Homecoming

Among the slate of EHE games tonight, a significant homecoming will be taking place in San Jose, as netminder Sergei Bobrovsky and the New York Islanders roll into the SAP Center to take on the Sharks.

Bobrovsky, of course, was the longtime #1 in San Jose before being traded to New York in late January.

Taken 151st overall in the EHE Inagural Draft, Bobrovsky suited up for 443 games over 8 seasons with the Sharks, and is by far the franchise leader in every significant goaltending category.

During his time in the Bay, Bobrovsky was also a three-time All-Star, two-time Vezina finalist, and was twice tagged as a franchise player.

Bobrovsky himself was not available for comment on gameday, but Frank Vatrano, a member of the Sharks organization since 2015, sang his former teammate's praises prior to the Sharks' morning skate.

"Yeah, can't say enough about him really," said the veteran winger. "When I was with the Barracuda I would see Bob pretty regularly since we were playing in the same building, and he was always super supportive. He really made me feel like part of the team even when I was kind of a Black Ace for a few years there, and that really helped me transition to becoming a full-time guy with the big club here.

"He was our leader, always really consistent in how he prepared, and through a ton of changes over the years he was just, like, Captain Shark (laughs)."

As for the game itself, the Sharks head into action as one of the season's surprises thus far, with a 14-14-4 record, good enough to see them competing for a wildcard spot in what was meant to be a rebuilding campaign.

The Islanders, meanwhile, are wrapping up a four-game Western road trip, and after a rocky 2-7 start to the season have clawed back into the playoff fight--led by Bobrovsky's 15 wins, 1.89 GAA, and .933 save percentage. 

Word has it that SJSE is informing fans that there will be a pre-game tribute to the former face of the franchise, and that scheduled puck drop will be delayed by about 15 minutes.

Kyle Phillips

As expected, publishing this article guaranteed Bob would have a sub-900 save percentage.

Homecoming
Officer Bobrovsky returns to the scene of the crime

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