When Joe Pavelski takes the ice in San Jose for the first time wearing a different shade of teal, there are bound to be personal connections and emotions that feel a little weird.
This is the same seventh-round draft pick who transformed himself from the moniker of “Little Joe” to “The Big Pavelski” with the Sharks, eventually representing his country and NHL team as captain, before joining the Dallas Stars as a free agent this past summer.
I spoke to some of Pavelski's former teammates ahead of his Saturday night return to SAP Center, and they shared some insight into the man who spent 13 seasons in a Sharks sweater.
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Relatable and likable
Dan Boyle encountered plenty of teammates during his 17-year NHL career, and he used “likable” as the encompassing word to describe Pavelski.
“He was so easy to deal with,” Boyle said. “Easy to befriend, whether you were a rookie or a 20-year vet.”
Sure, Pavelski knows the limelight of a 40-goal season in the NHL, and winning an Olympic medal. He could relate to high-caliber teammates in those same circles. But he also could connect with the newest members of teams, too.
San Jose Sharks
“Having seen some of the things young guys go through, maybe getting sent down, not playing enough, he’s kind of gone through that,” Boyle explained. “I always appreciated hard workers over guys with talent, and he’s right up there.”
Student of the game
“Pavs would write a hockey journal after games,” former Sharks teammate Devin Setoguchi recalled.
This was a personally transcribed account of what went right and wrong on given nights so the forward could reflect and grow from experiences in the future.
But Pavelski's quest to get better went way deeper than introspection alone.
“I remember him going to Detroit and asking [former Sharks coaches] Todd McLellan and Jay Woodcroft, to see if they could set up a meeting with [Pavel] Datsyuk, to see if he could pick his brain on playing hockey,” Setoguchi recalled.
A younger Setoguchi didn’t see how it was “professional” or even possible to gain something from a stranger who was about to be an opponent hours later.
“And now, I think, man … I wish I would have done things Pavs did,” Setoguchi admitted. "He’s always a good friend, great teammate. A guy you can always count on.”
As for Saturday night …
Former Sharks defenseman Douglas Murray knows what it’s like to be drafted by San Jose, spend a lot of time there and then eventually come back as an opponent.
“I just wanted to hit everything that moved that game,” Murray said. “It was a very emotional game, and I was so appreciative of the Sharks organization for recognizing me, but also the warm welcome of the fans.”
He also saw Patrick Marleau return under similar circumstances in 2017 with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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“I met him briefly downstairs after the game, and honestly he almost looked like he had seen a ghost,” Murray said. “It was weird, it was a really awkward moment.
“If anyone is going to be calm and cool and collected during this, it’s probably going to be Pavs,” he predicted.
Murray knows Sharks fans will give their former captain an overwhelming show of appreciation, but he also went on to detail what Pavelski could do in order to return the favor:
“In short, just lose the game. Like I did.”