Winnipeg Arena 15–49–5 35 70 March 14 New Jersey 3–2 Cow Palace 16–49–5 37 71 March 17 Detroit 4–5 Cow Palace 16–50–5 37 72 March 19 @ Calgary 1–3 Olympic Saddledome 16–51–5 37 73 March 21 @ Hartford 5–4 Hartford Civic Center 17–51–5 39 74 March 23 @ Boston 6–7 Boston Garden 17–52–5 39 75 March 24 @ New Jersey 3–4 Brendan Byrne Arena 17–53–5 39 76 March 26 @ NY Islanders 4–7 Nassau Coliseum 17–54–5 39 77 March 29 @ Winnipeg 5–6 Winnipeg Arena 17–55–5 39
April: 0–3–0 (Home: 0–2–0 ; Road 0–1–0) # Date Opponent Score OT Arena Record Pts 78 April 12 @ Edmonton 4–6 Northlands Coliseum 17–56–6 39 79 April 15 Calgary 3–4 Cow Palace 17–57–5 39 80 April 16 Winnipeg 3–5 Cow Palace 17–58–5 39
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Player statistics

Forwards

Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player	GP	G	AST	PTS	PIM
Pat Falloon	79	25	34	59	16
Brian Mullen	72	18	28	46	66
David Bruce	60	22	16	38	46
Brian Lawton	59	15	22	37	42
Kelly Kisio	48	11	26	37	54
Dean Evason	74	11	15	26	99
Wayne Presley	47	8	14	22	76
Perry Berezan	66	12	7	19	30
Mike Sullivan	64	8	11	19	15
Steve Bozek	58	8	8	16	27
Dale Craigwell	32	5	11	16	8
Pat MacLeod	37	5	11	16	4
Paul Fenton	60	11	4	15	33
Ken Hammond	46	5	10	15	82
Perry Anderson	48	4	8	12	143
Tony Hrkac	22	2	10	12	4
Jeff Odgers	61	7	4	11	217
Johan Garpenlov	12	5	6	11	4
Don Barber	12	1	3	4	2
J. F. Quintin	8	3	0	3	0
Ray Whitney	2	0	3	3	0
Craig Coxe	10	2	0	2	19
Mike McHugh	8	1	0	1	14
Mark Pavelich	2	0	1	1	4
Kevin Evans	5	0	1	1	25
Dave Snuggerud	11	0	1	1	4
Mikhail Kravets	1	0	0	0	0
Peter Lappin	1	0	0	0	0
John Carter	4	0	0	0	0
Ed Courtenay	4	0	0	0	0

Defensemen

Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player	GP	G	AST	PTS	PIM
Doug Wilson	44	9	19	28	26
David Williams	56	3	25	28	40
Neil Wilkinson	60	4	15	19	107
Jay More	46	4	13	17	85
Link Gaetz	48	6	6	12	326
Rob Zettler	74	1	8	9	99
Bob McGill	62	3	1	4	70
Rick Lessard	8	0	2	2	16
Mike Colman	15	0	1	1	32
Claudio Scremin	13	0	0	0	25

Goaltending

Note: GP= Games played; W= Wins; L= Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals Against

Player	GP	MIN	W	L	T	SO	GAA
Wade Flaherty	3	645	0	3	0	0	4.38
Jeff Hackett	42	2314	11	27	1	0	3.84
Brian Hayward	7	305	1	4	0	0	4.92
Artūrs Irbe	13	645	2	6	3	0	4.47
Jarmo Myllys	27	1374	3	18	1	0	5.02

Transactions

Trades

May 30, 1991	To Quebec Nordiques Greg Paslawski	To San Jose Sharks Tony Hrkac
May 30, 1991	To New York Rangers Tim Kerr	To San Jose Sharks Brian Mullen Future Considerations
May 31, 1991	To Minnesota North Stars Sharks agreed not to select Mike Craig in dispersal draft	To San Jose Sharks 2nd-round pick in 1991 1st-round pick in 1992
June 3, 1991	To Minnesota North Stars Shane Churla	To San Jose Sharks Kelly Kisio
September 6, 1991	To Chicago Blackhawks Kerry Toporowski 2nd-round pick in 1992	To San Jose Sharks Doug Wilson
September 20, 1991	To Chicago Blackhawks 3rd-round pick in 1993	To San Jose Sharks Wayne Presley
October 2, 1991	To Hartford Whalers Dan Keczmer	To San Jose Sharks Dean Evason
October 18, 1991	To Hartford Whalers Mike McHugh	To San Jose Sharks Paul Fenton
February 7, 1992	To Chicago Blackhawks Tony Hrkac	To San Jose Sharks conditional pick in 1993
March 7, 1992	To Quebec Nordiques Murray Garbutt	To San Jose Sharks Don Barber
March 9, 1992	To Vancouver Canucks Ken Hammond	To San Jose Sharks 8th-round pick in 1992
March 9, 1992	To Detroit Red Wings Bob McGill 8th-round pick in 1992	To San Jose Sharks Johan Garpenlov
March 9, 1992	To Buffalo Sabres Wayne Presley	To San Jose Sharks Dave Snuggerud

Free agency

Date Player Previous team July 8, 1991 Perry Anderson New Jersey Devils August 9, 1991 Steve Bozek Vancouver Canucks August 9, 1991 Ken Hammond Boston Bruins August 9, 1991 Brian Lawton Phoenix Roadrunners (IHL) August 9, 1991 Mark Pavelich August 9, 1991 Mike Sullivan San Diego Gulls (IHL) August 9, 1991 David Williams Knoxville Cherokees (ECHL) August 22, 1991 John Carter Boston Bruins August 30, 1991 Larry DePalma Minnesota North Stars September 3, 1991 Mike Colman Kansas City Blades (IHL) September 3, 1991 Wade Flaherty Kansas City Blades (IHL) September 3, 1991 Jeff Odgers Kansas City Blades (IHL) September 3, 1991 Claudio Scremin Kansas City Blades (IHL) October 10, 1991 Perry Berezan Minnesota North Stars

Date Player New team October 8, 1991 Mark Pavelich

Draft picks

NHL Entry Draft

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team
1	2	Pat Falloon	Right Wing	Canada	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
2	23	Ray Whitney	Left Wing	Canada	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
2	30	Sandis Ozolinsh	Defense	Latvia	Dynamo Riga (Russia)
3	45	Dody Wood	Left Wing	Canada	Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
4	67	Kerry Toporowski	Defense	Canada	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
5	89	Dan Ryder	Goalie	Canada	Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
6	111	Fredrik Nilsson	Left Wing	Sweden	Vasteras IK (SEL)
7	133	Jaroslav Otevrel	Left Wing	Czechoslovakia	Zlin ZPS AC (Czech)
8	155	Dean Grillo	Center	United States	Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL)
9	177	Corwin Saurdiff	Goalie	United States	Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL)
10	199	Dale Craigwell	Center	Canada	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
11	221	Aaron Kriss	Defense	United States	UMass Lowell (NCAA)
12	243	Mikhail Kravets	Right Wing	Soviet Union	Leningrad SKA (Russia)

NHL Supplemental Draft

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team
1	1	Jeff McLean	Center	Canada	University of North Dakota (WCHA)
1	7	Mark Beaufait	Center	United States	Northern Michigan University (CCHA)

Dispersal Draft results

The Sharks selected 24 players from the North Stars.

#	Player
1.	Shane Churla (RW)
2.	Brian Hayward (G)
3.	Neil Wilkinson (D)
4.	Rob Zettler (D)
5.	Ed Courtenay (RW)
6.	Kevin Evans (LW)
7.	Link Gaetz (D)
8.	Dan Keczmer (D)
9.	Dean Kolstad (D)
10.	Peter Lappin (RW)
11.	Pat MacLeod (D)
12.	Mike McHugh (LW)
13.	Jarmo Myllys (G)
14.	J. F. Quintin (LW)
15.	Scott Cashman (G)
16.	Murray Garbutt (C)
17.	Rob Gaudreau (RW)
18.	Arturs Irbe (G)
19.	Shaun Kane (D)
20.	Larry Olimb (D)
21.	Tom Pederson (D)
22.	Bryan Schoen (G)
23.	John Weisbrod (C)
24.	Doug Zmolek (D)

Expansion Draft results

#	Player	Drafted From
1.	Jeff Hackett (G)	New York Islanders
3.	Jay More (D)	Montreal Canadiens
5.	Rick Lessard (D)	Calgary Flames
7.	Bob McGill (D)	Chicago Blackhawks
9.	Tim Kerr (F)	Philadelphia Flyers
11.	Jeff Madill (RW)	New Jersey Devils
13.	David Bruce (LW)	St. Louis Blues
15.	Greg Paslawski (RW)	Buffalo Sabres
17.	Bengt Gustafsson (F)	Detroit Red Wings
19.	Craig Coxe (C)	Vancouver Canucks

References

• 2021–22 San Jose Sharks Media Guide
• Sharks on Hockey Database

1. Cameron, Steve (1994). Feeding Frenzy! The Wild New World of the San Jose Sharks. Taylor Publishing Co. pp. 29–38.
2. Gilmore, Tom (September 7, 1990). "Sharks Are Coming -- NHL Team Named". The San Francisco Chronicle. The Chronicle Publishing Co. p. D1. Retrieved April 21, 2007.
3. "1991-92 NHL Summary - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
4. "1991-1992 Division Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 25, 2012.
5. "1991-1992 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.