from Curtis Pashelka of the Mercury News,

Using the term ‘reset’ but stopping short of saying his team is in a rebuild, general manager Doug Wilson reaffirmed his commitment to giving younger players opportunities while keeping several of his core players together, and believes the Sharks can be in a better position in 2022.

“Are we in the window to win a Stanley Cup this year? That’s highly unlikely,” Wilson said. “Are we going to compete to try and make the playoffs? Yes we are. Are we going to commit to the reset and to younger players getting opportunities? Yes we are.”

“We don’t put a timeline on it. But we think that there’s no reason why we can’t be back in a very good position next season.”

Wilson said last season the expectation for the Sharks was to get back into the playoffs the following year, and owner Hasso Platter issued a statement in January 2020 saying he supported Wilson’s plan to get the team “back on track.”

However, the Sharks are on pace to miss the postseason in back-to-back years for the first time in Wilson’s 18-year tenure as general manager. They entered Friday in eighth and last place in the West Division, nine points back of the Colorado Avalanche for the fourth and final playoff spot.

“This team can get back to a very good level, but we need the young players to step up,” Wilson said. “That’s really the window that we’re in. Sometimes you take a step backward to take two steps forward.”

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