William Eklund Responds To Demotion
San Jose Sharks forward William Eklund was demoted to the fourth line last night and responded with a strong game.
Dean Tait - Hockey Shots - William Eklund Responds To DemotionSan Jose Sharks forward William Eklund was demoted to the fourth line last night and responded with a strong game.
Eklund had been playing as the team's second-line center and had struggled recently. Eklund even said postgame that he hadn't been playing his best hockey.
"I think today was a huge step in the right direction. You're not always going to have ups in the season. You're going to have some downs, and I'm learning here. I'm going to keep learning and be a better person," Eklund said postgame. "I feel good. It's a lot of games. We've played a lot of good teams, and I think we all are grinding right now."
Eklund scored his 11th goal of the season after Jacob MacDonald fed him a terrific pass.
Even the underlying analytical numbers backed up Eklund's good game. According to HockeyStatcards.com, Eklund had a 1.90 positive game score, his highest in the last nine games.
He and Jacob MacDonald were the best two players for San Jose.
They consistently impacted the game in the offensive zone and turned defense into offense. MacDonald was named the game's third star as well.
According to hockeystatcards.com, Eklund was the seventh-highest-ranked skater on both teams. In this game, Nikita Kucherov had four assists, Brayden Point scored twice, and Anthony Duclair had a goal and an assist.
"I thought he had a really good night tonight," Sharks head coach David Quinn said postgame. He and I talked at length this morning, talking about why we're moving him."
Eklund slid back to the wing after playing center for a long time. This allowed him to play more without thinking.
"I play my best hockey when I don't think. I feel like it's a fresh start for me today, back playing better hockey," Eklund said. "I feel like I did today. As I said, [Carpenter and MacDonald] helped me a lot today."
Quinn alluded to the fact that Eklund has never played this many games in his career. The young forward might have been worn down physically and mentally. Last night's game could have been a good mental reset and confidence builder.
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